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    Easter Brunch Ideas

    Have your eggs & eat them too: The procrastinator's guide to Easter brunch

    Darla Guillen
    Mar 29, 2013 | 11:00 am

    Easter is upon us, and it's hard to resist a holiday that encourages smashing confetti eggs on unsuspecting heads and eating mass amounts of chocolate. With friends who applaud themselves for a "brunch well done," we've got you covered when it comes to any holiday or meal that's egg-related. Even if you didn't plan on Easter brunching, it's not too late to change your mind and join in for egg hunts, mimosa sipping and live music to accompany all that pastel shell pulverizing.

    Backstreet Cafe

    Almost as famous for its brunch as it is for its delicate little garden patio, this is a must-list for anything that has to do with frittatas or mimosas. Stop in between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. for an Easter egg hunt, live jazz and a special three-course menu featuring Benedict-style eggs with Virginia ham and Sardou with artichoke and spinach. The cost is $42 per person and $12 per child age 10 and under.

    El Gran Malo

    For a genuine Pascua celebration, stop in to the big bad for a tasty menu of their award-winning cocktails at happy hour prices all day and night and $15 bottomless fresh-squeezed mimosas. You can count on this spot to offer the most creative holiday discount on the list: Slap a fried egg on anything for $1.

    Up

    This opulent little patio overlooking Highland Village is welcoming brunchers to celebrate with an Easter Sunday champagne buffet. They will offer two seatings — one at 11:00 a.m. and another at 1:30 p.m. — and apart from a raw bar featuring Scottish salmon and a station carving up roasted prime rib, the meal will offer generous amounts of bubbly.

    Hugo’s

    This is one of the most popular brunch menus any time of the year, with a string quartet playing from their indoor balcony, as brunchers nom on warm and cold Mexican dishes. This Easter, Hugo's will also host an egg hunt for children — and expect plenty of Mexican Easter cheer. The usual prices apply: $39 per person and $12 for children age 10 and under from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

    Glass Wall

    While this Heights hotspot doesn't usually offer brunch, it's hopping on the weekend tradition this Easter with a special menu featuring plenty of egg dishes, my favorite being the frittata with spinach, feta, heirloom tomato and olive-tomato tapenade. Glass Wall will also offer great drink specials, like $12 pitchers of mimosas and $5 glasses of rum punch (in case you need a pre-family buffer).

    Haven

    This Upper Kirby hotspot that houses famous raw bar Cove will celebrate Easter with complimentary amuse bouche before their brunch seating. The upscale atmosphere is sleek and modern, but cozy enough to encourage a warm family reunion with a special menu by chef Randy Rucker cooking up three festive dishes between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. The cost is $40 per person.

    Mockingbird Bistro

    This is the only place on the list that will offer brunch all Easter day — in case you want to double brunch it this Easter. We won't judge. A three-course prix fixe menu will run you $59 per person and $25 for children (ages 12 and under). Standouts on the entrée menu include the Eggs Riviera, a dish of scrambled eggs over smoked salmon bruschetta with chive cream cheese and asparagus, as well as the eggs and bacon with Swiss chard and a red wine redux.

    Quattro

    Look out for a visit from the Easter Bunny, who will be making the rounds all brunch long at this Four Seasons eatery. Four stations, including breakfast, sushi and pastry stations will be served up for $79 per adult and includes Bloody Marys, mimosas and champagne. The cost for kids ages 6 to 12 is $39.50 and includes ice cream and milkshakes. This is on the steeper end of the price scale, but the food is solid and the festivities will delight children and parents alike.

    Blackfinn American Grille

    This Bagby favorite will offer the "Breakfast Balboa" on their Easter brunch menu, the feature item serves up prime rib, mozzarella and breakfast potatoes topped with two eggs on toasted garlic bread. Apart from the mimosa specials, the build-your-own Bloody Mary bar is a must-visit this Sunday and is close enough to Discovery Green that you won't miss the best downtown Easter festivities.

    House of Blues

    With Easter being a time for rebirth and religious reconciliation, head to this downtown staple for a gospel brunch and Easter brunch. The cost is $40 for adults and $17 for children to enjoy a performance by a gospel choir to accompany your hearty Southern Easter dishes.

    Sparrow Bar + Cookshop

    Celebrate Jesus' resurrection and chef Monica Pope's creative lineup at her reimagined restaurant, which will host its first ever Easter brunch with a globally-inspired three-course prix fixe menu from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Starters like the avocado sashimi with almond sambal and lamb crepinette with corn grits and spicy red chili chutney will surprise palates for $35 a person and $15 for kids.

    Hobbit Café

    A tiny hobbit hut might not seem like the likeliest place for Easter cheer, but with solid offerings like the salmon burger with a creamy dill sauce and arugula, the fare is always tasty. Come here to avoid the Easter brunch rush at the other places on the list.

    For some out-of-ordinary Easter brunch choices, check out these choices featured in this week's KHOU CultureMap Moment.

    In addition to its regular brunch buffet, Hugos's will host an Easter egg hunt for the little ones.

    News, Hugo's, interior
    Photo by Julie Soefer Greater Houston Convention and Visitors Bureau
    In addition to its regular brunch buffet, Hugos's will host an Easter egg hunt for the little ones.
    unspecified
    news/restaurants-bars

    New Year's greetings

    Chris Shepherd gives thanks for underrated wine and talented Houston doctors

    Chris Shepherd
    Jan 2, 2026 | 1:00 pm
    Sandlands wine bottles
    Photo by Chris Shepherd
    Chris has been enjoying wines from California's Lodi region.

    I know my articles have been a bit scarce these past few months, and I owe you an apology. Life shifted in a big way. In September, my wife Lindsey was diagnosed with breast cancer, and our world narrowed, in the best possible way — to home, health, and the fight in front of us.

    The first and most important thing I’m thankful for is early detection and the city we live in. Having MD Anderson here in Houston is a gift I’ll never take lightly. Lindsey is doing great with treatment. She’s an absolute warrior, and this experience has a way of reframing everything. It forces you to look back, take inventory, and find purpose in both the good and the hard. Today, we’re focusing on the good.

    I love documenting delicious bottles, great bites, and the people we share them with. Every year, I scroll back through my photos to see if my drinking patterns have changed. The answer? A little, but not dramatically. That’s part of what makes wine so fascinating — it’s alive, always evolving, and so are we.

    Chablis and Sangiovese were heavy hitters in 2024 and carried right into 2025. But on the white side, I found myself diving deeper into Aligoté, Burgundy’s other white grape. While Chardonnay is the big dog, Aligoté deserves your attention. Think green apple, citrus, herbal, and floral notes, with bright energy and lift. The real bonus? You can drink Aligoté from top Burgundy producers at a much friendlier price point. It punches well above its weight and belongs on your table.

    I’ve also been blown away by Chardonnay from northern Oregon. Early mistakes with clones led to wines that never quite found balance, but producers committed to getting it right with different clones that did much better in cooler sites, with less oak and shorter barrel time. Barrels should be nurturing vessels, not seasoning agents. Producers like North Valley, Soter, and Alexana are making some of the best Chardonnay I’ve had in years, and I am here for it.

    This past year also brought new adventures, including a month-long stay in Healdsburg, California in July. With a Southern Smoke event and another trip already planned, we packed up the cats, rented a house, and lived somewhere else for a while. It was magical and something I hope we do again.

    While out there, my friend Tegan Passalacqua (Turley Vineyards, Sandlands) invited me to Lodi to taste what’s happening in that region. Lodi has long been known for bulk wine, but the story runs much deeper. Sitting just outside the Sierra Foothills, the region was shaped by massive geological shifts millions of years ago that helped it draw settlers searching for gold in the 1800s. They brought vines with them: Zinfandel, Syrah, and countless lesser-known varieties that are finally getting their moment.

    Zinfandel, genetically linked to Tribidrag (Croatia) and Primitivo (Italy), has been thriving there since the 1850s. After its boom in the early 2000s and an era of ultra-ripe, high-alcohol styles it lost some favor. But tastes change. What’s coming from Lodi’s old vines today is refined, balanced, and beautiful.

    “Think head-trained, dry-farmed, own-rooted vines — some 100 to 150 years old — producing wines that speak clearly of place,” Passalacqua tells me. His Zins sit around 14.5-percent alcohol, elegant and structured, a far cry from the 16-17-percent monsters of decades past.

    One of my newest obsessions is Old Vine Cinsault from the Bechthold Vineyard, planted in 1885. Traditionally a blending grape in southern France, here it shines on its own with bright red fruit and soft tannins — an incredibly crushable wine. If you love lighter Pinot Noir or Gamay, this will make you smile. Look for bottles from Sandlands, Turley, Lorenza, Birichino, and others.

    So here’s the takeaway, like always: break down the walls you’ve been drinking behind. Try something new. Aligoté and Lodi aren’t new but they don’t need to be. They just need people willing to make them cool again. Trust me, they’re delicious and deserving.

    And in the words of the late, great Jerry Garcia:

    Sandlands wine bottles

    Photo by Chris Shepherd

    Chris has been enjoying wines from California's Lodi region.

    Wake up to find out that you are the eyes of the world
    The heart has its beaches, its homeland and thoughts of its own
    Wake now, discover that you are the song that the morning brings
    The heart has its seasons, its evenings and songs of its own

    Happy New Year, team. Never forget to be kind and show love.

    chris shepherdwine
    news/restaurants-bars
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