Welcome Christian's

Family-friendly sports bar with classic burgers arrives just in time for World Series watching

With the Astros in the World Series, Houstonians are flocking to bars and restaurants to watch the games (especially as tickets get more expensive). As of a few days ago, people in the Rice Village and West University area have a new destination to root for the home team.

Christian’s Tailgate Bar & Grill has quietly opened its fifth Houston-area location in the former home of Amazon Grill at 5114 Kirby Drive. From its roots as a divey burger joint on Washington Avenue, Christian’s has evolved into what co-owner Chris Alan describes as a “family friendly sports bar.”

Towards that end, they’ve renovated the space by installing lots of TVs, a beer cooler with over 30 taps, and a few arcade games. Landscaping on the front patio has been trimmed to make it more visible from the street, and a side patio will soon feature outdoor playground equipment to make it more appealing to kids.

“We always wanted to have a Christian’s Tailgate in the West U, Rice Village area,” co-owner Mazen Baltagi tells CultureMap. “Everything in the area is all breastaurants. We’re trying to appeal to people with (a combination of) game watching and good food.”

Those who haven’t been to Christian’s locations in Midtown, downtown, the Heights, or the Energy Corridor in awhile may not realize the menu includes far more than Steve Christian’s celebrated burgers. Tacos, sandwiches, wraps, and even salads have been added to give Christian’s a broader appeal and make it a potential destination for office lunches.

“We’re known for our burgers, but we’re trying to appeal to a broader clientele,” Baltagi says. “People love our salads. My favorite is the shrimp salad with the jalapeno-cilantro dressing.”

Baltagi notes that the best option for local craft beer in the immediate area is Woodrow’s in Rice Village. He thinks Christian’s can appeal to people by featuring newcomers like Eureka Heights, Brash, Great Heights, and Platypus alongside national brands and more established local breweries like Saint Arnold.

The new location will also feature all the same promotions that have worked at other locations. They include steak night, trivia night, live music on Wednesdays, and karaoke on Friday and Saturday nights.

After all, while the owners would be thrilled if it becomes a post-game hangout for West U Little League teams on Saturday afternoons, they still want Christian’s to be a place where area parents came to let their hair down, too.

The game room will soon lead to an outdoor play area.

Christian's Tailgate Kirby interior game room

Photo by Eric Sandler

The game room will soon lead to an outdoor play area.

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NYT best dishes

Houston Mediterranean restaurant makes NY Times' best desserts list

Sayad Mediterranean Kitchen/Facebook

Sayad Mediterranean Kitchen is the only Houston restaurant on either list.

The New York Times included four Texas restaurants among its favorite dishes of 2025. Divided into two lists — The 23 Best Restaurant Dishes We Ate Across the U.S. in 2025 and The 14 Best Restaurant Desserts We Ate Across the U.S. in 2025 — the dishes are:

Bad Honey Bunny at Mercado Sin Nombre (Austin)
Ketan Hitam at Yeni’s Fusion (Austin)
Konafa Naama at Sayad Mediterranean Kitchen (Houston)
Picadillo Macaroni and Cheese at 2M Smokehouse (San Antonio)

Times food writer Priya Krishna, who authors the entries for all four Texas dishes, traveled to far west Houston to visit Sayad Mediterranean Kitchen. “The konafa, a signature here, arrives with a molten layer of cheese under a sticky-sweet layer of golden, nutty semolina. The craft is evident, the konafa gone in a few bites,” she writes.

Sayad Mediterranean Kitchen Konafa Naama Don't skip dessert at Sayad Mediterranean Kitchen.KSayad Mediterranean Kitchen/Facebook

In Austin, Krishna praises the rice pudding at Yeni’s Fusion. “This barely sweet version, lush with coconut milk, aromatic with pandan and as soothing as warm porridge, is the gentlest way to end a meal,” she states.

Already hailed as one of America’s best breakfast spots by Bon Appetit, Krishna singles out a honeybun at Mercado Sin Nombre. “The coiled honey bun at this semi-clandestine cafe looks almost cartoonishly perfect, and the heady scent of cardamom and honey hits you before you even take a bite. Somehow, it tastes every bit as plush and elegant as it appears,” she writes.

The picadillo mac and cheese at 2M Smokehouse showcases how the San Antonio restaurant incorporates Mexican flavors into traditional Texas barbecue. “Imagine Hamburger Helper, but spicier, punchier and even more luxuriously creamy. It’s not easy to one-up the singular, thickly spiced brisket here, but the picadillo mac and cheese — which runs as an occasional special — holds its own and then some,” Krishna writes.

The New York Times regularly shines its spotlight on Texas restaurants, In September, it named four establishments — ChòpnBlọk (Houston), Isidore (San Antonio), Lao’d Bar (Austin), and P Thai’s Khao Man Gai & Noodles (Austin) — to its list of America’s 50 Best Restaurants.

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