6 things to know

6 things to know in Houston food right now: Openings, Goode news, and a Chef Evelyn showcase

Fusion59 is now open in Southwest Houston.

Photo by Ibrahim Halawa

Editor’s note: Houston’s restaurant scene moves pretty fast. In order to prevent CultureMap readers from missing anything, let’s stop to look around at all the latest news to know.

Openings

Crust Pizza Co. has opened its first Inner Loop location in the Heights. Located in the former Mellow Mushroom space at 1919 N. Shepherd Dr., the restaurant serves Chicago-style thin crust pizza. In addition to serving signature pizzas like the Big Don's Meat & Cheese (Canadian bacon, pepperoni, sausage, salami, beef, and bacon with mozzarella and cheddar) or the Carl's King (Italian sausage, pepperoni, Canadian bacon, mixed bell peppers, red onions, fresh mushrooms, black olives, and mozzarella), the restaurant will offer an extensive beverage selection with 36 beer taps plus wine and a full bar. Other favorites include pepperoni rolls and garlic knots. Crust opens daily at 11 am.

Fusion59 has opened in Southwest Houston at 11786 Wilcrest Dr. Described as a “globally minded restaurant,” the menu covers a wide range of cuisines, including Indian, Italian, and Caribbean. Start with dishes such as samosas or chicken wings. Entree choices include butter chicken, steak, seafood, and lamb bolognese made with braised lamb leg and pappardelle. Cocktails include variations on classics such as the margarita, French 75, and a smoked Old Fashioned. The restaurant opens daily at 3 pm.

Salad chain Salata will open its 44th Houston-area restaurant in Spring Branch this Thursday, August 25. Located at 1014 Wirt Rd., the restaurant serves build-to-order salads made with five salad bases, over 50 toppings, and 11 gluten-free dressings.

The first 100 customers in line will receive a free custom T-shirt designed by Texas artist Alli K. In addition, Salata will donate a portion of Thursday’s proceeds to Houston Children’s Charity, a non-profit organization “dedicated to improving the quality of life for Greater Houston’s underprivileged, abused, and disabled children who have been otherwise left behind.”

Houston-based shawarma food truck, Abu Omar Halal, will celebrate the grand opening of its Spring location at 16350 Stuebner Airline Rd. with specials including 50-percent off all menu items on September 2 and 25-percent off on September 3.

Abu Omar puts a Texas twist on Jordanian-style street food. The restaurant serves chicken, beef, lamb, and falafel in a variety of wraps and plates. Chicken shawarma Arabi, the restaurant’s signature dish, features spit-roasted chicken, pickles, and garlic sauce wrapped in a tortilla and toasted on a griddle. An Italian-style version swaps the tortilla for a sesame seed-covered sandwich bread and adds a healthy dose of gooey, melted cheese.

Other news and notes

Goode Co. Barbeque’s location on Hwy. 290 will resume full operating hours on Labor Day. After closing in 2020, the restaurant reopened for weekend service in April. First opened in 1977, Goode Co. Barbeque is known for dishes such as beef brisket, Czech sausage, Austin baked beans, jalapeño cheese bread, and of course, the company's signature Brazos Bottom Pecan Pie.

Upcoming food event

Asia Society Texas will host a food event curated by Top Chef finalist Evelyn Garcia and her business partner, chef Henry Lu. Titled Homegrown Houston, the event features nine restaurants presenting signature dishes, including CultureMap Tastemaker Awards Restaurant of the Year winner Street to Kitchen, Neighborhood Restaurant of the Year winner Click Virtual Food Hall, Best New Restaurant nominee ChòpnBlọk, and Pastry Chef of the Year nominee Vanarin Kuch of Koffeteria.

The event takes place this Saturday, August 27 from 7-10 pm. Tickets start at $100 for members and $120 for non-members. See the event’s website for details.

Goode Company Barbeque returns to full service in Cypress next month.

Courtesy of Goode Co

Goode Company Barbeque returns to full service in Cypress next month.

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in like the rose

Elevated Mexican American cocktail bar blooms in historic downtown space

Courtesy of Concrete Rose

Concrete Rose is now open in downtown Houston.

The creative mind behind Monkey’s Tail and Trash Panda Drinking Club is stepping things up for his new project. Concrete Rose, the new bar from Greg Perez, is now open in downtown Houston.

Located on the ground floor of the historic Purse building (1701 Commerce), Concrete Rose is an elevated cocktail bar that’s inspired by Perez’s heritage as a Chicano and first generation Mexican American. It’s a big change for the bar owner, who’s best known as one of the founders of Mexican American sports bar Monkey’s Tail and the proprietor of Trash Panda Drinking Club, the Lindale Park bar known for its quirky sense of humor and creative pop-ups.

Perez tells CultureMap that’s Trash Panda’s success paved the way for Concrete Rose. With the bar running smoothly, he was able to travel for the first time in five years. When the property’s owners presented him with the ability to open a new concept, the inspiration from those travels helped fuel the design, menu, and overall direction of Concrete Rose.

“After my London trip, I started to feel comfortable with executing an ambitious project. I decided to go back to what I know best, which is myself,” Perez says. “When you walk in, you’ll see a lot of callbacks to me and Trash in a very elegant way.”

Rather than a conventional bar, Concrete Rose takes much of its design inspiration from streetwear boutiques. Framed photographs honor different aspects of Chicano culture, such as low riders and religious imagery.

“We have a really dope picture of an altar. It’s a little bit of a show stopper,” Perez says.

That streetwear theme continues with Concrete Rose’s cocktail menu. Styled after a lookbook, it uses lifestyle photography that shows the drinks but doesn’t make them the image’s sole focus. One section consists of eight, “boundary pushing” cocktails that are inspired by The Rose That Grew from Concrete, a posthumous collection of poems written by Tupac Shakur. For example, the “No One Else Cared” puts a spin on guacamole by using avocado ice cream, fried avocado skins, and tomato.

Another section, dubbed “Kickbacks,” features more familiar flavors, including one drink inspired by the guava danish at Perez’s favorite bakery in Mexico City. Classics are just that,r efined versions of staples like the margarita and ranch water.

Soon, the bar will roll out a food menu of dishes that blend various global culinary traditions with Mexican flavors and techniques. It’s created by chef Fernanda Alamilla, who worked for Perez as sous chef at the short-lived, critically-acclaimed Mexican American restaurant Chivos. Dishes include beet tacos, fish crudo, and the “BJ Sandwich.”

“The execution is there. And the creativity is there. You won’t see us trying to catch a trend. We put a lot of attention into the details. There’s a lot of Easter Eggs,” Perez says.

Concrete Rose won’t be Perez’s only new concept at the Purse building. In the coming weeks, he’ll introduce Uncle Charlie’s Athletic Club, a Mexican American sports bar that applies the lessons he learned from Monkey’s Tail in a new format.

Courtesy of Concrete Rose

Concrete Rose is now open in downtown Houston.

“I wanted the feeling to be your cool uncle’s bar,” Perez says.

For now, bar goers can head downtown to meet Concrete Rose, which is open daily from 4 pm-1 am.

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