In a word, Houston cuisine is hot. It was hot before the city secured Super Bowl LI. As The New York Times said in April last year, "I nonetheless come today to proclaim Houston one of the great eating capitals of America." And as tens of thousands descend upon Houston for Super Bowl LI, mixed in amongst Patriots fans, Falcons fans, vagabond thrill-seekers, and C-level execs will be deft travelers who already took a minute to sniff out the food and drink scene.

They scoured the James Beard Awards and discovered Bryan Caswell's Reef, considered the best seafood restaurant in America. They googled Justin Yu, Best Chef: Southwest 2015, and booked all the tables at his Oxheart. They found Beard finalist Hugo Orteaga's trio of goodness–Hugo's (authentic Mexican), Caracol (coastal Mexican), and BackstreetCafe (al fresco American)–as well as nods to The Pass, Helen GreekFood & Wine, Anvil Bar & Refuge, State of Grace, True Food Kitchen, North Italia, and Kata Robata, where Chef Hori is the only fugu-certified chef in Houston. (If the puffer fish doesn't kill you, his Rising Sun Roll and Texas Hamachi might shoot you straight to heaven.) The second they secured tickets, they scrolled through Eater Houston's "Essential 38" and January 2017 "Heat Map." They are prepared.

But Houston cuisine will continue to be hot long after the Super Bowl ends, and without the impossible-to-snag reservations. Here's how to take advantage, whether during Super Bowl weekend or in trips after.

Houston's Culinary Background

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Houston is like New York City with its density of mom and pop ethnic restaurants. It has huge areas of sprawl with malls and strip centers where no English is spoken and you can find kumquat trees, bootlegged electronics, and food carts selling fried chicken, crawfish, and noodles. It is home to the third largest African-American community in the U.S., and it's the largest non-zoned city in America. Its neighborhoods are motleys of offices, restaurants, and hidden gems.

And Houston cares a whole lot about football. As Caswell of Reef puts it: "Our team was plucked from us. Our beloved Houston Oilers! These Texans are a new team with no history, and yet we're the number one tailgating city in the U.S." But when you take into account Houston's diversity–in an oil state–along the Gulf of Mexico, tailgating looks and tastes a whole lot more interesting. "It's not a bunch of white dudes," says Caswell. "It's not Spanish dudes. It's all dudes."

Where to Eat

Houston is a dressed-down city, but for those looking to kick it up, Beard winner Yu recommends starting at Anvil for drinks, heading to Tony's for peerless fine dining, and then closing the night at Public Services, Yu's wine and whiskey bar, which features hard-to-find wines and straight spirits served beneath a painted ceiling in the historic Houston Cotton Exchange building. When you can't get a rezo at Oxheart, come here for the unpretentious table service and sup on Yu's bar snacks.

When you take into account Houston's diversity–in an oil state–along the Gulf of Mexico, tailgating looks and tastes a whole lot more interesting.

If you only equate Houston with brisket barbecue, wake up and smell the pho. "Drive to Chinatown in Bellaire," says Yu. "Go to Pho Binh for Vietnamese or Shanghai for serious Cantonese. Yes, the name is Shanghai, but it's Cantonese." Yu also recommends blowing your budget on prawns and fish at Sinh Sinh and eating Pakistani food at Himalaya.

Tex-Mex is indicative of the region with its heavy cheeses and sauces, but don't miss the rustic, less border-style Mexican cuisine and coastal flavors from Tampico, where the red snapper a la plancha is legendary.

Love Buzz cooks up the best down-and-dirty, late-night pizza in town. They have old school arcade games and Skeeball, plus salty bartenders and an unspoken No Hipsters rule. Ask for the owner's favorite pie: the Whizard Sleeve with sauce, thin-sliced ribeye, peppers, onions, smoked provolone, and dollops of cheese whiz.

Riel

The brand-new Riel may be the most buzzed-about opening in town. While it's near impossible to get a reservation, walk-ins at the bar and common table are first come, first served. Order the hanger steak and pierogis made by true Canadian ex-semi-pro hockey player Ryan Lachaine.

Finish any wild eve at a late-night taqueria like Chapultepec Lupita, where smothered enchiladas are topped with two fried eggs. Or hit them for breakfast and then pop over to D&Q Beer Station. It looks like a ratty convenience store, but it has a small and super-curated collection of wines and the city's best craft beer selection. Speaking of vino, Texas is just behind Virginia in wine production, and grapes like Viognier and Tempranillo have found new fertile ground in Texas Hill Country. Keep eyes peeled for offerings from Brennan, Duchman, McPherson, and Pedernales.

Where to Drink

Saint Arnold

Old divey bar Rose Garden in the Heights only accepts cash. If you're lucky, Rose will cook up a pot of beanie wienies or no-beans chili to go along with cold Bud Lights. Tiki bar Lei Low also slides under the radar, buried in a shopping center and serving super-strong, super-delicious drinks. notsuoH (pronounced NUT-so) is Houston spelled backward, and on a walk down Main Street, you may pop in for music, art, poetry, booze, or general weirdness. Seek out Poison Girl Cocktail Lounge for their sublime bourbon collection, and ask Jonas about the free birthday shots. Oh, and there's honest-to-god real retro pinball.

Capt. Foxheart's Bad News Bar & Spirit Lodge overlooks the skyline with beautiful drinks, gorgeous views, $2 Happy Hour session beers, plenty of mezcal, and lots of vinyl. Some say it makes the best Old Fashioned in the world. Or order a Collins–both are off-menu. There's no sign, so it's hard to find, and owner Justin Burrows doesn't mess around with obnoxious twits. (Check his Yelp reviews where he answers each and every complaint.) There's only one bottle of vodka, and it's bad, so don't ask for a vodka-soda.

Grapes like Viognier and Tempranillo have found new fertile ground in Texas Hill Country.

The Hay Merchant features 80 taps, five casks, and tacos made with half a pig's head that feed four to six people. The Ginger Man is one of the oldest, most important beer bars in America. Conservatory Underground Beer Garden & Food Hall offers everything from barbecue to noodles, espresso, and 60 brews on tap. There are nearly 20 breweries in metro-Houston, but the first is still the best: Saint Arnold Brewing Company. Or just grab a Löwenbräu at Natachee's Supper'n Punch, because when's the last time you had a Löwenbräu?

Specials for Super Bowl LI

Several restaurants are doing specials via UberEats for the Super Bowl. For example, Caswell's sliders, shakes, and fries joint, Little Bigs, is doing party-packs delivered anywhere Uber goes. Coltivare Pizza & Garden isn't doing rezos during Super Bowl week, but it does have a car taking wait-listed guests to Eight Row Flint, its whiskey/beer/tacos bar down the street. And La Table, with its French sommelier and second-floor views, has a special LI menu. If you land the miracle booking, ask for corner booth table #13–the best seat in the house–and pre-order the chicken; it's a call-ahead plate.

Hay Merchant

At the Stadium

For the actual Super Bowl game, Houston's NRG Stadium is spotlighting the teams by using signature ingredients from each hometown. The Beantown Griller is a slow-cooked tri-tip pot roast sammy with caramelized onions and cheddar served with a side of baked beans. The ATL Fried Chicken Stak features waffle fries topped with buttermilk fried chicken, peach marmalade BBQ sauce, sour cream, and green onions. And to honor Houston, there's the Bayou City Bánh Mì with grilled fajita steak, avocado spread, and pickled vegetables.

Exactly what tailgaters will be chowing on remains to be seen, but while the Vegas line puts New England at 3.5 point favorites, it's a sure bet that the parking lot will be filled with Texans fans, Ronnie Killen-inspired BBQ, enough fish and pork tacos to feed J.J. Watt, and enough 5 O'Clock Pils to forget Brock Osweiler's $72 million contract. For the record, I see a high-flying matchup with Matty Ice earning his first ring and Julio Jones hauling in the game-winner, and the Super Bowl LI MVP trophy. Falcons over Patriots, 37-33.