Pizza experts Adam Kuban and Ed Levine (who run phenom food blog Slice) have created a March Madness-style bracket for the the 64 top pizzerias in America for the March issue of Every Day with Rachael Ray. Two Houston establishments made it into the tourney—Dolce Vita and Russo's NY Coal-Fired Pizza, which was ousted by eventual southwest bracket champion, Phoenix's Pizzeria Bianco. Russo's Anthony Russo will also be competing March 2-4 at the International Pizza Challenge in Las Vegas.
This weekend (Friday through Sunday) is The Chocolate Festival at Central Market, where they'll be "dipping just about everything we can in chocolate, baking chocolate into breads, showing off our darks and milks from around the globe and getting saucy with our favorite chocolate-infused sauces."
After losing Japan-trained talent Hori-san to Kata Robata last year, Kubo's Sushi is bringing in another big gun at executive chef—Kiyoko Ita, who has trained and worked throughout Japan, Spain and the United States, including at Kyoto's 200-year-old Hiragi-ya, known for its perfectionist service and attention to detail. Look for his innovative touch in all Kubo's dishes, or try the multi-course chef-chosen kaiseki.
Gayot and MSN have chosen their ten favorite new restaurants in America—and our own RDG + Bar Annie made the list. Speaking of RDG, chef Del Grande will be introducing his favorite film, the classic 1978's murder mystery Who Is Killing the Great Chefs of Europe?, as part of the MFAH's Meals on Reels series on Monday, Feb. 22.
Bootsie's Heritage Cafe, Randy Rucker's new project with his mom in Tomball, is set to open on February 15.
Anyone's ever ever wondered why the food options in the medical center are so, ahem, unhealthy will be happy at the addition of Salata, a local create-your-own-salad concept, which will debut at the corner of Fannin and Dryden in late February.
Courtesy of FIFA World Cup 2026 Houston Host Committee
J.J. Watt discussed Houston's food scene on Men in Blazers.
“If you’re checking your watch, I’m on food talk now, so we’re going to be awhile.”
With that comment, former Houston Texans star and future Pro Football Hall of Famer J.J. Watt launched into an epic tribute to Houston’s dynamic food scene. Speaking with host Roger Bennett on the globally-renown soccer podcast Men in Blazers, Watt spent about 15 minutes introducing the show’s audience to many of the cuisines and restaurants that Houstonians love.
“When you look at this singular city, at Houston, what is it in your mind that makes it great — that the world is going to see this summer,” Bennett asks at approximately the 1:45 mark.
“Food,” Watt replies. “Truthfully, we have great, great food. I have always said that Houston is one of the most underrated food cities in the world. People that come here are going to get fatter.”
Encouraged by Bennett to “go deeper” into the topic, Watt offered more than 20 suggestions for restaurants to try. They included:
Breakfast tacos at Island Grill and Pappas Bar-B-Q
Barbecue at Killen’s Barbecue
Burgers at Becks Prime, The Burger Joint, and Killen’s Burgers
Seafood at Pappadeaux
Watt told an entertaining anecdote about Trill Burgers, the smash burger concept from Houston hip-hop legend Bun B.
“Trill Burgers, they put something in there that can’t be legal,” Watt quipped. “I’ve talked to Bun B. It’s like crack, okay? He gave me one of those burgers. When I came back from the Ring of Honor at the Texans, they put Trill Burgers in our suite. There were six, and there were 12 people in the suite. I had four of them. Everyone else had to fight over two burgers.”
Asked about crawfish, Watt dropped an opinion that he acknowledged would be controversial. “You’re not going to like,” he told the 300-person, sold-out crowd.
“That’s a lot of work. Then they tell you to suck the head. I’ll be honest. Didn’t do a lot for me,” Watt stated. “Look at this [points to himself]. The amount of crawfish you have to break and eat. When they dump it all out, I have to have my own 9-foot table. Nobody has the time to break that many crawfish open and suck the heads on every one.”
Watt appeared on the show as part of its Houston episode that marked 99 days until the start of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Houston Rockets icon and Basketball Hall of Famers Hakeem Olajuwon also appeared on the show, which was recorded at Rice University.
Houston will host seven matches from June 14 - July 4, including five in the group stage and one each in the round of 32 and the round of 16. Find more details about the tournament and local celebrations at the official FIFA World Cup 2026 Houston Host Committee website.
Chef Kiyoka Ito of Kubo's Sushi Bar and Grill
RDG/Bar Annie
Pizza from Russo's NY Coal-fired Pizza
From Salata