A 10-year old restaurant that's been a staple of Bellaire and Southside Place has served its last meal. The Union Kitchen announced its original location on Bellaire Boulevard has permanently closed.

Five of the restaurant's other locations — Memorial, Kingwood, Katy, Garden Oaks/Oak Forest, and Cypress — remain open. Its restaurant on Washington Avenue in Rice Military will reopen soon, the company stated. The Bellaire location is available for lease to a new operator.

"The Union Kitchen on Bellaire is where our concept was born, and we were fortunate to be there for 10 great years," owner Paul Miller said in a statement. "We would like to thank all of our guests, family and friends who supported us and truly made us feel like part of the neighborhood. I can remember working as the general manager on opening day with my wife Doris, who was my fiancee at the time. We literally built the menu by asking people from the neighborhood what they wanted."

From those humble beginnings, The Union Kitchen's menu would grow to include an eclectic mix of burgers, salads, entrees, and shareable plates. Reasonable wine markups also became part of the restaurant's brand.

Ultimately, Paul and Doris Miller built Gr8 Plate Hospitality into a presence that includes the six remaining locations of The Union Kitchen and two locations of Jax Grill. They won both the Houston Restaurant Association's Restaurateur of the Year and the Texas Restaurant Association's Outstanding Restaurateur award in 2018.

Despite the challenges of the pandemic, the company opened Katy locations of The Union Kitchen and Jax Grill in June.

“We look forward to continuing to serve the Houston area at our other TUK locations and Jax Grill, and we will always have a special place in our hearts for the Bellaire and Southside Place communities," Miller added.