These are the Noteworthy Openings that appear in the April-May 2012 edition of My Table.
ARTISANS, 3201 Louisiana a block south of Elgin, 713-529-9111, artisansrestaurant.com. Chef Jacques Fox and his partners, brothers David Denis and Sylvain Denis of Le Mistral, quietly opened Artisans in early February. It is beautifully appointed, well suited for conservative downtown corporate types in search of a great business lunch location as well as well-heeled Midtown residents looking for a classic French restaurant. The restaurant centerpiece is the large open kitchen, and stools run the length of the long wrap-around counter. The menu and details are both proudly French.
BLU, 2248 Texas Dr. on Town Square, Sugar Land, 281-903-7324, blusugarland.com. Husband-and-wife chefs Junnajet (Jett) Hurapan and Jiraporn Hurapan – he’s the savory chef, she focuses on desserts — are well known in Houston for their Chinese culinary skills. Both Hurapans were previously at Gigi’s Asian Bistro in The Galleria. At Blu, they have expanded their repertoire to include a wider range of flavors, from Thai to Mexican to Indian to Mediterranean. Blu turns nightclubby late at night, so dress appropriately. It’s owned by first-time restaurateurs Amy and Jiten Karnani.
THE HAY MERCHANT, 1100 Westheimer just west of Montrose, 713-523-9805, haymerchant.com. Hay Merchant, which opened in February, is a craft beer lover’s dream. (Our SideDish blogger Phaedra Cook likened it to a Beer Disneyland.) A draft system designed by hophead Kevin Floyd (he’s also part of the Anvil team) dispenses some of the city’s truest, purest pours, including Avery Hog Heaven (a barleywine), Saint Arnold Pumpkinator (a crowd-pleasing stout that actually has some pumpkin flavor) and Brouwerij Bockor Jacobins Rouge (a delightfully tart Flemish red ale). Chef Antoine Ware executes a remarkable food menu, perfectly designed to go with beer.
KATSUYA BY STARCK, 2800 Kirby at Westheimer in West Ave., 713-590-2800, sbe.com/katsuya/houston. This glam West Coast Japanese restaurant – a high-powered, high-dollar collaboration between sushi chef Katsuya Uechi and design impresario Philippe Starck – finally opened in mid-March. And it’s been blazingly hot since. Among the memorable first impressions: crisped-rice topped with spicy tuna, baked snow crab tucked inside a soy handroll wrapper, Szechuan-style stripped bass and robata-grilled maitake mushrooms with skewered asparagus. Dessert: mochi ice cream balls, of course.
LA FISHERIA, 4705 Inker just east of Shepherd, 713-802-1712, lafisheriahouston.com. This cheerful blue and orange restaurant from Latin American reality-TV chef Aquiles Chávez (you’ll recognize him by the Salvador Dali moustache) has taken over the spot that used to be Pagoda Vietnamese. The menu is built around sparkling fresh seafood, especially ceviche-style dishes. The website is still under construction, and English is in limited supply. But you’ll enjoy the hospitality, brisk margaritas and happy-casual setting.
OXHEART, 1302 Nance at Richey, 832-830-8592, oxhearthouston.com. What a time it’s been for ambitious, serious restaurants opening in Houston! Here’s another that will be ready by the time this issue of the magazine reaches you. (It’s scheduled to open to the public on March 15.) Oxheart is a collaboration among chef Justin Yu, pastry chef Karen Mann and sommelier Justin Vann, and it is a tiny spot that took over Latin Bites’ former location in the warehouse district northeast of downtown. Everything in the space is locally handmade as much as possible (even the knives), and the foodstuffs are, of course, local too, sourced from Utility Research Garden, Louisiana Foods, Revival Meats and others.
PIZARO’S PIZZA NAPOLETANA, 14028 Memorial at Kirkwood, 281-589-7277, pizarospizza.com. Pizaro’s Pizza owners Bill and Gloria Hutchinson deftly bring together authentic ingredients (e.g. 00 imported Italian flour) and a custom-made 900-degree wood-fired oven to produce excellent Neapolitan style pizza in West Houston. Bill learned the art of pizza in Italy and is a VPN-certified pizza master. The smartly edited menu offers seven traditional and five specialty pizzas. Pizaro’s makes their dough and sauce in-house daily. Bonus: Pizaro’s is BYOB with no corkage fee.
PORTUGALLIA, 12126 Westheimer west of S. Kirkwood, 281-497-8012, portugallia.com. First-time restaurateurs Paolo and Isabel Diez are bringing upscale Portuguese and Angolan cuisine to West Houston. Located in a strip center, the restaurant’s walls of glass open to the large, sunny patio with fountains and waterfalls that make a picturesque backdrop for the delicious food. Seafood is prominently featured in the menu, and they serve a refreshing octopus salad, as well as cod. (Both fresh and salt cod are the basis of several entrees.) The Diezes, both of Angolan heritage, along with chef Carlos Soares, have added some Angolan specialties to the menu that, when we visited, were available only on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
SHEPHERD PARK DRAUGHT HOUSE, 3402 N. Shepherd at W. 34th, 832-767-1380, shepherdparktx.com. The Garden Oaks neighborhood had little time to mourn the demise of popular but sadly inconsistent wine and coffee shop Octane, when Shepherd Park Draught House reconfigured the 1950s space into an homage to 1970s-80s punk and rock. But lest you think Shepherd Park is a club, they haven’t forgotten that it’s about the beer and the wine. The menu features a more-than-decent variety of both, but the real surprise at Shepherd Park is the food. The owners also own the Pink’s Pizza chain, Lola and Dragon Bowl and know about delectable eats. With an eclectic mix that spans the globe – e.g. chicken curry, jerk chicken, goat cheese ravioli, black bean burgers – Shepherd Park will please most palates, maybe even one as discriminating as Joey Ramone’s.
UCHI, 904 Westheimer just east of Montrose, 713-522-4808, uchirestaurants.com. Uchi has restored the iconic window arches from the Felix Mexican Restaurant that occupied this space for 60 years, which is only the first of many fascinating aspects of this Austin sushi/Japanese import from James Beard Award-winning chef Tyson Cole. Expect tiny and exquisite bites (this isn’t about Texas-sized rolls), each elaborately built with a symphony of textures and tastes. In addition to the expected raw and cooked fish, you’ll discover vegetables, grains and meat. On our first visit, service was impeccable.
UNDERBELLY, 1100 Westheimer just west of Montrose, 713-523.1622, underbellyhouston.com. The intensely anticipated Underbelly opened in early March, and Houston foodies were delighted by food as big and bold as everyone expected from chef/owner Chris Shepherd. Big hunks of meat (like entire pork shanks and whole fishes) are served in warm cast iron pans and are enough for four. Other high notes include soft Korean-style braised goat on top of pillowy dumplings and short ribs over green curry tapioca. In the front hallway are photos, tagged by zip code, of local people, places and food that have been inspirations to the Underbelly crew. Many Houston restaurant veterans are on staff here, including GM/wine guy Matthew Pridgen and butcher Peter Jahnke.
THE UNION KITCHEN, 12538 Memorial bet. S. Gessner & the Beltway, 713-360-2000, theunionkitchen.com. Owner Paul Miller is bringing The Union Kitchen’s fresh global cuisine to Memorial because he discovered customers were driving from West Houston to The Union Kitchen’s Bellaire location on a regular basis. The original location in Bellaire has only been open about 18 months but has become a neighborhood gathering spot with a menu that features pizzas, sandwiches, salads and entrees. Chef/partner Juan Arellano makes twice-weekly visits to area farmers markets sourcing fresh local ingredients. The menu will be the same at both locations.
