In order to ensure it meets the needs of the next generation of customers, one of Houston’s oldest restaurants has big plans to expand.
Antone’s Famous Po’ Boys has announced that it will open two new locations. One is a grab-and-go kiosk in the Greenway Plaza food court that’s also home to Greenway Coffee & Tea, the Rice Box, and white hot sensation Kuma Burger. The kiosk will serve four po’boys — Original, Super Original, Turkey & Swiss and Tuna – along with salads, drinks, and chips. The company plans to open these in office buildings all over the city, including the downtown tunnels.
In addition, Antone’s will open its third restaurant in the Shops at Ten Oaks, a new shopping center located next to Texas Children’s Hospital’s West Campus at I-10 and Barker Cypress Road.
“We’re really trying to reintroduce the brand to the broader Houston market,” Legacy Restaurants CEO Jonathan Horowitz tells CultureMap. “Obviously, it’s been around a long time and a lot of people have a great history with the brand. We’re really trying to tap into the next generations of Houstonians to both take advantage of that history and continue it as we continue to make menu improvements and things like that.”
The restaurant expansion brings Antone’s into one of the fastest-growing parts of Houston, and its proximity to two hospitals should ensure both a steady lunch business and plenty of catering opportunities. In addition, the company’s service model is very much on trend.
“The fast casual segment of the industry is really growing. That’s a function of both people’s lifestyles and the general economic climate,” Horowitz explains. “We feel there’s a really good opportunity to grow the nicer fast casual type of concept where people can get really high quality ingredients, handmade stuff and be in and out in a short amount of time.”
Of course, most Houstonians encounter Antone’s through the company’s wholesale network that delivers more than 30,000 sandwiches per week to 200-plus grocery outlets to places as far away as Beaumont, Galveston, and College Station. Horowitz says he’s been working on making some changes behind the scenes that will allow the commissary to grow to Austin and Louisiana.
Whatever changes come, the food will mostly remain the same — maybe with a few minor tweaks. “We’re very happy with the way the menu is,” Horowitz affirms.
After all, Antone’s didn’t become a Houston institution by serving bad food.
Fried shrimp po' boy.
