Lou MC Yelps a Lot

At the end of 2019, Dwight Sung, President of Asian Pacific American Heritage Association (APAHA), reached out and invited me to join their Board to build community engagement with restaurants in Houston’s Chinatown. Since I often promote businesses in Chinatown with my quarterly foodie meetup event, Chinatown Crawl HTX, I gladly accepted the offer.  After the Lunar New Year Festival in late January, I met with Xfinity Indirect Sales team member Hong Sang who coordinated outreach efforts with local sales teams at area Chinese supermarkets. Unfortunately, this year’s Festival had a lower turn out due to public concerns of the Coronavirus outbreak in China and the possibility it would also come to Chinatown. Additionally, distressed shop owners were sharing how business has gone down in their stores. When I heard this, I was a bit skeptical because I usually visit Chinatown stores during the middle of the week and I didn’t notice any change in foot traffic.  I decided to l...

Here is a newfound strip mall that resembles a strip mall in Chinatown. It's called North Golden Sun Plaza ( Google  |  Yelp ) in North Houston. The zip code should be 77014, but many still using 77068 because it's separated by a street. The street address is 3645 Cypress Creek Parkway, aka FM 1960 W, between TC Jester and Walter Road. According to an article on  Chron.com , North Golden Sun Plaza was established when Sun's Club moved in 2015 after Wal-mart moved across street (zip code 77068). Then, the lot owner expanded from one building to this horseshoe-shaped 3 buildings. Thanks to the Facebook folks who live around this area for the history and the proper street name of Cypress Creek Parkway. FM 1960 was renamed within last few years ( article on ABC13.com ). Therefore, you'll see some newer businesses are using Cypress Creek Parkway on their business cards. Either way is correct. However, not many business owners attach their suite number on their marketi...

I have my favorites in 2017. I divided them into different categories. Outside of Chinatown Favorite Asian Restaurant - Pho Hoa Noodle Soup & Jazen Tea Favorite Non-Asian Restaurant  - Gumbo Jeaux's  Northwest Favorite Grocery Store - Trader Joe's  Westchase Favorite Bakery - EatWell Bakery Cafe Inside of Chinatown Favorite Asian Restaurant - 75 BBQ & Hot Pot Buffet Favorite Non-Asian Restaurant - Tamales Dona Tere Favorite Grocery Store - Great Wall Supermarket Favorite Bakery - Olympics Chinese Bakery

I was among thousands of people to attend Holi Festival last Saturday, March 25. I enjoyed that perfect day drenched with vibrant colors and endless Bhangra music. The weather couldn't be better then a quick spring shower rinsed spring dusts away the day before the festival. Holi powders were on sale by the entrance Everyone was covered with color   Lots of children also take part at the festival. Catching some shades next to a fake car I was novice to Holi Festival. I've only seen the Holi Festival photos online. It's definitely a different feeling when I was among those friendly strangers, everyone was in good spirit. I love that hand print on her jeans. The festival was held at Houston Farm & Ranch , which houses Harris County Fair and many other festivals. The organizer used the huge grassy area for live performances. Tented booths from the community and food vendors lined along the edge. Children's moon walk was in the shaded area wher...

Mike M has been hosting BOTM “Burger of the Month” UYE since last February. This was from a Talk thread when Rachel B returned from her ACRONYM meeting in 2015.  After a long gap in Houston, BOTM was born. First few months, they were hosted by Rachel B. Then, Belly G, Jamie A finally, Mike M. This mock up t-shirt was an idea to generate interest.  Here is a quick overview of his 12 successful BOTM's. The attendance has increased month after month. It has became a popular and well-known event in Houston. UYE Page in… Event Page February 2017 UYE: February Burger of the Month @ Rachels Cafe January 2017 UYE: January Burger of the Month@Stanton's City Bites December 2016 UYE: December BOTM @ Bernie's Burger Bus November 2016 UYE: November BOTM @ Killen's Burgers October 2016 UYE: Burger of the Month@Little Bigs September 2016 UYE: September Burge...

I would love to nominate Belly G as Yelper of the Year in Houston, if there is a place for it. We've been to Indonesia, Peru, Bosnia, Poland, Ethiopia & Belgium. This brilliant man with plenty of ideas started the World Travel UYE since January 2016. Every month, the world travelers went from one country to another trying different cuisines without leaving Houston. Check out the chart below for the places we've been to so far. Event Page Reviews 01/16/16 UYE: Around The World @ Rice Bowl II - Indonesia 02/06/16 UYE: Around The World @ La Guitarra Con Sazon - Peru 03/09/16 UYE: Around The World @ Cafe Pita - Bosnian 04/20/16 UYE: Around The World @ Polonia Restaurant - Poland 05/18/16 UYE: Around The World @ Lucy Restaurant - Ethiopia 06/15/16 UYE: Around The World @ Cafe Brussels - Belgium 07/21/16 UYE: Around The World @ Emporio Brazilian Cafe Stay tuned w...

It's been in my wildest dream to host a Cross+Cities UYE with a road trip. I always want to try something exotic, exciting and unique to link Yelpers across the Lone Star state. From Houston to San Antonio takes about 3 hours. After reading a blog  Seattle & Portland Yelpers Swap Cities Road Trip , I posted my idea on a  Talk thread . I found Phillip B of Austin hosted a BBQ Crawl UYE in Lockhart on July 26, 2014. Yelpers from Houston, San Antonio and Austin (maybe Dallas) met at the center of these major cities. That was an epic. ( Reviews ) I am not able to pull something like his scale without Yelpers from other cities. In November 2015, I hosted a  Cross+Cities UYE - Austin Edition . Since I didn't have many Yelper friends in Austin, we had a small party. ( Reviews ) After my recent trip to San Antonio, I saw the city's beauty and tourism opportunity. I want to revisit the idea. I am hoping the Yelpers in San Antonio could help me put to...

This is a 3-part story on how I became a delegate from Precinct level to County level. Previously, I was a Delegate at SD Convention . I'm a delegate from SD 13 in Harris County. The Texas Democratic Convention was a 3-day event in San Antonio, June 16-18, 2016. Thursday was really for committees and organizers to meet during the day. I was just a novice delegate not holding any office. I arrived in San Antonio in late afternoon. The first thing on my agenda was to attend the kickoff parties. I prepaid $50 per person with intention to bring a guest to the Official Kickoff Reception at Villita Assembly Building . Guess what? I arrived late. I barely got to nibble on the variety of salsas with some chips. I consider my $100 was purely donation to the Party. Chalkboard fun Quite of crowd when it's free Reception Food The next party was hosted by Bexar County Democratic Party just across the walkway at La Villita Historic Arts Village . The music was blasting. ...

This is a 3-part story on how I became a delegate from Precinct level to County level. Me at Wheatley HS during SD13 Convention It started as a simple question, "would you like to attend the Senate District Convention?" A young lady sat at a high school table asked me as I cast my ballot during the Primary Election on March 1st. My poll location has always been at a school near my house. However, this election was a little different as certain precincts were moved to a different location for Democratic Party candidates. But the Republican candidates are voted at the same location. This change set off some angry voters. * Days passed, I almost forgot about what I signed up for. Suddenly, I received an email invitation from Joe Jennings, Chairman for Precinct 565. I registered to attend the Senate District Convention as instructed. Then, I was patiently waited for this once-of-my-lifetime experience. In the State of Texas, there are 31 Senate Districts. Because of the...

In a preparation for another Chinatown Crawl, I want to sort the business names in a manageable fashion. The following businesses are currently the occupants at Jusgo Plaza 百佳廣場 in Chinatown. Businesses at Jusgo Plaza Jusgo Plaza and Metropole Center are separated by a thin strip of cement. The roof tiles are similar. There isn't an official sign for Jusgo Plaza. Oh well. # Business Name Formerly 9288 Mandalay Dental 9284 Thanh Noi Sandwich Shop 9280 Jusgo Supermarket  百佳超市 9264 Lucky Dragon  新龍圖飯店 龍圖飯店 9262 Lai Lai Dumpling House  來來餃子館 9260 Xin Jiang BBQ  新疆燒烤 9258 Eastern Foot Massage  東方足浴 9256 Olympic Chinese Bakery  世運餅家 9252C Szechuan House  老成都 9252 Yang Win Gift Shop  珠成 9252A Star Snow Ice  明星冰谷 Clinic Related:  http:...

In a preparation for another Chinatown Crawl, I want to sort the business names in a manageable fashion. The following businesses are currently the occupants at Metropole Center 新都城商場 in Chinatown. As of June 1, 2016, these are the occupants at Metropole Center. I personally hate to read reviews at wrong businesses. Chinese characters are added for reviewer's conveniences. Last column shows formally known name from previous owner. # Current Business Formerly 9398 Chef Liu Restaurant 重慶餐館   new Ding Ding HK Tea House   德輝茶餐廳 9390 Central China Restaurant   滋味湖南 中央飯店 Tailor  洋裁 9388  King's Salon   黃志仁喜倫美容院 9384  Six Ping Bakery   六品西點麵包店 9380   Yuan Ten Restaurant   雲天燒臘麵家 9358   ANL Express   新干线快递 9356  Healing Foot   9354...