Openings and Closings: Sushi by Hidden Opens, CAPS Supper Club Soon

Sushi by Hidden, 5216 Morningside, opens December 5 for dinner service. The restaurant will feature a 30-minute timed omakase experience from the creators of the speakeasy sushi restaurant, Hidden Omakase. The new Rice Village spot will be similar to Hidden Omakase with a limited seating of 10 guests at a time. Each diner will receive 12 sushi pieces chosen and delivered directly by the chef. Leading the chef-driven experience is Chef Jimmy Kieu along with a rotating roster of sushi professionals.
The menu itself will be variable, relying on the availability of market fish. Guests might find courses such as Akami; lean bluefish tuna with chili garlic, Fuji apple and sanbaizu, a vinegar, rice wine and soy dipping sauce. Other possible dishes include tom yum-marinated Engawa (flounder fin) with finger lime and salmon roe. Like its sister concept, Sushi by Hidden will use similar techniques such as dry-aged fish.
Adding to the sleek, modern feel of the space will be a gallery of NFT art showcasing a rotating line-up of artists with upbeat music adding to the fun vibe. For now, the restaurant is BYOL (Bring Your Own Liquor). There is a $20 corkage fee for bottles 720ml or more. The tasting menu is $60 per person.

When it first opens, the restaurant will have timed dinner service only. Lunch service will be added in the future.

CAPS Supper Club and Bar, 2610 Briar Ridge, is shooting for a January 2023 opening. It's actually more of a revival of the former CAPS Piano Bar. It will still have the historic charm but the interior has undergone a major transformation with wrap-around booths and dining tables plus a center stage for live music. There's also a private dining room for parties, gatherings and corporate events that will accommodate 25 to 30 guests.

The original CAPS closed in 2021 and the property was acquired by Dr. Venkata Diddi, an Assistant Professor at Baylor College of Medicine. Diddi says he recognized the location's potential and the appeal of the concept right away. "We are not a dueling piano bar or a jazz lounge but an upscale dining establishment with great live music Monday through Saturday...and I think that's rare to find in Houston."
As for the dinner club menu, Diddi has Chef Chef Omar Pereney, former owner of Peska in Houston, at the helm. A principal at Culinary Matters, a local food consulting agency, Pereney says the menu will be constantly evolving and that seafood will be a main theme in addition to a number of ingredients. A peek at the proposed menu for opening includes a Crudo section with oysters, Caviar Potato Chips, Ceviche Mixto and steak tartare. The Shareables menu offers deviled eggs with crispy shrimp, Chorizo and Mango Croquettes, grilled octopus, a charcuterie board and Short Rib Grilled Cheese.
Entrees options include Whole Branzino, Bucatini Cacio e Peppe, Herb-roasted Chicken and its signature CAPS Burger with Mahon cheese, caramelized onion and secret sauce served on a brioche bun with fries. Steaks and lamb chops are also on the menu.

To pair with the food is a wine list of mostly Old World wines plus house and classic cocktails.
Voodoo Doughnut, 1301 N. Fry, opened November 28 in Katy. It's the 15th store system-wide for the funky doughnut shop and the fourth location in Houston. This one has a drive-thru that is open 24 hours so those hankering for a midnight snack or a three-in-the-morning sugar binge are in luck.

Founded in Portland, Oregon in 2003, it first opened in Houston's Buffalo Heights in January 2020 to much fanfare. Since then, it has opened stores on Westheimer and in Cypress.
Serving over-the-top yeast and cake doughnuts, plus its signature cannolos, it now offers more than 50 flavors including 25 vegan options. Customers can order them singly or choose from the Classic, Voodoo or Vegan dozen boxes. Popular doughnuts include the Old Dirty Bastard, The Homer and The Portland Cream. The Memphis Mafia is a pastry concoction that would make Elvis' jumpsuit fit even tighter. It's a fried dough fritter with banana chunks, cinnamon, chocolate and peanut butter.

There are tamer choices such as Plain Cake, Powdered Sugar Cake and Glazed Old Fashioned. We personally like the Buttermilk Bar. For shits and giggles, bring your best pals a couple of Voodoo Dolls and Maple Blazer Blunts. For the shits part, you can throw in one of its Ring of Fire doughnuts.

Its Bacon Maple Bar was named 'Greatest Yeast Donut in America 2022' by the Underground Donut Tour. Try it and see if you agree. It has bacon on it.

Vibrant, 1931 Fairview, reopened November 16, after having been closed since September 2021, according to Chron.com. It features a brand new menu from its chef Patti Delgado. Focusing on fresh foods that are nutritious and anti-inflammatory, the menu includes new items like Sorghum Waffles with coconut yogurt probiotic cream, Carrot Cake Chia Pudding, Golden Bone Broth Soup and Squash and Mushroom Pizza.

Its Smoothie Bowl is chock full of nutrition with cauliflower, spinach, tahini, bee pollen and hempseed while more traditional tacos use locally-raised, pastured meats. The Garden Chicken Sandwich gets its non-gluten crispiness from chickpea flour and there are a number of vegan pastries for indulging wisely.

There are coffee drinks made with pecan-cashew milk and non-coffee drinks such as the Matcha Latte and the Golden Mylk Latte. The restaurant also offers a shop for healthy kitchen essentials like nut and seed breads, sweet potato tortillas and coconut yogurt plus wellness products and supplements.

The healthy-eating restaurant first opened in August 2018 with owner Kelly Barnhart originally featuring a menu designed by wellness blogger Alison Wu. It caters to proponents of clean eating by using sustainably-sourced ingredients with no refined sugar or GMOs. The menu is also gluten and dairy-free.
Milk Mustache,1864 Fountain View, will celebrate its grand opening December 2 through December 3. It's the first storefront for the Houston-area cookie company founded by owner Tracy Jones, who also happens to be the designer for the 925 square-foot space. The mom of four began baking as a distraction during the COVID pandemic, giving away treats to local families, medical professionals and teachers. She now has a factory in Cypress that ships the cookies nationwide.
The space for the flagship store blends modern and traditional touches in a cozy coral-colored space. An exposed brick wall, custom bench seating, along with a neon sign proclaiming "Cookies make the World Sweeter", creates an inviting space for customers to relax with a rewarding and delicious treat. Milk Mustache offers a dozen cookie flavors in its signature 6-ounce size. Some of its bestsellers include Nutella Dream, Red Velvet Cream Cheese, Campfire Bliss and Snickerdoodle. Four flavors will appear on a rotating weekly basis.

Jones is also launching an Edible Cookie Dough Bar with 6 flavors sold by the scoop or pint. As if cookie dough weren't enough, there will also be 10 topping options.
During its grand opening, the cookie shop will give one free Chocolate Chip Mini cookie to the first 100 guests on both days. There will also be an hourly raffle for a 12-pack box of cookies. On December 2, a portion of the day's sales will go to the Alzheimer's Association of Houston and Southeast Texas. For December 3, Houston Children's Charity will be the beneficiary of a portion of the proceeds.

Slim Chickens, 9599, will have a grand opening for its seventh Houston-area restaurant December 12. The Houston stores are owned by TX-SC Ventures and the locally-owned fast food and quick service restaurant company plans to open five more. The new location will create over 75 new jobs in the community.

Summer Moon Coffee, 8940 Barker Cypress, opened in late November 2022. It's the third Houston-area location for the Austin-founded coffee brand which now has over 40 locations. It offers a wide selection of coffee drinks, hot or iced, plus blended beverages and nitro cold brew. Its signature Moon Milk is a secret sweetened cream of 7 ingredients while its Moon Juice is the non-dairy version which can be made with a number of dairy-free "milks."
Lady M Confections, 5085 Westheimer, opened November 18 at the Houston Galleria. Located in space 1300 near the ice skating rink, the pop-up location for the Mille Crepes purveyor will stay in the space until summer 2023.

Over the past five years, Lady M has hosted four successful pop-ups around Houston. The new takeout only boutique will offer its signature Mille Crepes which are alternating layers of cream and lacy French crepes done in the mille-feuille style, which in French means "a thousand sheets". In addition to its Signature Mille Crepes, there are flavors like Green Tea, Butter Pecan, Pistachio and chocolate. There are also several luscious cakes and candies.

Gagootz, 5903 Fulton, opened in early October and this is one that is flying under the radar. Located in the Lindale Park neighborhood near the popular hangout, Monkey's Tail, this eclectic bar/eatery is getting favorable reviews online for its food, atmosphere and friendly owner. Currently it has no social media, so we will attempt to reach out the old-fashioned way to discover more of what appears to be a hidden gem.
C. Baldwin Hotel, 400 Dallas, will offer 12 Days of Christmas cocktails from December 1 through December 12 in the lobby bar. Each day, there will be a new drink for $12. There will be boozy creations like Apple Cinnamon Toast, Naughty or Spiced, Rosy Cheeks and Mistletoe. The Christmas Carol is made with Bombay Sapphire gin, green Chartreuse, clove-infused honey, maple syrup and lemon juice.

Ichiru Ramen & Sushi, 26084 Northwest Freeway, opened in early November. It offers an extensive menu of sushi rolls, sashimi and nigiri plus appetizers like fried oysters, Crab Rangoon, chicken karaage and soft shell crab.

Some of its ramen offerings include tonkatsu, vegetarian, seafood and Ichiru Black Garlic.

Ong Jas Viet Kitchen, 11930 Broadway, softly opened in Pearland November 8. Due to maintenance, it had to close briefly but it reopens December 2. It offers a selection of pho, including its OJ's Pho Hot Stone which is a beef-centric pho served in a stone bowl that keeps it warm. The hot stone pho is available for dine-in only.

There are starters like the commonly found spring rolls and chicken wings but also its Viet Beef Carpaccio.  The menu includes vermicelli, fried tomato rice, garlic noodles and a small selection of banh mi. For beverages, there are drinks such as pandan milk, butterfly lemonade, smoothies and Vietnamese coffee.
Petit Beignets, 22490 Texas-249, is currently undergoing inspections. We will let readers know when the boba tea and pastry shop opens.

Phanh Ky Asian Noodle House, 12661 Tomball Parkway, opened the first week of November. It has two other locations on Bellaire Boulevard in Dakao Plaza and Colonial Parkway in Katy Asian Town.

Eat Drink HTX returns for its second year February 15 through February 28, 2023. The sister event to The Cleverley Stone Foundation's Houston Restaurant Weeks, the charity foodie celebration has a new non-profit partner on board. Along with benefitting Houston Food Bank, Eat Drink HTX will also aid CHILDREN AT RISK, an organization whose avowed mission is to improve the lives of Texas children in need.

Katie Stone, President of the Cleverley Stone Foundation, said in a press release for the event, " My mother and I have been impressed with the work of CHILDREN AT RISK. They focus on many issues facing children, parents and caretakers...raising funds for them through Eat Drink HTX is a wonderful way for my mother's legacy to continue and for more area residents to fund their mission and educate Houstonians of their cause."

Like its big sister concept, HRW, the February 2023 event will have a wide variety of participating restaurants with donations made from each special meal offered. The pre-planned lunch and brunch menus will be $15 while the dinner menus will be $20 or $25, depending on the restaurant. One dollar from each lunch and brunch sold will go to the chosen charities while $2 and $3 will be donated from the dinner menus.

While the list of participating restaurants is still growing, foodies can expect to find special Eat Drink HTX menus from Phat Eatery, Craft Pita, City Cellars HTX, The Chef's Table, Low Tide Kitchen and Bar, Kin Dee Thai Cuisine and many more.

Dog Haus Biergarten, 8422 Highway 6, is hosting its Second Anniversary Celebration from noon to 3 p.m. December 3. There will be face painting and games for the kiddos plus $2 drink specials and live music for the adults. Wicked Jeepers will be showcasing some vehicles from local Jeep enthusiasts.

Attendees are encouraged to bring an unwrapped toy for donation. All collected gifts will be given to Depelchin Children's Center.

Restaurants Reported Open November 2022:

B.B. Italia Bistro & Bar, 16250 City Walk, opened November 8
Blue Lagoon Bar & Grill, 12930 Crystal View Boulevard, opened November 11
Bungalow Downtown Dining, 407 Main, opened mid-October
Captain D's, 8408 FM 1960 Bypass, opened November 22
Craft Pita, 5172 Buffalo Speedway, opened November 19
Crumbl Cookies, 9595 Six Pines, opened November 18
Deemo's Steakhouse, 11702 Grant, opened early November
Dutch Bros. Coffee, 9778 Highway 242, opened November 18
Emilia's Havana, 1800 Post Oak, opened October 28
Flip N Dip Burger, 13203 Fry, opened November 8
Fogo de Chao, 700 Baybrook Mall, opened September 29
Goode Co. Kitchen & Cantina, 1801 Yale, opened November 8
Karne Korean Steakhouse, 2805 White Oak, opened November 1
Lupo Caffe, 250 Assay, opened November 5
Maderas Kitchen & Cantina, 120 Westheimer, had its grand opening November 5
Mexican Mom Cocina Tradicional, 1027 Sawdust, opened September 21
Navy Blue, 2445 Times Boulevard, opened November 18
River House Houston, 65 Hirsch, opened late October
7Pie Pizza, 2514 7th, opened November 8
Slowpokes, 6725 Stella Link, opened November 28
Three Brothers Bakery, 574 Chimney Rock, opened mid-October
Urban Bird Hot Chicken, 27120 Fulshear Bend, opened November 10
Zanti Cucina Italiana, 1958 W. Gray, opened November 7


Restaurants Reported Closed November 2022:

Fajita Willie's Cafe and Cantina, 15650 FM 529, closed in November