Legendary author John Steinbeck found in Texas “…a tight cohesiveness perhaps stronger than any other section of America” and observed that Texas was “the obsession, the proper study and the passionate possession of all Texans.”
It’s a philosophy embraced by the founders of Love and War in Texas, a concept restaurant dedicated to Texas food, heritage and music. All three are served at the restaurant’s group-friendly “ranchhouses” in Plano and Grapevine, along with full-production catering for large-scale events.
Pride and passion are common ingredients in the Texas menu, adding unique flavor to a wide range of culinary interactions and experiences for groups.
Palate Pleasers
Culinary tours, cooking classes, food trucks and festivals are leading trends in many Texas markets.
Austin groups, for example, can hit the trend-setting food truck scene, take a cooking class at Whole Foods Market’s flagship store, or book an outing with Austin Eats Culinary Tours.
The Texas Hill Country Wine and Food Festival celebrated 26 years in 2011, while the Austin Food & Wine Festival debuts in April 2012.
Food trucks are also a big play in Houston, along with a wide selection of cooking classes and the wildly successful celebrity chef-led Where the Chefs Eat tour program.
In Port Arthur, groups learn how to eat crawfish and crab at Larry’s French Market, where Maw Maw Judice’s Cajun cookbooks are great takeaways.
Galveston’s culinary festivals include the Galveston Island Food & Wine Festival in April, Yaga’s Wild Game Cook-off in May and the Galveston Island Shrimp Festival in September.
Situated on the Louisiana border, Beaumont offers a tantalizing mix of Texan and Cajun cuisines. Organized by the CVB’s tourism director for overnight groups, local culinary tours include one-on-one training with award-winning chefs and hands-on meal preparation. Foodies are in heaven at Beaumont’s historic YMBL South Texas State Fair, with concessions ranging from crawfish and shrimp bread to alligator on a stick. Another option is Painting with a Twist, where visitors can enjoy an evening of art, dining and wine combined.
North of Houston, The Woodlands Resort & Conference Center incorporates food into team-building activities, including the Iron Chef Competition and Executive Chef John Brazie’s signature Texas Chili Cook-off. Also in the works: a new Craft Your Own Mac n’ Cheese competition for meeting groups.
At the Gaylord Texan Resort in Grapevine, chef-led teams prepare and enjoy meals in the banquet kitchen, while the Four Seasons Resort and Club Dallas at Las Colinas offers a chef’s table in the resort’s show kitchen for groups of 12 to 20 and custom wine tastings for groups of 12 to 50.
Classes can be arranged for small group meetings at the Culinary Institute of America’s new 30,000-square-foot campus at San Antonio’s historic Pearl Brewery. Each May, the Culinaria festival celebrates San Antonio’s preeminence as a leading wine and food destination. Las Canarias at the luxurious Omni La Mansion del Rio was voted “Best Hotel Restaurant” by readers of the San Antonio Express-News, while the Grand Hyatt San Antonio, recently named one of the “Best Meeting & Conference Hotels in the U.S.” by Groups International, serves a new Pan-Latino menu at its Achiote River Cafe.
With the sprawling Dallas Farmers Market offering tours and cooking classes, Metroplex groups have an enticing new option in Texas Toast Culinary Tours. Founders June Naylor—a renowned dining critic, food and travel writer and sixth-generation Texan—and Cynthia Wahl craft Food Frenzy evenings, team-building events and custom tours for groups of all sizes.
At the 2011 edition of Mesquite’s increasingly popular Real. Texas. Festival., more than 43 teams competed in the Taste of Mesquite Barbecue Cook-off.
In Midland, groups can tour Susie’s South Forty Candy Factory, holder of the Guinness World Record for making the largest piece of toffee—Texas-shaped, of course.
Liquid Lures
Ranked first in America for livestock and second behind California for agricultural output, Texas is also the nation’s fifth-largest wine producer. For groups, this means prodigious cuisine on the plate and spirited glassfuls of fun.
Home to the Texas Wine and Grape Growers Association, Grapevine offers tasting rooms and seasonal events such as the Reds, Whites & You Trail in July and the Hallo-Wine Trail in October. Staged in the city’s historic downtown each September, the annual Grapefest, celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, is the largest wine festival in the Southwest.
In seafood-rich Bay Area Houston, the Railean Handmade Texas Rum distillery offers tours by appointment, Clear Creek Winery offers tastings and meeting space, and Haak Winery provides tours and community events.
Located in the Fort Worth Stockyards, Cowtown Winery is the only full-production winery within the city’s limits.
At the family-owned Messina Hof Winery in Bryan College Station, visitors can learn wine and food pairings, pick grapes during Harvest Weekends and stomp grapes. The city’s Texas Reds Steak & Grape Festival in October is also a popular draw. Encompassing over 500 acres of pecan trees, Royalty Pecan Farms offers tours and a new multipurpose facility for events.
Houston’s Saint Arnold Brewing Company is the oldest craft brewer in Texas, offering tours, tastings and event space within its historic downtown facility. In Conroe, Southern Star Brewing Company offers free tastings and tours on Saturdays. Meanwhile, the Fredericksburg Brewing Company is one of the state’s most acclaimed brewpubs. Situated in a restored 1890s building, the first floor of the brewery houses a dining area and biergarten, which is available for private events of up to 160, and the second floor features 12 “Bed & Brew” units, each decorated in a different theme.
Also in Fredericksburg, Grape Creek Vineyards has a tasting room on Main Street, as well as another tasting room, a marketplace and a cellar at its nearby winery and vineyards. Private tours and tastings are available.
