Kokoro Handroll Bar, 24 Waterway Avenue, opened March 10 in The Woodlands. It’s the fourth location of the concept from Duckstache Hospitality which first launched Kokoro at Bravery Chef Hall in Downtown Houston in July 2019. Owners and chefs Patrick Pham and Daniel Lee established the Houston-based Duckstache with business partner C.J. Short and eventually the trio, with the encouragement and support of regular guests Tamer Elkhayat and Faisal Yabroudi, opened two locations of the hand roll concept in Dubai. Duckstache Hospitality also operates the very recently opened Doko and Doko Bar in Autry Park, along with Handies Douzo, Aiko and Himari.
Short said of the new location, “We look forward to bringing a new dining experience to The Woodlands. Our sushi is of the highest quality and we’re committed to maintaining the standard as we expand.”
The new Woodlands Waterway location will feature a full bar, unlike its previous outposts. There will be signature cocktails and a curated selection of sake, wine and beer. Exclusive to the Waterway location will be drinks such as the Waterway Spritz, Shadow Fighter Old Fashioned and the ‘Night ‘Night Espresso Martini. The sake list offers choices by the glass or bottle including Wakaze Nigori, Katsuyama Junmai Daiginjo and Wakatake-Demon Slayer. The wine list is petite but interesting, with wines from France, California and even a red blend from Lebanon. The beer list includes Japanese options such as Kirin Lite, Sapporo Premium and Yoho Wednesday Cat.
The interior is bright and minimalist with light streaming in through the large vertical windows across the dining room’s beige-colored wood furniture and terrazzo floors. The horseshoe-shaped sushi bar accommodates about a dozen guests who have a front row seat to the sushi chefs as they create the nigiri, sashimi, handrolls and crudo that the team is known for.
The menu offers different handroll sets as well as an a la carte menu of nigiri and sashimi such as bluefin otoro, kanpachi and A5 wagyu. Crudo options include Maguro (bluefin tuna), Hotate (scallop) and Sake (BGB salmon). There are also handrolls such as hamachi, shiitake mushroom, uni and oshinko tofu.
City Cellars HTX, 2850 Riverby, opened March 8 in the East River development. It’s actually a reopening for the restaurant and bar, which closed its Museum District location in July 2023 after owner Daniel Wolfe had some parking space issues with the management of the development in which it was located. It had taken over the space formerly occupied by Dak & Bop, which actually returned to that location after City Cellars vacated the space.
The move turned out to be a fortuitous one. The new location offers more space and is situated in the massive development from Houston-based Midway that includes dining, retail, office space and housing. Though the location has changed, Wolfe still has talented chef Antonette Williams-Wright leading the culinary program with a menu that showcases globally-influenced dishes such as its all-day menu of items like Chilaquiles, Shakshuka, Carne Asada Hash and Lox and Latkes. Guests can also expect to see ‘brunch-uterie’ boards and mimosa flights, made with fresh-pressed juices.
The dinner menu features appetizers such as Tuna Tartare, Seared Beef Tataki and Fried Green Tomatoes plus shareables like charcuterie and bruschetta. Entrees include Short Rib with smoke Gouda grits, Filet Mignon, the Umami Burger and Pollo Afuego, a grilled Airline chicken breast with a smoky chili puree and creamy avocado verde.
The stunning interior offers a mid-century vibe while the outdoor spaces have great views of Downtown Houston and Buffalo Bayou. Guests can enjoy signature sips like the Birth Control, a gin cocktail with strawberry, cucumber and mint, or the Wrong Address, a mango-passionfruit version of a Long Island Iced Tea. Other whimsically-named beverages include Swangin’ on Westheimer, H-Town Hideaway and the tequila-based Chopped & Skrewed. Brunch drinks like Breakfast in Bed and Morning Wood will definitely wake you up.
In addition to dining and socializing, City Cellars HTX is planning events such as trivia night and weekly live music in its adults-only venue. Guests must be 21 and over and also properly attired.
Trill Burgers, 7616 Westheimer, will open this summer. It will be the fourth location for the award-winning burger concept which has co-owner and rap artist Bun B as its smiling ambassador. After years of pop-ups, the smashburger brand opened its first location at 3607 S. Shepherd in June 2023. Lines were out the door and into the parking lot for its first few months and even today, it still draws a crowd. Its upcoming locations may ease the Shepherd traffic a bit. We hope.
Fans across the city are “trilled” to see its expansion into the suburbs and the announcements make us feel like Oprah Winfrey. “Spring, Texas, you get a Trill Burgers! Missouri City, you get a Trill Burgers! Westheimer, you get a Trill Burgers!”
In 2022 it debuted its Trill Burgers stand at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo and has continued to do so every year since. This year, it has expanded its Rodeo footprint to include Trill Town, a 9,000 square-foot temporary space on the grounds of NRG stadium that will operate during the Rodeo’s run from March 4 through March 23. In addition to its beef smashburgers and vegan burgers, it has introduced Trill Tenders, fried chicken tenders that are becoming almost as popular as the burgers. For Trill Town, the team has collaborated with Truth BBQ for brisket-loaded burgers and other Rodeo food.
Trill also operates concessions at NRG Stadium for Houston Texans games and TDECU Stadium for University of Houston football games.
Chicken Salad Chick, 9330 Highway 6, opens March 18 in Missouri City. It’s the 36th Texas location for the chain known for its variety of chicken salad options. And the first 100 guests in line for its grand opening will receive a year of Large Quick Chick of chicken salad for free by downloading the CSC app and making a purchase of “The Chick”, or another menu item of equal or greater value, then entering a code to secure a spot in line. Those who leave the line will have their spot awarded to the next guest.
There will also be various giveaways throughout the opening week for the first 50 guests in line each day, March 19 through March 22.
The new location is the fifth for Ron and Kathleen Ram, experienced franchisees who began their business journey 15 years ago with Pizza Patron and now own 10 locations across Texas. They joined the Chicken Salad Chick franchise team in 2019 with their first location in Katy.
The brand’s expansion is due to its tasty made-from-scratch chicken salads that come in a dozen different flavors such as its Original Classic Carol, a simple mix of shredded white meat chicken, mayonnaise, minced celery and its secret seasoning. Other flavors include Barbie-Q, Lauryn’s Lemon Basil, Jalapeno Holly and the Fancy Nancy, made with grapes, apples and pecans. It also offers fresh side salads and soups, plus sandwiches like the Chicken Salad Melt, Turkey Salad Club and Pimento Cheese BLT.
There are soft drinks and desserts such as white chocolate cake, buttercream-frosted cookies and the Chocolate Marshmallow Crispy Bar.
Black Walnut Cafe, 10623 Louetta, will reopen April 4 at Vintage Park after a temporary “spring break” closure for renovations and remodeling, both inside and out. It will also feature some new menu items when it returns. A spokesperson told the Houston Press by email that after nearly 12 years, the list of needed updates was long.
Its five other locations across Houston are open for those jonesing for its Pot Roast Grilled Cheese.
Proper-A Burger, 712 Main, is coming to Finn Hall very soon. It hosted a media event March 12, so the opening should be any day now. We have reached out for more information.
Dave’s Hot Chicken, 32822 FM 2978, opens March 14 in Magnolia. The California-based Nashville hot chicken brand opened its first Houston area location in 2022 and has earned Texas fans for its simple menu of fried chicken tenders and sliders, along with milkshakes, crinkle-cut fries and mac and cheese.
Since its parking lot pop-up origins in 2017, it has expanded to over 500 across the U.S. and Canada (a sovereign nation north of the United States in case anyone needs to be re-educated). The expansion has been partly fueled by celebrity investors like Drake and Samuel L. Jackson as well as the quality of its fast casual food. It has generated so much buzz that a London-based company, Azzurri Group, has signed a deal to bring 60 Dave’s Hot Chicken locations to the United Kingdom and Ireland, according to Franchise Times. It debuted its first UK store in London’s West End this past December.
Swamp Spot Seafood & Wings, 12220 Jones, is coming soon, but we don’t know how soon. There’s no website as of yet, but a photo posted online by the owner hints that seafood boils are going to be a thing.
Buboy is still in the works but Houstonians eager to get a sneak peek at chef Tristen Epps’ upcoming Afro-Caribbean tasting menu restaurant can make reservations for a one night-only pop-up at Guard & Grace steakhouse March 22. Chef Epps’ six-course menu for the evening is based on the influence of French cuisine on other cultures and includes dishes like Texas Wagyu Steak Frites and Ricotta Dumplings with local greens and truffle. The seatings are available at 6 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. and are limited to 12 guests. Reservations may be made on OpenTable.
Epps and Henry Lu (Jun) are both competitors on the new season of Top Chef which premiered March 13. Lu’s co-chef at Jun, Evelyn Garcia, competed on season 19 of Top Chef, sharing the runner-up spot with Sarah Welch after knocking out 13 other chefs. The top honor went to chef Buddha Lo.
Chef Garcia’s season was filmed here in Houston. The new season with chefs Epps and Lu is set in Canada.
