Featured bartenders will present an original cocktail using any of the following spirits: Grey Goose Vodka, Patron Tequila, Bacardi Ocho Rum, Bombay Sapphire Gin, or Teeling Whiskey. A panel of beverage experts — including 2022 winner Lightfoot, Southern Smoke’s Catarina Bill and EZ's Liquor Lounge co-owner Matt Tanner — and event attendees will taste and vote for the winning cocktail. The gold winner will be featured on the Bayou & Bottle menu for one year. Special prizes from Four Seasons Hotel Houston will also be awarded.
"After the rousing success of last year’s event, we are very much looking forward to welcoming back great bartenders from across the city for some delicious competition,” says Johnathan Jones, the Four Seasons’ beverage manager. “Bringing these talented drink makers together always makes for a festive evening — inspired, spirited, and most importantly, fun.” The evening includes three-ounce samples of each featured cocktail, signature small plates from Bayou & Bottle and Toro Toro, and musical entertainment provided by BELLOSOUND DJ Flash Gordon. Proceeds benefit Southern Smoke Foundation and the Houston Chapter of the Bartenders’ Guild of America. Tickets ($35) are limited for this special event.
For those looking to make a night of it and stay at Four Seasons Hotel Houston, which is always a treat, the Residents Retreat package includes 10 percent off the room rate, breakfast for two, and overnight valet parking. Or stick around for a staycation with more fun. Toro Toro’s special Houston Restaurant Weeks dinner menu ($55) is still on offer until Sept. 4. The three-course menu features delicacies such as bison tartare with salsa macha; salmon with achiote marinade or a prime center cut filet with chimichurri; and dessert. The Paloma cake laced with grapefruit and tequila is the perfect palate cleanser. (If you’re looking for another deal, try Burger Wednesdays. Bayou & Bottle’s famous brisket burger is just $6 for lunch!)
Rather take a dip? Hotel guests and visitors are invited to reserve a day at the rooftop pool. Unwind at this urban oasis or snag your own private poolside cabana with friends and family, complete with a patio, seating area and full bathroom. The poolside café offers flavorful dishes and drinks. Other programs to add to your radar include Latin Live: live musical entertainment every Tuesday from 6:30-9:30pm, alongside exec-chef Rafael Villalpando’s dinner menu. Expect a twist on the contemporary steakhouse experience with Pan-Latin influences, Asian dishes and elevated spirits. Salud!
Toro Toro
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Westlake Derm's best-selling Alastin HydraTint Pro Mineral
Neil Farnsworth, an MD at Westlake Dermatology, has come to the rescue with tips to continue all year long in our sunbelt city. Farnsworth is a board-certified dermatologist with longstanding ties to Houston. He grew up in New Orleans, graduated from Harvard University, and later earned his MD at Baylor College of Medicine in the Texas Medical Center where he fell in love with the diversity of challenges found in dermatology.
His first word of advice: All sunscreens are not created equal. “Ultraviolet light is categorized as either shorter-wavelength UVB or longer-wavelength UVA. SPF is a measure of a sunscreen's efficacy against UVB, which causes short-term sunburns, but it turns out that the more deeply penetrating UVA is the worse culprit for causing long term sun-damage and skin cancers,” he says. “We don't have a number-system for grading UVA-protection, only the term broad spectrum. Individual chemical sunscreen ingredients only protect against narrow ranges of the UV-spectrum, and the chemicals for UVA break down easily. Physical or mineral sunscreens are literally microscopic umbrellas and can protect against the full UV spectrum.”
Farnsworth advises that we seek out mineral sunscreens. Higher-end mineral sunscreens have finer particles of zinc, titanium, and sometimes iron, allowing them to blend more naturally with little to no white caste or sheen. Cheaper mineral sunscreens can look quite opaque, especially on darker skin. So, the next best thing to completely mineral sunscreens are hybrids containing chemical ingredients to protect you against UVB, and just enough zinc for UVA protection, but not enough to look pasty.
“Sweat and water resistance formulas are obviously more useful during the summer, though it's important to remember that labeling only must prove that it lasts longer than 80 minutes in those conditions, and so re-applying is of paramount when engaging in outdoor activities,” says Farnsworth.
Lotions or Sprays?
Farnsworth prefers lotions over sprays. Almost all sprays are completely chemical, and therefore inferior to mineral sunscreens or hybrids, and studies show that almost no one puts on spray sunscreens correctly. “You're supposed to apply it as if you were spray-painting a door, not dash it on like bug spray,” he advises.
Farnsworth
Product Faves
He strongly recommends using the hybrid sunscreen Elta MD Sport for yardwork, pools, sports and beaches. “For pure mineral protection I love ISDIN Eryfotona Actinica, with zinc particles so elegantly fine that it blends invisibly even on Black skin. For those who like to wear concealing makeup, an excellent moisturizing substitute is Alastin HydraTint Pro Mineral, one of Westlake Dermatology’s best sellers.” Ideally, we're supposed to re-apply our sunscreen whenever we leave our office or homes throughout the day, but that can be a tough sell in hot, sticky weather. “ISDIN Mineral Brush is a pleasant option for reapplication — you can keep it in your car and just brush the lightly tinted powder on exposed areas before driving anywhere,” says Farnsworth.
Makeup as Sunscreen?
Farnsworth says that Alastin Hydratint is their best-selling foundation-substituting sunscreen, but SkinBetter Science Tone Smart is also quite popular and comes in both a pump and a more classically makeup-style compact. Other popular alternatives to foundation are Elta MD's UV-Elements and UV-Physical sunscreens. “Each product differs in their level of moisturizing and tint, and ideally should be tried on before buying.”
What about applying sunscreen to your face first and then finishing it off with foundation? “Applying foundation on top of sunscreen won't diminish its efficacy, but necessary reapplication of sunscreen later in the day then may require reapplication of your foundation. A mineral sunscreen powder like the ISDIN Mineral Brush may be more practical for such top offs,” he explains.
Other Common-Sense Reminders
Even on cloudy days, don’t forget to apply sunscreen to your feet, exposed scalp or hair part (or wear an SPF hat), and wear a lip sunscreen and protective sunglasses.
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