Houston Strong: As Retail and Restaurants Re-Open Their Doors Post-Harvey

As recovery has begun from Hurricane Harvey, Houston’s shop owners and restauranteurs  continue to rally to get doors open and to be there for us!

image above courtesy of Houston artist, Rachel Gardner

Yesterday was the first day for me to begin to feel a slight sense of normalcy creeping back into my life. I started to get emails from retailers and restaurants telling that they were re-opening their doors, some limited hours, limited menus, limited staffs.  Some were not quite ready yet but the sense that I felt from all of them is that they were jumping through hoops to be there for us. Many that I even talked to as I began calling were genuinely eager  to help our city with donation collections, give back a portion of their sales to local charities and genuinely rally from the heart to help fulfill our needs……truly once again another group is showing that we are truly #houstonstrong!

I have compiled a listing that is not 100% complete as decisions are being made daily. However, I’m attempting to try to do my part to simplify your lives by sharing with you what is open and what is about to come and will update this list daily as I receive more details from the owners. My goal in doing this is also to encourage each of you to do your best to shop local, a great concept but especially important right now as so many of our friends are experiencing some difficult times either personally or with a business that might have been effected by Harvey. By shopping or dining out you can also contribute to the financial strains on this city and give yourself a pleasant break at the same time!   Word to the wise: unless you are absolutely positive, call first when you are planning to head out of your home, do not assume that its business as usual quite yet and that the store or restaurant will be open when you need it…..that was my experience yesterday causing time delays for me in trying to assist a flooded friend that needed a few necessities!

Retail

1.   TOOTSIES – open; store hours on website; 10% of sales  benefit Harvey Relief Fund thru Monday, Sept 4; Extra 50% off on all previously reduced merchandise;  TOOTSIES LABOR OF LOVE – Monday only 12:00-6:00 p.m. female flood victims can visit Tootsies Pop-Up Shop and receive one complimentary top,pant or dress                                                                  Fresh Faces event scheduled for 9/6 postpone – new date TBD; Tom & Linda Platt Trunk Show cancelled; Trunk Show & Personal Appearance for MCL 9/19-9/21

2. Neiman Marcus – open as of noon Friday,  Sat/Mon 10-6; Sunday 12-6                                                                                                 August 27, Neiman Marcus Group made $50,000 donation to Hurricane Harvey Relief fund; National Disaster Relief Partner of American Red Cross ($250,000 annual donation). Also deployed their Annual Associate Giving Campaign three weeks early (launched 9/1), giving Associates the opportunity to support over 1.5 million organizations, including two internal All Heart funds, one for Disaster Relief and the other for Associate Hardship.Neiman Marcus Group matches Associate donations to 501c3s (with a minimum donation of $25 and a maximum of $2000 per organization) up to a 3:1 ratio.No maximum cap that Neiman Marcus will match. 

3.   Muse Boutique – open; 10% of sales thru end of September to American Red Cross; bring donation items and receive 20% off purchase

4.   Cotton Club Collection –  open; accepting donations  for distribution to shelters; also many vendors are sending in much needed items such as blankets and baby items, in addition to clothing to be distributed to local charities.

5.   à bientôt – opened Friday; accepting donations for distribution to shelters; offering 20% of all sales from 9/1 thru 9/8 to benefit Houston Food Bank

6.   Elaine Turner – opened Thurs.; hours 11-6 until further notice; Labor Day Sale in progress thru 9/5; accepting donation items for distribution; 10% of sales benefit American Red Cross

7.   Cakewalk Style – open; 10% of online and instore sales thru September to American Red Cross; includes both Upper Kirby and Woodlands locations

8.   Abejas Boutique – open Tues – Sat 10-5; closed Labor Day; accepting donations for distribution

9.   Joan Pillow Bridal – open; closed Labor Day weekend; 10% of sales from Accessories and Veils thru month of September benefiting Houston Humane Society

10.   The Webster – open; 10% of all sales benefiting Houston Community

11. Kendra Scott – open on Friday 9/1; Buy More/Save More now; working on tie-in of local events w/local charities; Wed. 8/30 50% of sales to American Red Cross, raising $200.0

12.  Saint Cloud – two stores re-opened, Friday, 9/1; 15% of sale benefiting Baker-Ripley, a hurricane relief fund

13.  More Than You Can Imagine – open; donate a case of diapers to The Diaper Foundation and save 20% on regular price item; 70% of Sale Room merchandise

14.  Miles David – owner and local Houston designer has taken on a September challenge of promoting one local small business each day on his Instastory @shopmilesdavid encouraging all Houstonians to shop local; #PayItForwardSmallBusinessChallenge

15.  Events Gifts – 10% of all sales benefit the Houston Symphony to help them restore programs; much needed help for the arts

16.  Dimensions – open 8/31; vendors donating clothing for victims of hurricane; making undetermined donation to Houston Food Bank

17.  Pomp & Circumstance – open; orders now thru 9/8 20% of all sales to benefit Hurricane Harvey Relief Fund

18.  Williams Sonoma – open Sat. 10-6; normal hours resume on Sunday, 9/3

19.  Lululemon – re-opening Saturday, 9/2 in Highland Village

20.  Cheeky Vintage – re-opening Tues. 9/5; 10% of all sales for month of September benefiting the Mayor’s Hurricane Harvey Relief Fund.

Special Items and/or Places

1.   Museum of Fine Arts Houston – reopening Main Campus on Tues., 9/5 with free admission thru 9/7; Bayou Bend Collection and Renzi closed until further notice;

2.   Herman Park Conservancy – all cleaned up thanks to many volunteers; Centennial Gardens reopened on Thursday as a nice refuge to take a break!

3.   India Hicks – online collection; very special items; online sales 5% of sales 9/1-9/8 benefiting Center for Disaster Philanthropy

4.   Golden Thread – online; donation of 100% of proceeds from sale of large gold Texas shaped necklace to local shelters in Houston not supported by national charities.

5.   Paris Texas Apparel – Houston based men’s clothing and accessories collection; known for shirts with special pocket detail has designed a shirt with pocket that supports our city reading: “Come Hell or High Water”; 100% of proceeds from this shirt to Hurricane Harvey Relief Fund

Restaurants

I will update this list regularly as restaurants are re-opening daily and hours are changing based on food and staff availability; for detaiedl info daily check houstonfoodfinder.com.  The following are just a small sampling of restaurants that have reached out to let me know they are re-opening, there are many more plus our restaurants in this city have consistently shared stories of large quantities of food that they have donated to First Responders, Police and Fire personnel, etc.

!.   Carrabba family restaurants – open; hours 11-8 for now with restricted menu

2.   Del Frisco – open; thru 9/4 of all Del Frisco restaurants nationwide will donate 20% of sales to Houston Food Bank; goal:  $1million

3.  Toulouse and Taverna Restaurants in River Oaks District – open 2:00 till 9:00 p.m. with limited menu

4.   Vallone Restaurant Group – Tony’s, Ciao Bella, Vallones; please call restaurant for specific hours

5.   Pax Americana – open, drop off center for donation items

6.   Clark Cooper Concepts – all restaurants open; includes Brasserie 19, Coppa Osteria, Punks, Ibiza, The Dunlavy and Salt Air

7.   Rajin’ Cajun – open; owner Luke Mandola fed 12 police stations on Thursday

8.   Arnaldo Richards’ Picos – open;providing 600 meals per day for American Red Cross thru Labor Day; month of September, $5 to American Red Cross for every ‘Fajita for Two’ purchased Wednesday thru Sunday

9.   Benjy’s & Local Foods – open; donating 25% of their sales thru Sunday, 9/3 to JJ Watt’s Houston Food Relief Fund

10.   B & B Steakhouse – open; benefiting Houston Food Bankl complimentary Houston Heroes Menu for all First Responders

11.   Yauatcha – open; starting 9/1 thru 10/1 all Yauatcha locations (8) around the world will come together to help the Houston community by donating a portion of revenue from a special selection of menu items to the Mayor’s Hurricane Harvey Relief Fund

12.   Tiny Boxwood – open;

13.   FM Kitchen & Bar – open as of noon on Thursday; also have food ready for delivery; free burgers for all First Responders

14.   Original Ninfa’s on Navigation – open with majority of menu available

15.  Le Colonial Restaurant – River Oaks District; open for lunch and dinner, 11:00-11:00

16.  Antone’s Famous Po’Boys – open on two locations on West Loop(San Felipe)  and North Loop (T.C. Jester); Grab n Go in Greenway Plaza and Downtown Tunnel closed until further notice; Grocery store availability restored….Antone’s has served thousands of its famous sandwiches to First Responders

17.  Recipe For Success – please share in hosting with RFS a Virtual Kitchen Shower helping to restore the kitchens of Hurricane Harvey flood victims. RFS will deliver to those most in need, fresh produce from their Hope Farms as well as a selection of pantry items, spices, pots and pans into their hands.  For details on how to donate visit:  http://mailchi.mp/recipe4sucess/help-us-host-a-virtual-kitchen-shower-for-victims-of-hurricane-harvey-726089

PLEASE SUPPORT OUR LOCAL BUSINESSES!

To see more from local Houston artist, Rachel Gardner, visit her website here