Rice Village

For a city that has a low score on the walkability factor, Rice Village seems like a slight anomaly in the Houston. As one of the oldest shopping destinations in the city, it feels like a place that was part of a master plan to create a district that encompassed several city blocks in the most central part of HTown. Despite being a hub for more chains than mom-n-pop retail stores, it still serves as a destination for anyone and everyone who wants to kill time with retail therapy or a bite to eat. Despite it's proximity to the Rice University campus, this is less of a college student destination as it is for young teens and families. Parking is a constant pain, as the spaces are tight and many of which are not free. Most shopping plazas in/out of the loop are blessed with space, but Rice Village's clustered stores give off more of an NYC feel, complete with sidewalks (#1). Shopping and eating are a past time in any city but that's especially true here. Foodwise, some interesting standouts include: Tiger Noodle House (#2), Sixty Vines (#3), Sushi by Hidden (#4), along with some late night options in Yoyo's Hotdog (#5) and Oh My Gogi (#6). I'm a huge fan of Istanbul Grill (#7) and there is a newcomer in Navy Blue (#8) as of late. For folks looking to maximize the experience, rock streetside parking (at night) or park in the lot for a cool 2 hours for free. From there, hit all the stores, and snack on a few spots along the way. Do it on a crisp, warm day and watch the crowd changeover in the early evening for a more hip gathering of youngins to stumbling semi-drunk adults trying to sober up over street fare. Never a dull day in these parts. ____________ (#1) Trust me, this is a huge deal. (#2) Tiger Noodle House: https://www.yelp.com/biz/tiger-noodle-house-houston (#3) Sixty Vines: https://www.yelp.com/biz/sixty-vines-houston-3 (#4) Sushi by Hidden: https://www.yelp.com/biz/sushi-by-hidden-houston (#5) Yoyo's Hotdog: https://www.yelp.com/biz/yoyos-hot-dog-houston-14 (#6) Oh my Gogi: https://www.yelp.com/biz/oh-my-gogi-houston (#7) Istanbul Grill: https://www.yelp.com/biz/istanbul-grill-houston (#8) Navy Blue: https://www.yelp.com/biz/navy-blue-houston

Nice place to walk around if it isn't too hot. Many places have restricted parking now. Or metered parking. But first 2 hours free in the garage.

I like going to the Rice Village to shop. The only downfall is the parking. In 2017 they added parking meters in front of all the shops. Parking on the street is still free, but finding a free space can be challenging. I do not like paying for meters so I drive around a few time to find a free space. If you are just running in for something quickly(15 minutes are less); you can tell the staff at the store and they will tell the people writing the meter tickets and they will pass your car up. Rice village has all kinds of specialty shops, restaurants, jewelry stores, make up stores and tons more. It is fun to park and just walk up and down each of the streets to visit all the great shops.

Parking is trash. The parking meters are not from the City, they're just put there so Rice Village can make more money by making you pay to shop with them. The tickets arent real, they're 'rice village tickets,' and they don't tow. Also as employees they have no employee parking near any of the shops, but several streets over is a parking garage where employees frequently have their vehicles broken into. Rice village also only gives 1 parking pass per business to the general manager and no one else. I just take up the pay to park spots every single day and throw my tickets away, because I know that the people at Rice put in these meters thinking people will just pay and assume its from the city and not question it. They're greedy and not accommodating, take your business elsewhere.

Lots of really nice shops, but parking is always difficult. They have recently made all of the spots metered that are outside of the garage, which means more open spots but also that you have to pay even if you are there for a short while. There is free garage parking up to 2 hours in the two available garages, but if you go a minute over you start getting charged. Sometimes hard to keep your time limit if you're stopping at more than one place and handling all the crowds. Once you have parking handled, the Rice Village is a nice little spot to shop. There is a wide variety of stores and often good sales and deals. There are new(ish) restaurants that have been added too, and it is easy to make a day out of wandering around the center. During the holidays they have themed events, which are fun for all ages.

Super cute area of Houston. Shops, eateries, coffee shops, a few blocks with a great variety of businesses one could pick from. Parking sometimes may be a tad congested, but a lot of good places in the area that offer a lot of perks, worth the trip, I'd say.

Awesome place if you live in the neighborhood and can walk, Lots of small, locally owned shops and a few of the national chains. Restaurants and bars of all types and budgets. My favorite is Little Woodrows for cheap beer and a nice outdoor scene.Parking can be an issue, but is pretty cheap in the garage. Rice Village is a nice place to visit. The shopping is pretty good and there are some great places to eat. Parking is free if you're not there long, and reasonable if you plan to be there a while. Traffic around the area is always a bit frustrating, but overall it's a good experience.

This place is great to walk around and it has nice temperatures and breezes as long as it's not in the dead of the summer. Even then I think it'd still be nice although I haven't been there in the heat. The shops and restaurants are all nice and cute.

Rice Village is located South East of downtown near Rice University, and the Medical Center. To get there, it's south of Highway 59, and you can take Kirby Drive heading south. Look it up on Google Maps to be sure because it's composed of many streets. 1. Activities - Bar Hoping, Shopping, Dining, Hanging out, Bookstore, Dessert, and just enjoy being outside. This is a great place to bring a date, hang with friends, and even spend time with family. You got people of all ages, but because it's so close to Rice University, you tend to see a lot of college kids here. 2. Dining - to name a few, they have Torchy Tacos, Buffalo Wild Wings, Shiva Indian, Thai Village, Oh My Gogi, Damico's Italian Market Cafe, Starbucks, Black Walnut Cafe, Prego, Brown Bag Deli, Sweet Paris Creperie Cafe, Coco Crepes, Hungry's, Local Foods, Cafe Rabelais, Shake Shack, and Mi Luna's. 3. Shopping - They have Banana Republic, Ann Taylor, Talbots, Posh Life, Gap, Athleta, Victoria Secrets, NY & Company, Urban Outfitters, Bath & Body Works, Kendra Scott, Chico's, Express, LOFT, Sunglass Hut, Half Price Bookstore, and many more. 4. Ambiance - This is an outdoor mall, so if you don't mind walking from store to store and being outside, this is the perfect place to be. It's paved everywhere here, but watch out for cars when you cross the road. 5. Parking - They have street parking and store parking - both free. Because it's setup like a college campus, parking is limited. Keep Calm, be patient. Read all the signs as some parking are restricted to certain stores. If you don't mind paying, they have parking garages. It's always fun being here. However parking can be a headache. It would be wise to drive a small car if you have the option. Not advisable for lifted trucks, but if that is all you have, good luck parking. You may have a better chance walking or biking here.

If you're not looking to fight through the Galleria mall traffic then look no further because the Rice Village will surely suit you. It's kind of like an outlet mall because all of the stores are freestanding and outside. There's quite a selection of retail companies made available at this location. The area is well kept and I've never experienced any issues. The only problem that I have is the fact that if you can't find free parking in the parking lot, you have to pay for it. Which I don't like because it's just another way for someone to make a come up just so you can enjoy your shopping experience. Besides that I like going here when I want to get something quick and don't want to go through the hassle of threatening someone's mother for parking just to go shopping at the Galleria.

My mom lived in this area when she first moved to the U.S. She was a Rice U. student. All my life, this was the area my mom would take me to, until recently. After we moved away from the neighborhood, The Village became a special place for a day's mother-daughter time, or with her American mom, my American grandma. Since early childhood, into teen and college years, and even visiting from NYC, this was the area mom and I enjoyed lunches, brunches, coffee, chocolate, ice cream, shopping, dinner and walking. We really loved this place. It was very walkable and easy and full of quaintness. Now it looks and feels sadly like the ultimate culmination, thus far, of hyper-corporatocracy, and a real estate company's wettest dream. Feels like a place for tourists, and a show place where corporations land flagship stores in a bid to set the adult habits of affluent college students, aspiring high schoolers, and people who get most of their info and taste from T.V. commercials. There are some spots seemingly free of corporate sanitization and mainstreaming to middle bar denominators. However, even the people in these places often seem to be committed to a life of ...floating, watching, and imitating. I feel bad for one of my friends who still works in the area. I'm glad for another friend who owns a business on the outskirts of this creeping nightmare. Nightmare: Parking. One thing nice about parking before these credit card and cash parking meters was the feeling of an occasional exchange of good will, or at least the possibility that it could happen. Sometimes people overfed the meter, and wished you well for the meter having time already covered. Sometimes you were that person giving, and it felt good. Today's machines are in every foot of parking space, sans the pay garage. The Village screams, "PAY ME!" and "PAY ME AGAIN!" Immediately I am struck by the lack of good will in The Village now. You pull out of a spot and there is no linger in the green light. It goes red ASAP. ((((PAY THEM.)))) I am so turned off by this area now. The shops are unreliably stocked, but reliably worn by the day's or hour's social climbing frenzies. The Village is now all the innards, the bowels of a greed monster using (the look of) a few unassuming local shops as human shields, sheeps' clothing. I'm going to go to any of these stores in some other part of Houston. This place is an objective turn off. I'll go to places where a modicum of good will still exists. Rice Village is an embarrassment for Houston as a go to place.

Quirky and plenty of interesting boutiques and restaurants! Parking can be a problem, but if you don't mind parking a few blocks down, it's usually an easy walk. They also have a few parking garages. Fundamentally Toys, Murder by the Book, Walking Store, British Store, French Store, Half Price Books are a few of my fav places. Highly recommended!

Great collection of shops and restaurants all in one popular, crowded area. There is a garage with free parking for your first 2 hours, but after that you have to pay, which is pretty ridiculous since you already pay money to the shops and restaurants you go to. You don't have to pay at the Galleria or any other shopping malls in the area, so why here? Meters were a semi-recent addition to the spots in front of all of the stores/restaurants, so that definitely deters folks from coming here.

I used to go here with my family since we live in the museum district. Going to torches after work and a quick coffee on a Saturday morning. We shop here instead of Galleria or Amazon all the time. Then parking meters happened. If you drink coffee then shop a little then eat at a restaurant before you leave, prepare to pay. It is a rip off. One Saturday morning I parked on the street and shopped. The rear of my car is about 1 foot sticking out to no parking sign. I got a $70 parking ticket. It's been about a year now. I never came back. That's why Amazon takes my money instead of a local business. My city rips my off.

I really try to avoid this place. Well... driving to/through this place. I love the stores/restaurants they have to offer, but unless I'm taking an Uber or Lyft, I try to avoid this place. Driving down any of the streets associated with RV stresses me out with the traffic of cars and fighting for a parking spot. Once I heard they installed parking meters, I definitely wasn't going come here. But when it's your only option... what can you do. I didn't want to deal with the hassle of parking in the garage, when I was already running late to meet up with friends. To my surprise, the meters aren't crazy expensive and they accept credit cards which is great. Okay, all that's said when dealing with an automobile and RV. If I'm walking to Rice Village, it's great. It's a nice walk from the nearby houses and apartments and there's plenty of dog-friendly establishments within.

This is an amazing shopping center in the heart of Houston with a little bit of everything. Unfortunately, it's very poorly set up in terms of parking and navigation, with construction in the streets ruining what should be an easily navigated part of town. You're best off finding whatever free lot or street parking you can and just walking to wherever you need to be, because it's only about 20 square blocks as it is. There are some great food locations for all budgets, including a La Madeleine, Brown Bag Deli, Torchy's Tacos, Jason's Deli, an Indian Restaurant, Ruggles Bakery Cafe, a Tapas bar, an upscale Italian restaurant, and more. As you can tell from names vs. descriptions, I mostly frequent the lower end of the spectrum, but that's what happens when you're on a budget. They also have a variety of unique stores, including Soccer 4 All, the Briar Shoppe (a cigar store and lounge), and the Boardroom, which is a salon for men. There's also some mall staple stores, including Victoria's Secret, Express, White House Black Market, etc. There's an excellent frame shop and a great flowers shop, both off Rice Blvd, too. All of the good bars are off Morningside, and even though some of my favorites (Baker Street Pub & Brian O'Neill's) have recently shut down, replacement bars like Phoenix 55 have kept up the high quality level that the others had. The Ginger Man and Little Woodrows also make for great stops on a pub crawl. It's worth taking a day to explore the different stores, but I recommend doing this on a weekday afternoon when the place isn't quite as crowded as parking is easier to come by.

The parking meters in Rice Village on Times Blvd across from Shiva Restaraunt the meter is in the actual parking space? This is incredibly stupid. If you look on the otherside the meter is in the curb & raised which makes sense.

Love the shopping here, don't love the new parking meters. ($2/hour) No more validation either I guess, but the meters do take credit cards.

Awful parking. Ugly design. Only has one or two stores that Rice students would actually shop at, so the name really isn't warranted. If you're visiting from out of town, just go to the Galleria if you need to do some shopping. If you're a boring middle-aged white housewife, you'll find plenty to love in Rice Village. If you're actually interesting, you'll be better served literally anywhere else. I like the boar statue though, but not enough to bump the Village up to two stars.

They have a lot of stores here that I love. They also have some nice dining for brunch, lunch, and dinner. Let's not forget a little salsa at mi Luna if you're really wanting to dance! They have your classic shops like Victoria secret etc... Then they have some of my favorites like lululemon, Sephora, and Kendra Scott. They have over 300 shops here all within 16 blocks of shopping Heaven. On certain days you will see some amazing food trucks and food stands. I'll be the first to admit I love hitting up yoyo's food stand or picking up some Kimchee fries from oh my Gogi truck. If you're in the mood for a good beer after work, on the weekend, or just because it's 5'oclock somewhere, there are plenty of cool hangouts in the area. Good place for bar hopping, great shopping, and dining! Def one of my favorite hangouts.

It's obvious the property managers are stupid They'll never get a dime from me for parking. Unless you'll be there a long time or have already set up an account and given your license plate number to these parking app people, don't sweat it. You might get hate mail on your dash about parking. It's not a real ticket. It's an attempt to make sure people don't block prime spots all day. It's a terrible resolution and phony for sure. If it really bothers you and your moral compass, don't shop there. I'll never pay extra to shop at Ann Taylor or buy over priced soap and lotion at bath and body or a pair of sunglasses at sunglasses hut. They're all shit stores any way. Ooooohhh look Jason's deli and the GAP. Isn't that special. 1984 called and wants their stores back. Maybe you want to get something to be different like all your friends at urban outfitters. Garbage. I'm not lucky to be shopping there. The stores are lucky to have my money. I can buy pretty much everything on the internet and have it delivered to me for free. This is why retail is dying. Pay for parking or get a ticket. Ridiculous.

Rice Village is more myth than anything, but it's still a Houston favorite, nonetheless. When people talk about Rice Village, it almost seems too good to be true. And in some ways, it is. Yes, it is everything people say it is, but there's a few things about it that you could live without . Let me explain. A few not so great aspects are: location, parking, safety and cleanliness of the area. A few great aspects are: huge variety, friendly staff, mainly local shops, window shopping, and everything is close. Location: It's a bit off the beaten path, with outdated (small lanes/decayed concrete) roads to get into the village. Obviously, it's close to Rice University, so take that how you will. (I see it as a plus, be sure to drive by the beautiful campus). Parking: Good luck, and may the force be with you. I do recommend the lot in front of the GAP, though. There is free and paid parking available throughout. Safety: At night, I am tense walking the small, poorly lit streets from one side of the village to the other with my wife. In the day, it's great - no worries then. Crowds range from age 6 to 60. Cleanliness: For a place that charges 10%-20% higher for EVERYTHING, you'd think they would put in a little extra effort into cleaning the streets and sidewalks. The entire area as a distinct smell to it, and dumsters are overflowing everywhere. Despite the downfalls, it's a great place to take visiting friends and family. This is an outdoor strip mall type venue, so come prepared for the forecasted weather. Rice Village is a Houston mainstay, and can/should/will be appreciated by many for years to come.

I used to go here on weekends to shop and for some of the bars until they added metered parking to every available parking spot. Now you have to park in a crowded garage and walk a thousand miles in Houston heat to get anywhere. Not worth going anymore.

This is a better outdoor shopping area than most purely because of the area. Yes it can still be hot and rainy sometimes, but i think the fact that you are surrounded by Rice University and its eclectic neighborhood just give it a better ambience than some of the suburban outdoor shopping malls. Rice Village is made up of bars, restaurants, and shopping. The bars are pretty fun and draw a mixture of Rice students and medical center employees. The restaurants aren't bad either. My favorite happens to be D'Amicos. As for the shopping, they have a combo of boutiques and chain stores. Most are on the small side. If you are looking for something specific, I would recommend going to the mall over Rice. Parking can be s bit of a nightmare. Everyone is circling around in anticipation for the one lone person walking to their car. If you are going somewhere that you know validates the parking garage, I would just park in there and skip the hassle. Any restaurant that attaches to the garage and Banana Republic validate for sure.

Love the stores and the vibe here. Unfortunately, they've recently installed parking meters on every last parking space in the area, so I'll be shopping elsewhere.

Variety of stores is awesome in rice village! Unfortunately, you now must pay to park.

The Village has gotten a lot nicer over the past few years. They've cleaned up the storefronts to make it feel less like a strip mall. Parking meters are pretty cheap and they accept credit cards; at first I was annoyed at them but then I realized they actually make the parking situation was less stressful. Rice Village is fairly walkable and pedestrian-friendly. If you want an outdoor shopping experience without dealing with some of the craziness of the bigger shopping areas, it's the place for you.

Watch out for parking in garage! $10 for 1 hour parking. Sign said free for first 2 hours and $5 after ...turns out that is only Monday through Friday. Attendants obviously had problems with patrons in past ..pleading the 5th and just work there. Rip off.

Very nice shopping center and a good assortment of restaurants. El Meson is a fantastic tapas restaurant to try for sure located on University Blvd.

I have been going to the village (because of living in the neighborhood) for years now and have a lot of memories there. But since rice took over, they have gotten rid of some of my favorite restaurants and replaced them with either unhealthy repeats or vacant spots. I would like to have healthy restaurants options and not see so many vacant stores. The restaurants and stores were perfectly good and I'm guessing the management raised the rent so high most of the village's stores have had to move up. And now some of the spots still lay vacant for years now, with no sight of reopening the area. Not to mention the new car meters which I'm pretty sure has hurt business more than helped it. They are just trying to squeeze as much money as possible out of you. The one good thing that has come out of the village, is the additional seating areas created and art on the walls of the buildings. The reason I have given the village 3 stars is because of the new exterior decorations and past memories of the village.