By Regina Lunch-Hudson

Editor’s note: Doing Biz In features continuously updated coverage of a full spectrum of top cities where readers conduct business. Publicist and travel writer Regina Lynch-Hudson has penned destination catalogs and articles for companies such as Vacation Express, North American Airlines and AirTran Airways.

City Smarts: Houston, with 2.02 million residents in 2005, is the fourth most populous city in the United States, trailing only New York, Los Angeles and Chicago. The city is considered the “energy capital of the world,” although only 50 percent of the population is employed by the energy industry. It is a center for applied technology – there’s aerospace, medicine, computer hardware and software, and many other areas of business. Twenty-four companies on the 2006 Fortune 500 list are headquartered in Houston. Houston ranks third among metropolitan statistical areas in the number of Fortune 500 headquarters, behind New York (73) and Chicago (29), and ahead of Dallas-Fort Worth (22), Los Angeles (18) and Minneapolis-St. Paul (18).

Jetsetters: Tony, Jerry and Marcus Davis, brothers and Houston natives, own the popular soul food eatery, the breakfast klub. Located in Houston’s Midtown District, the breakfast klub believes that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. The brothers have been serving up incredible regional breakfast specialties, recognized as the best breakfast in the city by the Houston Press three consecutive years. Open since September 2001, the mouth-watering menu, anchored by signature dishes: Wings & Waffles and Katfish & Grits, also includes a belt-loosening line-up of classics, including Red Beans with Seasoned Rice. Visitors worldwide flock to the breakfast klub when they hunger for something a little more daring than scrambled eggs and bacon.

The sole purpose of tbk Holdings Inc. is serving as a conduit into which resources may be invested, and redistributed equitably back into the Black community. The company’s many endeavors include the reopening of the Third Ward landmark, the Reggae Hut, in January 2006. In July 2006, the company launched the Kross the Street Marketplace, a dining and shopping experience held every Saturday morning, across the street from the breakfast klub, in a former Rent-A-Center retail store. There’s Kids First Saturday, a program where the breakfast klub transforms its parking lot into a virtual play land for children. In conjunction with Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, the breakfast klub assembled Houston-area entrepreneurs for an intimate conversation with Tavis Smiley during his State of the Black Union event. Business owners were provided the golden opportunity to have a meaningful exchange of ideas with one of the country’s foremost thinkers.

“This is a ministry with which we have been entrusted and it’s only through God’s grace and guidance that we have realized this to be a testament to what He can do,” says Marcus Davis, chief steward of tbk Holdings, Inc.

For more information, call Travis Davis at 713-528-8561, ext. 3711; e-mail info@thebreakfastklub.com; or visit www.thebreakfastklub.com.

Getting Around: METRORail offers convenient, accessible service within the heart of the city between downtown Houston and Reliant Park, including the Museum District and Texas Medical Center. The METRO offers several types of bus service in Houston. Houston has more than 2,200 taxis in its fleet.

Survival Kit: Pack your Opera glasses.  Houston has the second largest theater district in the country, after New York.

Catching ZZZ’s: The Houstonian Hotel, Club & Spa (111 North Post Oak Ln.) is located on an 18-acre wooded oasis in the heart of downtown Houston. The four-diamond hotel is known for business class service. Located alongside the Galleria and breathtaking Memorial Park, The Houstonian offers an urban escape. A businessman’s dream, the hotel lends access to one of the nation's top ten fitness centers, The Houstonian Club. Olivette, The Houstonian's premier restaurant, serves regional American dishes, and there’s the Manor House, adjacent to the hotel, which is open daily for lunch for hotel guests and private club members. It’s also available for private events and social functions. Center Court Café, located at The Houstonian Club, is ideal for casual dining. The Bar lends a watering hole for the overworked guest. Spa aficionados can indulge themselves at Trellis, The Spa at The Houstonian. Meanwhile, golfers will enjoy championship golf at Redstone Golf Club, home of the Shell Houston Open and located just a short drive from The Houstonian. For more information, call 713-680-2626 or visit www.houstonian.com.

The Power Lunch: Tony’s (3755 Richmond Ave.) has been Houston’s place to see and be seen for decades.  Though it moved to a new location in 2005, it remains one of the best power lunch locations in the city. Tony Vallone's namesake eatery offers a contemporary European-style menu, with creative varieties of classic mainstays. Distinctive vignettes inside include The Dining Room, The Bar at Tony's, The Wine Cellar, and the Wine Library. For art lovers, the art collection alone will grant you a chance to flaunt what you know during your next power lunch. For more information, call 713-622-6778 or visit tonyshouston.com.

Cultural Chow: Houston is known for its Mexican food, but the ethnic food that has been receiving rave reviews lately is Kiran (4100 Westheimer Rd.). Chef Kiran Verma brings her skills to a new restaurant with a unique flair all her own. She moves beyond her training in preparing authentic Mughlai dishes of Northern India to create contemporary and ethnic dishes that fuse American and French cuisine. For more information, call 713-960-8472.

Cyber Site: The Downing Street Pub (2549 Kirby Dr.), an upscale cigar bar, welcomes business people at all times and offers wireless access.  This premier cigar lounge caters to cigar lovers and hard-nosed drinkers — if you can drink and surf the Internet with any discernment. Their specialty shot, the Macallan 50-year scotch, will set you back an eye-popping $300 a shot and $4,000 a bottle. Some of us would rather have tea with our Internet excursions. For more information, call 713-523-2291 or visit www.downingstreetpub.com.

Networkin’: Network along with Greater Houston Convention and Visitors Bureau members at its monthly mixers. The venues vary around the city. For more information, visit www.visithoustontexas.com.

To De-Stress: A power walk along Buffalo Bayou (a 52-mile meandering waterway) will sweat your troubles away. For more information, visit buffalobayou.org.

Footloose and Fancy Free: The Museum District boasts 17 museums within walking distance of one another, everything from fine art to folk art, and all are world-class institutions. With more than seven million annual visits, the Houston Museum District is one of the top cultural districts in the country. Eighteen institutions make up the district, and 11 are free all the time.

Flight Time: As the country's fourth largest airport system, the Houston Airport System serves 193 cities worldwide, with Bush Intercontinental Airport ranking third among U.S. airports for nonstop destinations. AirTran Airways offers daily low-fare flights to Houston, and over 50 major U.S. cities. AirTran Airways is the world's largest operator of the Boeing 717. For more information, call 1-800-AIR-TRAN (247-8726) or visit www.airtran.com.

Someone Helpful: The Greater Houston Convention and Visitors Bureau at 800-4HOUSTON (446-8786) or www.VisitHoustonTexas.com.

Editor’s note: Doing Biz In features continuously updated coverage of a full spectrum of top cities where readers conduct business. Publicist and travel writer Regina Lynch-Hudson has penned destination catalogs and articles for companies such as Vacation Express, AirTran Airways and North American Airlines. Lynch also organizes cultural press trips and handles destination marketing for resorts, bed and breakfasts and tourism boards. More information on The Write Publicist & Co. can be found at www.thewritepublicist.com.

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