With a long, rich history, plentiful seafood and a supportive restaurant scene, it’s easy to experience the culinary scene in Galveston, Texas. The city’s Restaurant Weeks offers an annual opportunity to enjoy breakfast, lunch and dinner menus at special price points that enable restaurant owners and chefs to show off the best of their best each year. Learn about what Restaurant Weeks are like in Galveston and what you can expect from the local food scene in this Real Food Traveler Podcast episode. 

Click the player above to listen to our podcast about Galveston’s culinary experiences with guests Jan Collier and James Clark. Photo of Shrimp Benedict courtesy of Mosquito Café. Graphic by RealFoodTraveler.com.

Hungry for more? Galveston in 2025: A Year of Culture, Food & Fun.

My guests are Jan Collier, Director of Operations and Public Relations & Comptroller for Vargas Postoffice Group which includes Rudy & Paco’s and Vargas Cut & Catch; and James Clark, Director of Operations for Mosquito Café, PattyCakes Bakery & Catering Services.

Our guests on the podcast are, left, Jan Collier and James Clark.

They tell us how Restaurant Week(s) work in Galveston each January and the charitable elements involved that can make us feel even better about participating.

For 2025, Galveston Restaurant Week(s) runs January 6-February 2. This year, they are honoring Galveston County Food Bank and St. Vincents House. St. Vincents House provides services and resources to empower people to become self-sustaining and contributing members of the community.

Jan and James also share which food and drink are most authentic to Galveston so we know what to make sure we order there to really have a true local dining experience. Hint: seafood plays a prominent role with a wide variety to choose from including oysters, crawfish, shrimp and red snapper. (They talk about Katie’s Seafood Market as a place to go to see the fishermen coming in and to get the freshest seafood). And we find out what very popular cocktail is said to have been invented there and named after a famous movie star and singer!

One of the popular dishes that takes advantage of the local seafood scene at Mosquito Café is The Catch: Grilled snapper topped with rustic chimichurri served with garden salad and fresh fruit. Photo courtesy of Mosquito Café.

I tap into the fact that Jan and James are locals to find out where they like to go eat as well as the things to do they recommend that really show off the best of the island. Use their recommendations to help plan your trip.

Get more information about Galveston Restaurant Weeks here and more information about visiting Galveston in general, here.

The Real Food Traveler Podcast can be heard on our site but also on iTunes, Spotify, Amazon, Overcast and wherever else you like to stream your podcasts.

-By Courtney Drake-McDonough, Publisher & Managing Editor of RealFoodTraveler.com and host of the Real Food Traveler Podcast

Hungry for more? Here’s our list of great places to eat in Galveston.