Antone's expands

Houston's most famous po'boy sandwiches unwrap in Dallas-Fort Worth

They even have "famous" right in their name.

Courtesy photo

A sandwich maker beloved to Houston is coming to Dallas-Fort Worth: Antone's Famous Po' Boys, known for its cold, grab-and-go sandwiches wrapped in trademark white paper, has expanded its footprint to more than 100 supermarkets in North Texas and East Louisiana.

According to a release, their sandwiches can now be found at select Kroger, Tom Thumb, Albertsons, and Market Street Stores across DFW and Shreveport.

Signature sandwiches include:

The Original: Ham, Salami, Provolone, chow chow relish, mayo, and pickles
Super Original: Same as original but with extra meat and cheese
The Piggy: A blend of chopped ham, salami, pepper jack, and provolone with mayo, pickapeppa sauce, and dill pickles
Tuna: House-made tuna salad, provolone, and pickles
Turkey & Swiss: Oven roasted turkey, swiss cheese, mayo, and sweet & spicy pickles
Premium Roast Beef: Roast beef, sharp white cheddar, creamy horseradish, and sweet and spicy pickles

The po' boy brand has been a Houston institution since it opened in 1962. The expansion comes on the cusp of the company's 60th anniversary.

"We are excited to finally make our po' boys available to folks in North Texas," says Antone's CEO Craig Lieberman in a statement. "It's been a matter of expanding our production facility, which gives us the ability to deliver a consistent, fresh product daily — one that Texans in other parts of the state have come to enjoy."

"We are hoping to provide Antone's to more locations in the Dallas Fort Worth metroplex by the end of 2022," Leiberman says.

The company was founded as Antone's Import Company by Jalal Antone, the son of Lebanese immigrants, and began as a fast-casual sandwich concept known for po' boys, gumbos, and sides made daily. Everyone knows that when it comes to great food, Lebanese people know what they're doing.

In addition to po' boys, their menu includes deli-style sandwiches, seafood platters, and salads.

Antone's has two full-service locations in Houston: near the Galleria at 4520 San Felipe St. and in Shepherd Forest at 2724 W TC Jester. They expanded distribution to Central Texas in 2018. Dallas-Fort Worth is their third major market in Texas.

The sandwiches are sold in grocery stores across Houston and Central Texas including H-E-B, Randall's, Kroger, Brookshire Brothers, and airports including Austin-Bergstrom International Airport and George Bush Intercontinental Airport.

Plus food service outlets in Houston and beyond such as Texas Children's Hospital, MD Anderson's Rotary House, Kyle Field at Texas A&M, and in Austin at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium, and Antone's Nightclub.

So they're currently available in Houston, Austin, Dallas, and Fort Worth, which is four out of the five cities where CultureMap has a bureau. (The only CultureMap city they're missing is San Antonio.) They obviously know what's up.

To find the closest Antone's Famous Po' Boy, consult their Po' Boy Tracker.

trends openings

head east

Eagerly-anticipated Houston barbecue joint hosts weekend preview pop-ups

Courtesy of Eastbound Barbecue

Get a first taste of Eastbound Barbecue this weekend.

One of Houston’s most eagerly anticipated new barbecue joints is giving diners a preview of what’s to come. Eastbound Barbecue will host “Sneak Peak Weekends” every Saturday and Sunday beginning this Saturday, December 20, until the restaurant opens in early 2026.

Held at the restaurant’s location in the East End (1105 Sampson Street) from 12-4 pm (or sold out), the weekend service gives diners their first chance to try Eastbound Barbecue’s smoked meats, sides, and desserts. That includes, smoked brisket, baby back ribs, jalapeno & cheese sausage, hatch chili lasagna mac & cheese, herbed potato salad, and more. Save room for the two dessert offerings, salted caramel banana pudding and cookie butter cake.

To distinguish Eastbound’s barbecue, chefs Lopez and Granville use different seasonings than other restaurants, such as rosemary salt in the brisket rub and a miso-caramel sauce that gives its ribs a sweet and savory bite. During the preview, Eastbound’s prices are noticeably lower than many other Houston barbecue joints, with brisket priced at $29 per pound, ribs at $26 per pound, and pulled pork at $22 per pound.

As CultureMap reported in August, Eastbound unites four friends, Ryan Penn, Ryan Powell, Luis Lopez, and Jake Granville, who also held senior roles at various restaurants owned by prominent Houston chef Ronnie Killen. Since then, the four partners have finished many of the improvements they needed to make prior to opening, including closing in the patio and installing offset smokers on the property.

For Penn, leaving the Killen’s organization after almost 20 years was a difficult decision, but one he felt he had to make. “I could have worked for [Killen] forever and been happy. It was more along the lines of, if I don’t do this now, I don’t want to be 70 and wish that I had,” he said at the time.

Courtesy of Eastbound Barbecue

Get a first taste of Eastbound Barbecue this weekend.

news-you-can-eat barbecue openings