Eleven XI fills the void for diners looking for a patio and cloth-napkin restaurant on the peg that connects Montrose to Midtown. Formerly Bibas One’s A Meal, the renovated brick building with hardwood floors is now serving Southern comfort food.
Chef Kevin Bryant, who was last at L’Olivier and trained at Tony’s, and bar manager Joe Hausner (Eddie V’s) have developed lunch, dinner and cocktail menus while general manager Joe Welborn (formerly at Soma Sushi and Uptown Sushi) oversees operations and the front of the house.
There’s a private dining room and bar being built out upstairs. Downstairs the general dining room has been renovated entirely, and there’s a well-stocked bar in the southwestern corner of the 1940s-era building.
After two visits to Eleven XI – one of which was a media dinner – I checked out the Yelp reviews. I mention this, not because I am an advocate of Yelp, but because I was trying to find something to bring to the attention of Houstonians, which they may not expect when arriving at Eleven XI.
What I’m talking about is reservations. Allow me a brief detour.
The second time I visited Eleven XI, I was asked if I had reservations. I did not. I wanted to eat on the patio. No such luck. The restaurant was busy – the patio was totally full at 8 pm on a Friday. I wasn’t expecting that, even though the patio is covered in tables and chairs, not barstools and occasional tables. But when I read comments such as the one below, I become a little annoyed.
“… the hostesses asked if we had reservations. Nope. We just wanted to check it out. It didn’t look completely swamped or else we wouldn’t have come in. I guess they are expecting this restaurant to be reservation only? That’s kind of a shame because the patio is awesome and it would be the type of place I’d see people snacking at the bar and then making their way outside. Maybe they’ll figure that out. I know it’s brand new, so they’re still working things out. Long story short, we decided to just sit at the bar.”
Restaurants that take reservations are doing you a service, folks. Some do not take reservations, and then you’ve just got to wing it and stop by, not knowing if you will be eating there or not.
Reservations, in fact, seem to be a hot topic recently. At a recent dinner party, one couple complained that they have had reservations for two months for a June date at Oxheart. Is this not acceptable any more? Is it perhaps Generation Y of mid- to late-20-somethings and early 30-somethings who balk at reservations?
I’ve often been asked if I have reservations when arriving at a non-fine-dining restaurant. People easily make reservations online, and it makes sense that restaurants would like to know when those parties arrive. Being asked if I have reservations is not insulting, pretentious or anything at like that.
I also think that if you’re looking for an establishment at which people “snack” at the bar and then move outside, you’re talking about a sports bar or something similar. Eleven XI is a restaurant that serves an extensive menu and is within the general neighborhood of Brasserie 19, Hugo’s and Dolce Vita: all places that ask diners upon arrival if they have reservations and are in the same price range. Snacking and outdoor lingering don’t really fit with a cloth napkin establishment.
But enough of my ranting and on to the food. Southern comfort food means Gulf oysters (as well as non-Gulf oysters, as it turns out), fried chicken and a great short rib at Eleven XI. On the surface, those may seem not-so-special, but the joy is in the details.
On both visits I tried the grilled oysters ($14). I wish the menu better described them, because they don’t seem too enticing in print. Five or six big oysters are grilled in the shell, with a bacon and cheese mixture added on top. They’re large and delicious and messy. Don’t attempt to slurp them like you would a raw oyster. A fork will fish out all the goodness without it sliding off the shell and all over your face.
Trimmer, sexier oysters, such as the Shiny Sea and Raspberry Point choices from Canada (5 for $10), are served on ice, raw, and come with two different sauces – one is vinegar-based mignonette, the other a red cocktail sauce ramped up with an ample serving of raw horseradish.
The savory grilled oysters may seem like the boisterous and slightly naughty Paula Deen dish on the menu compared to the freshly prepared beef tartare ($13) that arrives with thin slices of toasted baguettes, finely chopped onions and pickles surrounding the tartare in a modern-art fashion. Given the portion size of the tartare, I’d suggest that it come with more toast slices. Everyone at the table wants to try it, and soon you’re out of toast and mixing together the tartare and its accessory ingredients on the side and spooning it straight into the mouths of friends.
One of the most dramatic entrees (and among the most expensive, but you’ll understand why when it arrives) is the “caveman-style nine-inch bone” short rib ($35). Fork tender and delicious, it’s served with mashed potatoes, red wine reduction and grilled asparagus.
If you’re a sucker for cocktails or desserts and enjoy nostalgic flavors, this might be your hot spot. Funnel cake ($8) as a dessert option has been popping up on dessert menus for the last few years, and Eleven XI has mastered it, as if there were carnies in the kitchen. Also recommended: the peanut butter tower ($8).
Eleven XI management plans to open for lunch by the end of the month. When lunch service begins, valet will be complimentary. It is $5 at dinner, and while nobody likes to be forced to valet, it is for your safety and convenience. Parking on West Gray is scarce, and you risk being towed, not to mention run over, and the parking lot at Eleven XI isn’t large.
Oh, and what’s with the name, you might ask? The owners attribute different meanings to the time 11:11, all a little goofy. But why not make up your own story? There’s even a giant bell on the patio that you can ring … at 11:11.
ELEVEN XI, 607 West Gray 713-529-5881 elevenxihouston.com