Antone's Famous Po'boys, 6618 Fannin, opened in the Medical Towers Building at Fannin and Dryden. The buildout of the new 1,960 square foot space was overseen by Construction Concepts and the updated interior design was done by Gin Braverman Design Group. Two upcoming locations will also feature the new design.
Also new to the Antone's brand will be a breakfast menu that will debut at the Med Center location soon. There is also a "Express Lane" with its own cashier for grab and go items.
It will be open seven days a week serving Antone's po'boys, hot sandwiches, homemade gumbos, fried seafood plates, muffalettas and salads. There are also freshly baked brownies and cookies.
click to enlarge Antone's gets a modern upgrade at the new Medical Center spot.
Photo by Nick Scurfield
“We are excited to launch our updated version of the Antone’s restaurant concept and bring more than 55 years of delicious history to this bustling area of the city,” Legacy Restaurants CEO Jonathan Horowitz said in a press release. “We think this is a perfect fit for the employees and visitors in the Medical Center – whether they’re looking for a quick bite on the run or a seated meal.”
1000 Degrees Neapolitan Pizza, 4057 Riley Fuzzel, will have its grand opening January 2 in Spring, Texas at the Birnham Woods Marketplace. Not only will Spring residents get to check out the pizzas cooked at 1,000 degrees, there will be free pizza served all day for the opening.
The brand has franchises across a number of states and is rapidly expanding. The Spring store will be the fourth in the Greater Houston area which includes locations in Nassau Bay, Katy and Sugar Land.
The Neapolitan-style pizzas are cooked in two minutes because of the intense heat, giving a slight char to the crust. The restaurant has also introduced its own Roman-style pizzas as well which are oblong in shape and a little puffier than the Neapolitan pies. Guests can choose the build-your-own option which allows for a bounty of choices or go with the Classics which feature pizzas such as The Tuscan Chicken, Tony Pepperoni or the Trenton Tomato Pie which puts the tomato sauce on top of the cheese rather than underneath. Prices for the ten inch run from $7.95 to $8.95 while the 14 inch is $14.95 to $ 16.95. There are salads that diners can create themselves or choose one from the menu. Appetizers such as wings, boneless wings and cheesy breadsticks get the party started.
Unfortunately, if you're craving a cold beer or a glass of wine with your pie, you're out of luck. The fast casual restaurant serves fountain drinks and bottled water. However, you can order online and take the party home.
click to enlarge There's wicked good beer at Wicked Boxer.
Photo by Lorretta Ruggiero
Wicked Boxer Brewing, 8190 Barker Cypress, softly reopened December 21. It closed its original Mueschke Road location this past summer to transition to its new Barker Cypress space. Owners Brian, a U.S. Marine veteran, and Jamie Cain are busy with their team brewing new beers, but you will need to check its social media or give them a call for opening hours.
The married couple met on match.com and now have two human children and two canine babies, boxers Shiloh and Rogue. If you have a canine baby and love beer, you might find your soul mate too, at Wicked Boxer. The tasting room is dog-friendly. There's no kitchen, but patrons are encouraged to bring in food from the many surrounding restaurants.
Theo's Restaurant, 812 Westheimer, will close January 5,
as reported by the Houston Chronicle. The auction for all of the restaurant's contents will be January 7. The Greek restaurant, known for its authentic Greek fare and its late night hours, is owned by Ted "Theo" Mousoudakis. After 12 years, he is having to make way for the demolition of the strip center.
Radom Capital's Montrose Collective is slated for the space and the development will include three buildings of three to six stories high. There is a proposal to move the Freed-Montrose Library from its current location at 4100 Montrose. The current spot for the library is adjacent to land owned by the University of St. Thomas. The HPD storefront will also close, an issue that has caused concern from local residents who fought to have a police presence in the neighborhood to help protect the LGBT community,
according to Community Impact.
The live oaks will be preserved. We wonder how long the spirit and quirkiness of Montrose will.
Belden's Food Market, 5300 N. Braeswood, is expected to close mid to late January,
according to the Jewish Herald-Voice. It has served the Meyerland community since the 1980s in its present location. It was founded by Joe Belden over 50 years ago and is currently owned by his son Richard Belden. Belden has decided to retire and close the store after being unable to find a buyer.
The grocery sells an extensive selection of kosher items and has a kosher butcher, which made it a weekly shopping destination for the surrounding Jewish community. It was also an important destination for special holiday items or Israeli goods that could not be easily found elsewhere.
Some of the blame may lie in the fact that the Meyerland area experienced devastating floods three times in three years, including during Hurricane Harvey. The H-E-B grocery store at 5417 S. Braeswood was affected by flooding, but the company is now opening a brand new store at Meyerland Plaza. It will have a kosher butcher and offer a wide choice of kosher items. But, it won't be Belden's.
The Original Hubcap is closed.
Photo by Dawn McGee
Hubcap Grill, 111 Prairie, closed December 31 according to its Twitter account. The statement said that the new lease was not feasible for lunchtime trade only, which we surmise meant the rents went up as they have been doing in Houston astronomically. Since it was only open for lunch, it didn't get the "beer and a burger" late night crowd. The concept, which has locations in Seabrook, Galveston, Houston Heights and at Bush IAH, is opening a Pearland location very soon. Owner Ricky Craig also looking to franchise in 2020.
The Hangover Burger will give you a food hangover.
Photo by Chuck Cook Photography
The burger joint serves fresh, hand-formed patties with twice-fried fries. Some of the more over-the-top calorie bombs include the Triple Heart Clogger with a grilled weiner, bacon and cheese. Add some chili to make it a Quadruple Heart Clogger. The Muffaletta Burger features a housemade olive mix. The mother (or should we say mother*$#&@%) of all burgers, The Hangover, is a mountain of pure unhealthiness that will soak up booze from last year's New Year's Eve. Besides a beef patty, it has bacon, ham, American cheese, fries and country cream gravy.
There are more classic burgers for those who just need the real deal without an overload of ingredients. Did we mention twice-fried fries? It makes a difference.
click to enlarge The Haoyun lantern petit gateau, with soy caramel mousse, mandarin confit, sesame sable, ($12), was one of the specialties offered for Chinese New Year at Yauatcha.
Photo by Mai Pham
Yauatcha, 5045 Westheimer will close its Houston location February 16,
as reported by CultureMap Houston. The upscale dim sum tea house restaurant is part of the London-based Hakkasan Group which operates other offshoots of the restaurant in London, India and Saudi Arabia. The Houston location opened in March 2017 and was the first U.S. location for the brand. It was followed by a second in Waikiki, Hawaii. The Waikiki location closed in August 2018.
Conservatory will relocate.
Photo by Phaedra Cook
Conservatory, 1010 Prairie, and
The Prohibition Supper Club, 1008 Prairie, closed December 31 and will relocate to 2118 Lamar in early 2020,
according to the Chronicle. It will take over the space currently occupied by Chapman and Kirby, which will continue to operate until further notice. A deal was made between the partners at Chapman and Kirby and Anh Mai and Lian Pham of Company of Nomads and partner Shepherd Ross. Mai and Pham co-founded Conservatory as Houston's first food hall in 2016. Since then, a number of food halls have blossomed including Finn Hall and Understory. Bravery Chef Hall, a chef-driven concept also from Company of Nomads, opened this past July.
Mai, Pham and Ross are also bringing the Next Seed-funded Railway Heights Market this summer and there are plans for Conservatory 2 in September 2020 and Hawker Asian Night Market in October,
as reported by Houston Business Journal.
El Tiempo Cantina, 6777 Woodlands Parkway, opened December 23,
according to Community Impact. Another location is planned at 414 Northpark in Kingwood for early 2020.
click to enlarge The Katy Texadelphia has a cool second story bar.
Photo by Jeremy Sanders
Texadelphia, 1321 N. Westgreen, celebrated its grand opening December 20 in Katy. The cheesesteak restaurant was founded in 1981 in Austin by a Pennsylvania transplant. It has locations throughout Texas and one in Oklahoma City.
After a two year absence, the small chain returned to Houston with a location at 8383 Westheimer. Since then, there have been two more Houston franchises and one in Galveston. The Katy location will be the third Houston area spot in two years.
Just as the name suggests, the sandwiches are inspired by both Texas and Philadelphia. While guests can go more Philly with the Classic Cheesesteak, which lets you choose your toppings or the South Philly with Cheez-Whiz there are also more Texas-inspired favorites which include jalapenos and quacamole. While it may seem weird to some that
the sandwiches are served with chips and salsa, diners can substitute fries for an extra $1.29.
click to enlarge The sky bar is open in Katy.
Photo by Jeremy Sanders
Appetizers are the kind of munchies you would expect at a sports bar with chicken wings, tenders, fried pickles and queso. There are salads, wraps and burgers along with the cheesesteak choices.There are plenty of Texas craft beers and some frozen cocktails, too. The second story sky bar in the new Katy restaurant offers an indoor/outdoor space for watching the Texans win the play-offs and maybe, just maybe, the Rockets clinch the championship this summer.
Thirsty Bee Meadery, 108 Commerce, will open in early January,
according to Community Impact. The owners, Kelly and Matt Brantley decide to branch out their business, BZ Honey, and offer two kinds of mead, or "honey wine". There is the traditional with 11 to 14 percent alcohol that is bottled like wine and the draft meads which are lower, 7 percent ABV. We checked out its Facebook account and discovered that the meadery is ready with its On Tap Wall for tasting January 4 from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Restaurants Reported Opened for December 2019:
Bamboo House, 5901 Westheimer, opened December 7
BreakTime Tea Lounge, 1215 Grand W. Parkway, opened November 16
Cabo Bob's Burritos, 1810 Fountain View, opened December 5
Common Bond Cafe and Bakery, 449 W. 19th, opened December 5
Curry Masala, 7316 Louetta, opened December 10
Eggcellence Cafe& Bakery, 10001 Westheimer, opened November 18
Fajita Pete's, 201 South Egret, opened December 13
Gyro Republic, 19920 Southwest Freeway, opened November 8
Handies Douzo, 3510 White Oak, opened December 1
Hando, 518 W. 11th, opened December 18
Jellyfish Sushi, 3434 Ella, opened mid-December
Jinya Ramen, 13509 University, opened December 16
Koffeteria, 1110 Hutchins, opened November 23
OMG Burger, 13425 University Boulevard, opened late November
See You Again, 9126 Bellaire, opened November 30
Sticky's Chicken, 2313 Edwards, opened December 13
Ten Seconds, 23119 Colonial Parkway, opened mid-November
Torchy's Tacos, 5885 San Felipe, opened December 11
Restaurants Reported Closed for December 2019:
Beaver's West, 6025 Westheimer, closed late December
CiCi's Pizza, 935 Shepherd, closed late December
International Smoke, 800 Sorella Court, closed mid-December
Le Mistral, 1400 Eldridge Parkway, closed December 21