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Top 5 Places to Eat & Shopping Havens in Pearland, Texas

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Most of my international trips were part of my work trips, when I arranged to reach couple days earlier than the agenda or stayed back a few days after the work was over so that I could enjoy the highlights of what the city / town has to offer. Twice, I took side trips to San Francisco and Chicago. Sometimes, however, the workdays themselves offered opportunities to do a bit of exploring. Such was the case when I was in Houston for work for 2 whole weeks.

2 Weeks in Pearland

During the 2-week stint at my company headquarters in Houston, I stayed in Pearland – a city just outside of Houston, Texas. Pearland has a total area of 47.5 square miles and a population of 91,252.

My hotel was in the heart of Pearland City near Pearland Town Center. Every evening, after work, I would roam around the City Center, venturing into shops, gazing into the various boutique displays and when the time came for dinner, hopped into one of the many eateries scattered around Pearland. On the weekends, I had time to explore some more, go into the little side streets and taking in the feel of suburban township.

Top 5 Eateries

The fortnight, including weekends, saw me have my meal in a variety of restaurants and trying out different dishes every other day. Thus, I compiled this list of the 5 best places to eat in Pearland, Texas.

  1. Fish City Grill – This was my number one go-to place. A fish-based restaurant, this serves up a diverse menu ranging from familiar dishes to some exotic and unique ones. You have got to try their oyster tacos and shrimp & grits! Alongside, they serve a pink lemonade which is so tasty and is a lifesaver in the scorching summer days. All of this at very reasonable prices.
  2. LongHorn Steakhouse – You can’t visit Texas and not eat at a steakhouse. It is a must do! In Pearland, LongHorn is a classy restaurant with a subdued décor which serves mouthwateringly delicious steaks. This one is a little heavier on the pocket.
  3. BJ’s – BJ’s is a sports bar and brewery with a wide range of food choices from pork ribs to steak to pizza to chicken wings and their very own award-winning handcrafted beers. The décor is large TVs telecasting sports and the atmosphere is casual bonhomie.
  4. Bonchon – It’s the Korean version of KFC! I dare to say, even better than KFC. Fried chicken – wings, drumsticks, strips – and hot, sticky, sweet sauces to go along with them. Served with different types of sides, it’s there to satisfy your chicken craving.
  5. La Madeleine French Bakery & Café – Right near the main highway lies this gem of a French café. It has sandwiches, salads, breakfast and brunch items and ofcourse coffee. But its bakery items are to die for – tarts, crème brulee, eclairs etc. Delish!

Top 5 Shopping Stops

In my wanderings around Pearland, I also did quite a bit of window shopping. Oftentimes this would result in me succumbing to temptation and buying something or the other. Anyhow, I still had time to browse through a lot of shops, so here’s my list of 5 best places to shop in Pearland.

  1. Bath & Body Works – I absolutely loved this store. The smells and colors were fascinating. Most times they have lucrative offers like buy 2 get 1 or reduced prices in general. Shower gels, lotions, hand creams – these are my jam! Their aromatherapy range is just mindblowing.
  2. Rue 21 – This is a cute little shop which sells clothes and accessories. I especially loved their range of perfumes, got myself some. They also have cute tops at very reasonable prices.
  3. Dillard’s – This is a department chain store which has good sale and offers. While there were quite a bit of pricey branded stuff, I was able to spot a cool offer on Clinique products which made my day.
  4. Macy’s – This is another department store for clothing and accessories having a wide variety of collections and you will have a fun time browsing and maybe buy a dress or two!
  5. Walmart – To Americans this may sound too banal, but I absolutely adore Walmart. You can get anything under the sun at cheap prices and can browse for hours to find your perfect thing. I have bought cosmetics, comfy pajamas, stationary, kitchen items and whatnot from there. So do step in and wander.
Bath & Body Works lotion and body wash

Notable Mentions

Some other stores worth a mention. If you are so inclined, don’t forget to visit these stores.

  • Barnes & Noble – This is a famous bookstore complete with a seating section for reading and a café. The store also sells book-themed magnets, bookmarks, bag pins, stationary and some really cool and funky stuff. Visit this one for the books and the bookmarks. You’ll love it!
  • Chick-fil-A – I hadn’t heard of this until I visited Houston. It’s a better, tastier version of KFC, I can personally vouch for that. Pearland has a branch, so be sure to get a quick takeaway and enjoy the crunchy chicken with yummy dips.
  • Charming Charlie – Last but not the least, Charming Charlie is an utterly adorable and bohemian shop for accessories like bags, jewellery, hats, scarves, shoes etc. The décor is charming and the collection is wonderful. I shopped quite a bit from here and I loved everything! Unfortunately, I think it’s closed now (as per Google) but I thought it’s worth a shout-out.
Barnes & Noble (Pic from google)

So there’s my list of places to eat and shop in Pearland, Texas. If in town, do not forget to check out these places and let me know if you found this helpful.

This post was written as part of Blogchatter Half Marathon.

Cockrell Butterfly Center, Houston Museum

A visit to the Houston Museum of Natural Science yielded a wonderful surprise. During my sojourn to my company headquarters in Houston, Texas, I used my free weekend to visit one of the most interesting sightseeing places there – The Museum of Natural Science. While I was superficially aware of its attractions, the Butterfly Center coupled with the Hall of Entomology was like an exciting find – a wondrous hidden gem.

A Specially Designed Natural Habitat

The butterfly conservatory is a 3-story glass structure which has been built to emulate a tropical rainforest. It is home to thousands of butterflies of varied species, which are all allowed to grow and thrive in their natural habitat. The butterfly museum, called the Cockrell Butterfly Center, boasts of a central display of a 50-foot-high waterfall and numerous tropical plants and flowers.

Upon entering, my senses were hit with an explosion of colours and movement. Unlike zoos or other museums, these butterflies are live ones and roam around freely in the simulated forest. The innumerable brightly coloured creatures are a delight to watch. I spent ages going around the place, watching these butterflies and their vivid patterned wings, observing the jewel like insects fluttering about or landing on the leaves or flowers. There was also an iguana!

Entomology Hall

The Brown Hall of Entomology precedes the Butterfly Center; it is located on the same floor as the entrance to the latter. The entire floor is dedicated to a large plethora of insects and their study. The experience is an interactive and educating one. From introducing me to new species and hitherto unknown insects to informing me about the sounds they make to their food habits and their life cycles.

There are both live insects as well as preserved specimens The exhibit also contains an area for cocoons from where butterflies actually hatch out! That is something to look out for. There is another play area for further interaction and games with these arthropods. I did not visit that because it was more for kids.

Tip: Learn more here –

  1. The Rainforest
  2. Hall of Entomology
  3. https://www.hmns.org/cockrell-butterfly-center/our-residents/
  4. https://www.hmns.org/cockrell-butterfly-center/pollinator-gardening/

Education and Conservation

While this is mostly an educational experience, this museum does its part in conservation of nature. Breeding new insects, creating a natural, sustainable environment for them goes a long way towards preservation of nature as it was meant to be. Bringing about awareness and knowledge leads to appreciation of God’s creatures which in turn help the next generation carry on the job of environmental preservation and enhancement.

I am doing my bit by raising awareness through this post with the aid of Blogchatter’s Cause a Chatter campaign.

Other Exhibits of Interest

The Houston Museum of Natural Science has various other highly interesting exhibits and shows. Notable ones are:

  • The Paleontology Exhibit – let’s face it, dinosaurs are always interesting!
  • Foucault Pendulum – mimicking the Earth’s rotation.
  • Hall of Gems and Minerals
  • The Planetarium – the Black Holes show is very interesting, and I highly recommend it.

Tip: The museum is full of interesting attractions, you may want to check out the various offerings online to help plan your visit. The HMNS.

Tip: Entry tickets are for $25 while the special exhibits and shows require extra tickets. Butterfly Center (including Entomology Hall) is ~$9.

Check current prices here – https://www.hmns.org/visit/hours-and-pricing/. Also check out the safety policies and precautions: https://www.hmns.org/visit/health/

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