Jody Stevens

The Eating...Our Words 100: Tracy Vaught, Owner of Backstreet Cafe and Hugo's

What she does: Tracy Vaught is the owner of Hugo's and Backstreet Cafe and a partner at Prego and Trevisio. ""I do all the planning, train managers, set all the standards for the restaurants, design menus," says Vaught. "Investments and charitable giving. I am the one who has political involvement ... More >>

H-E-B Plans New Galleria-Area Store; More Apartments Torn Down to Make Way

In 2010, Montrose residents were upset to find out that the languishing Wilshire Village apartment complex, built in the 1940s, were scheduled for demolition after Texas grocery giant H-E-B purchased the large parcel of land at Dunlavy and West Alabama. Later that year, West University residents we ... More >>

The Eating Our Words 100: Jody Stevens, Owner and Cake Designer of jodycakes

It's a shame how many people are denied their favorite sweets because of dietary regulations. Whether they are gluten-intolerant, on a vegan or vegetarian diet, eating baked goods can be quite a challenge. However, Jody Stevens, owner of the dietary-friendly bakery, jodycakes, decided that everyone ... More >>

Upcoming Events: Oktoberfest Contests, Beer-and-Burger Pairings and Free Food Truck Lunches for All

Celebrate 20 years of artist studios at Lawndale Art Center and five years of the Lawndale Artist Studio Program with Tasteful Art, a special tasting event featuring local contemporary artists and chefs at the historic and beautiful Hofheinz House (3900 Milam). Lawndale is bringing culinary artists ... More >>

Tasteful Art

Upcoming Events: Crawfish Across Houston

It's high crawfish season in Houston, with a slew of different boils coming up to satisfy all your head-sucking pursuits. But first, you don't want to miss this weekend's big charity event: Kicking Cancer's Ass. The fundraiser dinner will take place from 4 to 8 p.m. on Sunday, March 25 at Ralph Smi ... More >>

Upcoming Events: Just Say No to Green Beer and Cancer

Instead of chugging crappy green beer for St. Patrick's Day (which is tomorrow, in case you missed the memo), here are three other suggestions that don't suck: Barbecue guru Neil "Bigmista" Strawder is returning home to Galveston tomorrow for a charity barbecue at St. Augustine of Hippo, the oldest ... More >>

We Love Food

Our 100 favorite dishes in Houston.

The Rest of the Best: Houston's Top 10 Cupcakes

Photo by GroovehouseAs seen at our Cupcake Smackdown, people go nuts over tiny cakes.​For the next 20 weeks, we'll be rounding up the runners-up to our 2011 Best of Houston® winners. In many categories, picking each year's winner is no easy task. We'll be spotlighting 20 of those categories, ... More >>

Make It An Easy Valentine's Day With To-Go Treats

Want something better to give on Valentine's Day than a last-minute heart-shaped box of mediocre chocolates from the drug store? Several local bakers are offering baked goods and other items that you can order in advance and pick up when the big day is closer. Fluff Bake Bar and Fat Cat Creamery ... More >>

Upcoming Events: Tequila at TQLA and Multi-Course Mystery Dinners

If you've been looking for the right opportunity to try TQLA -- which just won our rather specific, yet no less applicable, award for Best Revival of a Genre -- here's the opportunity you've been looking for: TQLA is hosting a tequila dinner with Don Julio on Wednesday, October 19, starting at 6:30 ... More >>

What Do You Do When It's Too Hot to Cook?

A Texas-style caprese salad, made with things that grow best in summer -- local tomatoes and basil -- and cuajada fresca in place of mozzarella.​As Houston's summer weather goes, this last week of June isn't too terrible. Low humidity, highs under 100 degrees. But looking ahead to the rest of ... More >>

Chefs Taste Test Edible "Marital Aids" for Valentine's Day

We were terrified of the ball gag, too.​A chef, a pastry chef and a food critic walk into Erotic Cabaret. It's not the beginning of a joke; it's how I spent my Saturday afternoon. I took chef Jonathan Jones of Beaver's and pastry chef Jody Stevens of Jodycakes to the "marital aid" store this ... More >>

Caesar Salad Cupcakes and More: The 26th Annual Caesar Salad Competition

Caesar salad cupcakes: Where is your god now?​"We worked on these for two days straight," laughed Jody Stevens as she proudly displayed a cupcake garnished with a romaine lettuce leaf. Stevens and her partner, fellow pastry chef Rebecca Masson, were in inhospitable waters on Friday night as th ... More >>

Houston's Hottest Chefs: Lisa Carnley

Tam Vo​This past week, we've highlighted Houston's hottest female chefs, profiling Monica Pope, Jody Stevens, Meagan Silk and Jamie Zelko. But the moment of truth has come. The people of Houston have spoken. Lisa Carnley of Calliope's Po-Boys is Houston's hottest lady chef of all. When we as ... More >>

Houston's Hottest Chefs: Jody Stevens

Tam Vo​Every day this week we'll be highlighting the female winners from our poll on Houston's Hottest Chefs. On Friday we'll reveal the hottest chef of all. Eating Our Words: Were you surprised to see that you were named one of Houston's hottest female chefs? Jody Stevens: Definitely! I wa ... More >>

Golden Cities Hate All Over The Lion King

Each Wednesday, Rocks Off arbitrarily appoints one lucky local performer or group "Artist of the Week," bestowing upon them all the fame and grandeur such a lofty title implies. Know a band or artist that isn't awful? Email their particulars to sheaserrano@gmail.com. myspace.com/goldencitiesGolden ... More >>

5 Places to Get a Custom Birthday Cake in Houston

jessica.diamond​ We needed of a birthday cake quick but didn't know where to get it. So we turned to the Houston foodie community via Facebook and Twitter, and here were some of the suggestions that kept popping up. 1. Jodycakes By far the most mentioned was Jodycakes, who has a loyal fan ba ... More >>

Just Desserts: Wrapping Up the Cupcake Smackdown

Photos by GroovehouseThat's a lot of cupcakes...​We lost count of the guests somewhere around the 300-person mark. The crumbs and frosting of 144 different cupcakes smeared most of the available table surfaces. Empty cups of milk and wine lay discarded across the room. And our panel of five ju ... More >>

Our Second Reader Judge: The Houston Press Cupcake Smackdown

​Oh man, this was a close one. Who knew choosing the second reader judge for Sunday's Houston Press Cupcake Smackdown would be so gut-wrenching? Two readers, JG and Sofia, captured our hearts. Both came off as passionately -- okay, insanely -- dedicated to cupcakery. JG claimed that her mothe ... More >>

Think You've Got What It Takes To Be a Cupcake Judge?

​Last week, we chose Melanie Tello from a sea of 60 other worthy candidates to be one of our reader judges in this Sunday's much-anticipated Cupcake Smackdown at Block 7 Wine Company. This week, our food blog editor will choose the second and final judge. Do you think you have what it takes? ... More >>

Sweet Victory: The Eating Our Words Cupcake Smackdown

​We broke you in easy with the first Eating Our Words event: a wine tasting with light bites and smooth jazz. But now we're ready to rumble. We'll be hosting a Cupcake Smackdown on Sunday, January 24, at Block 7 Wine Company from 4 to 6 p.m. Cupcakes from a dozen restaurants and bakeries arou ... More >>

A Vegan Dinner at a Meatatarium

Photos by Katharine ShilcuttAppetizers: sweet potato chips and truffled carrots, radishes and turnips​Vegans may take our cheese (and milk and meat and butter and even honey), but they may never take...our truffles. This seemed to be the rallying cry on Monday night at Beaver's Ice House as seven ... More >>

Vegan Cake from Jodycakes

Vegan mint chocolate chip cupcakes​Having a few things to celebrate with a vegan friend, I decided to order a cake from Jodycakes. Even though Jody Stevens bakes regular cakes, she specializes in vegan, gluten-free and organic varieties -- not that you could tell from the flavor that anything ... More >>

Lesson in Survival

Seattle's Posies go their own soft way, no matter who likes it