A chilly February 2019 in Houston welcomed the arrival of a record-breaking rodeo season, a remodeled Uptown Sushi near the Galleria, Revention Music Center’s posh VIP room and a new upscale patio lounge in a buzzy location inside the loop.

Axis & Alibi is a two-story hybrid lounge that’s tailored for young professionals, high-profile figures and casual weekenders craving the next social hotspot. As the newest addition to the hub of bars and clubs on Washington Avenue, Axis & Alibi is owned by Carlos Palomo, AJ Ahmed and Edward Hua, the same operators of the late night Sunday Funday destination, Aura Nightclub.

Axis & Alibi Co-Owner Carlos Palomo / Photo: Shane Shannon

Construction started on Axis & Alibi in the summer of 2017, in the space previously occupied by the Wabash Feed & Garden store. However, construction came to a halt after Hurricane Harvey impacted the city in August 2017, but later resumed in October 2017 with the formation of Axis & Alibi underway.

After a year and a half of planning, building and executing this unique concept, Axis & Alibi emerged as a 5,800 square-foot, indoor-outdoor structure that can transition from day party to night party.

“After looking at the trends that were popular and successful across the nation and in the Houston area, a plan was formulated to put together a venue that would encompass the various areas that we felt would be sought out,” Palomo said. “For a while, I had wanted to get more involved into the craft cocktail scene, to some extent, and build a place with a patio bar where the inside lounge and spacious patio areas would attract after work and early evening business.”

And attractive it is. The patio on the first level is the quintessential outdoor space, with red patio lounge seating, barstools and two open windows with easy access to the inside bar. On those picture-perfect weather days, you can grab a sunny spot on the patio, order bottle service and shoot those Instagrammable moments with the squad.

Inside the venue is a posh lounge area with purple hues and accent lighting, a DJ booth, bar and well-heeled guests who frequent at night.

“When it was all said and done, the final product that we felt would fit this building and location was a hybrid of various aspects of the restaurant, bar and lounge industry,” Palomo said.

Indoor Lounge / Photo: Shane Shannon

Axis & Alibi also offers a high-end cocktail program with signature drinks. The Alibi is made with Aviation American Gin, Itailucus, lemon juice, Peychaud’s Bitters, and it’s topped with champagne and a lemon peel garnish. Then there’s the Desert Flower. It’s a cocktail that’s made with a blend of Casamigos Blanco Tequila, St. Germain, Desert Pear Syrup, freshly squeezed lemon juice, a splash of soda with an Orchid garnish. And a good cocktail is what you need for happy hour, or when the venue is playing a pay-per-view UFC fight on one of its 25 HD flat-screen TVs.

“Since my recent background has been mostly in the late night DJ driven bottle service side of the industry, it was also decided to make the lounge area and patio sections available for bottle service for those late nights on the weekend and early Sundae Fundae events,” Palomo said.

Axis & Alibi hosts several events throughout the week including Sundae Fundae from 6 p.m. – 11 p.m., DJ Taylor Tran on Saturday nights and the new Latin Thursdays called Deseo with Impresario Houston.

Photo: Shane Shannon

But the venue’s biggest event is yet to come – The Grand Opening. On Friday, April 26, Palomo, Ahmed and Hua are hosting a huge grand opening celebration. These guys are known for producing stellar events, and the Axis & Alibi grand opening won’t be any different.

Axis & Alibi is open Tuesdays through Saturdays from 4 p.m. – 2 a.m., Sunday from 4 p.m. – 11 p.m. and closed on Mondays. And with the spring season finally here, Axis & Alibi is the perfect place to unwind and watch the sunset on the patio.

Axis & Alibi | 5701 Washington Avenue, Houston, TX 77007 | 713.510.3127 | AxisAlibi.com