Foodie News

10 must tries for Houston Restaurant Weeks: Make the foodie holiday special

Cinq
Looking for a different take on Italian? Check out what's coming out ofArcodoro's kitchen.
Photo by Gracie Cavnar
Haven has one of the best restaurant weeks menus in town.
Photo by Barbara Kuntz

Decisions, decisions. If too much of a good thing can exist (we have our doubts) then the myriad choices of Houston Restaurant Weeks has to be a contender. Whether you want an ambitious menu, a giant steak, gorgeous surroundings or top-notch people watching, the hundred-plus restaurants participating in $20 lunches and $35 dinners (now through Aug. 31) offer up a little bit of everything.

If it's all too overwhelming, start with our handy cheat sheet of don't-miss destinations.

1. Haven

Haven's prix fixe menu is as colorful and exciting as the fare offered nightly. Whether you're coming for the brunch, the plentiful vegetarian options or the patio, this is one of the best Houston Restaurant Weeks menus, top to bottom.

2. Américas

If you can't fit into a prix fixe box, make a reservation at Américas, where it's all about customization. Undecided on appetizers? Order the trio of ceviche, lobster corn dogs and calamari at dinner. Or if you're heading in for lunch, there's a "design your own salad" option with four choices of chicken and shrimp. Plus if the plentiful entrees available aren't enough, Américas is offering sides from $6 and wine from $9.

3. Arcodoro

Some of the Italian menus around town can be a little repetitive, but Arcodoro's Sardinian flair sets it apart, with options including carpaccio of branzino, Sardinian teardrop pasta, and traditional Sardinian "seadas di miele," or puff pastries drizzled with honey.

4. Brennan's of Houston

The HRW menus for Brennan's read like a greatest hits list. If you've heard of Brennan's turtle soup, shrimp and grits, or classic bananas foster but have yet to experience them, here's your chance.

5. Soma Sushi

Stuck in a French/Italian/Modern American rut? Mix it up with the East-West fusion done to perfection at Soma Sushi, with dishes like Thai soup with rock shrimp, crab, scallions, cilantro; crispy duck rolls with granny smith apples; and Akaushi short ribs.

6. Restaurant Cinq

Chef Jeramie Robison isn't afraid to tweak your expectations from the classically French La Colombe d'Or. For Houston Restaurant Weeks, the influence is decidedly more Southern with dishes like shrimp etouffee and deconstructed chicken pot pie, but the service and technique are just what you expect from a Houston grande dame.

7. Tony's

My first HRW experience ever was dinner at Café Annie — go big or go home, right? To eat alongside Houston's high society, you could make a reservation at Annie's successor restaurant RDG, or wear your finest monocle and mingle with the bold-faced names at Tony's.

8. Hugo's

You have to love Hugo Ortega for going the extra mile. Ortega hasn't just created one prix fixe dinner menu for the month, he's got two: One that's meant to be paired with optional agave cockatils, and another that goes with wine. And with dishes like a duo of pork with achiote-rubbed suckling pig, bacon-wrapped quail and braised oxtail, there's no wrong choice. Lunch looks delicious, too.

9. Feast

Feast is one restaurant that has been somewhat hampered by a fawning press. Yes, we love the nose-to-tail cooking, but if you aren't ready for braised pork cheeks, that's OK too. The Houston Restaurant Weeks dinner menu includes beef tongue and chicken liver paté, but there's also coq au vin, shepherd's pie, Moroccan tagine stew and sea scallops, so whether you branch out or stick to more familiar favorites, you're in for a good meal.

10. Del Frisco's Double Eagle Steakhouse

There are plenty of steakhouses participating in Houston Restaurant Weeks, and while most of them have at least one steak cut on the special menu, unless you want a petite cut or a seafood substitution, choices are slim. Del Frisco is the exception, offering a filet mignon, prime strip and and prime ribeye options at dinner (and that's in addition to chicken and snapper).

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Coming soon to Fredericksburg

Houston restaurant vet serves up Roman-style eatery in the Hill Country

Photo courtesy of Bottega Salaria

Valerio Lombardozzi is opening Bottega Salaria in the former home of La Bergerie.

Valerio Lombardozzi’s culinary career has taken him to the world’s finest kitchens, including restaurants owned by icons like Alain Ducasse, Giorgio Locatelli, and Joël Robuchon. In Houston, he led La Table and Tavola, where he earned a reputation for being one of the city's most engaging front of the house personalities.

But his latest project might be his biggest accomplishment yet. The hospitality veteran is opening Bottega Salaria, a homey Italian osteria and artisan market, in the former home of La Bergerie at 312 E Austin St in his adopted home of Fredericksburg.

Lombardozzi says the restaurant, expected to arrive in winter 2026, fills a gap in the Hill Country dining scene, but, more importantly, it's a reflection of his personal history and time spent working at his family’s restaurant in Rome.

“[It’s about] where I grew up, how I grew up, and how I eat,” he shares.

The three-concept experience is inspired by Italy’s Via Salaria, the ancient route Italians used to transport salt from the Adriatic Sea to Rome. The menu acts as a sort of travelogue, borrowing from the different cultures along the road, and the way village fishermen and shepherds ate.

Lombardozzi is quick to say he didn’t want to open a chef-driven restaurant. Instead, the osteria will serve traditional Roman staples such as cacio e pepe, amatriciana, carbonara, saltimbocca with sage and prosciutto, and branzino carved tableside.

“I was one of the last to be exposed to the old generation of professionals who knew how to carve elegantly for the guests,” he says.

The adjacent bottega will stay open during restaurant hours, offering fresh pasta made on-site, house-made sauces, imported Italian pantry items, cheeses, salumi, breads, and biscotti. Patrons will be able to shop for individual items or put together custom gift baskets.

Outdoors, La Fraschetteria will debut a new hospitality experience in the U.S. The self-guided experience invites diners to grab wine directly from garden shelves, gather a spread of meats, cheeses, bread, or pasta, and linger around long communal tables lit by string lights.

Keeping the chit-chat going will be a thoughtful beverage program anchored by a primarily Italian wine list and imported beer. Lombardozzi says the cocktail menu might be a surprise, offering only gin and tonics, spritzes, and negronis. The latter has been made into a game where diners roll dice to determine the evening's combination of gin, vermouth, and bitters.

After dinner, guests can select an amaro from a rolling cart, sip grappa and limoncello, or sip a neat whiskey.

Lombardozzi shares that he wants Bottega Salaria to be just as comfortable for Fredericksburg locals as it is for destination travelers. Beyond daily service, Bottega Salaria plans community events such as garden wine nights with live music, Sunday movie nights, and hands-on cooking classes.

The space is designed for ease with a warm palette combining olive green and pomegranate reds. The decor blends heritage and modernity, bringing in objects like antique mirrors, plates, custom-made lamps, and even old tablecloths and curtains for an Old World feel.

"We’re not just opening a restaurant,” Lombardozzi says. “We’re creating a gathering place. A home for everyone who loves Italian food, culture, and the joy of sharing a meal with others.”

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