Spanish Food and Cooking

A Look Inside Batanga Tapas Drinks, Now Open Downtown

There's been a lot of talk about downtown Houston's "revival," sparked by a spate of restaurant and bar openings near Main Street. But the word "revival" seemed grossly inappropriate as I drove to Batanga Tapas Drinks this past Saturday for its media preview party, as the word itself suggests that ... More >>

Openings & Closings: Second and Third Locations Edition, Including The Burger Guys' New Downtown Spot

The big news this week for burger fans: The Burger Guys announced plans a second location of the popular west-side restaurant downtown. Instead of a pop-up run this time, the Guys will have a full-time restaurant in the city's central business district in the old Korma Sutra location at 706 Main. S ... More >>

10 Things to Do Before Labor Day: My Summer To-Taste List

Summer's back, and although it feels like it's here to stay, Labor Day has its way of creeping up on you. Every year, I give myself a list of things I'd like to accomplish before the end of summer (this usually involves a promise of nightly laps in the pool that I never ever do). This year, I though ... More >>

Pena's Is Donut Heaven

Pena's in Pearland gives Shipley's a run for its money.

He's Still Got It

Arturo Boada is turning out lovely pizzas and tapas at his namesake Memorial Villages restaurant.

El Meson Spanish Wine Dinner with Jean Leon

Chef Chat, Part 3: Hicham Nafaa of Majorca Bistro & Tapas

Let the tapas begin... Photo by Mandy Oaklander​After our chef chat (see parts one and two), Hicham Nafaa of Majorca Bistro & Tapas first whips up a mix of Majorcan tapas -- warm, open-faced baguettes topped with vegetables (left), Moroccan sausage, and shrimp (right). The vegetarian slice i ... More >>

Our 5 Favorite Chilled Soups for the Summer

Photo courtesy of TintosA refreshing gazpacho trio for summer.​Hope you enjoyed our gorgeous spring, folks. It's summer again, more or less. And there's a lot of it left to go. Last weekend, even though it was a pleasant 62 degrees outside in New York, I found myself taking solace in a creamy ... More >>

Where Are We Eating?

A reliable favorite for low-key breakfasts, this little taco joint has some of the freshest, fluffiest, finest flour tortillas in town. Does the pair of chorizo and egg tacos below look familiar to you? Think you know where we're eating breakfast this week? ​Leave your best guess in the comme ... More >>

On the Menu: An Oporto Portobello

​Say that three times. Actually, at Oporto Food and Wine Bar, it's called an Oportobello. This was one of the many delicious tapas plates my group of friends consumed a few nights back at the hip Greenway Plaza-area establishment. Everything I ate that night was very pleasing, but the Oport ... More >>

Spanish-Style Meats at Specs

Sobrasada.​Spec's is home to some of the best available Spanish-style and Spanish-imported meats in the city (as well as cheeses, but that's an entirely different post). I got to taste quite of few of them on Fat Tuesday to get my fill of meat before the 40 days of Lent began. While only a fe ... More >>

Openings & Closings

​News that a new tapas bar is opening in Midtown led to the brief discussion on Twitter this week about pronunciation issues concerning holiday islands in the Mediterranean, and Houstonians' propensity to open restaurants named after them. Majorca Island Bistro and Tapas, that new tapas resta ... More >>

Mexican Breakfast at Don Patron Bar and Grill

​Well, I'm getting closer to the tunnels, anyway. Don Patron Bar and Grill is located in the ground floor lobby of One Allen Center, at 500 Dallas. For dinner, Don Patron turns into a full-service restaurant. For breakfast and lunch, however, they open up a small take-out wing off to the side. ... More >>

Openings & Closings

Photo by GroovehouseShort ribs with chimichurri sauce at Tango & Malbec.​Last night saw the grand opening of Houston's newest South American restaurant, the oddly named Tango & Malbec (2800 Sage, 713-629-8646). No, it's not a supper club with cheesy dancers; it's an Argentinean establishment r ... More >>

1st Houston Flamenco Festival

Macondo Latin Bistro

Soyrizo: Even Better Than The Real Thing?

Vegan migas con chorizo​The reason I first started eating Soyrizo had nothing to do with health concerns or the welfare of the animals that were going into the tasty Mexican sausage with the trademark bright-orange grease. No, it was a much more selfish reason than that. I was living in a sma ... More >>

So Much Meat

Saldivia's South American Grill's entraña

Top 10 Foods to Eat à Deux

​Some foods just aren't meant to be eaten solo. Instead, they just scream "date night" or, at least, "really, really close friend night." Here are ten foods best shared by two: 10. Fajitas In the Tex Mex haven of Houston, this is an obvious choice. While you can order fajitas by yourself, it ... More >>

Robb Walsh's 100 Favorite Houston Dishes: #71 Paella at Rioja on Kirkwood

​Over the course of the next few months, I'm counting down 100 of my favorite Houston dishes. I chose some because they are such quintessential Houston creations, others for their cultural or historical significance, and others because they are just so damn tasty. Share your own nominations in ... More >>

Sampler Plate: This Week In Food Blogs

Each week, we put together a sampler plate of the most interesting links from both local and national food blogs. Know a blog we should be paying particular attention to? Leave the address in the comments section below. Not Eating Out in New York: While this isn't a local blog, we've quickly fallen ... More >>

Mex on the Beach

The wild tropical seafood restaurant Yelapa Playa Mexicana was named for a beach on the Pacific Coast of Mexico.

Tasty Tentacles

Octopus a la Plancha at Ibiza

Flat and Fabulous

Andouille and tasso flatbread at Bistro Alex

Openings and Closings: November 2009

​Although a very high profile restaurant shut its doors this month -- the longtime Montrose institution La Strada -- we've seen far more openings lately than closings. Below is your roundup of new and defunct restaurants from November 2009. Closings La Strada, 322 Westheimer Bangkok Room, ... More >>

The 10 Best Places to Eat in Westchase

Unlike neighboring Memorial, the Westchase district of Houston -- which runs roughly down the spine of Westheimer from Gessner to Dairy Ashford -- is brimming with some of the city's best and (happily) least expensive ethnic restaurants. Although you could eat at a place like J. Alexander's or Le Pe ... More >>

Openings and Closings

​November has been a good month for Houston restaurants so far, with notably few closings. Among them in the past week were two casualties of Spanish cuisine: Tio Pepe (5213 Cedar) in Bellaire and the adjoining Garnaxas Tapas Bar. In better news, a spate of openings around the city -- and esp ... More >>

Taco Truck Gourmet: Sabrosita

​This huevos con chorizo taco was a little a pricey at $1.75 -- it was also a little too salty, but the spice level of the chorizo was excellent. I got a topping of red salsa, onions and cilantro. I also sampled three homemade tamales, one with a spicy pork filling and two with a mild chicken ... More >>

Looks Like Sausage, Tastes Like Shrimp

Taquitos de Brochetta at Churrascos

RDG Bar Annie's Shrimp Meat Balls

In the wake of Café Annie's closing, Robert Del Grande has taken up the chef's hat again. Just a bit further down Post Oak, the RDG Grill Room, Bar Annie and the BLVD Lounge are now all serving a variety of small plates and entrees at different price points. But even in a new place, Chef Del Grande ... More >>

Nuevos Huevos at La Guadalupana Bakery and Café

Creative Carpaccio at Ristorante Cavour

Date Night: Five Ideas for Valentine's Day

Oporto

Sounds fishy

Give Me the Electric Chair

Houston gets a prison-themed taquería straight from Mexico City

Late Desayuno, Anyone?

Late Desayuno, Anyone?

Warm-up Course

Damian's Cucina Italiana

Three-course Lunch

Daiji's Izakaya Japanese Tapas Bar

Split Personality

Japaneiro's Sushi Bistro and Latin Grill

Best Mexican Bakery

Letters

Stirred and Shaken

Mi Luna's sangria

Snack Food

If not for the chips and guacamole, Tecate would blend in with all the mediocre Mexican joints

Hot Plate

Setting a New Standard

Tasca, serious about its food and service, delivers excellence

Eats for the Beach

Sabroso Grill offers tastes from the tropics

Hot Plate

Cuban Classic

Cafe Latina's staff may cross cultures, but the food is pure island

Anatomy of a Scam

Six Degrees of Separation, one of the best movies in months, takes the jump from play to screen with wit and brilliance