History's at Steak

Comments (0) By Robb Walsh Thursday, Aug 14 2003

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Herman Brenner died in 1976, and Mrs. Brenner operated the restaurant alone for many years. When Brenner's closed, Fertitta bought the place. His intention was never to change the format, but to recreate the original Brenner's. He even brought Lorene Brenner back as a consultant. As part of the transition, she taught Landry's staff how to prepare some of the restaurant's best known dishes, including her famous German potatoes and her apple strudel.

In a city that routinely bulldozes its landmarks, Brenner's revitalization is nothing short of amazing. It's one of the most reverential restorations of an old restaurant I've ever seen.

Troy Fields

Some of the garden facades are designed to block views of the Katy Freeway.

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Brenner's Steak House

10911 Katy Freeway
Houston, TX 77079

Category: Restaurant > American

Region: Memorial

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Details

16 ounce ribeye: $28
16 ounce New York strip: $28
10 ounce filet mignon: $28
Gulf red snapper with crab: $28
German potatoes: $7
House salad: $7

10911 Katy Freeway, 713-465-2901. Hours: Monday, 5 p.m. to 10 p.m.; Tuesday through Thursday, 11a.m. to 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. to 10 p.m; Friday, 11a.m. to 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. to 11 p.m.; Saturday, 5 p.m. to 11 p.m.; Sunday, 5 p.m. to 10 p.m.

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So here I am, singing the praises of Tilman Fertitta again (see "Forgiving Fertitta," June 26). Meanwhile, further down the Texas coast, another Houstonian is engaged in a last-ditch effort to stop him. The city of Corpus Christi and Landry's are negotiating a plan that would build a Kemah-like complex on that city's waterfront. The attractions would include 50,000 square feet of rides as well as an Aquarium restaurant, a Rain Forest Café, a Landry's Seafood restaurant and a Joe's Crab Shack.

Houston's Sissy Farenthold, a former state legislator and Democratic gubernatorial candidate with long-standing family ties to Corpus Christi, spoke at a town hall meeting there to object to the size of the amusement park and the rest of Landry's plans. Farenthold is a founder of the Organization for the Preservation of an Unblemished Shoreline (OPUS) which opposes the project.

"People here are adamantly opposed to this deal," Farenthold tells me on the phone. "I don't see how anybody representing the public interest could have let this go through. To me, it is the ultimate in privatization, everything for private interests and nothing for the public."

I oppose Landry's plans in Corpus Christi too, just in case anybody cares. I explain to Farenthold why I am writing this review in praise of Tilman Fertitta at the same time she and people in Corpus Christi are fighting him. Farenthold says she understands my dilemma and confesses that she is a regular reader of this column.

"Brenner's is a Houston landmark and he deserves credit for saving it," Farenthold says. "I just wish he would show the same sort of sentiment for our shoreline."