Still Your Father's Tony's

Fine restaurants don't serve the same function in our city that they did 40 years ago. Few people go to a restaurant to assert their place in the social pecking order anymore. The "A" table seating charts and the "right people" snobbery seems laughable to most of us now. Southwestern cuisine chefs like Robert Del Grande, who has a Ph.D. in biochemistry, brought a new intelligence to Houston dining in the 1990s. They helped create an inquisitive attitude about food among baby boomers. Today, when my generation goes to great restaurants, we go to learn as much as we go to eat.

Bruce McMillian's new menu sounds interesting. But the updated food hasn't changed the fundamental culture of Tony's. The staff knows all about pampering rich people, yet isn't prepared for intelligent questions. Getting rid of the outdated continental cuisine label was a good first step; now Tony's needs to get rid of its outdated attitudes about the dining experience. When they stop calling the Vin Santo "sauternes" and start educating us about the sweet white wines of the world, we will have some reason to go back.

Troy Fields

The velvet rut: Its menu has changed, but Tony's waitstaff still caters to the city's old guard.

Location Info

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Tony's

3755 Richmond
Houston, TX 77046

Category: Restaurant > European

Region: Greenway Plaza

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Details

Hours: Monday through Thursday, 6 p.m. to 11 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 6 p.m. to midnight (713)622-6778

Acorn squash tortellini with lobster: $16
Lobster bisque: $9
Roasted foie gras: $19
Truffled baby hen: $27
Grilled snapper and shrimp: $31
Dover sole: $42
Scallopini of lobster Milanese: $34

1801 Post Oak Boulevard

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More About

• Bruce McMillian
• Houston (Texas)
• Dover
• Eating Out
• Wine

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Until then, Tony's is still your father's restaurant.