8 things to know

8 things to know in Houston food right now: Reopenings, closings, and Nancy's hustles back

Editor’s note: The pace of openings, reopenings, and closings has picked up in the past couple of weeks. Here’s a quick summary of all the latest news to know.

Openings, reopenings, and a coming attraction

Nancy’s Hustle reopens for dine-in service this Wednesday (September 23). That’s good news for fans of the restaurant that won two of the top prizes in this year’s CultureMap Tastemaker awards — chef of the year for Jason Vaughan and pastry chef of the year for Julia Doran. Co-owner Sean Jensen tells CultureMap that the restaurant will be operating at 50-percent capacity but will soon add patio seating by claiming part of its parking lot. Let the Nancy cakes and lamb dumplings flow!

Jensen also provided an update on Tiny Champions, the pizza-focused restaurant he’s opening with Vaughan and Doran. The restaurant’s key hires have been made (details TBA), and the menu is mostly ready to go. If all goes according to plan, the restaurant should open at the end of October.

Late night favorite Ninja Ramen resumes dine-in service on Friday, September 25. As a brief announcement posted to Instagram states: “No shirt, shoes, or mask, no service (no pants required, though).” Plan accordingly.

Houston’s third Sweetgreen has opened downtown. Originally announced in March, downtown residents and office workers will find signature salads like Kale Caesar and Guacamole Greens, as well as bowls and the restaurant’s recently introduced entrees (called plates), at the corner of Main and Walker (820 Main St.). The restaurant is open for to-go service Monday-Friday from 10:30 am-8 pm.

Houston Sauce Pit has expanded with a second trailer. In addition to its original outpost in the Third Ward (5000 Almeda Rd.), the vegan barbecue purveyor has a new home at the Power Center Food Park (12401 S. Post Oak Rd. at South Main). Look for truck signatures like smoked vegan wings, smokey sauce pit burritos, and BBQ jackfruit sandwiches with Alabama white sauce plus new creations from co-owner Jarett Milton. Check Instagram for hours of operation.

Closings

Bellaire Broiler Burger has shuttered, Community Impact reports. A neighborhood institution, the burger joint closed suddenly in June when a manager died, according to a post on the restaurant’s Facebook. Now, both the business and restaurant are for sale.

Agu Ramen Bistro will close its remaining Houston location on Washington Ave. near I-10 on September 27, the restaurant announced. The Hawaiian-based restaurant entered the Houston market with considerable fanfare, opening locations in Westchase, the Energy Corridor, and Katy, but they all closed relatively quickly. An Instagram post touts the possibility of finding a new location, but it’s certainly aloha for now.

SusieCakes will not be reopening its Houston locations, a representative tells CultureMap. The California-based sweets shop opened in Rice Village in 2017; an outpost in the Medical Center followed earlier this year. Outposts in Dallas and Fort Worth remain open.

Aloha, Agu Ramen.

Courtesy photo

Aloha, Agu Ramen.

closings openings news-you-can-eat

an offer he couldn't refuse

Exclusive: Killen's Barbecue will soon shutter in The Woodlands

Killen's barbecue meat platter with sides

Photo by Robert Jacob Lerma

undefined

Fans of Killen’s Barbecue’s location in The Woodlands have a days to make one last visit. The restaurant will close this Sunday, December 7, chef-owner Ronnie Killen tells CultureMap.

Open since 2021, Killen says that he’s in final negotiations to sell the location at 8800 Six Pines Dr. to Whataburger for a new location of the iconic Texas fast food restaurant. Neither the original location of Killen’s Barbecue in Pearland nor its Cypress location are affected by the closure of The Woodlands and will remain open.

“Whataburger made me a deal I couldn’t pass up. It would take 10 years to do that kind of revenue,” Killen writes in a text, adding that the company recently made a significant payment to keep the deal’s window open through the end of the year.

He added that the costs to operate the restaurant have gone up significantly. As one example, a cord of wood cost $175 when he opened the first Killen’s Barbecue in 2013. It costs $475 now, he writes.

If the deal falls through, Killen states that he could look for a new buyer or convert the restaurant into a second location of Killen’s Burger, the retro-styled burger joint he operates in Pearland.

The restaurant’s closure had been expected since February, when Killen sold The Woodlands’ location of Killen's Steakhouse. At the time, Killen said he also planned to find a buyer for his barbecue joint in the bustling suburb. He cited the driving distance from Pearland to The Woodlands as one reason he chose to divest both locations. He still operates Killen's Steakhouse in Pearland, comfort food restaurant Killen's near the Heights, Killen's Burger, and three other locations of Killen's Barbecue.

As it approaches its 13th anniversary in the spring, Killen’s Barbecue remains a vital part of Houston’s barbecue scene. The restaurant recently earned an honorable mention from Texas Monthly and holds a Bib Gourmand designation in the Michelin Guide. In July, it opened a new location at Hobby Airport.

closings barbecue the-woodlands