Get your Derby on—including the biggest, grandest, most elegant hat you can find—at one of our Kentucky Derby Day picks around Houston on Saturday, May 6, 2023.
It’s time to pony up for a good time as the Kentucky Derby returns in early May, bringing with it a slate of events at local bars and restaurants that will you have you sipping mint juleps, gathering among some of the most elegant hats you’ve seen, and toasting to two minutes of horse race madness.
Check out our picks for where you can catch the Kentucky Derby from Churchill Downs (race time is around 5:30pm), along with food and drink specials, and more.
Kentucky Derby Day 2023 Parties Around Houston
- Talk Derby to Me at the Rustic Downtown | FREE – The Rustic will be hosting its annual Kentucky Derby watch party, featuring live music kicking off after the race, plus drink and food specials, and a best dressed contest with prizes. 11am to midnight.
- Kentucky Derby Party at Permission Whiskey – Over on White Oak, the bourbon and whiskey bar’s Derby celebration will feature a broadcast of the race, live music and a trumpet player, Derby-themed roses, a festive hat contest and other surprises. Fresh mint julep cocktails will be flowing, and Maker’s Mark will be on site giving away branded swag. $20 and up. Noon to 7pm.
- Derby Day at William Price Distilling | FREE – Wear your freshest threads and join William Price in the Heights for a day of Derby with mint juleps and the race on a 20-foot screen. Donate $10 to Friends 4 Life and receive betting tickets to place on your favorite pony. Noon to 10pm.
- Kentucky Derby Hat Party at Brasserie 19 – Sip on a mint julep, don your best hat, and cheer on this year’s prized stallions at the French restaurant in River Oaks. Reservations recommended. Prices vary. 12:30pm to 7:30pm.
- Derby Day Party at Julep – The Washington Avenue drinkery invites locals to break out their best hats and bowties for its annual Derby Day Party, featuring house cocktails, Champagne, two main bars, a whiskey bar, tacos from El Topo, a live DJ set from DJ G Funk, cigars and more, along with the live stream of the Kentucky Derby. $20 and up. 1pm to 6pm.
- Kentucky Derby Day on 19th Street | FREE – This annual Derby Day bash in the Heights returns with a Mint Julep Throw Down, plus local shops and local eats along 19th Street. The Kentucky Derby stream can be found at Harold’s Restaurant & Tap Room. 2pm to 7pm.
- Derby Down the Bayou Wine Fest at Brenner’s on the Bayou – Featuring eclectic wines, chef-crafted bites, live music, and more along the picturesque Buffalo Bayou, the annual Wine Fest gets a Derby twist this year at Brenner’s on the Bayou. $150; $250 for VIP. 2:30pm to 5:30pm.
- Miniature Horse Derby at Little Woodrow’s EaDo | No Cover – Enjoy drink specials all day on mint juleps and oak lilies, then take in on-site mini pony racing to kick it off at 5pm, followed by the Kentucky Derby on the big screens. 5pm to 7pm.
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