Best Bars in Sharpstown and Gulfton: Two-Step, Karaoke and Whiskey

The best bars in Sharpstown and Gulfton line up along Bellaire Boulevard in southwest Houston. Start with margaritas at La Tapatia in Gulfton, two-step at Cowboys Red River Dance Hall in the old Sharpstown Mall, then head west to Dun Huang Plaza in Chinatown for craft cocktails at GiAu Bar N' Bites, oysters and micheladas at 7 Seas, and Japanese whiskey at Toukei Izakaya until 1 or 2 a.m.

Here's the one-line version: in Sharpstown, you can learn to two-step in Houston's first fully air-conditioned enclosed mall, sing in a karaoke room themed after Hello Kitty, and finish with a Japanese single malt, all on the same road.

That mall detail is real. The Southwest Management District says Sharpstown Center opened in September 1961 as Houston's first fully air-conditioned enclosed mall. Today it's PlazAmericas at 7500 Bellaire Blvd, and one of its big spaces is a Texas dance hall with free dance lessons.

Where are Sharpstown and Gulfton? How we define them

We use the City of Houston's super neighborhood lines and checked every address on this list against the city's own map. Sharpstown is Super Neighborhood 26. It's the large district along Bellaire Boulevard and the Southwest Freeway (I-69/US-59), running from just east of Hillcroft Avenue to near Beltway 8. That puts most of Houston's Chinatown, from about Fondren Road west toward the Beltway, inside Sharpstown. Gulfton is Super Neighborhood 27, the dense area just to the east, which the city describes as just outside Loop 610 and south of US 59, next to the city of Bellaire.

Two surprises from the city map. First, the Hillcroft Avenue stretch known as the Mahatma Gandhi District falls inside Sharpstown's lines, not Gulfton's. Second, Sharpstown stops short of the Beltway: the bars around Bellaire Boulevard and Beltway 8 fall in Alief on the city map, so they aren't here.

How we chose

Every pick had to sit inside the city's Sharpstown or Gulfton boundary, have a bar or a real drinks program you can walk up to, and show its current address and hours on its own official website as of November 2026. We also checked each one against the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission's public license list.

That rule cut a lot. Many of the neighborhood's cantinas, sports bars and pool halls don't keep a website, so we couldn't confirm their hours and left them out. That's also why Gulfton has only one pick. Hours change, so treat every time below as typical and check the official site before you go.

The quick list

• For two-stepping: Cowboys Red River Dance Hall and Saloon
• For craft cocktails: GiAu Bar N' Bites
• For oysters and micheladas: 7 Seas Oyster Bar
• For Japanese whiskey: Toukei Izakaya
• For a cocktail with hand rolls: NoriNori
• For happy hour that runs to 2 a.m.: Cafe 101
• For private karaoke: Happy Zone Karaoke
• For margaritas in Gulfton: La Tapatia (Bellaire)
• For a pint with tandoori: London Sizzler
• For pizza and a beer: Spanky's Pizza (Sharpstown)

Dance hall

Cowboys Red River Dance Hall and Saloon

Sharpstown, 7500 Bellaire Blvd, Ste C-18 (PlazAmericas) · typically Friday and Saturday 7 p.m. to 2 a.m., plus special nights

Cowboys Red River Dance Hall and Saloon in Sharpstown is a full-size Texas dance hall inside PlazAmericas, the former Sharpstown Center. Its official site lists free dance lessons from 7 to 8 p.m. on dance nights, live music from its house band, a cover charge, and entry for ages 18 and up, with drinking for 21 and up only.

What to do: arrive at 7 p.m. for the free lesson, then stay for the band. Check the site for college nights, concerts and specials, which change. For more places to dance, see our line dancing and honky-tonk guide.

Dun Huang Plaza: four bars, one parking garage

Dun Huang Plaza at 9889 Bellaire Blvd in Sharpstown is the easiest bar crawl in southwest Houston, because you can walk between these four without moving the car. The plaza calls itself the largest commercial condominium in Houston's Chinatown, and it has two large covered parking garages.

GiAu Bar N' Bites

Sharpstown, 9889 Bellaire Blvd, Ste E200 · typically daily 5 p.m. to 2 a.m.

GiAu Bar N' Bites in Dun Huang Plaza is an Asian fusion cocktail bar with craft cocktails, shareable plates and, per its site, a live DJ on weekends. In our view, it is the best place in the plaza to start a night.

Order: a craft cocktail and a few shareables for the table.

7 Seas Oyster Bar

Sharpstown, 9889 Bellaire Blvd, Ste D256 · check the official site for hours

7 Seas Oyster Bar in Dun Huang Plaza calls itself a seafood spot in Chinatown, and its menu includes half-shell oysters, seafood gumbo, fried shrimp, catfish and spicy micheladas. It's a good change of pace from cocktails.

Order: a dozen on the half shell and a michelada.

Cafe 101

Sharpstown, 9889 Bellaire Blvd, Ste 101 · typically daily 11:30 a.m. to 2 a.m.

Cafe 101 in Dun Huang Plaza says it was the first to offer more than 100 kinds of Asian-flavored teas and fresh fruit drinks, and it adds flavored sake and sake cocktails. Its site lists happy hour Monday through Thursday from 4 to 7 p.m. and a reverse happy hour from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. on the same nights.

Order: a sake cocktail during reverse happy hour.

Happy Zone Karaoke

Sharpstown, 9889 Bellaire Blvd, Ste 207 · typically Monday to Thursday 5 p.m. to midnight, Friday 5 p.m. to 2 a.m., Saturday 2 p.m. to 2 a.m., Sunday 2 p.m. to midnight

Happy Zone Karaoke in Dun Huang Plaza rents private karaoke rooms, from a Hello Kitty room for up to 4 guests to Aquarium and Galaxy rooms for up to 25. Drinks are sold at the bar. Reservations by phone or online have a two-hour minimum and a first-hour deposit, so book ahead for a weekend party.

Insider tip: the site asks Friday and Saturday guests to allow extra time for parking. More rooms across the city are in our karaoke bar guide.

Clarewood Drive and 9938 Bellaire

Toukei Izakaya

Sharpstown, 9630 Clarewood Dr, Ste A-15 · typically Tuesday to Thursday and Sunday 5 p.m. to 1 a.m., Friday and Saturday to 2 a.m., closed Monday

Toukei Izakaya on Clarewood Drive, a block off Bellaire Boulevard, is the neighborhood's serious drinking room. Its bar focuses on Japanese whisky, from blends to rare single malts, plus sake and shochu, with an izakaya kitchen behind it. Our izakaya guide has more.

Order: a Japanese whisky neat and a few small plates.

NoriNori

Sharpstown, 9938 Bellaire Blvd, Ste G · typically Tuesday to Thursday 4 to 10 p.m., Friday 4 p.m. to midnight, Saturday noon to midnight, Sunday from noon, closed Monday

NoriNori is a hand roll and sushi bar with a full-service bar and a daily happy hour, according to its site. It says its fish is delivered from Japan. Sit at the counter for a cocktail and a few hand rolls before a later stop.

Order: a happy-hour drink and a few hand rolls.

Southwest Freeway and Bellaire

London Sizzler

Sharpstown, 6690 Southwest Fwy · typically Tuesday to Friday 5 to 11 p.m., Saturday and Sunday noon to 11 p.m.

London Sizzler Indian Bar and Grill on the Southwest Freeway feeder has a full-service bar and a menu it describes as Indian food shaped by British colonialism and African spices. It's our pick for a beer with dinner. Pair it with our Indian restaurant guide.

Order: a cold beer and something off the grill.

Spanky's Pizza (Sharpstown)

Sharpstown, 7118 Bellaire Blvd · typically 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday to Tuesday, to 10:30 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday, to 11:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday

Spanky's Pizza calls itself a homemade pizza and bar, and says it has been around since 1976. The Sharpstown location on Bellaire Boulevard is the low-key choice for a beer and a pie.

Order: a large pizza and a beer.

Gulfton

La Tapatia (Bellaire)

Gulfton, 5710 Bellaire Blvd · typically Monday to Thursday 10 a.m. to midnight, Friday and Saturday to 1 a.m., Sunday 9 a.m. to midnight

La Tapatia is a small Houston chain of Mexican restaurants, cafes and cantinas, and its Bellaire Boulevard location in Gulfton stays open late. The chain lists happy hour Monday to Friday from 4 to 7 p.m. and promotes its margaritas.

Order: a happy-hour margarita.

Save this: a Bellaire Boulevard night out

1. 6 p.m., La Tapatia (Gulfton): happy-hour margarita.
2. 7 p.m., Cowboys Red River (Friday or Saturday): free two-step lesson, then a couple of songs.
3. 9:30 p.m., Dun Huang Plaza: park once, then GiAu for a cocktail and 7 Seas for oysters.
4. 11 p.m., Happy Zone Karaoke: a room you booked ahead.
5. Last call, Toukei Izakaya: Japanese whisky until 1 or 2 a.m.

The route covers roughly 4 to 5 miles of Bellaire Boulevard. Pick a designated driver or use a rideshare.

Getting there and parking

Sharpstown and Gulfton are about 10 miles southwest of downtown Houston. Take the Southwest Freeway (I-69/US-59) and exit at Hillcroft, Bellaire Boulevard, Fondren or Gessner. Parking is free in most plaza lots, and Dun Huang Plaza has covered garages. Cowboys Red River lists free valet parking on dance nights. METRO local buses run along the main corridors; plan a trip on the METRO website.

More bars nearby

For the rest of the Bellaire Boulevard scene, see our Chinatown bars guide. For game days, start with our sports bars guide or where to watch soccer. Coming earlier in the day? Our Sharpstown and Gulfton brunch guide covers the morning.

Last verified: November 2026.

Frequently asked questions

What are the best bars in Sharpstown and Gulfton?

Our picks are Cowboys Red River Dance Hall, GiAu Bar N' Bites, 7 Seas Oyster Bar, Cafe 101, Happy Zone Karaoke, Toukei Izakaya, NoriNori, London Sizzler and Spanky's Pizza in Sharpstown, plus La Tapatia on Bellaire Boulevard in Gulfton. Each was checked on its official website in November 2026.

Where can you two-step in Sharpstown?

Cowboys Red River Dance Hall and Saloon at 7500 Bellaire Blvd, Suite C-18, in the PlazAmericas complex (the former Sharpstown Center) has live music and free dance lessons from 7 to 8 p.m. on dance nights. It is typically open Friday and Saturday from 7 p.m. to 2 a.m.; check the official site for special nights.

Can you bar hop in Sharpstown without driving?

Yes. Dun Huang Plaza at 9889 Bellaire Blvd has GiAu Bar N' Bites, 7 Seas Oyster Bar, Cafe 101 and Happy Zone Karaoke in one complex with covered parking garages. Toukei Izakaya and NoriNori are a short walk away on Clarewood Drive and at 9938 Bellaire Blvd.

What time do bars close in Sharpstown?

Several Sharpstown bars stay open until 2 a.m., including GiAu Bar N' Bites and Cafe 101 daily, and Toukei Izakaya and Cowboys Red River on Friday and Saturday. Hours change, so check each official site before you go.

Is the Mahatma Gandhi District in Sharpstown or Gulfton?

On the City of Houston's super neighborhood map, the Hillcroft Avenue stretch known as the Mahatma Gandhi District falls inside Sharpstown (Super Neighborhood 26). Gulfton (Super Neighborhood 27) is the neighboring district to the east, just outside Loop 610.