where to eat crawfish now

Where to eat in Houston right now: 16 best restaurants for crawfish season

As late winter turns into spring, Houstonians’ thoughts inevitably turn to crawfish. All across the city, people gather to peel and slurp thousands of pounds of freshly boiled crustaceans.

Whether traditional Louisiana or Viet-Cajun, Houston restaurants offer a range of tempting options that vary in their spice levels. From spicy levels that are potent enough to require gloves to decadent garlic butter flavors, crawfish offers flavors that should appeal to almost everyone.

Of course, feasting on crawfish in February means a willingness to accept slightly higher prices and slightly smaller specimens. They’ll get bigger (and cheaper) in March and April.

This list mixes some of the city’s most acclaimed crawfish spots with a few newcomers and a couple of hidden gems. All offer crawfish to go; thankfully, crawfish travel well.

Acadian Coast
Recently opened in the Second Ward, this seafood restaurant serves traditional, Cajun-style crawfish Wednesday - Sunday for $6.99 per pound or five pounds for $30 ($5.99/$25 on Wednesday and Sunday). The restaurant’s spacious patio offers plenty of room for outdoor dining. An extensive selection of housemade cocktails and a well-priced wine list offer plenty of pairing options.

Bayou City Seafood & Pasta
The venerable, Galleria-area restaurant quietly relocated to a new building in 2020. Fans count on Bayou City to serve crawfish that are always a good size with a well-balanced spice mix. Make a meal of mud bugs or save room for some of the restaurant’s massive entrees.

BB’s Tex-Orleans
From a small Montrose restaurant, BB’s has grown to 10 locations across greater Houston. Its traditional, Louisiana-style boil has just enough heat to make a person’s lips tingle but never gets so spicy that someone wouldn’t want another pound. Most locations offer plenty of outdoor seating.

Boil House
Popular Houston food influencer Danielle Dubois (aka hangryhoustonian on Instagram) name checks this small Heights spot as the most similar to her experiences growing up in Louisiana, and that’s good enough for us. Sit at one of the restaurant’s picnic tables or take the crawfish to-go.

The Boot
Founded by Louisiana natives who know the secret to great crawfish starts with properly preparing them, The Boot’s crawfish always deliver lip-smacking spice. That’s why Houstonians gather on its expansive patio for pounds of mudbugs, but don’t miss the first-rate po’boys.

Buffalo Bayou Brewing Company
The CultureMap Tastemaker Awards Brewery of the Year winner touts itself as Houston’s most creative brewery, a claim given even more credence by chef Arash Kharat’s crawfish boil. Served on Saturdays from 2 pm until sold out, Kharat’s seasonings include onion, garlic, chiles, mango puree, housemade michelada mix, and five gallons of Buff Brew’s Dreamsicle blonde ale. After boiling, they’re tossed in the chef’s secret sauce plus butter and garlic. Don’t forget the links of housemade, smoked andouille sausage.

Cajun Kitchen
This Chinatown spot has earned acclaim for its "Kitchen Special" that adds citrus and onions to the familiar Cajun spice blend. A Thai basil flavor that uses lemongrass is also worth trying.

Crawfish Cafe
Whether at its original location in Chinatown or its second outpost in The Heights, this restaurant appeals to spice fans with its Thai basil flavor. Those looking for something a little sweeter should consider the house special mix of garlic butter and lemon pepper. Salt and pepper wings, boudin balls, and crawfish eggrolls are all worth ordering, too.

Crawfish Chris
Former Masterchef contestant Chris Spradley has launched a mobile crawfish pop-up that serves at different Houston-area breweries. A Houston native and former Louisiana resident, the chef touts his 20 years of experience in preparing crawfish and other Cajun fare. Those looking to feed a crowd should note the “BYO Cooler” discounts on orders of 50 and 100 pounds.

Crawfish & Noodles
This Chinatown staple remains Houston’s most famous destination for Viet-Cajun crawfish. Credit for that goes its appearances on multiple TV shows — remember when Andrew Zimmern ate his tails shell-on — as well as the recognition chef-owner Trong Nguyen received last year as a James Beard Award finalist. The signature garlic butter seasoning has been copied by restaurants all over, but the original still does it a little better. Diners should explore the rest of the menu, as the salt and pepper blue crabs, fish sauce chicken wings, and bo luc lac are all as excellent as the crawfish.

The Crawfish Shack
Crawfish fans flock to Crosby (it’s a surprisingly short drive from the inner loop) for the Cajun-spiced mud bugs at this massive restaurant. Reported to sell more crawfish than any single restaurant in Texas, the restaurant’s spice mix balances heat with letting the crawfish natural flavors shine through. It’s also BYOB, so be sure to bring a cooler with beer or wine to ease the burn. Currently to-go only via drive-thru; dine-in scheduled to begin February 24.

Jenivi’s Seafood Shoppe & Restaurant
This restaurant in West Houston is where true crawfish obsessives go for well-spiced — and well-priced — crawfish. Count on larger than normal crawfish that are always cooked properly. An appealing mix of fried seafood and other Cajun fare rounds out the offerings. Currently to-go only.

The Patio at The Pit Room
This bar next to the popular Montrose barbecue joint serves crawfish every Friday - Sunday. Currently priced at $9.95 per pound or three pounds for $27, they’re served with corn, potatoes, mushrooms, and housemade andouille sausage. A Cajun-style spice blend delivers plenty of heat, and the bars extensive tap selection offers lots of tempting options.

Revelry on Richmond
Every Sunday beginning February 14, the Montrose sports bar will offer all-you-can-eat crawfish for $30 per person (while supplies last). Drink specials include $15 domestic beer buckets, $20 craft beer buckets, $13 carafes of mimosas and sangria.

Wild Cajun
The popular Viet-Cajun restaurant offers five flavors of crawfish: Wild Cajun (fresh scallions), Hot and Sour, Thai Basil, Kitchen Special, and Garlic Butter. An extensive menu of well-executed Cajun fare — everything from boudin balls and fried alligator to beignet strips — provides appealing alternatives to boiled seafood. Just leave room for an order or two of the fish sauce wings.

Xin Chao
Chef Tony Nguyen serves his signature H-Town Bang (his take on garlic butter) crawfish every Monday at this modern Vietnamese restaurant. The restaurant offers all-day happy hour on Monday, which means $5 draft beers, $6 select wines, and $7 select cocktails.

Crawfish Cafe has locations in Chinatown and The Heights.

Courtesy of Crawfish Cafe

Crawfish Cafe has locations in Chinatown and The Heights.

where-to-eat

Soup spoon season

10 Houston chefs share 15 top soups that offer comfort and sustenance

Photo by Louis Lamson Quy

Louis Lamson Quy, co-owner of Alora, is a loyal diner at Phanh Ky thanks to its Hủ Tiếu Nam Vang, which reminds him of his hometown, Saigon.

Happy soup season to all who celebrate. The weather has finally dipped low enough in Houston that diners can enjoy a hearty bowl of soup without breaking a sweat. With so many delicious selections at Houston restaurants, we turned to Houston's chef and other restaurant industry experts to find out which brothy creations are worth seeking out.

The only rule? No one could nominate a soup from their own restaurant. Here’s what they had to say.

Dana East, line cook, Uchi Houston

To Dana East of Uchi Houston, the caldo de res at Ruchi Mexican Grille’s Reliant Stadium location “feels like home to me… Even though I’m not Mexican.”

“The caldo de res at that specific Ruchi's tastes like it was made in a Mexican grandmother's kitchen, or like soups that I would eat for family meal that kitchens I work in would make when everybody is sick during the winter,” she says.

East also recommends the Bogotano at Mi Pueblito, a soup made with three kinds of potatoes that she says “imbue a smoky flavor in it that is borderline addictive.”

“I could eat an entire pot of that stuff,” she says. “They serve it with fresh cream and capers that take it to the next level.”

Garrett Rice, owner, Bayou Butchers

The cream of crab soup at Loch Bar is a highlight that Garrett Rice of Bayou Butchers looks forward to after work.

“It’s a simple dish that lets a really good ingredient shine, and they certainly don’t shy away from the crab in true Baltimore fashion,” Rice says. “With Loch Bar’s kitchen open late, I can always count on a cup of crab soup waiting for me after a long shift.”

German Mosquera, executive chef, Long Weekend

When German Mosquera of Long Weekend wants ramen, he heads to Mensho, the Japan-based chain that just opened its second Houston-area location on the border of River Oaks and Montrose.

“For me, it’s all about the broth,” he says. “Mensho’s tori paitan has a rich, velvety texture and incredible umami flavor from start to finish. The perfectly jammy egg adds another layer of richness that keeps me coming back. I also love the intimate Tokyo-style counter seating. It makes for an authentic ramen experience.”

Kerry Pauly, owner, KP’s Kitchen

The matzo ball soup at Kenny and Ziggy’s is “in a league of its own,” according to Kerry Pauly of KP’s Kitchen. He describes it as “rich, flavorful, and pure comfort whether you’re sick or feeling great.”

Louis Lamson Quy, co-owner, Alora

“My favorite go-to spot for soup has always been Phanh Ky,” says Louis Lamson Quy of Alora, a Peruvian-Vietnamese fusion restaurant in Montrose. “They specialize in hủ tiếu nam vang, a noodle dish with roots tracing back to Teochew Chinese immigrants in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. It’s also one of the most popular noodle dishes in my hometown, Saigon, so it always feels a little like home to me.

“To me, Phanh Ky is one of the OGs in the game,” he adds. “I first tried it when I moved to Houston nine years ago, and I’ve been coming back ever since. There’s just something comforting about a place that stays consistent after all these years.”

Maria Christie, operator and general manager, Christie’s Seafood and Steaks

“I love, love the lemon chicken soup at Harry’s,” says Maria Christie of Christie’s Seafood and Steaks. "For me the soup at Harry’s reminds me of the way my mom would make the lemon soup.”

“And the lentil soup (at Anonymous Cafe) is really hearty and it just reminds me of cold winter days (whenever we get those in Houston!),” she adds. “It’s absolutely perfect because it has a hint of tomato in it. Deeeelicious!”

Her sister, Kathy Christie, who serves as Christie's director of catering, is a fan of Little Pappasito's chicken tortilla soup. “Whenever you are under the weather, it totally hits the spot,” Kathy says. She adds extra lime to hers.

Nicole Routhier, partner and culinary ambassador, Le Colonial

The bun bo hue at Pho Quynh, a small Vietnamese restaurant located inside 99 Ranch Market, is a year round must for Nicole Routhier of Le Colonial.

“Their spicy, deeply flavorful broth is super comforting and among the best in town. The chef is generous with the noodles and toppings of tender beef brisket, pork shank, gio Hue (steamed pork sausage with black peppercorns), and blood pudding. The soup comes with a side of shaved cabbage, crunchy bean sprouts, Vietnamese mint (rau ram), and a wedge of lime to be added to the soup as you eat. Two tiny containers of fermented shrimp sauce (mam tom) and spicy chili oil are also provided so you can add even more umami to the soup,” Routhier says. “Bun bo hue is a full meal on its own, and my idea of heaven in a bowl.”

Oscar Juarez, founder and owner, Make It Nice Hospitality

The pozole verde at Cuchara is a simple and flavorful dish that private chef Oscar Juarez of Make It Nice Hospitality says he would recommend to anyone.

“The broth has a nice balance of richness and acidity, and it’s just one of those dishes that’s comforting without being too heavy,” Juarez says. “Growing up with Mexican food, I have a real appreciation for dishes like this.”

Rafael Nasr, founder, Craft Pita

Rafael Nasr of Craft Pita says he has “a burning passion for North China’s sizzling rice soup.”

He describes it as an intensely flavored, crystal-clear broth with bits of pork and tiny shrimp to fill you up.

“The carrot, napa cabbage, and wood ear mushrooms add umami and I am convinced have healing powers,” he says. “The flash fried rice adds texture and flavor at the same time and whether served table side or at home provide dinner and a show. I eat this soup and talk about it more than any soup in Houston.”

Nasr’s pro tip: Add a bit of soy sauce and lots of North China’s housemade green chili oil to the soup.

Ziggy Gruber, chef and owner, Kenny & Ziggy’s

Ziggy Gruber of Kenny & Ziggy’s has a couple of favorite soups in town, which isn’t surprising since his own deli is known for its bowl selection. Among his favorites is the clam chowder at Capital Grille, which he says captures the true flavor of the East Coast with plenty of clams and just the right amount of thyme.

He also loves the French onion soup at Etoile Cuisine et Bar.

“The stock is very rich and the onions are extracted so the flavor is permeated throughout the soup. I like that it has multiple croutons rather than one crouton in the soup,” he says. “And then the cheese on top!”

Another top pick for Ziggy is the tortilla soup at Grace’s.“It is complicated in such a good way, with the crunchy bits of tortillas and chicken skin, with the coolness of the avocado, and it has just the right amount of spice,” he says.

$Phanh Ky H\u1ee7 Ti\u1ebfu Nam Vang,$

Photo by Louis Lamson Quy

Louis Lamson Quy, co-owner of Alora, is a loyal diner at Phanh Ky thanks to its Hủ Tiếu Nam Vang, which reminds him of his hometown, Saigon.

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