Foodie News

Chef who mysteriously left a top Houston restaurant resurfaces — and he's cooking on a frozen river

Former Underbelly sous chef Ryan Lachaine has been off the foodie radar since his unexpected departure from the restaurant in November, but that doesn't mean he hasn't been active in the culinary world. Lachaine sat down with CultureMap to discuss his recent travels and prospects for the future. He politely declined to discuss his time at Underbelly or the reasons it came to an end.

Just days after Lachaine's abrupt departure from Underbelly, a waitress sued the restaurant for "emotional distress." Lachaine isn't named in the suit and there's no indication that he's involved.

For the last two months, Lachaine says that he's mostly "been at home, been hanging out with my kids for awhile, being a dad for a little while, (and) having some fun," but he couldn't turn down an invitation from Foreign and Domestic chef/owner Ned Elliot to participate in Indie Chefs Week, which is a week-long series of dinners held at the Austin restaurant in which chefs from around the country gather to serve cutting-edge cuisine.

"Got a couple things I’m looking into . . . I’m not sure how soon, but I’ll be back in a restaurant."

"It was an awesome time," Lachaine recalls."The way it worked was it went Tuesday to Saturday. Seven cooks on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Then 24 guys going Saturday: Very, very organized. We emailed the stuff we wanted for our dishes. You put your dish together. The other days you just tried to stay out of everyone else’s way.

"Saturday is a little fucking crazy, but an awesome group of guys. It worked out really smoothly for having 24 guys in a restaurant."

Seeing as Lachaine's primary cooking experience comes from time at both Reef and Underbelly, it's no surprise that his dishes blended Asian techniques with Gulf Coast ingredients. On Wednesday, he served charred Carolina rice with gochujang (a spicy, Korean paste), pickled vegetables and water spinach sourced from Houston fishmonger PJ Stoops. On Saturday, he served red pepper and watermelon gazpacho with pickled shrimp.

"I’m usually never happy with what I cook," Lachaine says, "but the guys cooking said it was good. That’s nice to hear."

In February, Lachaine will travel to his hometown of Winnipeg to participate in the RAW:ALMOND pop-up that's a collaboration between restaurant Deer + Almond and the Raw Gallery. The pop-up is unlike any other in the world.

"Basically, they’re building a big tent and makeshift kitchen on one of the major rivers that flows through the city," he says. "We’re cooking outside there."

He still hasn't decided what to serve on a tent in the middle of a frozen river, but the experience should be memorable. "I’ve never cooked in my hometown before. When I was up there, we spoke about it, and he said come on and do it. I’m really excited about it."

Lachaine doesn't know yet what the more distant future holds. "I’ve spoken to some people and sat down with some guys. Got a couple things I’m looking into . . . I’m not sure how soon, but I’ll be back in a restaurant."

Asked about whether he would follow Shepherd and Caswell's path in terms of style of cuisine, Lachaine responds in the affirmative. "Definitely, it’s all I know," he says. "It’s fun to do. You can play with some stuff."

In the meantime, any Houstonian who is desperate for his cuisine can make plans to fly to Winnipeg in February. Just dress warmly.

Ryan Lachaine enjoying a well-deserved beer following his service at Indie Chefs Week in Austin.

Ryan Lachaine at Indie Chefs Week Foreign and Domestic Austin

Photo by: Kate LeSueur

Ryan Lachaine enjoying a well-deserved beer following his service at Indie Chefs Week in Austin.

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New York Times critic awards Houston restaurant 2 stars in glowing review

Courtesy of ChòpnBlọk

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Let’s just call 2025 the year of ChòpnBlọk. In a review published Tuesday, December 16, the New York Times has awarded the Houston restaurant two stars (“very good”).

Written by chief restaurant critic Tejal Rao, the review touts many of the same qualities that the Times already praised when it included ChòpnBlọk on its list of America’s 50 best restaurants.

Rao writes that she usually avoids restaurants that serve food in bowls, but she’s impressed by the way that chef-owner Ope Amosu has put a West African spin on the concept.

“For inspiration, Ope Amosu looked to the kind of chain restaurants that were built to scale, where flavors are often subdued to appeal to the broadest possible audience, focus-grouped to death. But the delight of ChòpnBlok is in its sure sense of self, its lively, multidimensional cooking and clear, delicious vision for modern food from the Black diaspora,” Rao writes.

She singles out specific dishes, including the Nigerian red stew with short rib, the Black Star bowl with shrimp, and the signature Motherland, made with chicken, greens, and plantains. “It’s utterly simple, but draws you in for more with the mouthwatering twang of not-too-much MSG — an international shortcut to building umami that tends to be used carefully, and layered with other forms,” she writes.

The review also touches on the way Amosu switched the restaurant from counter service to full service — described as “warm, informal, and quick with the jokes” — and his time working at Chipotle to learn the basics of the restaurant operations.

A two-star review is only the latest instance of ChòpnBlọk receiving national attention. In addition to the Times 50 best list, Esquire recently named it one of America’s best new restaurants. The Michelin Guide awarded it a Bib Gourmand designation for 2025. Amosu earned a semifinalist nomination for Best Chef: Texas in the 2025 James Beard Awards.

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