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2 top Houston steakhouses score Wine Spectator's most prestigious award

Pappas Bros. is once again a Wine Spectator winner.

Courtesy of Pappas Bros. Steakhouse

Two of Houston's most prominent steakhouses are among the country's best restaurants for drinking. Wine Spectator has once again recognized the offerings at both locations of Pappas Bros. Steakhouse and Mastro's Steakhouse with its Grand Award.

Given to just 97 establishments nationwide, the Grand Award recognizes restaurants that, in the magazine's words, "show an uncompromising, passionate devotion to the quality of their wine programs." That means cellars with more than 1,000 bottles, a range of vintages, a generous selection of large format bottles, and a knowledgeable team of sommeliers to serve the wines properly.

The magazine reports that Mastro's has 4,000 selections and identifies strengths in regions such as Burgundy, Tuscany, Champagne, and Loire. Pappas Bros. Galleria-area location has approximately 5,000 different selections with depths in many popular regions, including Burgundy, Bordeaux, California, and Champagne. Similarly, the steakhouse's downtown location earned praise for its 3,900 selections with strengths such as Champagne, Piedmont, Rhône, and Tuscany.

“Receiving the Grand Award is one of the greatest honors a wine program can get! We worked for over 5 years assembling the best and most encompassing wine selections from around the world, and when I got the news in 2019 that we had been selected for the Grand Award, I was personally beyond thrilled," Pappas Bros. Downtown wine director Bill Elsey said.

"I absolutely think that people strive for this recognition. It signifies a devotion and investment in wine that most restaurants can not make," he added. "From the top down, specifically starting with Harris and Chris [Pappas, owners of Pappas Restaurants], the commitment to earning a Grand Award is a monumental financial and time-consuming investment."

Wine Spectator also recognizes approximately 1,300 restaurants with its Best of Award of Excellence for "excellent breadth across multiple wine growing regions and/or significant vertical depth of top producers." These establishments typically offer at least 350 different selections.

Local recipients include: the Capital Grille's CityCentre location, Del Frisco's Double Eagle Steakhouse, El Meson, Georgia James, Kiran's, March, Rainbow Lodge, and Vic & Anthony's. In The Woodlands, both Mastro's Ocean Club and newly opened Indian fine dining restaurant Amrina earned Best Of status.

Oenophiles will find the full list of winners on the Wine Spectator website. A print edition with its annual restaurant awards comes out on July 12.

“I want to congratulate all 3,169 restaurants that earned one of Wine Spectator’s three awards for their devotion to all things wine,” Wine Spectator editor and publisher Marvin R. Shanken said in a statement. “These awards not only guide our readers to dining establishments with impressive wine lists and outstanding service, but also serve to honor restaurants for their achievements and commitment to maintaining pristine cellars. We are thrilled to reveal our 2022 Dining Guide, which points to places where wine drinkers are warmly welcomed.”

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sudden cupcake shutter

Cupcake pioneer Sprinkles shutters all locations, including one in Houston

Photo courtesy of Sprinkles

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A nationwide cupcake bakery has shuttered all of its locations, including in Houston. Sprinkles Cupcakes closed all of its locations on December 31, according to multiple media reports.

The company provided a brief statement about the closures to TV station KTLA: “After thoughtful consideration, we’ve made the very difficult decision to transition away from operating company-owned Sprinkles bakeries.”

Founder Candace Nelson shared her own thoughts about the news via a post on Instagram. After noting that she sold the business to private equity in 2012, Nelson stated she was disappointed by the decision.

“Even though I sold the company over a decade ago, I still have such a personal connection to it, and this isn’t how I thought the story would go. I thought Sprinkles would keep growing and be around forever,” she says in the clip.

The bakery had 20 locations in six states. In Houston, Sprinkles had one location in Rice Village that opened in 2021 (2563 Amherst St.). A Highland Village location that opened in 2010 had already closed.

It also operated stores in Austin (3120 Palm Way), Dallas (4020 Villanova), and Plano (7500 Windrose Avenue) and cupcake ATMs at other spots statewide, including one in The Woodlands Market Street district.

Sprinkles was widely credited for creating the cupcake craze of the late aughts and early 2010s. Founded by Nelson in 2005, the shop's treats elevated the form with high quality ingredients, a wide range of flavors, and the sort of eye-catching designs that would be now be described as Instagram-worthy — but Sprinkles predates the app’s creation. It introduced a number of innovations, including a cupcake ATM to satisfy cravings 24-hours-a-day.

As for Nelson, she pivoted to Pizzana, an Italian-style pizzeria she co-founded with her husband Charles, actor Chris O’Donnell and his wife Caroline, and chef Daniele Uditi. The restaurant, which holds a Bib Gourmand designation in the Michelin Guide for its original outpost in Los Angeles, has a Dallas location that opened in 2022 and a Houston store that opened in 2024.

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