The East End’s newest eatery is ready to welcome diners. Eastwood Station will open for lunch and dinner beginning this Wednesday, July 22.
Located in a converted train car at 4109 McKinney, Eastwood Station is the latest concept from chef Chris Zettlemoyer and front of house specialist Amanda Mendez. The recently-engaged couple has worked at a number of restaurants across Houston, but the duo are most closely associated with Figo Sugo, the Italian concept in Bravery Chef that evolved out of BOH Pizza & Pasta.
Like Figo Sugo, Eastwood Station will serve sandwiches, Roman-style pizza al taglio, and Italian-inspired pastas and small plates. Zettlemoyer and Mendez live about a mile from the restaurant, and they recognized that the neighborhood needed a casual, counter service, family friendly restaurant that would compliment nearby establishments such as Nancy’s Hustle, Tiny Champions, and Mimo.
“We thought we could bring another option to the table for the community, for them to be able to walk here and to have an affordable option,” Mendez says. “Our long term goal is to really embrace the community. They've been very kind to us. We went to the Civic Association meeting, and introduced ourselves, and everybody was really excited to have another food option.”
Pizza al taglio is notoriously fussy. Zettlemoyer ferments his dough for 72 hours and uses a number of techniques to get it to behave. While New York-style pies would be simpler to prepare, he thinks the pizza’s quality speaks for itself.
“I think the dough — it's the challenge of it, I think. I don't know what it is. There's something that you love about it,” he says.
“It's different than anything people have had. And when they try it, it's amazing to see their faces be like, oh, my god — I didn't know the style of peaks existed,” Mendez says.
Unlike Figo, which focused on pizza by-the-slice, Eastwood Station will sell whole pies in large (eight slices) and medium (six slices) sizes. The pizza will joined by sandwiches such as chicken parm and a meatball hoagie, as well as fan favorite small plates like the short rib lasagna bites in which Zettlemoyer braises short rib, bakes it into lasagna, cuts it into squares, and fries the individual pieces.
At last week’s invite-only friends-and-family service, many of the attendees opted for the AB sandwich. Named after legendary food personality Anthony Bourdain, it’s Eastwood’s take on Houston’s growing trend of mortadella sandwiches. In this version, the meat gets crispy on the griddle before being topped with smoked provolone, dijon mustard, and mayo.
For the restaurant’s pastas, Zettlemoyer’s flavors are influenced by his Louisiana roots, including time working for legendary chef John Folse. For example, his lamb bolognese gets a boost from the same spices used to make merguez sausage. Similarly, his take on all'amatriciana swaps traditional guanciale for slab bacon that’s braised and fried.
“It's definitely not traditional Italian,” he says. “It has some Texas added, some Louisiana added, and just ‘fun’ is the word.”
Eventually, Eastwood Station will be open for coffee in the morning. Mendez is working on housemade syrups that can be added to either hot coffee or cold brew.
One note on the restaurant’s location. It’s primarily set up for to-go (and delivery via UberEats) with a limited amount of outdoor seating at picnic tables. Zettlemoyer and Mendez share the courtyard with Willow’s Smokehouse & Tavern (expected to open next month), so the two restaurants worked together to configure a layout that maximizes the available seating.
Admittedly, outdoor dining during a Houston summer isn’t always appealing, but the location has some shade. Once the sun begins to set, people may even linger a bit.
“We're hoping if we can just get through August, the weather will be good,” Mendez says. “At 6 pm, it feels amazing out here. There's a great breeze.”
