Monday monday

Devour these delicious Houston dining deals on a wildly busy Monday, March 1

Monday is not typically associated with dining out, but Monday, March 1 will be the exception. Diners can celebrate the 10th anniversary of one of the city's best restaurants, indulge at a dessert pop-up, and feast on a sandwich celebrating one of Houston's COVID-19 heroes.

For restaurant workers, many of whom have the day off, can enjoy a free lunch at one of the city's most well-regarded barbecue joints. Here's a quick rundown of all the happenings in roughly chronological order.

Pondicheri will celebrate its 10th anniversary with a number of specials. Every order will receive free pakoras and chutney with each order on Monday. In addition, a special anniversary menu runs all week with throwback dishes such as Goat Biryani, Texas Shrimp Chaat, Chocolate Bread Pudding with saffron crème anglaise, and more.

"A lot has happened in ten years. We opened the Bake Lab, closed Indika, went to NYC, sold it at just the right time, and survived COVID," chef-owner Anita Jaisinghan said in a statement. "And all in all, we are so grateful to still have our beloved Pondi and our loyal troop of customers who just keep coming, day after day. We have settled into our shoes but the incessant experimenting and learning never stops.”

Restaurant industry workers will find a free lunch on Monday at Feges BBQ. Thanks to an anonymous benefactor and a few sponsors, the Greenway Plaza barbecue joint will offer their colleagues their choice of barbecue, hot dogs and ground beef from 44 Farms to take home, a slice of cake from Rustika Cafe, bread from Bread Man Baking Co., beer from Sierra Nevada, and cider from Austin Eastciders. The special runs from 11 am-2 pm.

Antone's Famous Po 'Boys will release its newest "H-Town Originals" collaboration sandwich on Monday. For March, the restaurant tapped Dr. Peter Hotez of Texas Children’s Hospital Chair in Tropical Pediatrics, co-director of Texas Children’s Center for Vaccine Development and dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine. He's become a national figure during the coronavirus pandemic as an authority on vaccines.

On sale until the end of May, the “The Dr. Hotez One World” banh mi combines thinly sliced marinated beef on house-baked French bread served with pickled carrots, cucumber, daikon radish, papaya with a roasted garlic-sambal aioli, and fresh jalapeño for $8.95. Antone’s Famous Po’ Boys will donate 50-percent of the sandwich's proceeds to to Texas Children’s Hospital to support the hospital’s Center for Vaccine Development.

“I’m excited to have the opportunity to work with Antone’s and Chef Alex Padilla on this project and thrilled to be honored for our vaccine development, policy and advocacy activities at Texas Children’s and Baylor,” Hotez said in a release. “It’s been a privilege to represent our city of Houston and state of Texas in educating the American people about this horrible pandemic, while working to dismantle and debunk widespread anti-science disinformation.”

Finish Monday at a special pop-up that joins one of the city's top bartenders with a rising star pastry chef. Kimberly Paul (Etoile, Brasserie du Parc) and chef Jamie Orlacchio (White Elm Cafe) have teamed up for Baroque It, an evening of three dessert courses paired with cocktails.

Held from 4-8 pm at Bovine & Barley (416 Main St.), the menu includes prune soup with apple and Greek yogurt paired with a cocktail that includes cognac and Aquavit; olive oil cake paired with a gin-based punch; and dark chocolate ice cream paired with a cocktail built around Earl Grey tea and gin. Courses cost $15 each or get all three for $35.

Peter Hotez's banh mi will be available through May.

Photo by Becca Wright

Peter Hotez's banh mi will be available through May.

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East Coast-style Austin pizzeria confirms plans to open in the Heights

Home Slice Pizza Heights location rendering

Courtesy of the Michael Hsu Office of Architecture

A rendering previews Home Slice Pizza's new location in the Heights.

One of Austin’s pizzerias is expanding its presence in Houston. Home Slice Pizza has claimed the former Mapojeong space in the Heights (602 Studewood) for a new location that will open in the fall of 2026.

Founder Joseph Strickland tells CultureMap that Home Slice wanted to add a second Houston location that would build on the success of its Midtown restaurant that opened in late 2022. Unlike Midtown, which is counter service and offers limited seating, the Heights location will offer full service, an expanded menu, and cocktails, which is in line with Home Slice’s North Austin location.

“We saw a lot of synergy in North Austin and the Heights,” Strickland says. “They have a similar feel, a lot of families, a lot of people looking to get together in big groups. There’s also a robust bar scene on White Oak that we’re happy to be part of.”

Strickland says Home Slice had several requirements for a new location, including a larger dining room than Midtown, a decent-sized parking lot, and enough kitchen capacity to serve both dine-in and larger to-go orders. Not only did they find the right building, but they established a productive relationship with the property’s owner, Revive Development, the Houston-based firm that also owns properties that are home to Loro, Squable, Camaraderie, and the Stomping Grounds development in Garden Oaks.

“It was hard to believe at first. The more we talked with the Revive folks, there was a lot of alignment and opportunity for us to expand what we’re showing Houston,” Stickland says.

Home Slice is working with the Michael Hsu Office of Architecture to renovate the building. Strickland notes that it will require some extensive changes, including removing the butcher shop that was installed as part of its iteration as Ritual, a steakhouse that closed in 2021. Assuming everything goes according to plan, the restaurant should open sometime in the fall of 2026.

Home Slice Pizza food spread Home Slice serves New York-style pizza.Photo by Garrett Smith

Once open, Home Slice will serve its East Coast-inspired menu of New York-style pizzas (whole or by-the-slice), hot and cold Italian deli sandwiches, salads, and desserts — all of which utilize dough or bread that’s made in-house. In particular, the restaurant is known for its white clam pizza, as well as classics such as pepperoni and mushroom or sausage with ricotta and roasted peppers. In 2024, the Houston Press awarded “Best Sandwich” to the restaurant’s Italian Assorted, which is made with ham, dry salami, capicola, genoa salami, vegetables, provolone, mayo, and oil & vinegar.

Critically, the Heights Home Slice location will add wings to the New York and Sicilian-style pizzas, salads, and sandwiches that the restaurant serves in Midtown. Inspired by the wings served at the Anchor Bar in Buffalo, New York, Home Slice keeps its wings simple — medium or hot and served with a house made blue cheese dressing. “It goes with our pizza quite wonderfully,” Stickland says.

He hopes that the the wide-ranging menu, flexible menu, and late night hours will appeal to Heights locals, people patronizing the nearby bars on White Oak, and anyone else looking for a slice and a drink. The larger location and full service should make home slice an option for date nights, office happy hours, any just about any other occasion.

“We hope the neighborhood will be happy to have another offering that’s like ours, where you can bring a first date or your office or go by yourself. We offer all those experiences,” Strickland says.

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