Succulent, 1180 Dunlavy, opens May 19 in Regent Square. The Napa Valley-inspired restaurant is bringing West Coast style and California wine country flavors to the River Oaks area thanks to restaurateur Shawn Virene and his executive chef David Buckley.
Virene, known for local concepts such as the champagne-focused a’Bouzy restaurant, is a veteran of the hospitality industry. With nearly forty years of experience, his passions include wine, travel and horticulture, all of which bloom in the new concept. Virene said in a press release, “I’ve dreamed of creating a space that reflects my love for the land and the laid-back elegance of Napa Valley dining. Succulent is personal — it’s gracious, warm, and deeply connected to nature.”
And Virene knows a thing or two about nature. His in-laws own Huckleberry Farms in Round Top, Texas which will provide some of the fresh produce for Succulent, along with seasonal ingredients from the West Coast and herbs grown onsite at the restaurant itself. The horticultural theme extends to the decor as well with both real and crafted succulent plants providing botanical eye candy, creating an atmosphere of elegant serenity.
Chef Buckley is a lifelong gardener and cook. Born and raised in San Diego, his dedication to sustainable sourcing and the flavors of the West Coast align with Virene’s vision for the new concept. Buckley’s resume includes not only experience in San Diego restaurants, but also acclaimed kitchens in Hawaii and, more locally, Sorriso and The Woodlands Resort and Conference Center.
Together, Virene and Buckley have created a dining menu that revolves around seasonal and thoughtfully-sourced ingredients like a salad made with produce from Houston’s Hope Farms. Guests can begin their meal with starters such as the Caramelized Onion Tart which is inspired by French onion soup. Spring vegetables appear in dishes like Carrot Gnocchi and English Pea Agnolotti. The proteins are sustainably sourced as well including the Berkshire Pork Chop, Seared Scallops with brown butter dashi and a roast chicken dish made with FreeBird chicken and served with Italian sausage triangoli pasta, preserved lemon buerre blanc, sage and capers.
Succulent will also serve weekend brunch with items such as Hanger Steak and Eggs, Steamed Cockles and Shrimp and Lobster Tostadas. Virene and Buckley both say the Chicken Liver Mousse, served in crispy pani puri, is not to be missed.
Designed to evoke a Napa Valley farmhouse, the restaurant’s design blends soft green and cream colors with lush greenery and reclaimed wood. Spread out over two stories, the restaurant has indoor and outdoor dining spaces with a pergola-shaded patio on the upper floor along with a full-service bar and vintage greenhouse enclosures for private dining.
King Steak, 2200 Post Oak Boulevard, opens May 21 in Uptown Houston. The Texas-style steakhouse is a collaboration between restaurateur Johnny Vassallo and chef Eric Aldis, who serves as operating manager for the new concept. Vassallo and Aldis are no strangers to the upscale steakhouse world, having opened Mo’s…A Place for Steaks in the Galleria in 2006. Unfortunately, the Houston location shuttered in October 2016. Now the duo, who also operate Mo’s Irish Pub concepts, are making a bold move with a modern steakhouse that focuses on bold flavors and clean ingredients.
With the recent debates over seed oils and their high omega-6 fatty acid content, it’s interesting to note that King Steak will eschew seed oils for its entire menu. Frying items in beef tallow instead, the restaurant intends to stay true to its clean dining principles.
Its menu is chef-driven which means it will also be rotating occasionally. The appetizer menu features Bacon Wrapped Scallops, Calamari Rock Shrimp, a gluten-free Cheesy Flatbread and a sky-high caviar service. There are both side and entree salads plus an array of veg-forward sides like Crispy Brussels Sprouts, Parmesan Asparagus and Pesto Cauliflower Rice. Or you can be a bit naughty and order the Beef Tallow Fries.
The steaks on offer include a 20-ounce dry-aged ribeye, a NY Strip and a filet, available in three different sizes. Its King Burger is a hefty 12-ounce patty of freshly-ground wagyu while the French Dip is made with shaved prime rib. Other entrees include Chicken Parmesan, Short Rib and Roasted Chicken served with chitarra alla carbonera and asparagus.
Gulf & Prairie, 1200 Louisiana, will celebrate its grand opening May 21. Located inside the Hyatt Regency Downtown, the restaurant has been softly opened since late March, but it is now ready for prime time, bringing Gulf Coast seafood and Texas-sized flavors to the heart of Houston. In its public debut at the Top Taco Festival this past April, the team earned both the People’s Choice and Third Place for the VIP Asada BBQ Showdown.
Leading the culinary crew is executive chef Hernan Melendez who says that the restaurant is a reflection of Texas itself. He added, “Our food is grounded in comfort, elevated by technique and inspired by the people and stories that make this region special.”
With Houston’s proximity to the coast and bounty of Texas farms and ranches, Gulf & Prairie’s point of view is one of connecting land and sea at the crossroads of Texas heritage with robust flavors and welcoming hospitality. While it serves as a convenient and accessible eatery for hotel guests, it also caters to downtown office professionals with it business lunch that offers Gulf shrimp & dirty rice and brisket mac & cheese as well as made-to-order salad bar for guests on the go.
It is also a dining destination for dishes such as crab-stuffed snapper, 16-ounce bone-in ribeye and its signature surf and turf. Its downtown location makes it a convenient spot for a pre-show cocktail or meal while its inviting interior and spacious bar is perfect for drinks with friends or business meetings.
Pie Tap, 3748 Westheimer, is coming to River Oaks this June. Located on the ground floor of the Novel Residences, this is the first Houston location for the brand which was founded in Dallas in 2016 by Rich Hicks of Reach Hospitality and Italian chef, Giovanni Mauro.
Originally from Sicily, Mauro’s obsession with high-quality ingredients is what drives the menu at Pie Tap. The pizza dough is crafted with a 300-year-old sourdough starter and allowed to ferment for 96 hours. The slow rise leavens the dough naturally and softens the gluten strands, resulting in a much more flavorful dough. Using only flour, water, salt and extra virgin olive oil for the crust, the pizzas are thin baked in twin Morello Forni rotary ovens.
The toppings are just as important and pizza aficionados will find signature pies like the Prosciutto with Medjool dates, date sauce, pistachio, arugula, house-made ricotta, parmesan and balsamic drizzle. The Salami is topped with Calabrese salami, house fennel sausage Biellese pepperoni, bacon, Calabrian chili oil, organic tomato sauce and fresh mozzarella. For simpler pizzas. there is the Margherita and the Pepperoni.
Pie Tap does more than just pizza, however. Its Rotisserie Chicken Half Bird is just as popular and there are pasta dishes like Spicy rigatoni Vodka and Chicken Parm. It even has a couple of chicken sandwiches and a wagyu smashburger. There are several salad options plus a variety of snacks like Calamari Fritti, Garlic Rosemary Bread Puffs and Chicken Meatballs.
Its beverage menu includes soft drinks like rosemary lemonade, Mexican Coke and black iced tea plus mocktails like Pina and Iced White Chocolate Mocha at some of the most reasonable price points we’ve seen lately. The cocktail menu offers drinks like Frose, Italian Swirl Rita and Espresso Martini and its weekday happy hour runs from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. It also offers a good-sized wine list and a wide selection of beer.
La Cabra, 300 Sharpstown Center, will celebrate its grand opening with a two-day party, May 16 and May 17, from 5 p.m. to 2 a.m. each evening. There will be hourly giveaways plus music from DJ Maniville. Drink specials include happy hour prices from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. and a reverse happy hour later in the evening.
The soccer-focused sports bar comes from Joseph Manglicmot, a former competitor on Master Chef Legends: Season 11. He says it’s been a dream of his for a long time. In a press release, Manglicmot said, “It is my dream man cave turned into a bar and we are proud to bring this concept to Sharpstown. We hope it becomes a gathering spot for the community to relax, celebrate, connect, and relate to the love of soccer and sports!”
The bar will be open Thursday through Sunday for now, with plans to open daily with a food menu, a collaboration between Manglicmot and chef Lung Ly of 93′ Til. In the meantime, three local vendors will be onsite selling eats, including Lafitte’s seafood, Ceviche El Guero and Pasqual’s Tacos.
Palmetto Osteria, 12 Evia Main, will arrive in Galveston early this summer. From the owners behind The Spot, a longtime Galveston tiki bar with two locations, the new restaurant will be quite a bit different. Serving coastal Italian cuisine, the lakefront neighborhood eatery will have an exciting wine list and classic cocktails.
We have reached out for more details but for now we know that the menu will feature Italian dishes such as burrata bruschetta, rigatoni Bolognese, Amalfi mussels and truffle fettucine.
Nan Xiang Express Cypress, 13126 FM 1960, opened May 12 in Cypress, according to the Houston Chronicle. An offshoot of the New York-based Nan Xiang Xio Long Bao, which has been Michelin-recommended numerous times, the express version is fast casual with a trimmed down menu that still offers the much-praised Shanghaise-style soup dumplings.
Traditionally, Chinese soup dumplings were made with pork. Now, there are other options including crab, chicken and mala beef. Besides its famous dumplings, the menu offers scallion pancakes, pot stickers, noodles, fried rice, rice bowls and wontons with spicy peanut sauce.
Local restaurateur Raymond Lin is the franchisee for the new restaurant. He also operates Sumo Sushi in Cypress and the Famous Crab in Dickinson.
Rainbow Lodge, 2011 Ella Boulevard, has a new executive chef. Brandon Holmes, who has been with the restaurant since April 2024 is now leading the team, bringing with him extensive experience in butchery and wild game. According to owner Donnette Hansen, “Brandon’s talented skill set with his whole animal butchery, charcuterie and aging cuts and his love of hunting and the great outdoors perfectly complement our veteran team and ever-popular steak and game offerings.”
Holmes arrived in Houston from Las Vegas at the age of 18. He began working with Felix Flores, owner of Black Hill Meats, as a meat cutter before being promoted to head butcher/plant manager within the first year. When Black Hill opened Ritual restaurant in 2016, Holmes was recruited to run the award-winning meat program before becoming the master butcher and executive chef. Unfortunately, despite positive reviews and critical acclaim, Ritual closed in 2021.
A few months after beginning his stint at Rainbow Lodge, Holmes recruited mixologist Peter Clifton to join the team as beverage director. The pair had worked together at Ritual for four years and they both are excited to “have the band back together.”
J-Bar-M Barbecue, 2201 Leeland, has snagged Arash Kharat as its new pit master. The local barbecue veteran’s experience includes Beaver’s, Buffalo Bayou Brewery and, most recently, as culinary director at Blood Bros. BBQ. While the Alief native spent a decade in corporate fine dining, it was his training with pit masters like Ara Malekian of Harlem Road BBQ and Quy Hoang at Blood Bros. that steered Kharat into the world of smoked meat. he says, “I’ve learned from some of the best in BBQ that it’s not just about flavors and technique, but about consistency and being nice to people. I’m excited to bring that attitude to J-Bar-M and have some fun with the incredible equipment that we have.”
Working with the skilled team at J-Bar-M, Kharat plans to make the programming more consistent, while also introducing weekly specials like creative pizzas made with cold-fermented dough, Friday steak night, Saturday crawfish boils and Sunday barbacoa.
This article appears in Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2025.
