Forum Feedback Houston Daygame Thread

[houstondaygame]

Moving to Houston for the summer and trying to map out the best spots before I get there. Coming from a city with a more walkable downtown so I know Houston is going to require more intentionality about location.
From research it seems like the main areas worth looking at are Montrose, Rice Village, The Heights, and Midtown - but I don't know if these areas have consistent foot traffic from people who actually live there vs just tourists passing through or the wrong demographic entirely.
My main questions:

• Which neighborhoods have the best ratio of young women actually on foot vs driving everywhere?
• Are there specific streets, parks, or corridors within those areas that concentrate foot traffic?
• Weekday vs weekend — does it matter much or is it always car dependent outside of specific spots?
• Any spots near universities (Rice, UH) worth running?

Not looking for nightlife game, strictly daygame: street, coffee shops, bookstores, parks, outdoor malls. Any guys who've actually put in volume in Houston would be hugely helpful.

 

[West_Indian_Archie]

Moving to Houston for the summer and trying to map out the best spots before I get there. Coming from a city with a more walkable downtown so I know Houston is going to require more intentionality about location.
From research it seems like the main areas worth looking at are Montrose, Rice Village, The Heights, and Midtown - but I don't know if these areas have consistent foot traffic from people who actually live there vs just tourists passing through or the wrong demographic entirely.
My main questions:

• Which neighborhoods have the best ratio of young women actually on foot vs driving everywhere?
• Are there specific streets, parks, or corridors within those areas that concentrate foot traffic?
• Weekday vs weekend — does it matter much or is it always car dependent outside of specific spots?
• Any spots near universities (Rice, UH) worth running?

Not looking for nightlife game, strictly daygame: street, coffee shops, bookstores, parks, outdoor malls. Any guys who've actually put in volume in Houston would be hugely helpful.

Rice Village - only if you're going to Rice as a student. Same with University of Houston/TSU. Even if you don't get stopped by campus security - you'll clearly be seen as someone that's not a student. Most US colleges are pretty insular, in that everyone kinda knows each other. Gamble if you want though, who am I to tell you what to do?

Montrose/The Heights/Midtown - those are some of the most happening areas, but Houston is not designed for foot traffic - it's designed for cars. Everything is spreadout, even in Montrose/River Oaks. And so even if you go to the cool coffee shops, you're driving there. Let's say you go to Koffeteria

There really isn't a whole lot by there to look at and check out.

Street View · Google Maps

Explore a place in a more immersive way in Google Maps.

maps.app.goo.gl

Nor is Houston really hospitable enough (weather wise) to really do those type of "run after a girl you see downtown" type of pickups.

Houston doesn't cluster the cool stuff together. Everything (restaurants, coffee shops, book stores, vintage clothing, vinyl etc) is in strip malls, and the strip malls don't really generate "people walking by" type traffic.

You're gonna end up trying to run day game at The Galleria (or whatever the cool mall is). And that will get old.

Texas is generally good for girls, but it's too damn hot and spread out for day game. When it's cool or cold, no one is really out either.

Day Game is popping in places where lots of people walk.

Now if you hit Midtown at night where the clubs are during club nights, you can do street game, which is more like night game than day game...

But posting up at Slow Drip waiting for a chick to come through...not gonna be a good use of your time.

 

[Francis]

Rice Village - only if you're going to Rice as a student. Same with University of Houston/TSU. Even if you don't get stopped by campus security - you'll clearly be seen as someone that's not a student. Most US colleges are pretty insular, in that everyone kinda knows each other. Gamble if you want though, who am I to tell you what to do?

Montrose/The Heights/Midtown - those are some of the most happening areas, but Houston is not designed for foot traffic - it's designed for cars. Everything is spreadout, even in Montrose/River Oaks. And so even if you go to the cool coffee shops, you're driving there. Let's say you go to Koffeteria

There really isn't a whole lot by there to look at and check out.

Street View · Google Maps

Explore a place in a more immersive way in Google Maps.

maps.app.goo.gl

Nor is Houston really hospitable enough (weather wise) to really do those type of "run after a girl you see downtown" type of pickups.

Houston doesn't cluster the cool stuff together. Everything (restaurants, coffee shops, book stores, vintage clothing, vinyl etc) is in strip malls, and the strip malls don't really generate "people walking by" type traffic.

You're gonna end up trying to run day game at The Galleria (or whatever the cool mall is). And that will get old.

Texas is generally good for girls, but it's too damn hot and spread out for day game. When it's cool or cold, no one is really out either.

Day Game is popping in places where lots of people walk.

Now if you hit Midtown at night where the clubs are during club nights, you can do street game, which is more like night game than day game...

But posting up at Slow Drip waiting for a chick to come through...not gonna be a good use of your time.

Been holding onto this one...

More appropriate than I ever imagined.

 

[houstondaygame]

Rice Village - only if you're going to Rice as a student. Same with University of Houston/TSU. Even if you don't get stopped by campus security - you'll clearly be seen as someone that's not a student. Most US colleges are pretty insular, in that everyone kinda knows each other. Gamble if you want though, who am I to tell you what to do?

Montrose/The Heights/Midtown - those are some of the most happening areas, but Houston is not designed for foot traffic - it's designed for cars. Everything is spreadout, even in Montrose/River Oaks. And so even if you go to the cool coffee shops, you're driving there. Let's say you go to Koffeteria

There really isn't a whole lot by there to look at and check out.

Street View · Google Maps

Explore a place in a more immersive way in Google Maps.

maps.app.goo.gl

Nor is Houston really hospitable enough (weather wise) to really do those type of "run after a girl you see downtown" type of pickups.

Houston doesn't cluster the cool stuff together. Everything (restaurants, coffee shops, book stores, vintage clothing, vinyl etc) is in strip malls, and the strip malls don't really generate "people walking by" type traffic.

You're gonna end up trying to run day game at The Galleria (or whatever the cool mall is). And that will get old.

Texas is generally good for girls, but it's too damn hot and spread out for day game. When it's cool or cold, no one is really out either.

Day Game is popping in places where lots of people walk.

Now if you hit Midtown at night where the clubs are during club nights, you can do street game, which is more like night game than day game...

But posting up at Slow Drip waiting for a chick to come through...not gonna be a good use of your time.

This is really useful, thanks for the honest breakdown — saves me from wasting time. If you had to pick one area to actually live in specifically to give yourself the best shot — walkable enough & young women actually live there — where would you rent?

 

[West_Indian_Archie]

This is really useful, thanks for the honest breakdown — saves me from wasting time. If you had to pick one area to actually live in specifically to give yourself the best shot — walkable enough & young women actually live there — where would you rent?

I would throw both walkability and young women out of the window. You keep thinking you're gonna run into them, but you won't. You have to go to events/and places where people concentrate, because Houston is one of the least walkable big cities in the country. Everyone drives, and everyone lives across town.

You'll see a bunch of really close together streets - it's not really full of businesses or high density residence - thus it's not cheap.
But this area is generally where everything happens - books, coffee, records, restaurants, bars, clubs, the better hotels etc.

People drive to these things, do the thing, and then drive home, because most can't afford to live here (or they get more for their money elsewhere in the city)

You need to hop on google maps and use street view. Better yet, spend a week in Houston.

I'd rent in Montrose/Kirby but most of what I've circled here is fine. (this will put you within reasonable Uber distance of whatever you want to go to). Plus living in a cool hood is useful for LTRs.

 

[houstondaygame]

I would throw both walkability and young women out of the window. You keep thinking you're gonna run into them, but you won't. You have to go to events/and places where people concentrate, because Houston is one of the least walkable big cities in the country. Everyone drives, and everyone lives across town.

You'll see a bunch of really close together streets - it's not really full of businesses or high density residence - thus it's not cheap.
But this area is generally where everything happens - books, coffee, records, restaurants, bars, clubs, the better hotels etc.

People drive to these things, do the thing, and then drive home, because most can't afford to live here (or they get more for their money elsewhere in the city)

You need to hop on google maps and use street view. Better yet, spend a week in Houston.

I'd rent in Montrose/Kirby but most of what I've circled here is fine. (this will put you within reasonable Uber distance of whatever you want to go to). Plus living in a cool hood is useful for LTRs.

This is genuinely the most useful response I've gotten, appreciate you taking the time to actually map it out. The reframe from walkability to event / venue based makes sense.

I'm planning to fly out for a weekend before the move to drive by the zones myself and get a feel for it. Going to focus on Montrose/Upper Kirby since that puts me central to everything you circled.

One follow up if you don't mind — when you say events and places where people concentrate, what's actually working? Specific run clubs, recurring bar nights, gym scenes, recurring social events worth knowing about? Trying to get a head start on the social infrastructure.

 

[West_Indian_Archie]

One follow up if you don't mind — when you say events and places where people concentrate, what's actually working? Specific run clubs, recurring bar nights, gym scenes, recurring social events worth knowing about? Trying to get a head start on the social infrastructure.

There's nothing special about Houston/Texas.

Go to the places with your demographic, start yapping.

My typical MO in a new city is to find out where the music I like is playing, and then network the dj/promoter/bar guy to find out
1) where other nights are
2) what this club/bar is on a different night.

 

[Francis]

For the drive...

I think @Kaida posted some stuff on Houston