<p>We're going to be visiting Rice next week, and have only one day to spend in the area. Any recommendations for what to see and do and where to eat near campus to get some feel of the local culture would be much appreciated! Thanks in advance!</p>
<p>Check out Rice Village. During the weekend, Rice has a bus that students can take there and they can go shopping and eat. There are lots of restaurants and stores. There are your typical stores like Gap and Ann Taylor but it has some specialty stores and restaurants like The Chocolate Bar (all things chocolate: ice cream, drinks, etc…) and Sweet Paris (french crepes).It’s close enough to campus that students can walk there.</p>
<p>I don’t know what your budget is, but benjys is awesome. We went for lunch to save a little money and everyone loved it. The family still raves about “mom’s chocolate cake” for desert.</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.benjys.com/”>http://www.benjys.com/</a></p>
<p>Highly recommended. </p>
<p>Go to the Freebirds burrito joint and then the Amy’s Ice Cream right next door at Greenbriar and Farnham. Yum. I think this is what sealed the deal for my son to apply. It’s probably a mile from campus.</p>
<p>Just wanted to thank everyone for their suggestions! So many restaurants, so little time! Our daughter loved everything about Rice. Houston and the area was a big question mark for my Chicago girl before the trip, but has turned into a major plus. We had no idea what a great combination of campus, community, and city Rice has to offer. The discussion before the visit was “is this someplace I’d really want to go?” That changed into “I think I’m applying ED!” afterwards. I’m sure I’ll be hanging around this board in the future as we try to learn more about the university.</p>
<p>We were there too! We went on the March 24th tour and the optional engineering session. Rice is amazing!!! Who was your tour guide?</p>