Westheimer Rd, Neartown / Montrose

A comedian once told me that when you are in a strange city and you want to find the action, ask the cab driver where the kids hang out. Well, in this city of 4 million plus people, that would be Westheimer.
This is the East Village of Houston. The Bourbon Street, the Haight Ashbury, the Piccadilly Circus. From the bead shops near Kirby to the bars and clubs near Montrose, this street has been known since I was a kid as the place to be when you want to make something happen. There used to be a Westheimer street festival every summer but they've since moved that downtown. No matter. Westheimer still has all the thrills of a very active nightlife. No where else in Houston can you find a collection of bars so close together that seem to cater to the same crowd. Twenty something artists and musicians fill the streets near Westheimer and Montrose but a wide variety of people join them knowing that where ever this lively bunch goes, fun follows.
If you want to go to an alternative lifestyle club, get a tattoo, see a rock show, or drink in a poorly lit dive bar with other people looking for laughs and fun, you can certainly find it on Westheimer. This is a rather long road going through the better part of Houston so for the nightlife, contain your journey between Buffalo Speedway and Bagley. There's even a commuter rail that will shuttle you from the Westheimer/Montrose area to downtown and back.
So put on your tight blue jeans and your favorite black concert shirt and head down to Westheimer for cheap beer and cheap laughs. That's where the kids hang out.

The things I love about Westheimer Road are the Bars/Lounges and all the shopping. I love to go have drinks at Shimakos and Firkin & Pheonix. This street is really long and there are many other things here, especially houses. Depending on the street, there are different things on each end. Families will like the house and singles and those that are outgoing and love to shop will like all the stores.

Westheimer Street in Houston is such an amazing and long street that it's almost impossible to described it all at once.

My very most favorite shopping neighborhood in Houston is at the downtown end of Westheimer street. Here there are dozens and dozens of alternative, hand-made, exclusive and second-hand clothing shops that are unlike anything else. Usually they seem to be run by the owner alone in a tiny building. I also had the most amazing omelettes at a hidden little French/Belgian cafe here called Cafe Montrose. It looks like nothing special, just a tiny restaurant tucked at the end of a strip mall, but the food and the staff were amazing, and still inexpensive. I'm now going back there every single time I am in Houston.