The wait is nearly over for Memorial’s new pizzeria. Murray’s Pizza & Wine will open this Friday, October 24.
Located in the former Texadelphia space near Memorial City Mall (9655 Katy Fwy), Murray’s is the latest project from the owners of Leaf & Grain, the locally-owned, salad-focused restaurant that just opened a new location next to Murray’s. Founder Deets Hoffman and co-founder Edward Thompson have stepped things up for Murray’s, adding both full service and alcohol for the first time.
“It’s not a side project,” Hoffman tells CultureMap. “This is something we’ve been working on pretty thoughtfully for a long time.”
Indeed, Murray’s roots trace back to 2018, but those plans were put on hold by the Covid pandemic. During that time, Leaf & Grain began making its own sourdough, learning important lessons about baking that helped revive Hoffman and Thompson’s interests in opening a pizzeria.
To prepare for Murray’s, Thompson immersed himself into Modernist Bread, a five-volume, 24 chapter cookbook that explores all the techniques necessary for making dough. In the end, he created Murray’s pizza as a hybrid between New York style’s thin, foldable slices and lightly-topped neo-Neopolitan pies. The Murray’s dough uses flour sourced from Texas-based Barton Springs Mill and is fermented for multiple days.
“It is naturally leavened. There is a small amount of commercial yeast, but it’s an extremely small amount,” Thompson says. “The sourdough provides a lot of flavor, especially with our extended fermentation. We use a little yeast to bring consistency and predictability.”
With that much effort put into the dough, pizza toppings are restrained. Murray’s sources ingredients from local vendors and cheese from Houston Dairy Maids, so the pizzas aren’t loaded up with ingredients. Options include the Sausage a la Vodka Pizza, (Vodka sauce, Italian sausage, whipped ricotta, fennel, and basil) and the Not-Hawaiian (salami piccante, pickled shallots, and pineapple-infused hot honey), among others.
“We want to let the dough shine and the flavor we’ve brought to it from fermentation and using really high quality flours. Our focus is on the quality of the toppings and letting the quality speak for itself,” Thompson says.
“There’s no out there, crazy things in terms of toppings,” he adds. “I like to think of it as a responsible amount. No one wants a pizza that a drizzle of olive oil and a teaspoon of tomato, but we don’t want it to be greasy.”
They’re paired with small plates such as hamachi-salmon crudo, focaccia Genovese with burrata, white bean hummus, and meatballs made with a mixture of Black Angus beef and Duroc pork. Hoffman says Murray’s had two goals for its small plates — adding “brightness and acidity” as well as some protein that would complement the pizza. Initially, the restaurant will be open for lunch and dinner with a weekend brunch menu to follow.
Similarly, a restaurant with the word “wine” in its name needs to have compelling offerings, so Murray’s turned to veteran bartender Derek Brown, who consulted on a list of approximately 30 bottles and six to eight by-the-glass options with a a focus on smaller producers. Brown also created a list of classic cocktails as well as a couple of frozens that should be a hit with people who dine on the restaurant’s patio.
“We want this to be a fun space that people are excited to come to,” Thompson says. “I think all of those pieces together, whatever anyone wants to find, we’ll have something in that mood. We’re focused on keeping a short list and doing it as well as we can.”
To achieve the proper date night atmosphere, Murray’s turned to Houston’s Garrison Design Office (GDO). Diners will notice details such as “moody lighting,” refined finishes, and millwork by Eric Rosprim of Objektfab.
“We’re excited for this one,” Hoffman says. “It’s a chance to do more fun things. Leaf and Grain is our baby, but this opens itself up to more fun.”
