Tony Mandola's

Tony Mandola's - like most restaurants run or owned by members of the Mandola family - has become a Houston institution in the years since it first opened in 1982 in River Oaks as Tony Mandola's Blue Oyster Bar. These days, the swanky seafood palace has an immense standalone building - it moved from its longtime West Gray location in 2010 - to accommodate the crowds that pack it each night. They're coming for classic cocktails and Gulf seafood standards, like the blackened snapper and the Linguini Tony. No meal is complete without a slice of its famous banana key lime pie, either, so save room for dessert. What's new is Chef Samuel Biere, who is making slight updates to the menu while preserving the favorite standards that make Tony Mandola's a Houston landmark.