It’s not nice when people spoil surprises, especially around the holidays. For that reason, I’m going to try my best not to do just that in this first look at The Pass. You should have the option to go to The Pass and experience the wonders with your own senses. For those who just can’t wait, there are some teasers at the end of this article to tantalize you.
The Pass is this moment’s must-go-to restaurant in Houston. It’s “Part 2,” the second half of The Pass & Provisions concept that completes chefs Seth Siegel-Gardner (left in photo below) and Terrence Gallivan’s (right, below) grand vision. It is a destination restaurant, a place that will make travelers want to come to Houston as a vacation or business destination so they can partake of our culinary delights.
The Pass offers a five- or eight-course prix-fixe menu, and you can choose wine pairings or not. In that sense its closest kin is Oxheart, but the two restaurants could not be more different from each other in style. Oxheart is small and earthy. The Pass, with its white walls and tablecloths, looks austere, but the friendliness of the staff warms up the place just fine. Whereas just-picked-this-morning, farm-fresh sensibilities dominate at Oxheart, at The Pass the wonders of molecular gastronomy are on display. Consider approachable, delicious main ingredients accented by icy little spheres, gels, powders and big snowflakes of cream. The results are spectacular.
The music selections at both places are eclectic, familiar favorites that help remove any pretentious or serious edge. I’ve heard the Bee Gees on vinyl at Oxheart and Violent Femmes on the overhead speakers at The Pass.
At The Pass, they dish out fantasy cuisine. It feels a bit like dining at Willy Wonka’s place (except that Gene Wilder isn’t smirking at you in a condescending way). Imagine cocktails that have been turned into gummy candies and mushroom forests that seem to only be missing the little woodland fairies to make them complete. There’s no fruit-flavored, lickable paper being served, but I’m sure the magicians at The Pass are working on how to make that elegant and practical. Perhaps in the spring.
The Pass is expensive compared to most places in Houston, but compared to places like the vaunted Alinea in Chicago, it’s a flat-out bargain. The cost for two people to dine with wine pairings at Alinea after tax and tip clears $900. The comparable and most expensive option at The Pass – eight courses with wine pairings – is less than half that. (Be aware that little add-ons, like a starter aperitif or an ending espresso, can add to that bill.) Unlike my experience at Alinea, where I was seated at a table that was slid into my waist and moved when I needed to get up for the restroom, the atmostphere at The Pass is very comfortable.
Unlike Alinea, The Pass does offer a much-less-expensive option: five courses ordered without pairings is only $75 per person (before tax and gratuity), and there’s nothing stopping you from adding a bottle of wine to that. Five courses with pairings is $120. That is actually the option we selected on our first visit, and I did not feel shortchanged or hungry at all afterward (and there was plenty of wine to go with that).
There is simply nothing like The Pass in Houston, and according to Pat Sharpe of Texas Monthly, she’s not seen anything like it in the state of Texas.
My understanding is that the current menu will be available until January and then might change more frequently afterward. I promised I wouldn’t spoil all the surprises for you, but if you would like to see a few teases on what The Pass holds in store, continue reading below.
SPOILERS AHEAD!
Here are your two “teaser” dishes so you have an idea as to the decadent delights you are in for at The Pass.
The dishes on the menu are identified via a very broad category description with a few key ingredients listed. The restrained description, while annoying to some, maintains drama. It’s fun to identify how the elements are actually expressed in the dish when it appears.
This first dish is “Truffles – Kaeshi Egg” (photo below). It is only available on the eight-course menu. This dish is an expression of earthy richness, a soft-cooked egg that lies nestled in a combination of tiny Japanese mushrooms. Burgundy truffle is freshly shaved on top of it all during presentation. It lends not only an interesting, luxurious touch to the dish, but a fresh, contrasting crisp texture that the combination needs. It prevents the creamy egg yolk, which flows in a most pornographic way upon breaking, from entirely stealing the show. Underneath it all is a rich, heady tataki purée, a concoction of puréed mushrooms and squid ink. There’s something else in there besides the stated ingredients; perhaps a deeply fermented miso or black bean paste is what provides the depth. (Actually, I thought there was a bit much of the purée. And there you have the single, itty-bitty criticism of the whole evening.)
The second dish that I am revealing here is the one entitled “Raw – Nori Bucatini/Tofu/Uni/Clams.” This dish reminded me of some of the things I saw Siegel-Gardner do and use when he was at Kata Robata. Sea urchin shows up rather often in his dishes, but this illustrious plating was so much more than that. It was an expression of the sea. It turns out that nori (seaweed) is excellent for adding flavor and color to pasta; the bucatini was firm, slightly salty and lovely. I swear I picked up the scent of Scotch whiskey from the dashi foam, and the “tofu ganache” is a study in texture unto itself. It is one of the creamiest things I have had in my life. I hear there are some secrets involved in how to get it to a custard-like consistency. On top of all of this art was beautiful trout roe, tiny clams and hamachi that tasted like it was pulled from the sea just moments before.
While the food impressed me tremendously (I cannot wait to go back for a third time), what moved me most was seeing hard-working Houston entrepreneurs – people who have worked hard and paid their dues – realize their dream. They join a group of people who have my deep admiration. I was one of the lucky people who got to see what they were up to at the Pilot Light pop-up dinners. The Pass is like that, but even more so. It’s more sophisticated, polished and ready for prime-time.
The Pass is the restaurant Houston never before had, but has always deserved. Even if you do nothing but go for the five-course menu, go and have your eyes opened to see what is possible. You don’t need to see a play or a movie on the same night. All of the drama is in the dining room, in your glass and on your plate.
The Pass & Provisions, 807 Taft, 713-628-9020, passandprovisions.