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Marene Gustin

Food/Drink

Marene Gustin writes about Texas culture, food, fashion, the arts and even Lone Star politics and crime for magazines, newspapers and Web sites nationwide. She has more than 20 years experience as a print, television and Internet journalist. Her humorous Food for Thought column on CultureMap combines the inside scoop on Houston dining with perspectives you won't find anywhere else.

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Food for Thought

This Tex-Mex restaurant's new coasters make an important cultural statement

By Marene Gustin

05.13.13 | 12:41 pm

There's something new at El Real Tex-Mex Cafe. No, not the pork fajitas or the family style menu items. Nope this is a coaster. Usually, when they bring your ...


Food for Thought

Memo to TV execs: More food needed on NCIS, Castle, The Walking Dead and other TV dramas

By Marene Gustin

05.06.13 | 9:33 am

To: Producers and directors of TV shows Subject: Food There is not enough food on your shows. Whoa, whoa, I don’t mean the celebrity chef shows, the cooking contests ...


Food for Thought

The most underrated steaks in Houston: Restaurants that do killer red meat at lunch

By Marene Gustin

04.29.13 | 3:40 pm

I know all the controversy over eating red meat. There’s the health aspect on how fish and fowl is healthier and lower in bad stuff, how being vegetarian is ...


Mad Men Restaurants

Don Draper impacts Houston restaurants — seriously: It truly is a Mad Men world

By Marene Gustin

04.21.13 | 7:32 am

Welcome back Mad Men, we’ve been waiting for the season six premiere and through the first several episodes you have not disappointed. Fab fashions, now getting hipper in the ...


Food for Thought

It's grilling season! A top chef's expert tips on how to make the best backyard steak

By Marene Gustin

04.15.13 | 11:26 am

Del Frisco’s Double Eagle Steak House’s chef Steve Haug cooks seven days a week for work. So when he’s at home, he lets the kids do most ...


Most Unique Restaurant Ever?

Cowboy eating makes a comeback: An authentic chuck wagon shakes up the Houston restaurant scene

By Marene Gustin

04.07.13 | 6:03 am

A big part of the recent Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo (besides the record-breaking concert from George Strait, the King) was all about food. And it’s kinda interesting that ...


Historic Bars In Danger

With two more iconic Houston bars facing closure, another old mainstay vows to fight on

By Marene Gustin

03.22.13 | 5:06 pm

A while back I stopped by Blanco’s Bar & Grill for a cold one and owner Karin Barnes was chatting with some customers who had read the CultureMap exclusive about ...


Food for thought

Houston's best crawfish: A mudbug lover's insider secrets to making the most of the season

By Marene Gustin

03.18.13 | 7:27 am

Just got a press release stating spring in Houston is all about the Rodeo, the Azalea Trail, Daylight Savings and patio weather. Yeah. And spring is also when everything I ...


Food for Thought

Wrestling with the great wine debate of our age: Corks versus screw caps is put to ultimate test

By Marene Gustin

03.09.13 | 5:43 pm

Ah, springtime in Texas. When thoughts turn to . . . well, not love exactly, but wine. But who doesn’t love wine? In particular the dozens of wine festivals that abound in ...


Food for Thought

Gourmet restaurant delivery is making a comeback in H-Town: New great on-the-go options

By Marene Gustin

03.03.13 | 11:27 am

One cold rainy day, writing on deadline in sweats with no makeup and uncombed hair, I wanted some Thai food. Didn’t happen. The best I could get delivered was ...


Food for Thought

Top Houston restaurants break out special Rodeo deals: Cowboy up and go beyond carnival junk

By Marene Gustin

02.28.13 | 2:44 pm

Yes, it’s rodeo time in Houston. And while actually going to the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo can net you cotton candy, barbeque, turkey legs and deep-fried things, you ...


Food for Thought

The best restaurant tables in Houston: When top chefs get wild and Martha Stewart creative

By Marene Gustin

02.24.13 | 10:16 am

OK, I can cook, but I’m not Martha Stewart. What I mean by that is that the food will taste fine, but the table won’t look like a ...


Food for Thought

Chefs screaming, throwing knives and attacking food: How Houston's best stack up to TV stereotypes

By Marene Gustin

02.09.13 | 4:41 pm

Did you see the Cheezburger humor site post with a shot of a chef opening a walk-in cooler that reads “Walk-in Cooler: Scream therapy for chefs for over 60 years ...


Food for Thought

Brooklyn Athletic Club turns out to be a good neighbor: New hip restaurant/playground pitches in

By Marene Gustin

02.05.13 | 11:24 am

I hate my best friends. OK, that’s a little strong but I am really, really jealous of Jennifer Olin and her partner Dr. Emelike Agomo. I went over to ...


Food for Thought

A wild chef shuffle sets him free: Vegan master ditches drama to excel at a top Houston restaurant

By Marene Gustin

02.04.13 | 5:32 am

Chef s​huffles can be a source of wild speculation on foodie blogs and in whispered conversations amongst the foodie set. An executive chef leaves a restaurant before we can ...


Food for Thought

The best lunch deals in Houston: High-end restaurants offer cheap gourmet steals

By Marene Gustin

01.25.13 | 9:39 am

“In the new year people need to start eating lunch again,” says PR peep Mark Sullivan. “Seriously. People eating at their desk all the time and on the run it ...


Food for Thought

Another Houston food institution is set to be bulldozed: Shouldn't we care more about history?

By Marene Gustin

01.21.13 | 9:01 am

Restaurants and bars often become second homes to regulars. Think of Cheers. (Norm!) They are places where you can hang out, relax, get some great food and some drinks and ...


Food for Thought

Texans Game Day is no time to eat healthy: Feasts range from Oysters Rockefeller to Tex-Mex treats

By Marene Gustin

01.12.13 | 12:00 pm

So I get this e-mail from Whole Foods Market in my inbox: Healthy Cooking Bowl 2013 Whole Foods Market Houston and Sugar Land stores are celebrating health in 2013 with ...


Food for Thought

The best small plates in Houston: Restaurants that make tiny food dazzle in a big food world

By Marene Gustin

01.06.13 | 3:32 pm

Here’s a food trend for 2013 that I can really endorse. Small plates, tiny foods. In Texas, the land of the 24-ounce rib eye, two-handed burgers, chicken fried steaks ...


Food for Thought

Houston restaurants fall in love with a special bird: The best places to try it before it's too late

By Marene Gustin

12.31.12 | 11:15 am

We’re in the midst of Texas quail season, which runs through Feb. 24. But you don’t have to shoot your own to enjoy this delicious bird. You can ...


All articles by this author.  189 Results. Showing 1 to 20
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