This Week in Dining

These are the 9 best food and drink events in Houston this week

Beer events spotlight this week's top events, with 8th Wonder, Real Ale, and Saint Arnold taking on starring roles. Diners can also celebrate National Oyster Day and National Root Beer Float Day. Plus, there are two anniversary parties this week that mark important milestones for a Katy restaurant and a Galleria chocolatier.

Monday, August 5

National Oyster Day at the Oceanaire Seafood Room
Stop into the bar any time today and get chef's select oysters for $1. With one of the more extensive oyster menus in town, diners are sure to love this sweet deal.

Tuesday, August 6

National Root Beer Float Day at Bernie's Burger Bus
Get the restaurant's popular root beer float for $2 with the purchase of any burger. Dine-in only.

Wednesday, August 7

Real Ale Dinner at State Fair Kitchen & Bar
Executive chef Justin Yoakum pairs a four-course dinner with selections from the Hill Country craft brewer. The menu includes selections such as hatch chile deviled eggs with Tabasco peppers and pickled micro crudité paired with Fireman’s Light, and chicken and waffles done with spiked hot honey and Brussels sprouts coleslaw paired with Hans Pilsner. Dinner is from 6-8 pm, and the cost is $50 per person, plus tax and gratuity. For tickets, call 832-831-0950, or buy online.

Italian Brunch Cooking Class at the Italian Cultural and Community Center
Kick up the weekend staple with this class from food blogger Flavia Scalzitti that teaches participants how to incorporate Italian ingredients into brunch. Class starts at 7 pm, and the cost is $65 for ICCC members and $70 for non-members.

Thursday, August 8

8th Wonder Brewery Tasting at Jasper's The Woodlands
From 5-7 pm, the restaurant offers a menu of signature appetizers paired with 8th Wonder selections. Pairings include shrimp shooters with Haterade Gose and short rib empanadas with Hopston IPA. The cost is $35 per person, plus tax and gratuity. For tickets email the restaurant or call 281-298-5650.

Saint Arnold Draft Night at Cane Rosso
From 7-9 pm, the beloved Houston-based craft beer company will have a representative on hand at Cane Rosso's Heights location who will be serving $3 seasonal brews in a commemorative pint glass. Pair it with Cane Rosso's pizza of the month, the Escape Hatch, topped with housemade mozzarella, roasted hatch chiles, corn, bacon marmalade, caramelized onions, and red pepper flakes. Bonus: The restaurant offers an extended happy hour throughout the duration of the Astros' game.

French Wine Class at French Country Wines
Charelle Grant, adjunct instructor at the Culinary Institute LeNotre, leads participants through the complex — and sometimes confusing — language on French wine labels. Guests will sample five wines paired with cheese. The cost is $48 per person, and reservations can be made by calling 713-993-9500. Class starts at 7 pm.

Saturday, August 10

Anniversary Party at Mona Fresh Italian Food
The Katy concept marks its first year in business with a day of deals. From 10:30 am to 9 pm, drop in for drawings for gift cards and a chance to win dinner for four. There's also a buy-one-get-one deal on homemade pasta with up to five toppings, a core component to the restaurant's build-your-own-dinner design.

5th Anniversary Block Party at Cacao and Cardamom
Annie Rupani celebrates her business milestone in her signature style, with an event chocolate lovers won't want to miss. From noon to 4 pm, guests can stop by the store on Westheimer to taste, shop, and splurge. They can even design their own chocolate creations, selecting an artisan chocolate bar to which they can add up to three toppings, including choices like pop-rocks, spices, nuts, pretzels, rice puffs, or dried fruit. Also part of the fun are swag bags and a five-pound bar of chocolate made with 24-karat gold leaf, along with a photo booth and live music.

Sunday, August 11

Sunday Supper Club at Decatur Bar & Pop-Up Factory
Join chefs Brandi Key and Jorge Valencia at this monthly pop-up hosted by their venture, LMN Hospitality. The menu celebrates partner Kelly Laudadio's favorite dishes with an epic seven-course feast that's limited to just 20 diners. Courses include a seafood tower sampler, a lobster roll, horseradish-crusted lamb chop, and miso-glazed sea bass, and a boozy milkshake. Tickets, $145 or $175 with wine pairings, are available online. 6:30 pm.

Get a root beer float for $2 at Bernie's Burger Bus.

Photo by Dragana Harris

Get a root beer float for $2 at Bernie's Burger Bus.

news-you-can-eat

rumor no more

East Coast-style Austin pizzeria confirms plans to open in the Heights

Home Slice Pizza Heights location rendering

Courtesy of the Michael Hsu Office of Architecture

A rendering previews Home Slice Pizza's new location in the Heights.

One of Austin’s pizzerias is expanding its presence in Houston. Home Slice Pizza has claimed the former Mapojeong space in the Heights (602 Studewood) for a new location that will open in the fall of 2026.

Founder Joseph Strickland tells CultureMap that Home Slice wanted to add a second Houston location that would build on the success of its Midtown restaurant that opened in late 2022. Unlike Midtown, which is counter service and offers limited seating, the Heights location will offer full service, an expanded menu, and cocktails, which is in line with Home Slice’s North Austin location.

“We saw a lot of synergy in North Austin and the Heights,” Strickland says. “They have a similar feel, a lot of families, a lot of people looking to get together in big groups. There’s also a robust bar scene on White Oak that we’re happy to be part of.”

Strickland says Home Slice had several requirements for a new location, including a larger dining room than Midtown, a decent-sized parking lot, and enough kitchen capacity to serve both dine-in and larger to-go orders. Not only did they find the right building, but they established a productive relationship with the property’s owner, Revive Development, the Houston-based firm that also owns properties that are home to Loro, Squable, Camaraderie, and the Stomping Grounds development in Garden Oaks.

“It was hard to believe at first. The more we talked with the Revive folks, there was a lot of alignment and opportunity for us to expand what we’re showing Houston,” Stickland says.

Home Slice is working with the Michael Hsu Office of Architecture to renovate the building. Strickland notes that it will require some extensive changes, including removing the butcher shop that was installed as part of its iteration as Ritual, a steakhouse that closed in 2021. Assuming everything goes according to plan, the restaurant should open sometime in the fall of 2026.

Home Slice Pizza food spread Home Slice serves New York-style pizza.Photo by Garrett Smith

Once open, Home Slice will serve its East Coast-inspired menu of New York-style pizzas (whole or by-the-slice), hot and cold Italian deli sandwiches, salads, and desserts — all of which utilize dough or bread that’s made in-house. In particular, the restaurant is known for its white clam pizza, as well as classics such as pepperoni and mushroom or sausage with ricotta and roasted peppers. In 2024, the Houston Press awarded “Best Sandwich” to the restaurant’s Italian Assorted, which is made with ham, dry salami, capicola, genoa salami, vegetables, provolone, mayo, and oil & vinegar.

Critically, the Heights Home Slice location will add wings to the New York and Sicilian-style pizzas, salads, and sandwiches that the restaurant serves in Midtown. Inspired by the wings served at the Anchor Bar in Buffalo, New York, Home Slice keeps its wings simple — medium or hot and served with a house made blue cheese dressing. “It goes with our pizza quite wonderfully,” Stickland says.

He hopes that the the wide-ranging menu, flexible menu, and late night hours will appeal to Heights locals, people patronizing the nearby bars on White Oak, and anyone else looking for a slice and a drink. The larger location and full service should make home slice an option for date nights, office happy hours, any just about any other occasion.

“We hope the neighborhood will be happy to have another offering that’s like ours, where you can bring a first date or your office or go by yourself. We offer all those experiences,” Strickland says.

openings news-you-can-eat pizza home slice pizza