Have a Sip

Wine-fueled Heights restaurant stirs up a new cocktail lounge

Heights diners have a new destination for cocktails, bar snacks, and intimate conversations. Savoir, the wine-fueled restaurant that opened last year, has transformed its wine bar and retail shop La Grande Rue into Sip, a new cocktail lounge.

Proprietor Brian Doke tells CultureMap that he converted La Grande Rue into Sip for a couple of simple reasons. First, changes to Texas' alcohol laws during the coronavirus pandemic have allowed restaurants to sell wine directly to consumers, which means that operating a wine shop suddenly became unnecessary. Savoir's full wine list can now be offered to-go at retail prices (mostly).

Second, the statewide shutdown of bars has left people without their usual options for pre and post-meal socializing. Enter Sip — the restaurant prefers the all-caps SIP, a cheeky nod to "shelter in place" — which operates as a dining room within Savoir but has its own menu of drinks, wines by-the-glass, and food. Customers enter through Savoir's entrance; from there, they're escorted behind the bar and through the wine cellar into Sip's seating area, which offers a lounge-style mix of armchairs, couches, and intimate, two-person booths repurposed from La Grande Rue's wine racks.

Bar director Taylor Wright's cocktail menu offers classics such as a paloma, Old Fashioned, and a Queens Park Swizzle, as well as a few originals. Consider the banana Manhattan, which rounds out the familiar, rye-based drink with just enough banana liquor to add a sweet and savory note. On the more refreshing end of the scale, the salted watermelon mixes the seasonal fruit with rum, coconut, and lime, for a clever riff on a daiquiri.

Chef Eric Johnson, who recently took over as Savoir's executive chef, has prepared a mostly Southern-inspired menu of craveable bar snacks that pair well with either a cocktail or a glass of wine. Dishes include corn and squash fritters, fried okra, a cheese and charcuterie board, and a cheeseburger that's topped with chorizo and a fried egg. On the lighter side, look for a seasonal toast topped with housemade ricotta, herb salad, and pistachios.

Since it operates as part of Savoir, Sip keeps similar hours to the restaurant — 5 - 11 pm Sunday - Thursday and 5 pm - midnight Friday and Saturday. Still, that's plenty of time for Heights residents who have been deprived of access to their favorite watering holes. For those seeking refreshment, Sip might be just the thing to quench their thirst.

Savoir features private booths made from wine racks.

Photo by Eric Sandler

Savoir features private booths made from wine racks.

cocktails openings news-you-can-eat

Bari on the move

River Oaks Italian spot claims shuttered Woodlands steakhouse for new location

Courtesy of Bari Ristorante

Bari will serve dishes such as pappardelle bolognese.

Another inner loop dining favorite has set its sights on The Woodlands. Bari Ristorante will open its second location in the booming suburb’s popular Waterway section.

More specifically, Bari has claimed the former Tris space at 24 Waterway Avenue for a new location that will open in early 2026. Work is already underway to transform the space in line with Bari’s original location in River Oaks District. Think Bari’s signature salt walls and a similar color palette.

“Residents of The Woodlands have long enjoyed a reputation for being wine and food lovers,” Bari owners Pedro Teyuca and Tommy Nally tell CultureMap in an email. “You can see that by attendance in their many culinary events and support of the local food culture. Many of our longtime customers live in The Woodlands and have been after us to open Bari closer to home.”

Just as diners can expect a similar design between the two locations, so too will they find a nearly identical menu. That means fan favorites such as truffle pasta that’s finished in a parmigiano reggiano cheese wheel, branzino baked in a salt crust, and a chateaubriand steak that’s cooked in the pizza oven and flambéed table-side. A press release notes that all dishes are made in-house.

“Diners can experience respect for Italian food in a setting that evokes the stylish glamour of Milan and Rome. Serving classic dishes found from the mountains to the sea,” Teyuca and Nally write. “The menu will include dishes that represent the “Best of Bari” as well as the addition of premium cuts of meat.”

Bari opened in May 2023 under the direction of Teyuca, Nally, and chef Renato De Pirro. It quickly drew crowds for it classic italian fare and lively, see-and-be-seen atmosphere.

The trio acquired Georgia James steakhouse from Underbelly Hospitality in the summer of 2024. Tris, a fine dining steakhouse, closed in January after the departure of executive chef Austin Simmons. In early 2026, Simmons will open Charolais by Chef Austin Simmons, an ambitious new concept in The Woodlands’ Hughes Landing district that will include both a restaurant and a butcher shop.

news-you-can-eat openings the woodlands