A notoriously fickle food critic has given Houston two coveted entries for his annual list of top restaurants in the United States.
For the 2013 rankings, Steve Plotnicki — a noted culinary writer and a former music executive known for signing RUN-DMC — chose Oxheart and Pass & Provisions as the first Space City restaurants to appear on his Opinionated About Dining blog's 100 best.
Were it in Europe, Plitnicki says Oxheart would be "one of the regular stops on the hard-core foodie circuit."
Coming in at No. 73, Justin Yu’s Oxheart garnered recognition for its meticulous attention to plants and vegetables, not to mention the breads and desserts crafted by pastry chef (and Yu's wife and business partner) Karen Man.
Were it in Europe, Plitnicki says Oxheart would be "one of the regular stops on the hard-core foodie circuit."
At No. 90 is Pass & Provisions, which the food critic praises for the "highly-technical cooking and whimsical concepts" brought to the table by chefs Terrence Gallivan and Seth Siegel-Gardner. Plotnicki specifically points to a dish titled "Ham and Eggs" that features caviar and pork cracklings.
Though only its original Austin branch was singled out, Tyson Cole's Uchi, which continues to wow Houston diners in Montrose, came in just below Oxheart at No. 74.
Click here to see the full list. And to put things in perspective, Houston restaurants now rank among stalwarts like Wolfgang Puck's Spago, 126-year-old steakhouse Peter Luger and California's celebrated French Laundry (which took its usual spot at No. 1).
The OA ranks The Pass $ Provisions at No. 90, praising its "Ham & Eggs," a caviar service with pork cracklings shown here.
