Is there really such a thing as a jinxed restaurant location? Some say it is just a myth. But we beg to differ. In July, Eating Our Words featured its first list of jinxed restaurant locations. We are happy to see that some of these restaurants have beaten the curse. Feast even made it into Bon Appetite magazine. Unfortunately, not everyone can be as lucky. Here's our look at some of the less than lucky spots in Houston over the last decade.
1. 6540 San Felipe Today: Shopping Center and Parking Lot Yesterday: Scott Chen's, Third Coast
No one said having a fine-dining restaurant behind a gas station was a good idea. So far, we have only found gas station chicken and sushi to be successful. Fortunately, someone learned their lesson and tore down the restaurant for a shopping center.
2. 6401 Woodway Drive Today: Sylvia's Mexican Kitchen Yesterday: Grotto, Mi Cocina, PK's Blue Water Grill
Even the Grotto couldn't make it in this cursed spot. Maybe people are distracted by the Whole Foods in the same shopping center. You would think that a restaurant in the middle of a busy neighborhood across the street from an enormous church and school would make it. We are keeping our fingers crossed for Sylvia's.
3. 4315 Montrose Today: Brasserie Max and Julie Yesterday: Aries, Pic, Russo's Café Anthony, 43 Brasserie
It's a bad sign when some of Houston's most famous chefs, like Monica Pope and Scott Tycer, can't make this place work for a restaurant. Max and Julie's has been around since 2007, so maybe owners Laurence and Chris Paul have out-jinxed the location.
4. 1915 Westheimer Today: Firkin and Phoenix Yesterday: Ciro's Italian Grill and Bar, Ohio Grange Cafe, Sabine, Chef G.'s, Epoch Fusion Café
We guess the secret to success at this location was an English-style pub.
5. 401 Louisiana Street Today: Pad Thai Restaurant Yesterday: Bai Thong Thai, Zin Restaurant and Bar, Zana Mediterranean Cafe
Could it be the parking, the location, or the food? We don't know, but this downtown spot at the bottom of Hogg Palace has a long line of failures behind it. Unfortunately, the make-shift sign of Pad Thai doesn't bode well for future success. Maybe a name change is in order.
6. 3600 Kirby Drive Today: Kata Robata Yesterday: Hue Restaurant, others
This shopping center at the corner of Kirby and Richmond has gotten a facelift and new tenants in hopes of overcoming the curse. Hopefully, they will have some luck.
7. 2303 Richmond Avenue Today: Yelapa Mexican Restaurant Yesterday: Sauté Bistro, others
So far, so good for Yelapa Mexican Restaurant. Even Eating Our Words suggested going for a good New Year's Eve celebration. Maybe Mexican food is what this shopping center needed.
8. 2710 Montrose Today: BB's Cajun Café Yesterday: Alfredo's European Grill, others
If you blink, you might miss BB's Cajun Café. Stuffed in the corner of a small shopping center behind a gas station, this is not the most likely spot for a Cajun café -- or a European grill, for that matter.
