The Alden

Where • 1117 Prairie Street, Houston

More info • aldenhotels.com

Located two blocks from Minute Maid Park, the Alden is a 97-room boutique hotel with exceptional dining and attentive service if fairly standard rooms. For our two-night stay, we took advantage of the hotel's baseball package, which starts at $159.

The setup • The deal includes a bucket of domestic beer and hot wings served in the comfortable Sam Bar before or after the game as well as a $20 credit for breakfast at the hotel's chic 17 restaurant, which has won raves from almost every foodie magazine that matters. We loved the breakfast tacos with chorizo ($12), but the real treat was the Texas grits topped with cheese ($3). We also enjoyed 17's seasonal dinner menu of Gulf Coast snapper, lamb chops and spiced prime strip with Sam Houston bourbon. Try the farm house salad with pepper bacon and locally produced cheese.

The rooms • The rooms lack the modern flair of the hotel's lobby but are fairly comfortable with a flat-screen television, Wi-Fi and Aveda products.

How much • Regular rates for rooms range from $145 for a standard king to $205 for a deluxe suite (June pricing).