Even though it began with two surprising closing announcements, the rest of the week has been pretty slow.
The Burger Guys announced that its downtown location has closed after being open for only one year. Owner Jake Mazzu and Chef Brandon Fisch told CultureMap that they didn't believe in cursed locations until now -- this building has housed four restaurants in seven years, according to Mazzu. He says that the high price of the burgers and the team's inability to serve neighboring office buildings contributed to the problems leading to the location's closure. Fortunately, the original location on Westheimer remains open.
Perhaps there is also a curse on Washington Avenue. Last week Hollister Grill on Washington shut its doors after being open for just six months. Now, Solea, which is on Shepherd near Washington, has announced that it is closing so the owners can rebrand the restaurant. Solea opened 14 months ago offering small plates meant to be shared, wine and live music. According to the Facebook announcement, the owners plan to change every aspect of the restaurant, including the name, but have said nothing specific about their plans.
Breath a sigh of relief, because Little Bitty Burger Barn is NOT closing, despite the Craigslist ad stating that it was for sale. The owners told Eater they decided to stay where they are in Oak Forest. To make things even better, the burger dive is offering free quarter-pound burgers between 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. today.
Fellini Caffe officially opened on September 26, as noted by B4-U-Eat's weekly newsletter. The restaurant kicked things off with a happy hour.
Torchy's Tacos also opened on September 26. The new Heights location opened at 7 a.m. and offered free breakfast tacos throughout the morning. (If only the breakfast tacos were free every morning.)
Campo Azul Mexican Restaurant in Dickinson closed a while ago, but the family has re-opened the restaurant in Pasadena. B4-U-Eat mentions that the newly established restaurant has also added breakfast to its menu.
Eater reported that Cloud 10 Creamery had a soft opening in Rice Village on September 22, so the ice cream company finally has a brick-and-mortar location. Since the 22nd, Cloud 10 Creamery has been open for limited hours in the evening to serve a variety of classic and new flavors, including chamomile, dulce de leche and black-sesame milk chocolate.
We reported last week that Tacos A Go-Go would take over the current La Fendee location to open a third taco restaurant, but according to Eater the deal is not set in stone. Tacos A Go-Go owner Jeff Roeske posted a statement on Facebook to clear up any confusion. He says nothing has been made official.
Noodles & Companyopens its first Houston-area location in The Woodlands on Monday, September 30. The starch-heavy restaurant serves just about any and every type of noodle -- hearty bowls of mac & cheese, penne pasta with spicy tomato cream sauce and classic Pad Thai.
Did we miss any openings or closings? Let us know in the comments section and we will be sure to include them in next week's report.
