From the looks of it, the Solarium had it all: pickleball, food, drinks, and the backing of Houston Astros pitcher Lance McCullers Jr. Unfortunately, it appears the Sun has gone down on the 820 Holman St. venue. And it hasn’t even been a year.
The Solarium hasn’t made a grand announcement on its closure, but the details are there if you squint your eyes at its Facebook and Instagram pages. The pickleball-restaurant’s bio lists it as permanently closed (as does its Google listing). Word of the business’ demise got around as early as March 15, per a conversation on the Houston Pickleball Association Facebook group page.
We reached out to McCullers Jr. and the Kirby Group for comment. A representative for the latter referred us back to McCullers’ hospitality group, Rex Hospitality, as they were the ones who were running day-to-day operations there.
The Solarium was first announced in September 2024, a joint venture between Rex Hospitality and the Kirby Group, and officially opened in May 2025. The concept took over the old Holman Draft Hall which had been in business for around eight years. Versatility is a word that certainly comes to mind: The Solarium was a pickleball venue, a lounge, a restaurant, a bar, and a patio all at once.
We don’t know why the Solarium closed, but it happens to coincide with a perceived slump in the Houston pickleball space. While the sport hasn’t died down in popularity, the market has become a tad oversaturated. Shellton Jean Baptiste, the owner of Elite Pickleball Club & Academy, told Chron in late March that businesses hadn’t felt the so-called “boom” because of how many facilities in Houston are offering the sport.
And while the curtain has closed on the Solarium’s time in Houston’s Midtown area, there’s still life to be had at the Holman Street space.
“Working hard on updated concept … stay tuned #NextLevel #ProjectNext,” the Solarium’s social media bio read.