Last Friday we reported that The Manor House, the stand-alone members-only restaurant on the grounds of The Houstonian, is now open to the public for lunch.

We’ve dropped in twice in recent days, once to celebrate the restaurant’s 30-year anniversary of cottage-style dining in a John Staub house and once just to gaze out blissfully, glass of rose in hand, at the azaleas in bloom. In the course of lunching on crawfish bisque and other delicacies, we learned that George and Barbara Bush once resided in The Manor House – even hosting the G-7 Economic Summit on the site. Secretary of State James Baker and Eduard Schevardnadze, foreign minister for the USSR, met here to discuss defense treaties. Jack Nicholson, while in Houston during the 1982 filming of Terms of Endearment, also lived here.

The Manor House was designed in 1955 by Houston architect John Staub for Texas oilman Lawrence Reed. Staub created three homes along the Buffalo Bayou: The Albert Bel Fay home (now known as the Fay School), the Ernest Bel Fay home and the Reed home. Fans of fine Houston houses, of course, also know Staub as the architect of the Bayou Bend Mansion, River Oaks Country Club, Rienzi and the old Junior League Building on Stuart at Smith Street (now Brennan’s).

According to a fact sheet provided by the restaurant, “In 1971, the parcel of land that included The Manor House estate was sold to Tom Fatjo for the construction of The Houstonian. The Manor House was redesigned as a Presidential Suite in 1982.” In 1986, the house was converted into a private-dining restaurant for the members of The Houstonian Club.

For the last few years, The Houstonian’s executive chef Neal Cox and The Manor House chef Roland Soza (you’ll remember Soza from his years at Brennan’s and Bistro Alex) have been tweaking and lightly updating the beloved private-dining menu to maintain the upscale Southern vibe of the restaurant.

Crawfish bisque

The culinary duo presented a fresh menu when The Manor House opened to the public last month, and the response has been positive from long-time diners and new. (Both of our visits revealed a very full dining room.)

Lemon sole meunière

Expect prettily plated comfort food classics such as the above-mentioned crawfish bisque, hot-smoked salmon eggs Benedict, lemon sole meunière with lump crab and grilled beef tenderloin Oscar, as well as definitely not-on-your-diet decadent desserts (we tried the German chocolate cake and cheesecake).

German chocolate cake

The Manor House offers complimentary valet and has a boutique-sized main dining room, as well as two private dining rooms and two private terraces to enjoy the view of The Houstonian’s manicured grounds. The restaurant is open for lunch Monday through Friday 11 am to 2 pm and is available evenings and weekends for private events.