rodeo best bites 2022

Houston favorites lasso top honors at rodeo's Best Bites competition

Troy Guard, left, of Guard and Grace.

Photo by Eric Sandler

Houstonians are ready to Rodeo. More than 4,000 food and wine lovers turned out for the annual Rodeo Uncorked! Roundup & Best Bites Competition that pairs award-winning wines from the 2022 Rodeo Uncorked! International Wine Competition with food prepared by almost 100 Houston restaurants, bakeries, and food trucks.

As always, Ronnie Killen fared well with the panel of media judges, scoring first place in the Lone Star Entrée Award with a dish from Killen's TMX. The Tex-Mex restaurant's brisket suadero taco with black garlic salsa, guacamole, and queso fresco also drew long lines of attendees, keeping veteran Killen's chef Teddy Lopez and his team busy all night.

As for the coveted people's choice belt buckle, Cotton Culinary won with its "Figgy Piggy," while downtown steakhouse Guard & Grace took second for its flavorful oak-grilled New York strip with loaded baked potato cracker. See the full list of winners below.

Highlights from the non-winning dishes included smoked enchiladas from Brett's BBQ Shop, classic Louisiana gumbo from Eunice, seafood empanadas from Pier 6 Seafood, and truffle salmon nigiri from Memorial-area Japanese restaurant Kuu. Overall, the participants range from Houston classics like Brennan's and Taste of Texas to relative newcomers like Palace Social and Click Virtual Food Hall.

The annual event — unofficially the kick-off of Rodeo season ahead of the trail rides and barbecue cook-off — draws thousands to NRG Center. In addition to food from some of the city's top restaurants, attendees may sample some of the almost 500 wines that earned medals in the annual International Wine Competition. Thankfully, those who missed the festivities have the opportunity to sample some of the vintages in the Rodeo's wine garden, and many of the bottles will be auctioned off at the Rodeo Uncorked! Champion Wine Auction & Dinner on Sunday, February 27.

Here's the full list of winners:

People’s Choice Award
First Place: Cotton Culinary: Figgy Piggy
Second Place: Guard & Grace, A Modern Steakhouse: Oak grilled Creekstone Farms Prime New York Strip with loaded baked potato

Tasty Tradition Award
First Place: Joyce’s Seafood & Steaks: White chocolate bread pudding
Second Place: Taste of Texas Restaurant: Certified Angus Beef tenderloin and Megan’s mac & cheese

Trailblazer Appetizer Award
First Place: Omni Houston: Pork belly skewer, Moroccan BBQ, Carrot Puree, Chicharrone
Second Place: Songkran Thai Kitchen: Thai Steak Salad (Neu Nam Tok)
Third Place: Revival Market: Cauliflower Crositini – cauliflower hummus, homemade giardiniera, za’atar, chives

Lone Star Entrée Award
First Place: Killen’s TMX: Brisket suadero taco with black garlic salsa guacamole and queso fresco, and charro beans with jalapeno sausage
Second Place: Gus’ Fried Chicken: Fried Chicken Wing
Third Place: Russo’s Italian Kitchen: Lobster maestro – lobster essence, bianco, talegio, capelietti, maine lobster, smoked pecan

Two-Steppin’ Dessert Award
First Place: Egghaus Gourmet: Texas Pecan Croissant
Second Place: Ragin Cajun: Bread pudding with rum sauce
Third Place: Ashley Cakes: Carrot Cake

Rookie Award
Craft Creamery: R-C Ranch Wagyu Brisket Ice Cream Sandwich

Trail Boss Food Truck Award
Cruisin Sushi: Cruisin Special Roll – fried roll inside chicken, zucchini, carrots, Monterrey cheese, Tampico, cream cheese and avocado, drizzled with homemade spicy mayo and eel sauce (homemade soy and jalapeno sauce on the side)

Outstanding Showmanship Award
First Place: Eculent
Second Place: Texas Harvest

Troy Guard, left, of Guard and Grace.

Rodeo Best Bites 2022 Troy Guard Guard & Grace

Photo by Eric Sandler

Troy Guard, left, of Guard and Grace.

the more things change

Houston's essential Jewish diner looks better than ever after refresh

Photo by Sergio Trevino

The dining room has more light than ever.

It’s tricky to renovate a restaurant that’s as essential to its community as New York Deli. A staple of Houston’s Jewish community for almost 50 years, the tiny restaurant near Meyerland will serve as many as 400 people during a busy Sunday brunch.

Still, the time had come, as the tape on the deteriorating banquettes and peeling wallpaper illustrated. With the restaurant’s lease up for renewal, co-owner Michael Saghian saw an opportunity for some updates.

“I couldn’t be the new guy who ruined the place by moving it,” he tells CultureMap. “We worked out a deal with the landlord [to stay] and did a big refresh.”

The most noticeable change is the removal of the restaurant’s front door and vestibule. Instead, diners enter through the restaurant’s companion bagel shop. Separate entrances made sense when the bagel shop was certified kosher by local religious authorities, but now that designation only applies to the Bellaire location that opened in 2020. Not only is the new setup easier for people with mobility issues to navigate, it allows more light into the dining room, brightening the place considerably..

Saghian and co-owner Riana Sherman worked with interior designer Erin Hicks on the refresh. Tables, chairs, and banquettes are all new, but the color scheme remains the same. The process yielded 10 more seats, and the furniture is a little more durable, too.

“People have flipped chairs because they’re so lightweight,” Sherman says. “We got a sturdier chair.”

Behind the scenes, an expanded kitchen allows for the restaurant’s cooks to work faster and more efficiently. An additional egg cooker should cut down the amount of time people wait for their food to arrive.

“The kitchen had one of everything. Now we have two of everything. We can pump out a lot more food,” Saghian says.

Photographs on the walls honor longtime customers such as the “bagel girls,” a group of woman who’ve eaten breakfast at the restaurant since the ‘80s. A piece of old wallpaper has been framed and hung on the wall, too, as a nod to the space’s history.

New York Deli interior changes Photographs on the walls honor longtime customers.Photo by Sergio Trevino

Photo by Sergio Trevino

The dining room has more light than ever.

Saghian says he suffered from sleepless nights as he worried about people’s reactions to the changes, but so far his customers have been effusive.

“It still feels like an old school diner,” Saghian says. “It has pieces you remember. Even the new stuff is old school.”

While the physical environment is new, the staff remains the same. To ensure he kept the same team of cooks and servers, Saghian paid their wages for the two weeks the restaurant was closed for renovations.

Even more importantly, the prices are the same. That’s something that will make even the oldest regulars happy.

news-you-can-eat openings

rodeo best bites 2022

Houston favorites lasso top honors at rodeo's Best Bites competition

Troy Guard, left, of Guard and Grace.

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