​A few years ago at a family reunion in the Chicago area, my cousin Nancy surprised me saying that maybe she and her husband Brian would come down to Houston for a weekend in the future to enjoy the restaurants.  They’ve never been, but I believe that my frequent blathering about the dining scene in Houston piqued their interest.  They enjoy wine and good food and frequent and savvy restaurant-goers.  Longtime fans of Rick Bayless’s restaurants, and I seem to remember that their favorite restaurant, at least one of their favorites, is a Chicagoland branch of Roka Akor.
 
So, I thought it would be a good idea – and something fun to do as a thought exercise at the very least – to create a list of possible restaurants to recommend here for them.  My tact was to highlight cuisines that aren’t found in the Chicago area, or not found in much quality.  Barbecue, Creole and Cajun, Gulf seafood, Tex-Mex, Vietnamese come quickly to mind.  But, I won’t suggest any places for chicken fried steak, as enjoyable as I occasionally find it.
 
And they won’t want pizza – it’s far better in Chicago to be sure, and not just deep-dish – nor Italian.  My cousin is Italian-American and they seem to go out for it a lot.  I don’t believe that there are any better Italian chefs in Chicago than Maurizio Ferrarese at the new Alba in the Hotel Granduca or Giancarlo Ferrara at Amalfi here, though.
 
There are only so many calories that can be ingested in a weekend, even a long weekend, but below is a list to work from, listed alphabetically.

• Barbecue – As extraordinary as Houston barbecue can be now, I had thought that this might not be an option given the inherent heaviness, but then I realized that if you show some restraint – something I can have a hard time doing, myself – like just having a sandwich or splitting a plate, a visit to a barbecue joint doesn’t have to be a one-meal day. – The Pit Room, Piper’s, Pinkerton’s, Blood Bros., Truth
• Breakfast – If they want breakfast, there are some excellent, casual and fun choices that are different from what is found near where they live. – The Breakfast Klub, Goode Co. Taqueria, El Tiempo
• Breakfast Tacos – For a quick and even more casual breakfast that can be picked up, and something that isn’t much of a thing at all in Chicago, breakfast tacos can be a piquant and ftasty morning start when time is a consideration. –  Tacos A Go Go are clearly the top stop for these and there a few locations to from which to choose.
• Brunch – If they desire a brunch day, three of the Hugo Ortega-Tracy Vaught restaurants do a great job with brunch and in different ways then there is the grand Creole brunch at Brennan’s, a high-calorie and necessarily alcohol-laden morning feast. – Hugo’s, Xochi, Brennan’s, Backstreet Café
• Cocktails – I think that they are into cocktails or maybe at least before dinner and several of Bobby Heugel’s spots can do the trick terrifically well, led by the trend-setting Anvil. – Anvil, Tongue Cut Sparrow, The Pastry War, BCN (for the Spanish gin and tonics)
• Creole / Cajun – Creole as practiced in New Orleans doesn’t exist in Chicago today though there have been some Cajun-themed eateries for while most prominently with Heaven On Seven that was popular when I was traveling frequently there decades ago; it’s all much better here, of course. –Eunice, Brennan’s, Ragin’ Cajun
• Gulf Seafood – Restaurants specializing in Gulf seafood will be something unique for them, and a few spots are excellent with it. – Goode Co. Seafood, Eugene’s, 1751 Sea and Bar
• Mexican – Hugo Ortega is our answer to Rick Bayless, except he is from Mexico.  He and Tracy Vaught’s trio of upscale Mexican restaurants are the best Mexican restaurants here and called the best in the state.  And the new, more casual Urbe looks like it will be a great asset to the dining landscape. – Hugo’s, Caracol, Xochi, Urbe
• Steak – The Great American Steakhouse template doesn’t vary too much across the country even as it has evolved over the years.  There is something to be said for top-quality, well-marbled steak seared over a very high heat with fatty sides and a plush atmosphere.  Georgia James does something different and is also fantastic while Pappas Bros. excels at the more familiar with a wine list that is a enophile’s dream, well, a well-heeled one. – Georgia James, Pappas Bros. Steakhouse
• Sushi – I think that Manabu Horiuchi at Kata Robata is not only a terrific sushi chef and for Japanese cuisine in general, but he is one of the very best chefs in Houston regardless of cuisine. – Kata Robata, MF Sushi
• Tex-Mex – There’s not quality Tex-Mex there and this is always well liked by relatives from Illinois here. D – El Tiempo, Goode Co. Kitchen & Cantina
• Viet-Cajun (during crawfish season) – A recently developed cuisine that has drawn considerable attention with its leading light an especially fun dining experience, and one that’s quite regional. – Crawfish & Noodles
• Vietnamese – A Houston staple, certainly for me.  My favorite place for Vietnamese food is still probably Jasmine then its sibling Saigon Pagaloc, both along Bellaire Boulevard.  A more modern, accessible and fun, and geographically easy location is probably better, unless they want to experience Seven Courses of Beef.  That can be fun. – Xin Chao, The Blind Goat
• Wine – Houston has some really good wine bars, both in terms of selection and comfort, one can be a fine way to began an evening or be the evening. – 13 Celsius, Camerata, How to Survive on Land and Sea, Montrose Cheese & Wine, Vinology
• Other – A few other places to note mostly for their quality, as MAD and BCN are two of the best restaurants in Houston, though UB Preserv is also a proudly Houston-centric establishment that is worth showing off. – UB Preserv, MAD, BCN

 
Whittling this down for an itinerary for a weekend, even a long weekend, will take some additional work.  I think there will be some time before they actually make it here.

A medley of dishes at Eunice

One of the main attractions of wine bars for me is the opportunity to discover new wines, especially new wines that I can comfortably afford.  Thankfully, there are a handful of wine bars in Houston that do an excellent job in selecting wines and in introducing new wines to their offerings on a regular basis.

The best value of these is the relaxed and comfortable, and amusingly named, How to Survive on Land and Sea in the East End on Harrisburg.  This is because every day from 4:00 to 8:00, every day, it offers a red, white rosé and sparkling wine for just $5.50 a glass, with a regular-sized pour.  Amazingly, it’s been my experience that each of the four happy hour wines is very knowingly selected and often delicious.  I’ve about a dozen of these happy hour wines in the course of more than a few visits.

​The happy hour wines and the selections overall have a strong Old World tilt – restrained fruit notes, evident acidity, and more earthiness or minerality, generally – which I enjoy.  A few of the highlights have been:

Domaine Jean Royer Le Petit Roy 2020, Rhone, France – A blend of Mourvedre Grenache, Syrah and some Alicante, along with a bit of Chateauneuf du Pape wine that didn't make it into those bottles. This is essentially a Cotes du Rhone without the name, with maybe some more heft.  With more fruit than can be expected for a Cotes du Rhone, this is nicely balanced and quite easy to drink by itself. And typical of the area these days, it registers at 14.5% alcohol, hardly petit, but it doesn’t seem overly hardy.

Heger Pinot Noir 2015, Baden, Germany – More straightforward and not quite as interesting, but very enjoyable is this juicy and lively medium-bodied, well-rounded red wine from Germany.  One of the benefits of global warming is that there is more and more good Pinot Noir coming from Germany, and this is an affordable example.

Weszeli Zweigelt Rosé 2020, Kamptal, Austria – It’s tough for me not to look toward a rosé during these long summer months and this unusual one from Austria is easy to like.  It is made with 80% Zweigelt and 20% Cabernet Franc, all from older vines.  With nice fruit like some peach and raspberry, evident minerality, and tartness from the Zweigelt, it has some more structure than most rosés at this price point that might be welcome.

Weingut Schlossmuhlenhof 'Boden Funk' Riesling, Rheinhessen, Germany – This very dry, unfiltered Riesling is not-at-all funky despite the label and would likely appeal to those white wine drinkers who shy away from the varietal. Lots of acidity and citrus notes highlight this very well-made wine that I found terribly refreshing on a hot, humid day.

Zull Grüner Veltliner 2020, Weinviertel, Austria – More flavorful than the typical inexpensive 1-liter sized Grüner Veltliner, this is decidedly crisp, with some pear and minerals on the palate and that is easy to consume.

I would have, and have, readily paid the full price – two or two-and-half times the happy hour tariff – for each of these wines and a few others.  As far I can tell, most of the happy hour wines retail between $15 and $25 if you can find them elsewhere.  Most importantly, these have been very well chosen.

​Houston to Survive on Land and Sea
3401 Harrisburg (at Sampson), 77003, (346) 320-2926
howtosurvivehtx.com

Always taking the brief restaurant reviews in Texas Monthly with a grain or two of salt, I wasn’t too surprised to find in an otherwise positive review published last month for Tonight & Tomorrow in the recently refurbished La Colombe d’Or on Montrose a demerit like this: “Less successful was the bucatini, an undercooked pasta that heirloom tomatoes and pistou could not save.”

I immediately understood the phrase “undercooked pasta” as meaning that the pasta was cooked al dente or, more likely, even beyond that.  The Dictionary of Italian Food and Drink defines it as being “somewhat chewy, neither hard nor mushy.”  In one of her cookbooks Lidia Bastianich describes that “al dente is a sensation of slight resistance, generated by the pressure of chewing.”  Cooking dried pasta – only dried pasta can be cooked al dente – to a soft, near-resistance-free consistency, not al dente, is what the vast majority of Americans do.  This is why the box of DeCecco linguine in my pantry gives two different instructions for boiling – “Cooking Time: 12 Min / Al Dente: 10 Min.”

The owner of Perbacco, the longstanding Italian eatery in a corner of the Pennzoil Building downtown that does pasta well, made it a point to complain to me once how Americans like their pasta overcooked.  He didn’t seem too happy about it, but for me, I don’t see it as really a problem unless the pasta gets mushy or loses some of its flavor being too soft.  Let people cook it how they like it.  And Americans largely like their pasta fairly soft; Italians like their pasta more toothsome, al dente.  Though Italians might disagree, I believe it’s mostly a matter of preference.

And I believe that pasta cooked al dente is certainly not undercooked.

With the opening of another branch of the fast-casual Bao Shi Yi, there are now three Chinese restaurants serving genuine Chinese food along a stretch of Holcombe just over a block long centered around Morningside not too far west of the Medical Center.  With its numerous researchers and doctors from China, The Medical Center is a big reason for this.  And this highlights one of the most significant and welcome changes in Houston dining in the past two decades: the availability of authentic Chinese inside the Loop.  I try to avoid using “authentic” especially concerning cuisines from places I haven’t traveled, but I believe it’s correct, or mostly so, in this case.

When I started writing about restaurants in Houston that began with the inaugural edition of Houston Dining on the Cheap in 2002, with an easily overlooked exception or two, the only restaurants that were serving dishes beyond the familiar Chinese-American staples in all their gloppiness were in and around Bellaire Boulevard.  Now the list of actually Chinese Chinese restaurants inside the Loop includes:

Bao Shi Yi (2) – northern Chinese dumplings and bao
Dumpling Haus – pan-Chinese dumplings
Hu’s Cooking – Sichuan and some Taiwanese
Mala Sichuan – Sichuan
Mama’s Kitchen – Sichuan and some Taiwanese
One Dim Sum – Cantonese
Pepper Twins (2) – Sichuan
Spicy Girl – Sichuan
Siu Lap City – Cantonese barbecue
Trendy Dumpling – Sichuan
Wanna Bao – Shanghai and Sichuan
 
I quite enjoy Pepper Twins, Wanna Bao, Mala Sichuan and Cooking Girl where I picked up a really enjoyable lunch today.  The Bao Shi Yi on Kirby has a drive-thru, so it draws some occasional attention, too.  Its dumplings are usually tasty as is the not-sure-it’s-so-authentic deep-fried Popcorn Chicken.
 
The number of contemporary Chinese restaurants has grown with growth of immigration and migration from China.  Along with those working the Medical Center, the number of Chinese in Houston has grown significantly, and it’s often professionals at companies inside the Loop, like my own.  It can pay to help feed them.  That’s been a boon to Houston diners, regardless of origin, with more good restaurants, an increased diversity in cuisines, and a few really fine values, too.

From Pepper Twins

Though dining in Houston is more expensive than ever, even during the hopeful tail end of the pandemic, there a still some very good dining values. When I compiled this list five years ago, I had ten restaurants; now I felt compelled to make it a dozen. The best dining values do not mean the cheapest joints, but are those that provide the best food for its price. Sometimes cheap is just cheap. Leading the way for best dining values are banh mi and Mexican spots, like before. Here are the dozen best:
 
Aladdin – Picking up a tray and gazing across the partition into an expanse of enticing, mostly vegetarian preparations – roughly 30 items most lunchtimes well beyond the two types of creamy hummus and baba ganoush – is just a preface to an enjoyable and very affordable meal, as the dishes often taste even better than they look. A well-cooked meat like chicken shawarma, lamb gyro or one of the day’s stews, comes with two sides on filling platter for just $13.99 and usually a dollar cheaper during lunch. Not only the best value Middle Eastern restaurant, Aladdin is one of the best in Houston.  912 Westheimer (at Montrose), 77006, (713) 942-2321

Baguette & Tea – This tiny spot in a small strip center across from the West Alabama Ice House is worth enduring the usually terrible parking – a block or so walk might be in order – for some of the best renditions of banh mi in the city. There are seven different filling options for these geared toward inner Loopers led by the Spice BBQ Pork (thit nuong) and the Grilled Lemongrass Beef, of course. Sandwiches and Asian teas and other drinks in a variety of renditions are the main draws here, but there is also pho, vermicelli bowls, rice plates with the less-seen-these-days broken rice, and fried rice, with only one item on the menu over $7.  2007 W. Alabama (at McDuffie), 77098, (832) 516-8871

The Cuban Station – This low-volume counter-service – or window-service, actually – operation with a handful of tables located within the convenience store section of a Chevron gas station on Harrisburg a couple of miles east of downtown provides an excellent value led by the iconic Cuban sandwich at the top of the menu and which the owner is quick to recommend. It is delicious, probably the best version of it in the city, and also quite substantial, just over a foot long, only $7.49, amazingly cheap for the heft and quality. There are a number of other inexpensively priced sandwiches, Cuban-influenced and otherwise, hamburgers, including one with a one-pound patty for a relative song, and batidos, fruit shakes. Nothing is over $8 here. The necessary short wait is well worth it. Lunch and early dinner. 5001 Harrisburg (between Lockwood and Alt 90), 77011, (832) 272-9680

Giacomo’s – This comfortable and eminently enjoyable River Oaks spot is a casual Italian restaurant done right, or an appealing neighborhood restaurant of any stripe done right. The well-executed fare is vibrant, light on its feet, and properly evoking Italy, often with dishes inspired from chef-proprietor Lynette Hawkins days growing up in Rome and Tuscany. Nothing is over $20 and there are plenty of items that are meant to share. And, its list of nearly all-Italian wines – interesting, very well-selected and easily affordable – is still likely the best value wine list with any breadth in the city.  3215 Westheimer (at Bammel Lane), 77098, (713) 522-1934

Istanbul Grill – A reason to brave the traffic and parking travails in the Village with its interesting, well-prepared Turkish food in a pleasant, informal setting, often lively atmosphere, and noticeably friendly and eager service. Many of their traditional Anatolian items are baked in a brick oven that is evident in the somewhat open kitchen, including the distinctive Turkish pizzas that can provide a filling meal for $11-$15. The kabob platters are a great value here, easily worth the $15 tariff for the beef and lamb doner kabob and $16 for the lash shish kabob. The portions are generous and served with a large amount of moist rice and grilled tomatoes and bell peppers. Fresh and warm house-made thin pide bread nicely complements every table.  5613 Morningside (just north of University), 77005, (713) 526-2800

La Guadalupana – Though not much to look at, and really not much at all in terms of size, this is nonetheless an excellent neighborhood place for a pleasing Mexican meal in the morning or afternoon, or to grab some attractive and scrumptious pastries, Mexican and otherwise, and coffee. The dumpy little dining room has become increasingly more crowded, and less dumpy, in recent years as more have discovered the considerable charms of the inexpensive breakfast and lunch spot. For just $9.99, you can get lighter-than-typical enchiladas verdes or poblano enchiladas – with a proprietor from Puebla, the mole poblano are worth ordering – or, for about the same price, the terrific stewed pork slathered in a verdant spicy salsa, asado de puerco. The breakfast tacos are not what they once were, but the other, dine-in-type morning preparations are worth a stop.  2100 Dunlavy (between Fairview and West Gray) 77019, (713) 522-2301

Laredo Taqueria – The lines running out the door of the original location on Washington of this air conditioned taco stand from about 7:30AM to 1:30PM and often beyond, are a testament to its popularity which derives in large part because of healthy-sized tacos on fresh flour tortillas that are just $3 with a range of fillings prefaced by a smear of refried beans. Three is enough for most, and four for a gluttonous meal. Never mind the occasional piece of cartilage or gristle, as these are never enough to ruin a toco. The locations on the near north side operated by other family members might be more consistent – or just less crowded – especially the one on Patton, but this location is far more convenient for most.  915 Snover (on Washington east of Shepherd), 77007 and three others north of downtown

Master Taco – Parked at Richmond and Woodhead since the spring of 2020, this noticeably friendly taco truck serves up terrific small tacos on flavorful house-made corn or flour tortillas Monday through Friday for lunch and early dinner, where, for good reason, you will usually find at least someone waiting near the intersection for their food. Those taquitos are what to order here, $2 on double corn tortillas, $2.50 for flour, though a little more for lengua and tripa – and the tender and flavorful lengua might be worth it. Beef, pastor, chicken, chicharron en salsa verde, chorizo with nopales, and carnitas round out the fillings, all worth ordering. Sopes, gorditas, quesadillas, chicharones, and the daily plates are also worth a try.  1802 Richmond (at Woodhead), (832) 654-0285

Pepper Twins – A recent lunch special for just $9.99 featuring the namesake chicken dish showed what this mini-chain does at its best: a preparation rooted in Sichuan with typically spicy and often numbing flavors, recognizably high-quality proteins, fresh vegetables, evident skill in the kitchen, and a delicious result that can be an outstanding value. The meats are much better and much more flavorful than at most local restaurants in this price range, which is easy to notice. The chicken comes from Springer Mountain, no hormone and no antibiotics, and tastier thighs are used. The beef is Certified Angus Beef. The pork is from the Berkshire breed. Currently with five locations scattered around the Houston area, there are two inside the Loop, and these might be the best of the lot. It’s more fun to eat with others here to be able enjoy several of the many enticing preparations and there are a few of the missteps on the menu, but these spots rarely fail to satisfy. This is why there are often more than a few patrons from China dining here (or picking up now).  1915 W. Gray (west of Dunlavy), 77019, (346) 204-5644 and 3915 Kirby (at the Southwest Freeway), 77098, (346) 444-6493

Roostar – Houston’s best banh mi purveyor just opened a third location, in the East End on Navigation, its first inside the Loop. Slicker than most other similar restaurants, this is banh mi 2.0 featuring excellent baguettes from Slow Dough that are a little different than the local banh mi norm, better meats including ribeye and pork cooked sous vide, and a result that’s always very satisfying. A bit more expensive than what you’ll usually find elsewhere, but the banh mi prices top out at $8.29. Eggrolls, curry-laden fries and a few other items can complement a sandwich order.  2929 Navigation (between Jensen and Sampson), 77003, (713) 636-9710

Thien An – The familiar, fairly lengthy Houston-area Vietnamese menu including spring and fried egg rolls, banh mi, rice plates, vermicelli bowls, and pho is provided here. It’s just done noticeably better than most other places, and not just budget options. The banh mi are one longtime highlight, especially for the local favorite, the char-grilled pork (all the way to $3.99 now), since the restaurant is more generous than most with the pork, which is nicely cooked, tender and richly flavorful, nestled along with the expected fresh, texture-providing accompaniments in a local-standard short Vietnamese-style baguette that is properly fresh, crusty and airy. The no-nonsense setting provides an appropriate place for a tasty and wallet-friendly meal.  2611 San Jacinto (just south of McGowen), 77004, (713) 522-7007

Uberrito – What began as Mission Burritos a couple of decades ago is down to just one location inside the Loop, but their design-it-yourself burritos on giant 13” tortillas featuring a choice among now about ten proteins or vegetables as a centerpiece are also much tastier than the similar competitors as are the “Ten Tasty Tacos” are quite tasty, too. The creamy serrano ranch, especially, or fiery green salsa applied during construction seems to help with most burritos and tacos, but the results rarely disappoint, regardless. The burritos are still large, though maybe not as protein-packed as the in past, which is probably a good thing for most of us. Still pretty cheap, too, starting at under $8, and even cheaper on Mondays when the chicken and veggie burritos are just $5. 1609 Durham (just south of I-10), 77007, (713) 426-6634

At Istanbul Grill

​I owe this project to the allure of a television commercial.  Earlier this year, KFC began running commercials touting its fried chicken sandwiches with images that looked enticing, as I was surprised to admit, and with the assertion that burger joints weren’t the places to get these, one should go to a fried chicken franchise, KFC, of course.  I was actually intrigued.
 
KFC didn’t start the trend, and once a craze, for sandwiches made with chicken breasts, breaded and deep-fried and served on hamburger buns with mayonnaise and pickles, with the option for a cayenne pepper-spiced version.  With the inspiration and competition from Chick-fil-A, in the summer of 2019 Popeye’s introduced its chicken sandwich, one spicy and one not, that caused a sensation, to the surprise of the company, along with occasional violence in the long queues at its restaurants.  The considerable success spawned versions at other restaurants across the country, fast-food spots and otherwise.  This has certainly been popular, even helping cause shortage of the chicken meat.  Whataburger now has on its website home page the warning: “Due to demand, some chicken items may not be available at this time.”
 
The spicy version was the one that resonated me.  If not quite enough to venture to a Popeye’s, or later anywhere, to check it out until nearly the summer of this year.  I avoided the hype back then.  I try not to eat much in the way of fast food.  And chicken breasts are among the very dullest of proteins.  It was tough for me to get excited about something that was centered around this. As Nashville-inspired hot chicken has spread across the country in recent years, I became more interested in the sandwich versions.
 
Unlike my quest to try every margherita pizza in Houston, for which I had some hopes for widespread quality – for which there is definitely not here, unfortunately – I knew that the bar would not be too high concerning spicy chicken sandwiches, which were conceived at fast food joints.  So, I didn’t expect a lot of disappointment.  Some indigestion, of course.
 
To note, the spicy chicken sandwich is a different animal – well, same animal – same cut of it, same breading and deep-frying and made with a spicy flavor, also, as the Buffalo chicken sandwich that’s been on some menus for a while, but different, as we all know.  Not that much different, but different enough for me.  And you, too.  Bleu cheese, with its strong-tasting difference, disqualifies a sandwich in a similar fashion, of course.
 
I really tried to try the chicken sandwiches at every place in Houston, within reason, of course.  I have to admit I missed the one from the (overly) wide-ranging menu at Woodshed in Levy Park.  The chicken fried steak I had there recently is certainly one of the worst versions in the area – and I have had about every one in town in another, possibly silly, still-ongoing artery-clogging line of investigation – so I didn’t place a lot of faith in its rendition of another deep-fried offering.  I didn’t sample the one at Jack the Box, either; Jack in the Box is really gross.
 
I tried the spicy chicken sandwiches at nearly twenty restaurants in Houston, fast-food and otherwise.  A couple of the places, Howdy Hot Chicken, a small chain from Sugar Land, and Mico’s Hot Chicken, use obviously industrially produced ultra-thick, Chernobyl Farms-style chicken breasts; too much of the very boring chicken breast and necessarily less of the fried breading per bite.  I did not enjoy these much at all.  What I found is that a thinner cut of chicken breast makes for a much tastier sandwich, one with a closer mix of the crunchy, more flavorful breading to meat.  The fast-food restaurants generally do a good job with this.  But, two drawbacks of the fast food spots are the quality of the bun, pretty much just the overly processed and ingredient-ed white bread stuff, and that the chicken might be dried out a bit; the meats aren’t cooked to order at these.  Other than that, the quality of the meat seems the same; it’s chicken breast, after all.  Whether fast-food or not, taken to go, with a fair amount of sauce and sometime some liquid-y cole slaw, these sandwiches don’t travel particularly well.
 
The best version that I found was from The Hay Merchant, which does a lot of things very well.  It’s $14 and comes with house-made potato chips.  After that was at KFC and Popeye’s, smaller in size, but $10 less, only $3.99, and these have drive-thrus.  These convenient cheapies out-performed most of the more ambitious restaurants.  Then came The Burger Joint, though it does not have a spicy version.  There are few others that are worth ordering, if not worth a detour: The Cookshack, Feges BBQ, Fuddruckers and even the oft-variable Whataburger.  If you feel the craving for a fried chicken sandwich, I recommend one of the above.  But, there is almost always better things on the menu.

The sandwich that begat the craze.

​I used to enjoy going to Pearland.  That was a while ago, though.  Killen’s Barbecue opened late in 2013 down in Pearland and seemingly immediately became a very popular destination for barbecue lovers throughout the region for its expertly cooked brisket and beef ribs, especially.  The quality of its barbecue was about as good as anything to be found in the state, and it significantly raised the bar for Texas-style smoked meats in the Houston area.  Inspiring other pit masters and restaurateurs, Killen’s was one of the most influential restaurants to open in and around Houston in the past decade.  It provided the spark that has made the barbecue landscape here much better in the ensuing years. 

Now there are terrific barbecue options to be found in Houston proper: The Pit Room, Pinkerton’s, Truth, Feges, Blood Bros., along with Gaitlin’s and Roegel’s.  And, either The Pit Room and Pinkerton’s might serve the best brisket in the area. 

With these choices for Texas-style barbecue, there is really no need for those in Houston to trek to Pearland.

Also, Ronnie Killen opened an upscale steakhouse concept of sorts a few years ago not too far west of the Galleria, Killen’s STQ, and last year, Killen’s on Heights Boulevard near Washington, which has a regionally attuned Southern menu.  The food I’ve picked up from the newest Killen’s has been excellent in two trips – a third will likely be this week as it is now on my regular rotation for weekday lunches.  The orders so far have included a chicken fried steak that is certainly one of the best version in the city, better than what was ever served by the former occupant of Killen’s space, Hickory Hollow, which was known for the dish.   Killen’s on Heights even serves barbecue.  You don’t even have to drive to Pearland to get Killen’s barbecue these days.

​Killen’s
101 Heights (just north of Washington), 77007, (713) 637-4664
ronniekillen.com

​I’ve been down on the quality of the pizza to be found in Houston, especially after the closure a few months ago of easily the best pizzeria since it opened in 2006, Dolce Vita.  Unfortunately, proprietor Marco Wiles wanted to concentrate on his other Italian restaurants, Da Marco and Poscol, a little further down Westheimer as he has gotten older.  As much as I like to tout the quality of the restaurants here – it’s certainly among the top handful of restaurant cities in the country now – the pizza game has been a laggard.  It’s especially disconcerting because I really like pizza.  This affection for pizza led me to my odd Margherita Pizza Project in which I forced myself to have every single margherita pizza served at the time in Houston.  It proved quite disappointing; the vast majority of the margherita pizzas served in Houston are rather mediocre or worse.
 
Margheritas are tough to do really well, but there were not a surfeit of pizza places doing much as well as I would have hoped.  So, I was very heartened to hear last year that the folks at Nancy’s Hustle in EaDo were going to open a pizza-centric place nearby.  Nancy’s Hustle is among my favorite restaurants and I know the chef there has a penchant for breads and pastas and thought that pizzas could be their next success.  Tiny Champions is.  With pizzas with a minimal amount of toppings that Tiny Champions does – like with the margherita – the quality of the dough is paramount.  This is the key thing that Tiny Champions has done very, very well in my several visits.
 
The pizzas here are minimalist in construction, ingredients are judiciously applied, but there is a lot of flavor in what there in the box are on the tray.  With thinness of the crust and the understated use of toppings, that crust has to be very well-made and flavorful or the pizzas will be disappointing.  But, the thin, bready and slightly chewy crusts cooked to firm crispness here are delectable. The pizzas look Italian, at least the way they do in a lot of Italy outside of Naples and the pizza al taglio in Rome that’s served by the rectangular slice to go.  It has a taste more reminiscent of the New York style, but not New York style.  It’s a somewhat unique taste, and one that’s delicious. 
 
The pies are very well-balanced, with a little of each working more than ably together and providing a lot of flavor.  There are a half-dozen standard creations presented on the menu in a wordy format: tomato, mozzarella, speck, pineapple, and fresh jalapeños; tomato, mozzarella, sausage, onions, peppers, and basil; tomato, garlic, anchovy, herby oil ricotta cream spiked with chile, a Tuscan style dry salami, with fennel, fresh herbs, maybe more fennel; ricotta cream, mozzarella, kale, Swiss chard, and pickled garlic; and the cheese pizza – tomato, mozzarella, Parmesan.  If you want to build on the cheese pizza base, you’ve got a limited but better than most array of: pepperoni, fennel sausage, anchovies, roasted mushrooms, roasted onions, fresh jalapeños, mixed olives, and a slew of sauces for dipping the crust or more – garlic chili oil, herb-inflected oil, hot sauce, a fancy ranch, Parmesan, salami XO.
 
A very welcome sign, is that the pizzas from Tiny Champions don’t suffer much at all in transit.  Given their thin crusts, they might reach a more tepid temperature than the typical pizza, but the good taste remains.  I’m not at all opposed to pineapple on pizzas – seemingly unlike a great many with Italian last names – and the one here paired with speck, a better ham, and spiked with fresh jalapeños is delicious.
 
But, pizza is not alone among the enticements at Tiny Champions.  It’s a different array that you might expect from a pizza joint: there are several pasta preparations featuring soft pastas made in house, an array of appetizers numbering a baker’s dozen with strong Italian and Mediterranean accents and often acidic notes, ice creams sometimes with a savory bent made by the restaurant, along with cocktails, beers and an adventurous, well-edited wine list that you might expect with Sean Jensen involved.  I haven’t sampled any in my three visits to pick up food, but I imagine these are all quite commendable or better given the quality of the pizzas and the association with Nancy’s Hustle.
 
I haven’t dined in, yet, but after three pizzas, I’ll quickly state that Tiny Champions is the best pizzeria in Houston.
 
Tiny Champions
2617 McKinney (east of Emancipation), 77003, (713) 485-5329
tinychampionshouston.com

​A few years ago, my group at work ventured out for lunch a ways down the Southwest Freeway to dine at the vegetarian southern Indian restaurant specializing in thalis, Maharaja Bhog.  One of my co-workers from India wanted us to experience it.  After arriving, the bulk of us had to wait a few minutes on two of the group who were uncharacteristically late.  Both from China, they had stopped into Peking Cuisine a couple of doors down to order Peking duck for dinner for their families that they would pick up after lunch. 
 
I had recommended Peking Cuisine in my Houston Dining on the Cheap guidebook some years earlier, though it been a while since I had dined there and I didn’t realize that Peking duck for take-away was an option or popular.  My limited Mandarin skills might make that a difficult proposition, but I was happy to learn about it.  And, I thought that it was great that there was not just those two places that draw diners, discriminating diners at that, but a third located in between those, Pho Binh.
 
So, set on a feeder road of the freeway and S. Gessner in a bland strip mall In three successive storefronts from left to right are a southern Indian vegetarian restaurant offering something fairly unique for the city, a Vietnamese spot known primarily for its pho, as its name indicates, and a Chinese restaurant specializing in northern Chinese cooking – and Sichuan, too, now, as most Chinese restaurants seem to be these days.  Not just diversity, but diversity with commendable quality.  I’ve enjoyed each.  Peking Cuisine, not too far from the nexus of authentic Chinese eateries on Bellaire Boulevard has long had a good reputation.  Pho Binh, at least its original address, is the most lauded pho spot in the area, and Majarja Bhog has been touted by more than a few folks from southern India.
 
I happened to be down there last Saturday and it seems that all is the same as it was, thankfully, and the strip center is even nicer now, a bit less depressing-looking than it once was.  The setting never seemed to impact the tastiness of the food, in any case.

​Pizza originated in Italy, to be sure, but it is not originally Italian.  This is because pizza is specifically Neapolitan in origin.  It’s from Naples, the big, chaotic and historic port city in southern Italy, and pizza actually spread more quickly throughout the U.S. than it did elsewhere in Italy, as odd as that may seem.  Pizza initially traveled with the immigrants from Naples and its environs, of whom there were many to the U.S.  To note, the Sicilian pizza is also fair part the pizza landscape here.  Arriving later, it was derived from the sfincione served in Palermo, a type of spongy focaccia, but that’s for another tale.
 
A brief history of pizza in America until it become popular
 
One of the most important events in the gustatory history of the country seems to have begun officially in 1905 when Gennaro Lombardi, a native of Naples, opened the first licensed pizzeria in America in Manhattan’s Little Italy, Lombardi’s.  He had been making versions of this strictly Neapolitan fast food at the bakery in which he worked, which was also being done elsewhere, at least in his neighborhood.  The New York Tribune noted a couple of years earlier in 1903 in Little Italy that “apparently the Italian has invented a kind of pie. The ‘pomidore pizza,’ or tomato pie.”  These pizza pies were just the province of these Neapolitans; in Italy at the time, it was not found outside of the vicinity of Naples. “There are only two places in New York where you can get real, genuine Neapolitan pizze. One is on Spring Street and one on Grand. The rest are Americanized substitutes,” reported an informed source, “the Dago,” in a Sun piece in the summer of 1905.
 
These pizzas first found an audience with those recently arrived Neapolitans and quickly spread to all the Italians living in the neighborhood.  Pizza has proven to be a very easy sell over the years.  In the 1920s and 1930s Lombardi’s former employees, all Neapolitans, opened pizzerias in Brooklyn, East Harlem and uptown Manhattan that would be destined to become icons in their own right.  But, pizzas were really an ethnic, mostly Italian, specialty until after the Second World War, even in New York City.   Also in the 1920s, pizzerias were opened by Neapolitan immigrants in the Italian neighborhoods of New Haven, Connecticut, Trenton, and Boston.  Philadelphia and Chicago were two of the few other cities with Neapolitan pizzaioli and pizza before the Depression. 
 
Pizza spread throughout the country after the Second World War, as it began to be served well beyond the Italian neighborhoods.  Starting and growing in areas with virtually no competition from pizzerias with Italian antecedents, several regional, national and international pizza companies got their start in the mid-1950s to 1960: Shakey’s in Sacramento in 1954 – the name referencing one of its malaria-damaged owners – Pizza Hut in Wichita and Pizza Inn in Dallas in 1958, Little Caesar’s in suburban Detroit in 1959, and Domino’s in Ypsilanti, Michigan in 1960.  Commercially made gas and electric pizza ovens, along with large mixers for the dough introduced in the mid-1950s, helped make the creation of the pizzas easier, far less dependent on a seasoned pizza-maker. American business know-how helped even more.  The franchise system increased the number of branches and market presence quickly.  Even if far from the best pizzas around – the pies usually featured doughier and blander crusts and lower-quality toppings – these pizza chains have been greatly enjoyed by millions over the years.  Not incidentally, with tremendous insight, or luck, Pizza Hut, Dominos and Pizza Inn first opened right near colleges and universities whose enrollment grew tremendously from the 1950s on, something that these chain pizza joints rode to continued and continuing success.
 
An even briefer history of pizza in Italy outside of Naples
 
“Pizza, which was unknown in north Italy before the war” recounted cookbook author Marcella Hazan in her memoir Amacord.  Pizzas was difficult to find anywhere outside of the Naples region through the 1950s. Even in southern Italy beyond the greater Naples area, it was not be found.  A family friend from Reggio Calabria, the city at the toe of the boot, did not have her first pizza until she arrived in New York in the late 1950s.  She said that Naples was the only place in Italy to get pizza then.
 
It came to those other cities with transplanted Neapolitans who traveled north to find work in the industrial boom after the war.  For example, in Hazan’s northern region, Parma, a well-to-do and university city, got its first pizzeria in 1960 started by a person from Salerno, south of Naples.  Though now popular throughout Italy, pizza has taken hold the most in a city closer to Naples, Rome, which has developed a couple distinctive versions.  The first was pizza tonda, a round pizza with a blistered cracker-thin crust that grew out of the Neapolitan versions.  Then came pizza al taglio, a long rectangular pizza without Neapolitan antecedents, which is more like a focaccia and sold mostly in take-away places.  It has become synonymous with Roman pizza outside of Rome.  The Eternal City also currently boasts some excellent pizzerias making version similar to those in Naples.    
 
It is true what Carol Helotsky wrote in her book Pizza - A Global History: “Pizza went from being strictly Neapolitan to being Italian-American and then becoming Italian,” though I’d clarify, adding that it became American after Italian-American.

Brandi in Naples, the birthplace of the margherita pizza, and the home of the best margherita pizza I've ever eaten.

​The smart, smallish storefront Indian restaurant on Durham not far south of Washington has been a regular stop for me since the pandemic began.  Convenient, even though I have to briefly enter the restaurant, a trip to pick up a meal is always quick, as the order is ready and the checkout is swift.  The food travels very well back home to consume, much better than from most places.  Surya was a regular stop for me before the pandemic began, mostly because I really enjoy the food.
 
I’ve really enjoyed pretty much everything there, and I’ve had, or nearly had, every entrée.  After ordering it more than a few times now, I have to finally admit that my favorite preparation is the Chicken Vindaloo, which I had once again the other day and edges out their version with lamb for me.  This Goan-originated dish was properly spicy, actually extremely spicy this last time – three glasses of water and a half-glass of milk were necessary to get through this lunch – but more significant was the deep flavor of the reddish-orange-colored sauce with an enjoyable brightness, richness and complexity that I could barely pause from, ladling it on the terrific long-grain rice side or scooping it up with the soft, occasionally blistered fresh naan.  Studded with moist pieces of white chicken meat that are actually quite savory and cubes of soft potatoes, this is a delicious meal.
 
A visit to Surya, especially for the vindaloo, is one of things that helps makes these times more bearable.
 
Surya
700 Durham (a couple of blocks south of Washington), 77007
(713) 864-6667
suryahouston.com

​As much as I like Goode Co. Seafood, it had been a while since I had eaten there.  When picking up a weekend lunch for my parents on the west side, its location on I-10 seemed to be the right call.  And, being lunch, a seafood po boy and fries seemed to be right order.  Actually, we all ordered that, if each with a different po boy.  Fried shrimp for me, and fried oyster and fried catfish ones for my parents.  We all loved what we got.
 
I am big fan of shrimp po boys, that New Orleans-bred sandwich classic.  The crunch of the properly fried shrimp, the succulence of good-quality shrimp – which very easy to get here – the taste of a fresh, crusty short loaf of French bread that’s fully dressed, a complement of shredded iceberg lettuce, tomato slices, a fair amount of mayonnaise slathered on the brad and a few thin rounds of pickles a touch more texture and hint of acidity. 
 
The excellent ones at Goode Co. Seafood are in the same vein, but just little different, a localized take.  The medium-sized shrimp are butterflied before frying and just five to a sandwich, not overflowing as it other places, but not skimpy.  In the finish-yourself version offered via takeout, the shrimp rest in the roll and on the side are an array of possible additions: shredded lettuce, a packet of mayonnaise, small containers of a piquant cocktail sauce, tartar sauce, pickles and another of pico de gallo in lieu of tomatoes, all house-made, of course, and then also a big wedge of lemon to squeeze on the shrimp.  I opted for some tartar sauce instead of my usual, and the traditional, mayonnaise and plenty of pico de gallo.  It all worked quite well together.  Helping the enjoyment were some top-notch fries – not easy to find for takeout these days – skin-on, judiciously salted and crisper and tastier than most, even after a little travel.
 
Liking the meal so much, I had to pick up one to go again the following weekend at the address that is more convenient to me, the original one on Westpark.  I resisted temptation to try something new, and a little healthier, the mesquite-grilled shrimp po boy.  Deep-fried that time, too, and equally delicious.
 
Goode Co. Seafood
2621 Westpark (just west of Kirby), 77098, (713) 523-7154
10201 Katy Freeway (between Gessner and the Beltway), 77024, (713) 464-7933

As bad as 2020 has been concerning restaurant closures, I expected worse.  Hopefully, most can hang on until things improve.  Here are the ones I found most notable that could not.

• Americas – The excitement and once even some magic associated with the Latin American-inspired Americas at its original Post Oak location had long since become muted as the years wore on and the city’s dining scene advanced.  With that and that the founding Cordua family had been forced out not so long ago, made the closure of this long enjoyable stop more bearable.
• Atlas Diner – Richard Knight, formerly of Feast and Hunky Dory and now this counter-laden space Bravery Chef Hall, is one of my favorite chefs in Houston and I believe among the best.  Hopefully, his always adroitly rendered and often imaginative offerings rooted in British, French and American antecedents find a suitable home in the future.
• Barry’s Pizza – The thick Sicilian-style pies were a draw at this casual pizza parlor that made it nearly four decades, announcing that it was shuttering for good at the end of May.
• Bernie’s Burger Bus – All four locations closed of the city’s best burger joint closed on May 31. 
• Bombay Pizza Co. – Something different and usually quite enjoyable on a particularly scruffy short stretch part of Main Street, this closure seems more than temporary, unfortunately.
• Burger-Chan – One of Houston’s best burger places, it couldn’t really continue in an office food court when the offices are emptied of workers.  Thankfully, another one is reportedly in the works.
• The Classic –  The contemporary diner on the western part of Washington from the folks at benjy’s and Local Diner never really excited too many diners, myself included.
• Dak & Bop (Museum District location) – Less fun for the kids in the Museum District and most of us who enjoy spicy fried stuff that is well made.
• Emmaline – A decent spot for a fairly upscale dining experience though never nearly among the city’s top dozens, but it was near my office.  My endearing memory is their valet service damaging tow of my co-workers’ vehicles during one lunchtime visit.
• Helen in the Heights – Though a welcome addition to the Heights, this never seemed to catch on as it might.
• Indika – Though it had lost its shine when founder Anita Jaisinghani sold it to concentrate on Pondicheri, it was still quite worth a visit until changes were made in the menu and emphasis, which didn’t really endear until many, most diners had moved on.
• Kaneyama – On Westheimer near Gessner, this sushi purveyor had its fans over the years but closed in May.
• Kenny & Ziggy’s (Buffalo Speedway location) – Owner Kenny Gruber cited the smallish dining room as making operations unprofitable with the necessary restrictions for service during the pandemic.  A shame, as it is much more convenient for me than the Galleria area spot.  A place I like to go when I feel my cholesterol is too low.
• Morningstar Coffee and Donuts – Well-liked and -regarded, this quirky and likeable Heights-esque spot just closed in December.
• Night Heron – From the folks at Coltivare, Indianola and Vinny’s, this never resonated with its Menil area neighbors – an odd menu off the bat didn’t help – nor too many others as did its predecessors.
• Pappas Seafood – Along with the location of Pappadeaux a little west on Richmond, this little Pappas Seafood place with its largely locally attuned seafood at Shepherd shows a Pappas move away from the inner loop (excepting the grand steakhouse downtown).  Another on Aldine-Bender and I-45 also closed.
• Pappadeaux (Richmond east of Kirby location) – Large and with a seemingly usually filled parking lot during popular dining hours, there are other Pappeadeaux’s left, though none now in the heart of town.
• Poitin – Nicely set with a cool view of downtown to its east, with a fairly expansive dining room and bar area, the odds were stacked against it during these tough times.
• Politan Row Food Hall – Some really neat and well-operated recent vendors made this a destination, more of note as its Rice Village surroundings has become more chain-oriented with its restaurant choices.
• Ragin’ Cajun (Westchase location) – The original location on Richmond Avenue remains open, and this near westside address made it for a couple of decades, a good run for any restaurant.
• Treebeards (on Market Square) – The Cloisters location is still open for your fix of southeast Texas-style red beans and rice.
• Yia Yia Mary’s – Pappas most explicit nod to their Greek heritage was a nice option to have in the area that did not survive the pandemic, either.

 
Bars

• Alice’s Tall Texas – On North Main west of I-45, the cheap Lone Star that was its hallmark has possibly become less of an attraction as surrounding area at the edge of the Heights has become less working class.
• Penny Quarter – One of Houston’s best wine bars, and certainly the noisiest, it will be missed, but the able team behind it – including principals Bobby Heugel of Anvil and Justin Yu of Better Luck Tomorrow – should hopefully be adding to the bar map once the pandemic clears.
• Public Services – This attractive bar a block south of Buffalo Bayou was excellent in turns for its cocktails, wines and spirits, especially whisky, and with service that was always a cut above.

 
Other

• Acadian Bakers – A longtime favorite for cakes closed in March.
• Boomtown Coffee (Main and Congress location) – The smart-looking Main Street location of Boomtown closed its doors in mid-July.

 
There is also Dolce Vita that was long the city’s best pizzeria – in a city rather lacking in quality pizza.  It’s closure was a decision by owner Marco Wiles independent of the pandemic to focus on his other two concepts, Da Marco and Poscol, as he has gotten older.

The whimsical Ants on a Log from the Atlas Diner

​Michelin’s restaurant guides have provided a wonderful and reliable source of dining suggestions for me for years, mostly in Europe but also domestically, in Chicago.  Though I didn’t get to employ any of the guides this year, there is something that I learned during my last trip overseas about a year ago that you should be aware when using a Michelin guide to plan a visit to an restaurant anointed with a star or more.  I wish I would have known this some time ago.  
 
A couple of years ago, my family was dined at Parizzi, reputed to be the best restaurant in Parma, and accolated with a Michelin star.  That star was a reason to visit.  As with all restaurants with stars, La Guide Michelin Italia gave a list of dishes.  For Parizzi, it was a salad with smoked pork, veal tips, and tartare di cavallo, horse tartare.  I remembered the salad as the recommended starter and ordered that instead of the tartare, then the veal tips.  When visiting Michelin-starred places, I have always ordered the dishes that were named in the guide if still offered.  I always assumed that these were the restaurant’s best preparations or the most highly recommended.  Though I really wanted the horse tartare – a sometime-seen specialty of the area – but thought the salad was what was really advised by the guide.  Only one starter could be ordered.  And, I was mollified by my brother sitting next to me who ordered the tartare, saying that he would split it with me.  He loved it.  Quite a lot, in fact, and forwarded maybe only half a forkful. 
 
Really, no matter, though, as my salad and the rest of the food was terrific.  The meal was fantastic, overall, the best during my two week trip to Italy.
 
Last fall, I was on a gastronomic trip to Pavia, south of Milan.  One of the fellow travelers was the longtime, acclaimed food and restaurant writer John Mariani.  He mentioned a tidbit or two about the Michelin guides.  Compiled by understaffed group of reviewers who were unlikely to visit an establishment more than just once: that the dishes that are listed for the starred entries are simply just the dishes that the reviewer had.  These were not necessarily the restaurant’s best dishes, just the ones that were sampled, and probably enjoyed. 
 
It would have been nice to know that – I find the conveyance of the information in the Michelin guides about particular places as rather parsimonious and even Delphic – and in Parma I could have had a full order of delicious horse tartare all to myself.

The tortelli d'erbette at Parizzi with plenty of grated Parmigiano

​The quality of Indian and Pakistani restaurants in Houston has grown dramatically since I started opining about food here nearly two decades ago, as those communities have grown and the general dining public has become more knowledgeable, appreciative, and demanding of south Asian cuisines.  One of my favorites for Indian fare and a fairly frequent stop for takeaway these days is Surya, a small, minimalist spot located in a small space on Durham a couple of blocks south of Washington.  With a concise menu of mostly familiar northern Indian dishes presented attractively and prepared even more enticingly all for a fair price, it is easy to like. One item is indicative of the caliber of the cooking, and accompanies every entrée, the side of rice.  The high-quality, long-grained and inherently fragrant and a bit nutty basmati rice at Surya is cooked fairly quickly to an al dente texture with cinnamon and bay leaves and then some saffron, the last giving it streaks of yellow.  The resulting rice, grains properly distinct and topped with a few peas, is a perfect pairing to the curries, delightful in its own right, and probably the best Indian-style rice I have ever eaten.  It’s just one reason to visit Surya.
 
Surya
700 Durham (two blocks south of Washington), 77007
(713) 864-6667
suryahouston.com