Houston’s newest food hall will open next month. Railway Heights is the latest project from the Company of Nomads, the group behind Conservatory, Houston’s first food hall, and Bravery Chef Hall, the downtown venue where chef Christine Ha earned a James Beard Award semifinalist nomination for her modern Vietnamese restaurant The Blind Goat.
Located just north of I-10 at 8200 Washington Ave., the company describes Railway Heights as a "market hall," because its offerings go far beyond prepared food served from kiosks. It features 11 restaurants, a coffee shop, a wine bar, a dog park, a beer garden, and retail shopping for everything from prepared foods to art — all of which makes Railway Heights the company's most ambitious project yet.
Let’s start with the 11 restaurants. Located in the food hall’s second floor, they offer a wide-ranging array of cuisines. They are:
- BOH Slice, pizza by-the-slice
- Currazon, churros made to order
- Drunken Pho, pho and other Vietnamese dishes
- The Greedy Chicken, fried chicken and wings
- Heads & Tails, Cajun-style seafood, po 'boys, and more
- Mac and Twist, mac and cheese with assorted toppings
- Mykuna, Peruvian and Ecuadorian cuisine
- Peaky Grinders, burgers and other sandwiches
- Perogi Queen, the League City favorite comes inside the loop
- Samosa Haus, samosas with various fillings
- Sandos, Japanese-style sandwiches
While details about all of them aren’t available yet, here’s a taste of what’s to come. BOH Slice will be an extension of Bravery Chef Hall’s BOH Pasta & Pizza that’s devoted to pizza by-the-slice. Diners will be able to choose from a wide array of toppings ranging from traditional favorites to more off-the-wall possibilities.
Mac & Twist proprietor Edwin Laydera has obsessed over all the details of mac and cheese. His concept will make its own pasta in house and adorn it with topping such as 14-hour smoked beef brisket, burger patties, and chicken with tikka masala sauce.
Chef David Guerrero slims down his acclaimed Andes Cafe concept at Mykuna. The restaurant will focus on Peruvian and Ecuadorian dishes along with their Japanese and Chinese-influenced cuisines, Nikkei and Chifa. Guerrero tells CultureMap that Mykuna will only serve one or two of his signature ceviches, but other dishes such as skewers and fried rice will be available.
L.A. transplant chef Sunny Vohra will put his charcuterie experience to good use at Peaky Grinders. The restaurant will serve diner-style cheeseburgers made with meat it grinds in house, along with other related sandwiches such as a patty melt and meatloaf. In addition, Vohra is working on a recipe for a Central Texas-style hot link. Fries, onion rings, and milkshakes round out the offerings.
Some of the vendors, such as Pierogi Queen, Mac & Twist, and Peaky Grinders, will open in early July. The rest, including BOH Slice, will follow in a couple of months. The exact timing depends on final inspection approvals.
Upstairs will also be home to Puncheon, Company of Nomads partner Shepard Ross’ wine bar. Located in the middle of the restaurants, Puncheon will serve beers, wines, and sakes that will pair with each vendor’s offerings.
Railway Heights’ downstairs market will also be part of phase two. The inside will feature a coffee shop, a gelato stand, and a retail market that sells produce and locally-prepared items such as honey, spices, and pickles. Ross says the food hall is still in final negotiations with a gelato vendor as well as a butcher, baker, and fishmonger for the retail market, but those names will be announced soon.
Downstairs will also be home to Tablitas, a cheese and charcuterie shop from caterer Claudia Echeverria that will supply meat and cheese plates to both the food hall's main dining area and all of its bars. In addition, the first floor will be home to a coffee shop and roastery with its own patio near the food hall’s entrance.
Diners will also need to wait for phase two to experience Railway’s two outdoor bars. The first will feature a dog park and a converted shipping container that will sell cocktails. In addition, a beer garden will feature a larger shipping container with enough room to offer approximately 100 taps.
Expect more details on Railway’s retail vendors and its innovative art market in the coming weeks. One thing’s for certain — Houstonians will have a lot of eating, drinking, and shopping to do once this new venue is fully operational.
Edwin Laydera is ready to make mac and cheese.
