BARS

City of Houston bars, nightclubs, and restaurants within 300 feet of a residence will be required to get a new permit starting Tuesday after “numerous complaints” from people who live near these establishments about excessive late-night noise.

If you’re anything like me, you love to travel. And after being inside for more than two years, I am absolutely ready to get back out there and visit some of my favorite cities.

Jon Taffer returns to ‘Bar Rescue’ to help struggling bars get back to being vibrant and profitable businesses.

KPRC 2’s Justin Stapleton shows us where to go to find the perfect pour in Houston.

Sri Lankan health authorities have begun vaccinating children aged 12 to 15, as the island nation’s top medical specialists warned of a wave of COVID-19 infections in the coming weeks driven by the omicron variant

The arrests were made on a plane in Amsterdam's airport before the take-off on Sunday, police say.

HOUSTON – With several state COVID-19 restrictions ending in Texas on Wednesday, a Houston bar is planning to reopen for the first time in months. “Employees are going to wear masks. Greg Abbott is lifting the state’s mask mandate and allowing any business to open at 100% capacity. The bar plans to provide sanitation stations and will require employees to wear masks, but customers can choose whether to cover their face, he said. Guidelines from the Texas Restaurant Association call for employees to wear masks while working, while customers are encouraged to wear masks.

Greg Abbott’s announcement that the statewide mask mandate will be lifted, businesses rushed to issue statements regarding their own policies. After March 10, one of San Antonio’s most popular bars Hills and Dales Ice House will no longer require its customers or employees to wear a mask, KPRC 2′s sister-station KSAT reports. According to the report, owner Justin Vitek was surprised by the reversal of the mask mandate but has decided to honor Abbott’s decision. AdAccording to KSAT, Vitek is leaving the decision to wear a mask up to the individual and will not turn away any maskless customers. “If the no mask requirement makes some customers uncomfortable, Vitek said they have the option to choose a different establishment,” KSAT reports.

Last November, owner Pam Hillhouse was able to re-open her bar by filing for a food and beverage license. Hillhouse is among the struggling Texas business owners who are optimistic that their businesses will bounce back after Abbott rescinded the statewide mask order. The Bokeeters bar owner said she refused to switch over to a food and beverage license and kept operating as a bar. The Texas Bar and Nightclub Alliance said their members are thrilled by the governor’s newest order. The TBNA had filed several lawsuits in 2020 saying the governor’s executive order at the time was unconstitutional.

Bartender Katie McGranahan pours a beer at the Saint Arnold Brewing Company Friday, June 26, 2020, in Houston. As part of our Ask 2 series, the newsroom will answer your questions about all things Houston. Question: Are bar owners obligated to require that customers wear a mask? Answer: Yes, all individuals inside a bar establishment must wear a mask. Send it our way, and we will try to hunt down an answer.

“We all have mortgages and car payments, kids and it’s just a really scary situation,” Bryden said. Bryden said this is the third time her bar was ordered to shut down and this time her family’s savings are dwindling. Over in Sugar Land, Linda Flowers the owner of Gridiron Bar and Grill is also feeling the pain. “You know the bartenders this is their livelihood, the cooks this is their livelihood as well as the owners,” said Flowers. Her restaurant has to reduce capacity to 50%, which means less revenue for her and potentially fewer hours for her staff.

In this photo supplied by the South African Police Services (SAPS), gold bars weighing 73.5 kilograms (162 pounds) are photographed at Johannesburg's OR Tambo International Airport, Monday, Jan. 4, 2021. Police are investigating a possible international gold smuggling syndicate after three suspects were arrested with the gold bars in their carry-on luggage. (South African Police Services via AP)JOHANNESBURG – South African police are investigating a possible international gold smuggling syndicate after three suspects were arrested at O.R. Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg with gold bars weighing 73.5 kilograms (162 pounds) in their carry-on luggage. “Upon questioning of the suspects and further inspection of their hand luggage, officials discovered the gold bars and some foreign currency,” said police spokeswoman Col. Athlenda Mathe.

HOUSTON – After several COVID-related delays, Memorial’s newest hot spot to grab a socially-distanced drink is now open to the public. The Memorial Trail Ice House, located at Memorial Park’s historic Juergen building on Washington Avenue, opened its doors Dec. 12. According to Memorial Trail’s website, it is described as “the ultimate escape” and “the perfect spot to enjoy conversations and craft beer.”The new spot brings a half-acre of outdoor seating, which gives plenty of space for people to distance. The bar menu includes 18 beers on tap and specially-crafted cocktails curated by the Ladies of Libation. Memorial Trail Ice House is located on 6202 Washington in Houston.

GALVESTON, Texas – The booze was flowing once again at bars across Galveston County. Wednesday was the bar’s first day to reopen after the governor recently gave bars the go-ahead. With the final approval from the county judges, bars can reopen at 50% capacity but must practice social distancing guidelines. Now that bars are once again allowed to open their doors both customers and the bars themselves are optimistic about the future. ”Literally everybody was just waiting to have places to go and hang out again you know while also safely practicing social distancing," said Balusek.

GALVESTON COUNTY – Galveston County Judge Mark Henry celebrated Wednesday the reopening of bars with locals. He hosted a happy hour at Buccaneer Bar at Railean Rum Distillery in San Leon. Kelly Railean, the owner of Railean Distillery and Buccaneer Bar, said the past seven months have been tough because of COVID-19. All bars in Galveston, Montgomery, Fort Bend and Brazoria counties will reopen. While Harris County is the only local county not allowing bars to reopen.

RICHMOND, Texas – On Wednesday, Lisa Aprea spent her morning getting Sunrise Sports Bar ready for customers in Fort Bend County. Greg Abbott said bars in Texas could reopen on today at 50% if the county judge signed off. Montgomery and Fort Bend county judges gave bars the greenlight. RELATED: Bars in Fort Bend, Chambers counties can reopen at 50% capacity starting WednesdayAprea said she is looking forward to spending time with regular customers again. With bars still shutdown in Harris County, Aprea hopes more customers come to visit her in Richmond.

GALVESTON, Texas – Galveston County Judge Mark Henry will celebrate the reopening of bars with residents by hosting a happy hour at Buccaneer Bar at Railean Rum Distillery in San Leon on Oct. 14. READ: County judges outline their plans for reopening bars after Abbott’s new orderOnce Judge Henry reviewed the governor’s announcement, he said he would allow bars to reopen earlier than Oct. 14. “I want to let small business owners know that I’ll be reopening bars immediately,” Henry wrote on Twitter Wednesday. He indicated on Thursday that Galveston County law enforcement would not intervene if bars decided to open even earlier. Judge Henry said that not only bar and nightclub owners were suffering during the closure period but so were service organizations.

HOUSTON – Houston-area county judges weighed in Wednesday on their plans for reopening bars following Texas Gov. READ: Abbott says bars can reopen at 50% capacity in counties with low COVID-19 hospitalizationsThe new executive order gives the authority to reopen bars to the county judges. “I want to let small business owners know that I’ll be reopening bars immediately,” Henry wrote on Twitter Wednesday. Abbott's Exec Order GA-32 issued today which gives County Judge's the authority to finally reopen bars within their county. Expect an official announcement tomorrow, but I want to let small business owners know that I'll be reopening bars immediately.

Greg Abbott’s latest tweet is giving some bar owners hope that he will soon announce the reopening of Texas bars as coronavirus numbers in the state continue to decline. His recent tweet piqued the interest of many after he used a GIF of two people toasting with beer mugs. In his last round of reopenings, Abbott said restaurants, retail shops, gyms, office buildings and factories could increase capacity to 75% starting Sept. 21. He also allowed hospitals to resume elective procedures and nursing homes and assisted living facilities to allow visitations again with health protocols in place. Abbott ordered that bars remain closed during September’s announcement because they were nationally recognized as places where COVID-19 spreads.

HOUSTON Houstonians are pouring memories instead of beer after the owners of Wild West Bar announced they have closed the bar after 40 years. Wild West has been a proud host to all types of events imaginable. @ Wild West Houston Posted by Wild West Houston on Thursday, July 30, 2020The bar was first known as Midnight Rodeo, when it opened at the corner of Longpoint and Gessner in 1981. Sly later changed the name to Wild West Bar due to an identity crisis. Wild West Bar welcomed many top country music artists such as Toby Keith, Willie Nelson, and George Strait.

HOUSTON The Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission (TABC) suspended the licenses of six Houston-area bars for being found in violation of Texas Gov. Greg Abbotts order this weekend. Last month, Abbott announced that due to the surging coronavirus cases, all Texas bars must shut down to help slow the spread of the virus. The actions in this executive order are essential to our mission to swiftly contain this virus and protect public health.The TABC said Monday that there were multiple bars found in violation of Abbotts order over the weekend. Each business will have the opportunity to contest the suspension at a hearing before a state administrative judge, according to the TABC.

PASADENA – Bar owners, employees and loyal customers gathered in Pasadena Sunday to hold a rally and demand the freedom to reopen their businesses. We need to pay our bills. Our employees need food and money to pay their bills,” said James Kopeck, the co-owner of Chuters Dance Hall and Saloon. The dance hall recently hosted an event, defying Gov. All bars in Texas were required to close on June 26 after a spike in coronavirus cases.

Bars may be closed, but you can still put places on your to-do list for when they open back up. If you are looking for some good dive bars to go to after the pandemic, your fellow Houstonians have just the places for you. We asked KPRC 2s Facebook followers for suggestions and heres what they came up with:1. West Alabama Ice House1919 West Alabama St10. Warrens Inn307 Travis St

Some businesses have even had to close for good due to the financial strain, said Kelsey Erickson Streufert, vice president of Government Relations and Advocacy for the Texas Restaurant Association. “When our small businesses close they’re no longer paying taxes to the state and so you see this shrinking of the economy,” Erickson Streufert said. “They basically said because I haven’t paid the rent they don’t want to take my rent,” Nicholson said. The Texas Restaurant Association is working to help protect businesses from evictions as part of their Restaurant Survival Plan. “I think one of the hardest parts about this is we don’t know where the bottom is,” Erickson Streufert said.

AUSTIN The Texas Bar and Nightclub Alliance has announced it plans to sue the State of Texas over Gov. Greg Abbotts recent decision and order to shut down bars across in the state. The decision comes after Abbott decided to close bars again on Friday after COVID-19 cases continued to surge across the state. The association is now encouraging bar owners to violate the order. Abbotts order says any establishment that receives more than 51% of its sales from alcohol must close its doors but can still have takeout and delivery.

Greg Abbott issued an Executive Order for bars to close at noon Friday, sending some mixed reactions from Texans. The announcement brought Texas to trend on Twitter Friday morning, where users took to social media to express their reactions. Most of the reactions cite Abbott’s reopening plans and the lack of social distancing in bars. Hate to see it — GET OFF OUR NECKS (@GentlemenGin) June 26, 2020Texas orders bars to close again after Virus spike. — Tim Anderson (@timinbklyn) June 26, 2020Ooo, Texas bars closing.

HOUSTON – The complaint came in through a call to 3-1-1, an information line for the City of Houston. The complaint generated a visit from the Fire Marshal’s COVID-19 response team — Senior Investigator Rodriguez and Inspector Gomez — who entered the restaurant on a fact-finding mission. “The way she’s got it set up — the manager’s got it set up — it’s the way everybody should have it,” Gomez said. Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner said Wednesday that the likelihood of city resources being allocated to such enforcement was low. The mayor continued by saying COVID-19 health guidelines for bars and restaurants are set by the state.

HOUSTON – Houston bar-goers, rejoice! Bars in the Houston-area can now reopen thanks to Gov. Bars opening Friday will need to follow a list of guidelines provided by the state which includes limiting occupancy to 25 percent, screening employees and notifying customers that drink orders cannot be taken at the bar. As of Friday, 23 Houston-area bars have opened according to this list from CultureMap Houston and this one from Houstonia Magazine. These are the locations they listed:4J Brewery (1348 Cedar Post, Houston)13 Celsius (3000 Caroline, Houston; reservations required)77 Degrees (2416 Brazos, Ste.

HOUSTON Thousands of bartenders in Texas rejoiced at Mondays news that they would soon be able to return to work. Theresa Bernal, a bartender at Cozy Corner bar in Harris County for more than 20 years, was among them. If we hadnt gotten open, Strain said, I was going to open up (anyway), and let them come after my license, whatever. It was just getting to that point desperate.In Fort Bend County, the Sunrise Sports Bar will finish remodeling just in time for Fridays reopening. Landry plans to take customers temperatures at the door and hand out masks and Lysol wipes to those interested.

“My entire adult career has been Barry’s Pizza, so stopping that even temporarily is difficult.”The restaurant tried curbside delivery for a couple of weeks. "There's a lot that goes into a full-service restaurant that we're not using right now," said general manager Shawna Heflin. Just one example of thousands of cases -- business owners navigating a financial fight against a deadly and costly enemy. So you can’t get kicked out of your home and no eviction court cases will move ahead. Landlords can file those cases but right now they are not being heard.

Texas Borders Bar and Grill located off the Katy Freeway seemed not to be in compliance with Hidalgo’s county-wide order issued on Monday. Per the order, bars and clubs in Harris County should shut down and restaurants are only permitted to offer drive-thru service, delivery and/or curbside pickup options. According to former Texas Borders Bar and Grill employee Tara Marrocelli, the bar was open as usual. According to Garcia, Texas Roadhouse will now operate all 13 Houston locations with curb-side and drive-thru services only. Fort Bend County Judge KP George issued a similar order to the Harris County guidelines on Tuesday evening.

Now it seems mixologists are finally devoting as much time and effort into creating booze-free cocktails as alcoholic ones. At Lyaness, the reincarnation of World's Best Bar 2018 winner Dandelyan, the commitment to non-alcoholic cocktails is clear. According to Meredith, the customers who opt for non-alcoholic cocktails at Lyaness range from bankers to new mothers, while some choose to switch between booze-free cocktails and alcoholic ones. He also emphasizes Lyaness' non-alcoholic cocktails are made with high end products such as vegan honey and homemade cordials, which are factors in the total cost. "Non-alcoholic cocktails are becoming so much more in depth, intricate and balanced than they've ever been," he adds.

According to The Washington Post, bar and restaurant owners are meeting with security officials to put measures in place against a Paris-style terror attack. CBS News senior national security analyst Juan Zarate joins CBSN with insight.

81-year-old behind bars for pet violation An 81-year-old great-grandmother spent two nights in a Maryland detention center for a minor pet violation committed nearly a year ago. As WJZ's GiGi Barnett reports, the senior citizen says her punishment doesn't fit the crime.