What's Eric Eating Episode 57

What's cooking at Poitín, plus first look at a Lazybrook/Timbergrove hot spot

On this episode of What's Eric Eating, chef Dominick Lee and owner Ian Tucker join CultureMap food editor Eric Sandler to discuss Poitín, the ambitious restaurant that recently opened in Sawyer Yards. The two discuss their vision for the new restaurant and the eclectic menu and drinks that have already made Poitín a popular spot.

Poitín is Dominick Lee’s first restaurant where he serves as executive chef, but that’s not obvious when speaking to him. Lee appears comfortable in his role in charge of a kitchen and talks about the fun he has had designing the menu in collaboration with his team. When asked what it’s like leading the team, instead of being a cog in machine, he notes: “It’s very fun. I would say that it’s about teaching because all those things that you learned from the mentors that you had, now you have to be able to express them to other people who look to you in order to lead them, and to answer their questions, and to teach them your way or the way that things should be done and how it should be done properly.”

Prior to the interview, Fluff Bake Bar owner Rebecca Masson joins Sandler for the first time as a co-host. In the news of the week segment, they discuss happenings in the Houston restaurant scene. Taverna, in the River Oaks District, is now gone and will be replaced by a new concept called Bisou by the owners of Clé nightclubs and Frédéric Perrier. A new Houston restaurant, a joint venture by Michael Mina and Ayesha Curry, attracted national attention on Yelp from unhappy Houston Rockets fans because of the connection to the Golden State Warriors. In response to this issue, Masson discusses her anti-Yelp opinion and the negative ways that people use it. In other opening news, Otto’s BBQ and Hamburgers, a Houston institution that closed in 2010, will be attempting a comeback with a new restaurant just south of Washington Avenue.

In the restaurant of the week segment, they share their first impressions of La Vista 101, chef-owner Greg Gordon's relocated and updated neighborhood restaurant that just arrived in Lazybrook/Timebergrove. They touch on the design by Carl Eaves (Liberty Kitchen, Alice Blue), the wine list and service overseen by general manager Jeb Stuart (formerly of Coltivare), and executive chef's J.D. Woodward's eclectic menu. And yes, they had dessert.

---

Subscribe to "What's Eric Eating" on iTunes or Google Play. Listen to it every Saturday at 11 am on SportsMap 94.1.

Ian Tucker, owner of Poitin

Trevor Gerland

Ian Tucker, owner of Poitin

chefs news-you-can-eat podcasts openings

J.J.'s hot takes

Texans legend J.J. Watt drops 'controversial' crawfish take on soccer podcast

Courtesy of FIFA World Cup 2026 Houston Host Committee

J.J. Watt discussed Houston's food scene on Men in Blazers.

“If you’re checking your watch, I’m on food talk now, so we’re going to be awhile.”

With that comment, former Houston Texans star and future Pro Football Hall of Famer J.J. Watt launched into an epic tribute to Houston’s dynamic food scene. Speaking with host Roger Bennett on the globally-renown soccer podcast Men in Blazers, Watt spent about 15 minutes introducing the show’s audience to many of the cuisines and restaurants that Houstonians love.

“When you look at this singular city, at Houston, what is it in your mind that makes it great — that the world is going to see this summer,” Bennett asks at approximately the 1:45 mark.

“Food,” Watt replies. “Truthfully, we have great, great food. I have always said that Houston is one of the most underrated food cities in the world. People that come here are going to get fatter.”

Encouraged by Bennett to “go deeper” into the topic, Watt offered more than 20 suggestions for restaurants to try. They included:

Breakfast tacos at Island Grill and Pappas Bar-B-Q
Barbecue at Killen’s Barbecue
Burgers at Becks Prime, The Burger Joint, and Killen’s Burgers
Seafood at Pappadeaux

Watt told an entertaining anecdote about Trill Burgers, the smash burger concept from Houston hip-hop legend Bun B.

“Trill Burgers, they put something in there that can’t be legal,” Watt quipped. “I’ve talked to Bun B. It’s like crack, okay? He gave me one of those burgers. When I came back from the Ring of Honor at the Texans, they put Trill Burgers in our suite. There were six, and there were 12 people in the suite. I had four of them. Everyone else had to fight over two burgers.”

Asked about crawfish, Watt dropped an opinion that he acknowledged would be controversial. “You’re not going to like,” he told the 300-person, sold-out crowd.

“That’s a lot of work. Then they tell you to suck the head. I’ll be honest. Didn’t do a lot for me,” Watt stated. “Look at this [points to himself]. The amount of crawfish you have to break and eat. When they dump it all out, I have to have my own 9-foot table. Nobody has the time to break that many crawfish open and suck the heads on every one.”

Watt appeared on the show as part of its Houston episode that marked 99 days until the start of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Houston Rockets icon and Basketball Hall of Famers Hakeem Olajuwon also appeared on the show, which was recorded at Rice University.

Houston will host seven matches from June 14 - July 4, including five in the group stage and one each in the round of 32 and the round of 16. Find more details about the tournament and local celebrations at the official FIFA World Cup 2026 Houston Host Committee website.

news-you-can-eat podcasts jj watt