Avery's Bayside Café

Here's one we haven't heard: The new Avery's Bayside Café (21706 Burnet Dr., Galveston, 409-737-5151), a restaurant on stilts on Galveston's west end, is a family establishment — owned by a divorced couple. "My business partner and I were married for seven years, and we've been divorced for 15. But for the sake of the kids, we kept in touch and kept up the relationship, so when this place became available, I decided that even though we couldn't make a marriage work, we sure can make a business work," says Tammy Peoples, who runs the place with business partner, chef and ex-husband Todd Mackey.

Mackey has 25 years' experience as a chef. "I'm making upper-class country-style cooking," he says. "There was a restaurant [in this location] called Richardson's on the Bay, but its reputation had gone way down. Of course, we have Gulf Coast seafood on the menu, but I'm also doing a blue plate special for lunch, like fried chicken and stuffed flounder." Peoples adds that they'll also be offering barbecue. "Todd also makes the best ribs and barbecue sauce. He even sells it. And people love the home-style bread pudding with Grand Marnier sauce."