Taft

Max's Wine Dive Moving in to Montrose; What Does That Mean for Houston?

Fried eggs and truffle oil as toppings may be old hat to foodies these days. We're easily distracted creatures who paw like needle-clawed kittens at every new bauble that comes along. But back in the rollicking days of the mid-2000s, the novelty had not yet worn thin and restaurants like Max's Wine ... More >>

The 5 Best Things to Eat or Drink This Weekend: Wild Game Cook-off, Art Cars & Food Trucks, a Craw-wish Boil and a Mother's Day Reminder

Yaga's Wild Game BBQ Cook-off Saturday, 8 a.m. Pier 21, Galveston Island Yaga's has been one of the most consistent fixtures on downtown Galveston's Strand for decades, and this year the restaurant is celebrating its 17th annual Yaga's Wild Game BBQ Cook-off by raising its millionth dollar for Galv ... More >>

Houston Native Wine Celeb Ray Isle Returns Home, Finds Food Scene "Deeply Local While Still Cosmopolitan"

My 80-year old mother may not know his name but she knows his face. "You mean that handsome young man who talks about wine on the Today show with Kathie Lee [Gifford] and Hoda [Kotb]?" she asks when I mention that I'm having lunch in Houston with Food & Wine executive wine editor Ray Isle. But hey ... More >>

Houston's 10 Sweetest 420 Shows and Festivals

I'm not going to launch into some long diatribe as an opening to this blog; there's no need. All that needs to be said can be summed up in one word -- weed. That's right. This is a blog about all the sweet 420 festivals and events around Houston to help you declare your love for the mean green hol ... More >>

This Week In Food Blogs: Cheating Death and the Bitter Taste of Underberg

CultureMap: I look forward to Ruthie Johnson Miller's "Where To Eat Right Now" post every month, as a quick and coherent round-up of the restaurants (and bars and food trucks and more) that are most ably capturing Houston's short attention span at the moment. The list for March includes a few newcom ... More >>

La Casa de Caballo Brings Tex-Mex and Steaks to Montrose

I admit: I was wary when I heard the news that a Mexican steakhouse would be moving into the old La Strada location in Montrose. The two-story building at Westheimer and Taft has housed a succession of failures over the past five years: La Strada itself, which closed in 2009 after 22 years hosting t ... More >>

Pho to Ramen, Bulgogi to Bo 7 Mon

The top 10 restaurants in Chinatown.

Rest of the Best

Houston's top 5 local music venues.

Openings & Closings: September 2012, Plus Picking a New Name for Calliope's Po-Boy

After a supremely busy seven days for restaurant news last week, this week let up a little bit -- but not by much. Starting off the week was news that chef Erin Smith is leaving Plonk. Her last day will be October 13 and after a brief trip to visit family, Smith will be back in Houston looking for h ... More >>

Zach Adams of The Pass & Provisions on Switchblade Swizzles

This week we asked readers who they'd like to see profiled in upcoming editions of Bartender Chat. Zach Adams was not only mentioned multiple times, he also happens to be working behind the bar at The Pass & Provisions, which just opened. A new chef-driven concept from Seth Siegel-Gardner and Terren ... More >>

Where the Chefs Eat: Seth Siegel-Gardner, Terrence Gallivan, Justin Yu

First, there was Just August Project. And then came Pilot Light Group. And then came Oxheart Restaurant. And soon we will have the The Pass and Provisions. For this week's Where the Chefs Eat installment, we found out where Seth Siegel-Gardner, Terrence Gallivan, and Justin Yu like to eat around ... More >>

Health Department Roundup: Pass and Provisions, Warren's, Ruchi's and more

Sometimes the city's inspection reports can bring news. And sometimes the online reports can be confusing. The Pass and Provisions (807 Taft) - a fine-dining venture Shilcutt previewed here - is apparently close enough to opening to warrant a pre-opening inspection. Good news for whatever the people ... More >>

The 5 Best Shows In Houston This Week: Lightning Bolt, Stoney LaRue, Etc.

Stampeding Providence, R.I. noise-rock duo Lightning Bolt, a two-piece as loud as it is heavy, destroys an otherwise quiet Monday night at Fitzgerald's behind its forthcoming Load Records release, Oblivion Hunter, which the label describes as "amped-up and free, with an ear on the railroad tracks to ... More >>

Openings & Closings: Cuchara Slices Up a Soft Opening and the Gift Horse Lounge Opens Its Mouth

It's been a busy week, so straight to the dish: Cuchara, the Montrose restaurant at the corner of Taft and Fairview that's been under construction since February, is set to have its soft opening this coming Sunday. I peeked in one afternoon this week and saw an open, semi-industrial dining room with ... More >>

Lucio's Hidden in Plain Sight

Montrose gem offers exquisite food, a generous BYOB policy and a gorgeous patio.

Saturday Night: South Park Coalition 25th Anniversary At Numbers

South Park Coalition 25th Anniversary Numbers April 14, 2012 Over the past 25 years, few rap cliques anywhere have been as prolific and consistent as Houston's South Park Coalition. To celebrate a quarter-century worth of underground rhymes and grinds on Saturday night, the S.P.C. brought both the ... More >>

Openings & Closings: Istanbul Is Constantinople

The big news this past week was the closing of Pesce, the longtime River Oaks seafood spot at Kirby and West Alabama owned by Landry's (Harlow's somehow stays open, yet Pesce gets closed? Go figure.). In its place, yet another Brio Tuscan Grille is moving in. No word on what will become of Mark Holl ... More >>

The Pass and Provisions To Move Into Old Gravitas Space

The pilot light has been lit: Chefs Terrence Gallivan and Seth Siegel-Gardner of Pilot Light Restaurant Group finally announced plans for their first restaurant space yesterday. The Pass and Provisions will be opening at 807 Taft, in the former space of both Gravitas and -- before that -- the origi ... More >>

Openings & Closings: The All-Montrose Edition

It's all Montrose, all the time this week: Nearly every bit of restaurant scoop for the past several days has come out of the Montrose, starting with an announcement last night from the owners of the Eatsie Boys food truck: "EBOY BREAKING NEWS: We have signed a lease in Mmmontrose. Eboy 3.0 storefro ... More >>

Openings & Closings: Turning Over a New Banana Leaf

As reported earlier this week, Gravitas closed swiftly and unexpectedly over the weekend. The restaurant had changed hands several times in the last year, and both parties blamed the other for Gravitas's inability to make timely payments to the bank. All of its equipment was reclaimed by said bank, ... More >>

Grilled Mac & Cheese Sandwich at Ziggy's

​For a restaurant known for its healthy dining options, Ziggy's Bar & Grill has an impressive edge when it comes to junk food of the highest order. To wit: The grilled mac & cheese sandwich seen above. The story of the grilled mac & cheese sandwich -- a special, limited-time creation inspired ... More >>

Musician Hopes Free Drinks, Practice Time Draw Bands To Mango's

​Do you like playing music? Do you like drinking alcohol? Then Jess Wilson at Mango's can hook you up. Rocks Off was doing our weekly wade through Craigslist when we stumbled across the following ad: I'm looking for bands to play regular gigs on Thursdays at Mango's on Westheimer. All styles ... More >>

Sinfully Good Treats from Sinfull Bakery

​Ever since my run-in with some miserable gluten-free (GF) pancakes a while back, I've been wary of GF food in general. But wary doesn't mean I don't keep trying the stuff in hopes of finding some magical GF cookie that doesn't taste like a Frisbee. There are certainly plenty of excellent GF ... More >>

Mud And Dreams At Summerfest: A Personal Reflection

Jen Dulisse​ Due to a previous commitment to my Houston 48 Hour Film Project team, I missed Summerfest on Saturday, so it was with eager anticipation that I got into my car and started on the trip from my home in Friendswood to Eleanor Tinsley Park. And that was how I found myself thinking "I hope ... More >>

Craving Crepes: Melange Creperie Hits the Streets

​It's 10 a.m. The parking lot at Mango's, the hipster hangout at Westheimer and Taft, is mostly empty as the usual rush of Montrose traffic tumbles past Melange Creperie, the self-contained crepe stand with a distinctive red awning that's set up shop in one corner of the asphalt lot. Buffalo ... More >>

International House of Sandwiches

Juan Mon's youthful swagger is endearingly silly, and his sandwiches are very tasty.

Openings and Closings: 2009 Edition

​The year gone by marked some very exciting restaurant openings (such as Haven, Branchwater Tavern, Yelapa Playa Mexicana and Stella Sola) and some equally important closings (such as Cafe Annie, Bedford, Las Alamedas and Felix Mexican Restaurant). To close out the yea ... More >>

Carnegie Vanguard May Finally (And Happily) Move To A New Home

Photo by Margaret Downing​Houston ISD Superintendent Terry Grier says he loves working with "prickly parents" because they care about their children and want what's best for them.Perhaps that's why he and the HISD administrative team are finally on the brink of landing a new home for Carnagie Vang ... More >>

Aftermath: Puppet Shows, Neo-Rastas, Freddie Gonorrhea, Black Congress and an Impromptu Nap Saturday at Westheimer Block Party

Marc Brubaker​ Saturday's Westheimer Block Party began on a wobbly note, as most music festivals do with fans and staff still trying to find their bearings, aided by alcohol or otherwise. The scene on the ground seemed chaotic just an hour into the first day of the event. Organizer and Free Press ... More >>

Openings and Closings

​The big news this week is once again related to Bedford, the restaurant in the Heights that was up until very recently the home of heralded chef Robert Gadsby. A little birdie told us a few weeks back that Reef's executive chef and co-owner Bryan Caswell had big plans for the space, and they wer ... More >>

Comets, Stoners, Cougars, Robbers, Filmmakers and Anarchists

A Long Way to Go

Coming Soon: Juan Mon's International Sandwiches

A whole new concept in international fast food is coming to a stretch of Taft Street in Houston's Fourth Ward. Juan Mon's International Sandwiches and Drinks plans to bring an eclectic cuisine to one of the most eclectic neighborhoods in the city. First, the neighborhood. Taft Street between West ... More >>

“In the Soil: Nicaragua”

Photographer Ryan Booth documents a trip to the coffee fields of Central America

Montrose Gays, Family Violence and Blood Sucking Pols

Rumors surround Montrose church

Driven Crazy

Spy vs. Spy

Our restaurant critic gets busted at Gravitas, so we send in our counterintelligence team

Tremé, Texas

The soul of New Orleans lives on in Houston, especially at Sammy's on Main

Mean Streets

NASCAR has nothing on Houston freeways

Wack Wheels

The Art Car Parade presents pimped rides

On Shaky Grounds

HISD got more than it bargained for when it decided to develop the Fourth Ward

Potty Mouths

Tamales overhead, beer cans underfoot, drug references and cussing from the stage — it's the return of the Westheimer Street Festival to its old home

Fire, Work with Me

Fun on the Fourth

Da Bombing

The postering of West Gray

Art Car Outs

There's some fury over a jury deciding who gets in the parade

Not in Kansas Anymore

Punk Drunks

Dish

Merry Xmas, Mr. Waldhauser

A hearing officer finds that a convicted killer did not violate parole

Hot Plate

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