b.b. goes west

Beloved Memorial-area Italian restaurant reopens after total transformation

B.B. Italia is bringing life to a beloved favorite.

Photo by Kirsten Gilliam

The Houston food scene continues to expand. And at times, that means re-purposing familiar concepts and giving new life to old names.

This week sees the opening of B.B. Italia Kitchen, a two-in-one concept from Berg Hospitality Group, taking over Memorial-area institution Carmelo’s. Berg purchased Carmelo's in January 2018 to renovate the spot and revamp the menu. The restaurant closed January of this year and reopened on Thursday, May 2.

Located at 14795 Memorial Dr., B.B, Italia Kitchen & Bar touts itself as a “a fresh take on classic, Italian-American food using only the best ingredients in a lively atmosphere.” B.B. Pizza To Go is located inside the restaurant and will serve New York-style pizza, subs and calzones. Diners can order in advance and grab their meals to go, although the restaurant plans delivery service soon.

The restaurant plans to launch an all-new weekend brunch menu along with a happy hour menu to be enjoyed in the bar area and a new outdoor patio (that seats at least 60) shortly after opening.

“As an Energy Corridor resident, I put a lot of thought into what this area needed and the people would like,” said Benjamin Berg, founder of Berg Hospitality Group, in a statement. “B.B. Italia is the perfect combination of authentic, Italian-American food with a great ambiance — two things that this neighborhood was missing.”

Executive chef and partner, Daniel Berg, created a menu of more than 50 items, featuring authentic Italian-American food with a contemporary twist. Look for appetizers to share, a selection of homemade pastas, pizzas and Italian classics, along with chicken, veal, beef, pork, and fish entrées.

The lunch menu is similar to the dinner menu with the addition of Italian-influenced sandwiches. Everything is made from scratch daily.

In addition, a small bar menu includes a selection of appetizers and pizzas. The restaurant’s cocktail menu was designed by B.B. Lemon’s beverage director, Monique Cioffi-Hernandez, who is using cutting-edge spirits to create traditional and unique Italian-focused cocktails along with a few on tap. The wine list, curated by B&B’s Sommelier Lexey Johnson, features Italian wines ranging from $30-$300.

The comfortable, 8,000-square-foot space has modern, minimalistic design elements with an Italian influence. The main dining room holds up to 100 guests, and the bar area has a large, 20-seat horseshoe-shaped bar, booths and high-top tables. There’s also an 850-square-foot outdoor patio lined with boxwoods for those who want to dine al fresco. The six semi-private and private rooms, all named after schools in the area, can accommodate between 8 to100 guests for a seated dinner and up to 125 for a cocktail party.

“Ben and I grew up eating incredible Italian-American food in New York City and several of the dishes on the menu are inspired by ones at our family’s favorite spots,” says Daniel Berg, who has several years of experience focused on Italian cooking, working under acclaimed chef and restaurateur Andrew Carmellini, and studying in Italy. “I can’t wait to give the city we now call home a world-class Italian restaurant and continue the legacy of a family-owned-and-operated business.”

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we gotta go

Beard Award-winning Houston chef's new restaurant now open in Montrose

Photo by Kirsten Gilliam

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Houston may be home to an ever-increasing number of James Beard Award-winning chefs, but a new restaurant from a JBA winner is still a special moment in the city’s culinary landscape.

Which means the city’s dining enthusiasts are undeniably excited to welcome House of Louie, the new project Justin Yu, winner of Best Chef: Southwest in 2016 for Oxheart, his groundbreaking, vegetable-focused tasting menu restaurant. He placed it with Theodore Rex, a modern American restaurant that holds a Bib Gourmand designation in the Michelin Guide. Part of Thorough Fare, the company he co-owns with Anvil founder Bobby Heugel, House of Louie is the group’s first new restaurant since Squable opened in 2019 and first opening since Heights cocktail bar Donna’s debuted last year.

As Yu explained on a July episode of CultureMap’s “What’s Eric Eating” podcast, the decision to open House of Louie came about from the opportunity to buy the property at 1931 Fairview that had been home to the original location of healthy-eating concept Vibrant.

“The real estate came at the right time. The space is beautiful. We’re so lucky to be part of this neighborhood,” Yu explained.

As for the name, Yu is honoring a Chinese restaurant his aunts operated in Southern California for more than 30 years. The original House of Louie hosted many family celebrations, and it’s also the first restaurant he worked in as a dishwasher.

“It was one of those places where there was a little more to it than what you expected. That’s the restaurant I want to have here,” Yu said. Later, he added, “It’s how I fell in love with restaurants.”

Inspired primarily by French and Italian cuisine, meals at House of Louie begin with cold dishes such as the house salad with lettuce, cheese, charcuterie, and quail eggs; marinated plums; yellowtail crudo; or “Nervetti,” thinly-sliced beef tendon with onions that’s finished with sherry and vinegar.

“I think beef tendon is really accepted in Houston, especially because we have a strong pho culture. Tendon can be a little out there, but it has a beautiful melting texture,” Yu said.

From there, diners may choose from a selection of shareable small plates such as mushroom and peppers with spicy ratatouille, squash with king salmon, or one of three pastas, all of which are made in house. The pici pasta is a thin, handmade pasta that gets some crunch from crispy chicken skin.

Entrees lean classic, with items like red snapper with beurre blanc, grilled duck that gets a boost of umami from colatura (an Italian take on fish sauce), and a Texas wagyu couotte that’s served with a sauce of madeira and onions. The French dip from Yuston’s, Yu’s homage to celebrated American grill Houston’s, is also available.

“The type of place we want to be is — if you feel like you’re a little underdressed, it’s okay to come in and get amazing service and great food. And also spend hours ahead of time picking out your outfit and coming out for a date night or a friend’s night or a night out with the guys,” Yu said.

“It’s a place that’s going to have a sandwich and makes its own fries. We’re also going to have really aggressive dishes that swing for the fences and push the limits of creativity, even though its slightly rustic.”

Yu worked with Garnish Design (Milton’s, Tiny Champions), ObjektFab, and Ford Design Finishes to transform Vibrant into House of Louie. Overall, the room has a modern feel — almost like your cool uncle’s living room. The design speaks to the kind of atmosphere Yu is aiming to achieve.

“More than anything, I want people to connect with the restaurant. If we accidentally get a Michelin Star because we do all the things the right way, and cook excellent food, and take care of all the little details . . . I wouldn’t be mad. That’s our goal in the first place,” he said.

Joining the project are general manager Tyler Jay Wang (most recently of Donna’s) and executive chef Kirk Thompson, who worked for various Underbelly Hospitality concepts and served as the executive chef at Leo’s River Oaks when it won Best New Restaurant in the 2025 CultureMap Tastemaker Awards. Diners may also recognize bartenders Lainey Collum (most recently of Monkey’s Tail) and Máté Hartai (Lee’s, Refuge).

House of Louie is currently open for dinner daily beginning at 4:30 pm. Friday lunch and weekend brunch service will begin in the coming weeks.

Photo by Kirsten Gilliam

House of Louie is now open in Montrose.