Foodie News

Houston Chef's Table: Flora & Muse's David Luna likes to hang with his fishingbuddy and hit the Blue Nile

Flora & Muse chef David Luna likes things simple when he goes out.
He goes to Reef in part because Bryan Caswell is his fishing buddy.

No one knows Houston restaurants better than the people who run them, own them, and work in the kitchens. In this continuing series, CultureMap is asking our favorite foodie personalities around town where they go for great eats when they're not working.

Long a staple at Inner Loop faves like Canopy and Shade, David Luna is now serving up bistro fare with an international bent at the beyond-adorable bistro/bar/patisserie/coffeeshop Flora & Muse. A self-professed fan of keeping things simple and eating at home, Luna divulges his favorite places in Houston to get that relaxed, homey feel — and some great food.

Restaurant for a special occasion: I like Reef a lot. Bryan Caswell is a fishing buddy of mine, so I'll just pull up a seat at the bar, usually. I like going to Branch Water Tavern. It's comforting and also one of my favorites. Blue Nile for Ethiopian, I like all the little extras, and you just blend in.

Restaurant to take out-of-towners to:Tampico's, it's one of those places that's quick and easy and out. Inexpensive but still good.

Favorite meal: The short rib plate at Spanish Flowers. Late at night after working all night, I have a couple after-work cocktails ... It's unpretentious, the servers been there forever and its just comfy like grandma's house.

Breakfast/Brunch favorite: It's really rare that I'm not working at brunch, at Shade and Canopy, that's really one of the things we were known for. But I like Kim Son, I like their dim sum.

Dessert:Jeannine's Bistro, for mussels.

Other articles in the Houston Chef's Table series:

Lee Ellis loves Les Givral

Sugar hooker Rebecca Masson can't get enough of Catalan's Cake

Beachy L.J. Wiley digs the special occasion simple flavors at Dos Brisas

David Grossman goes for Vic & Anthony's crab cake, Yelapa late nights & some Bootsie

Jeramie Robison appreciates Kata Robata's sushi, Beaver's bangin' meatloaf & foodie chicks

Tony Mandola finds breakfast magic at Sunrise Taquitos

Philippe Schmit craves a Picnic romance & Stella Sola's French toast

Benjy Levit is torn between Indika's salads and Hank's Ice Cream

unspecified

Farewell, ElRo

Creative Montrose pizzeria will shutter after only a year-and-a-half

Photo by Julie Soefer

ElRo Pizza & Crudo

An acclaimed Houston pizzeria will soon serve its final pies. ElRo Pizza & Crudo will close after service on December 31.

In a post on Instagram, chef-owner Terrence Gallivan thanks his staff for their dedication and his customers for their support. “We hope to see you all over the next couple weeks. Come celebrate with us,” he writes.

Open since June 2023, ElRo intrigued diners who enjoyed Gallivan’s work at pioneering Houston restaurant The Pass & Provisions. At ElRo, the chef served a modified version of the Provisions pizza recipe alongside crudos and shareable small plates such as arancini and housemade sausage. It earned four nominations in this year’s CultureMap Tastemaker Awards, including Best New Restaurant and Chef of the Year.

Sadly, Gallivan tells CultureMap that business has seen “a steady decline in business for many months.” Recently, the restaurant had tried a number of initiatives to draw in diners, such as steak night on Tuesday and fried chicken on Saturday.

The early announcement gives diners two weeks to make one more visit (or two) to the restaurant before it closes. Customers may want to time their visit for happy hour, which takes places from 3-6 pm Tuesday-Friday. It includes half-off glasses of wine, $4 draft beers, $9 select cocktails, and food specials.

Gallivan adds that he doesn’t know yet what his next move will be. Hopefully, he’s got one more comeback in him. Houston is a more fun town to dine in when Gallivan is cooking in it.

news-you-can-eat pizza closings