CultureMap Auto Awards

Smart Energy Car of the Year: Ford Fusion Hybrid is fun to drive andbest-looking hybrid on the road

2013 Ford Fusion Hybrid - CultureMap 2012 Green Car of the Year
2012 Infiniti M-Hybrid - Runner-up CultureMap 2012 Green Car of the Year
Photo by Kevin McCauley

Editor's Note: In the first annual CultureMap Auto Awards, automotive writers Nic Philllps and Kevin McCauley bestow honors in 10 categories for the top 2012 cars and trucks and explain why they're deserving of a good hard look. Our third award:

Smart Energy Car of the Year: 2013 Ford Fusion Hybrid

Aston Martin-ainspired styling, driving dynamics to match, interior design and materials with a European look and feel, claimed 47/47/47-mpg and a gas pedal in a hybrid that when floored emotes driving passion without sounding like it may explode at any second — the 2013 Ford Fusion is a game changer.

It almost doesn't matter that some are challenging Ford and the EPA's 47-mpg figure, the Fusion Hybrid is the most fun to drive and best looking hybrid under $30,000 on the road today. In fact, it starts just under $28,000 and adding technology like lane departure warning with active lane keeping steering, self parallel parking, automatic highbeams, adaptive radar cruise control and voice activated MyFord Touch with Microsoft Sync one can keep the price in the mid-$30's.

The Ford Fusion Hybrid has raised the bar high and is the sort of sedan you'd be proud to own.

Smart Energy Car of the Year Runner-up:2013 Infiniti M Hybrid

At the other end of the spectrum we have the world's fastest accelerating full hybrid — the Infiniti M Hybrid. Rather than go for all out efficiency, Infiniti kept all the parts that make a sports sedan just that, a true sports sedan.

Instead of some mushy CVT it gets a properly sorted 7-speed automatic transmission, it has rear-wheel-drive, near 50/50 weight distribution, steering is direct with a hybrid electric/hydraulic setup and it keeps a 3.5L V6 but adds a 50kW electric motor for a combined system output of 360 horsepower.

While 360hp may not sound like much, it's the 457 lb-ft of torque (40 more than the V8 powered M) that puts even most diesels to shame and 199 lb-ft of it come on instantly from the electric motor with a 0-60 time near five seconds.

All this performance comes at a cost, nearly $56,000 base and $67,000 optioned out, but with 27/32-mpg ratings this high performer keeps it's green car cred real.

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sushi in the park

2 star chefs roll out sushi spot with fresh-from-Tokyo goods along with intimate new bar in buzzy Buffalo Bayou hub

Doko Bar Doko Daniel Lee, Patrick Pham, Andrew Lin

Photo by Alex Montoya

Daniel Lee, Patrick Pham, and Andrew Lin.

Two of Houston’s most prolific sushi chefs have signed on to an eagerly anticipated mixed-use development. Chefs Patrick Pham and Daniel Lee, the owners of 2023 CultureMap Tastemaker Awards Best New Restaurant winner Aiko, will open Doko, a new sushi restaurant, and Bar Doko, an intimate cocktail bar, in the Autry Park mixed-use development.

Expected to open this fall on the ground floor of the Hanover Parkview mid-rise, Doko will serve a menu of sushi that utilizes fish flown in from Tokyo’s Toyosu Market. The 1,900-square-foot restaurant is expected to seat 50 in its main dining room and 12 at its bar.

Tiny Bar Doko will occupy just 600-square-feet in a space that’s adjacent to Doko. The group’s first bar, it will serve Japanese-inspired cocktails. Houston architecture firm JT ARC Studio and Los Angeles’ JAW Collective will create the designs for both establishments

Taken together, Doko and Bar Doko are the latest projects from Duckstache Hospitality, the company that chefs Pham and Lee established with business partners Andrew Lin and C.J. Short. In addition to the aforementioned Aiko, they also operate Kokoro in downtown’s Bravery Chef Hall, Himari at the Stomping Grounds in Garden Oaks, and two outposts of hand roll concept Handies Douzo.

“Autry Park is an amazing opportunity to continue to showcase our culinary creativity in a unique setting,” Lin said in a statement. “We look to evolve our offering in Japanese cuisine to provide our guests with memorable dining experiences.”

Doko and Bar Doko will join a number of new restaurants at Autry Park. They include two new concepts from Berg Hospitality, Annabelle Brasserie and Turner’s Cut; two restaurants from MF Sushi chef-owner Chris Kinjo, MF Lobster and Ceviche and Annam, a Vietnamese restaurant; Auden, a vegetable-forward, globally inspired restaurant; a second location of pilates studio and coffee shop Duo; and the first Houston location of Austin favorite Lick Honest Ice Creams.

Developed by local real estate firms Lionstone Investments and Hanover Company, Autry Park occupies 14 acres on the western edge of Buffalo Bayou Park. The project's three-phase masterplan includes five towers encompassing 1,450 residential units, 350,000 square feet of Class A office space, and 100,000 square feet of retail, according to press materials.

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