For customers at 13 Celsius who are in the mood for a red wine but not sure which one, the staff can be quick to suggest the from the 2021 vintage. I’ve long been a fan of Barberas – actually traveling to that area again next month – and this is an easy one to enjoy.  With some berry and cherry notes on the nose, the first sips are smooth, dry, with less immediate acidity that Barbera was once largely known for.  It has a nice body, rich and with some tannins from the wood-aging but those are not prominent. It is easy wine to drink without food; the 15% alcohol is pleasantly obscured ..read more

I am a big fan of Elro and it’s unique, smart and very approachable take on upscale casual dining, believing it was one of the top new restaurants to open in the city last year. recently opined the same thing. Having dined there about ten times already – it’s nearby and easy for me for lunch which helps – and being sucker for a good sandwich, especially an Italian-accented sandwich, I was looking forward to its second sandwich offering, the Meatball Sub that debuted after my last visit. And that is a favorite for many. The meatball sub finished number thirteen on a of the country’s most popula ..read more

I hadn’t been to Tacos del Julio in almost a decade and it had been in mind recently after visiting Feges BBQ and Stuffed Belly as one of its locations shares the revitalized now restaurant-heavy strip center on Long Point west of Wirt. I had liked its casual Monterrey-rooted food in the past; it was recommended it in my guidebook So, after long last, I drove out there for lunch today. An item at the top of one part of the menu caught my eye: tacos de trompo with beef. I don’t remember having that before – and knowing it existed – and really enjoying well-crafted tacos al pastor and tacos de t ..read more

Italian restaurants have been popular in this country, some parts of the country, at least, since the big wave of immigrants from Italy in the late nineteenth century, becoming even more widespread than the significant numbers of Italians would indicate. But, it seemingly took until the end of 1926 for a full-time Italian restaurant to open in Houston. There was Italian food publicly served on a special occasion, or occasions, before then. On July 20, 1924 both the reported a society vignette that a certain Mr. and Mrs. Herbert Godwin gave a small dinner party “at the new Italian restaurant in ..read more

I met an old friend the other day for lunch at Winnie’s, a place I have always liked but had not been in a little while. The reason is that the less-than-ideal parking there in a crowded part of Midtown is seemingly always in the back of my mind. Very glad we went there. Winnie’s menu has grown, and it now sports a half-dozen or so sandwich options in addition to a couple burgers and an obligatory wrap in addition to a number of other slightly whimsical and always well-crafted choices. I ordered a new sandwich for me, the East Coast Italian. It’s their take on the classic sub or hoagie, which ..read more

It’s been a couple of years since I’ve revisited this, about one of the most popular restaurant dishes actually not just at Italian-themed establishments – where a nephew seems to order it every time and Ken Hoffman wanted my thoughts on the best local versions – but also at any type of restaurant. Chicken Parmesan is the most popular of any restaurant chicken dish, at least according to The previous update was sparked by reading a piece about Ken Auletta, who had just written a biography of the horrible Harvey Weinstein (one of whose I very oddly happen to know). It seems that the longtime wr ..read more

From the first edition of my guidebook that was published in 2001 about the green salsa at Taqueria Arandas: Not insignificantly, the green salsa, offered complimentary with chips, is quite possibly the best salsa in town. A purée of chiles of a thick consistency, it is both very spicy while remaining very tangy and savory. It seems to complement every dish offered. Unfortunately, not all of the locations have this salsa. The Highway 6 and N. Gessner locations do.  That green salsa eventually spread to the other locations of Taqueria Arandas where it have been a tabletop staple for years ..read more

Having even gone to one of her book release events, I really enjoy and look forward to Mimi Swartz’s columns, both in and occasionally in the . Except when she writes about restaurants; her loss at the closure of a nearby Luby’s – Luby’s – and the local establishments that undeservingly, and sometimes so in the head-scratching fashion, get a blurb in ’s dining listings, sometimes with good ratings, in lieu of much better places, which I ascribe to her influence as a Heights resident, rightly or wrongly. The current article about La Griglia’s move is another one, if not Luby-esque. Swartz is ce ..read more

Was off the other day and suggested to a buddy, who also enjoys nice meals, about meeting for lunch at Tony’s, as we had done in the past. And it as enjoyable as before and still a value. Yes, lunch at Tony’s can be a very good value. Not really so if you “make it rain” those precious Alba white truffles in season now over a plate of fresh pasta. Tony’s offers what is called the Greenway Express, three distinct courses which currently consists of a choice of soup of the day or salad – currently, a jump on the seasons with the Primavera Salad, roasted grapes, baby arugula, Tomino cheese, and pe ..read more

The year that’s been, 2023, has been a terrific one for new restaurants, probably the best since I’ve been actively following the Houston dining scene. As I’ve done in the past, the intent for this effort was to devise a list of the ten best restaurants to open in Houston during the year. But the shear number of high-quality restaurants to open here in recent months, rather than editorial slackness, made me to include a bakers dozen. It’s been a fun time to visit new restaurants here, even if the trend has been toward ever higher tabs. Many of the top newcomers will engender a hefty bill, if a ..read more