Foodie News

Where the deals are: Haven's new blue plate lunches are too good for a ten-spot

Haven is now home to bargain lunch.
Photo by Barbara Kuntz
Haven's Blue Plate Lunch: Fried shrimp and onion rings

Budget experts have been saying it for years — if you want a high-end dining experience without the price tag, go at lunch.

That's been the case at Haven since it opened a year ago — on the lunch menu, salads start at $8 and sandwiches and entrees $12 — but recently chef Randy Evans upped the ante with a quintet of Blue Plate lunch specials for $10.

Made up of classic Texas comfort foods — fried chicken with mac and cheese on Thursdays, red beans and rice andouille, meatloaf Tuesdays and king ranch chicken — the elevated diner-style entrees go perfect with a late lunch on Haven's relaxing patio since they're available until 4 p.m.

I had the fried shrimp with onion rings, which arrived in such a large portion I had trouble finishing off the rings, which kept a sweet crunchiness despite a thick batter. The shrimp are the same enormous, burst-in-your mouth gobstoppers from the Gulf found in Haven's more sophisticated seafood dishes.

And for only a couple dollars more than fast food, the specials may be blue, but your wallet won't be.

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Farewell, ElRo

Creative Montrose pizzeria will shutter after only a year-and-a-half

Photo by Julie Soefer

ElRo Pizza & Crudo

An acclaimed Houston pizzeria will soon serve its final pies. ElRo Pizza & Crudo will close after service on December 31.

In a post on Instagram, chef-owner Terrence Gallivan thanks his staff for their dedication and his customers for their support. “We hope to see you all over the next couple weeks. Come celebrate with us,” he writes.

Open since June 2023, ElRo intrigued diners who enjoyed Gallivan’s work at pioneering Houston restaurant The Pass & Provisions. At ElRo, the chef served a modified version of the Provisions pizza recipe alongside crudos and shareable small plates such as arancini and housemade sausage. It earned four nominations in this year’s CultureMap Tastemaker Awards, including Best New Restaurant and Chef of the Year.

Sadly, Gallivan tells CultureMap that business has seen “a steady decline in business for many months.” Recently, the restaurant had tried a number of initiatives to draw in diners, such as steak night on Tuesday and fried chicken on Saturday.

The early announcement gives diners two weeks to make one more visit (or two) to the restaurant before it closes. Customers may want to time their visit for happy hour, which takes places from 3-6 pm Tuesday-Friday. It includes half-off glasses of wine, $4 draft beers, $9 select cocktails, and food specials.

Gallivan adds that he doesn’t know yet what his next move will be. Hopefully, he’s got one more comeback in him. Houston is a more fun town to dine in when Gallivan is cooking in it.

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