What a wild two weeks it’s been! First, my reunion with Donny Osmond in Las Vegas. Then, visiting my son Matt and my daughter-in-law, Tracy, with our son Mike joining us for a few days in the Houston area. Matt and Tracy moved to Katy, Texas last year and were so anxious to share some of the amazing restaurants with us! We couldn’t believe how incredible the food was at 8oz Korean Steak House & Bar. Matt had met the owner, T.K., years ago on a golfing trip to California. He was partnered with T.K. at a golf tournament and they’ve been close friends ever since. All the food was prepared on the open BBQ grill at the table and my favorite was the Wagyu beef. It melted in your mouth!
The next day, Matt’s boss, Dustin invited us to lunch at Michelin-Starred Tim Ho Wan USA dim sum restaurant that was right next door. Again, every item we tried was so authentic and delicious. It was so great to spend a little more time with Dustin, who is a dream boss and a wonderful person.
After our lunch, we checked out the nearby PopStroke, a family-friendly golf and outdoor dining experience featuring two 18-hole Tiger Woods-designed putting courses in the same shopping center. Tiger will always have a warm spot in the Marino family’s hearts. Matt has admired Tiger since we introduced him to golf when he was seven years old. When he was 16, Matt got to caddy for Tiger in a Pro-Am (then called the Sprint International) just a half hour from our Colorado Springs home. After college, Matt became a PGA Professional and in 2015 he was named Head PGA Pro of the Tiger Woods-designed golf course, Bluejack National, in Magnolia, Texas. We were invited to the opening ceremonies, and I had a chance to thank Tiger for the way he treated our son 16 years before. He kept looking at the picture from that day (which we had enlarged, and Tiger signed for Matt) and saying “16 years ago? 16 years ago!” Matt retired from professional golf a few years ago, but it is still an integral part of his professional career.
On our final night we went to a quintessential Texas restaurant: Anthonie’s Market Grill. As their menu stated: “Tucked between lazy farm roads and sprawling ranch land, in cozy proximity to I-10, Katy, and the Energy Corridor, lies west Houston’s favorite eatery.” Most entrees are cooked over an open grill, there’s live music every night (we had two country singers who were so much fun, singing many country favorites with a little Jimmy Buffett thrown in), and I had the best margarita I’ve ever tasted! We had dinner on their huge open-air patio, and it was perfect.
Then it was time to come home and get back to reading/responding to all the amazing comments on my Donny posts. I can’t thank you all enough for sharing those moments with me. It means more than you will ever know.
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