John Besh Is Coming
New Orleans celebrity chef picks Greenway Plaza for Houston restaurant
Tuesday brings good news for Houstonians who have been eagerly awaiting word that New Orleans-based celebrity chef John Besh has finally committed to opening a restaurant in Houston.
The James Beard Award-winning chef and bestselling author announced that he will open a restaurant at 3737 Buffalo Speedway in Greenway Plaza. Eunice, described as a "Creole, Cajun brasserie," will open in the fall of 2017. If the sold-out dinner Besh held at Underbelly in 2013 is any indication, lots of Houstonians will be counting the days until it opens.
Besh has already selected the restaurant's leadership team, and their current roles provide a clue Eunice will most like resemble Lüke, which has locations in both New Orleans and San Antonio. Drake Leonards, currently the executive chef of Lüke in New Orleans, and Drew Mire, who serves as operations director and general manager at Lüke in both New Orleans and San Antonio, will fulfill the roles of "chef-partner" and "managing partner," respectively.
"We are thrilled to join the diverse culinary landscape of Houston and pay homage to the cuisine of both Eunice, my hometown, as well as New Orleans,” said Leonards in a statement. "We’ve been fans of Houston for a while, and honored to now have the opportunity to share our culture, which is as much about hospitality as it is about food."
Eunice may not be the only Besh concept that comes to Houston. Alon Shaya told Eater earlier this year that he's looking to bring Pizza Domenica here, too.
