Acclaimed Chef Leaves Restaurant

Acclaimed chef unexpectedly leaves high-profile CityCentre restaurant

Chef Jose Hernandez has departed from Radio Milano.

Courtesy photo

The cause of breaking the dominance of chain restaurants in CityCentre suffered a blow on Thursday when Italian restaurant Radio Milano announced that executive chef Jose Hernandez had resigned only a year after opening. In a statement, Radio Milano said Hernandez departed to "focus on personal endeavors and family" and that it "wishes him profound success in his future ventures."

After stints at Triniti, Etoile and Philippe, diners knew that Hernandez could deliver high-quality French cuisine, but Radio Milano demonstrated his flair for Italian cooking, too. The chef's handmade pastas and carefully constructed small plates helped the restaurant emerge as one of the Energy Corridor's most intriguing dining experiences. He earned a CultureMap Tastemakers Chef of the Year nomination for his work at the restaurant, and Radio Milano was a Best New Restaurant nominee, too.

While the search is already underway for Hernandez's replacement, his shoes will be hard to fill. Wherever Hernandez lands, expect buzz to follow. His cooking always attracts a crowd.

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Houston speakeasy ranks No. 59 on 100 best bars list for North America

Courtesy of the Four Seasons Hotel Houston

The Bandista team celebrates its lofty ranking.

A Houston hotel’s intimate speakeasy-style cocktail lounge has been ranked as one of North America’s best bars. Bandista, the hidden bar at the Four Seasons Hotel Houston, comes in at No. 59 on the list of bars ranked 51-100 that debuted on Monday, April 15.

“Secreted within the Four Seasons Hotel Houston, Bandista is part swanky 1920s cocktail lounge, part modern-day speakeasy,” the entry reads. “There’s Latin flavour running throughout the bar’s sophisticated cocktail offering, which mixes classic and contemporary styles and rare spirits in drinks like Dulce Far Niente – their take on a tiramisu reimagined as a cocktail complete with mascarpone mousse – and Writer’s Block 27 (two types of heritage gin, absinthe, lime, pineapple, cucumber).”

Bandista is the only bar in Houston to make the list, which made its debut for 2025. Austin favorite Nickel City ranked No. 70. The bars ranked No. 1-50 will be revealed in Vancouver on April 29. No bars in Texas made the 2024 edition of North America’s 50 Best Bars.

Opened in 2022, Bandista is hidden behind Toro Toro, the hotel’s pan-Latin steakhouse. With just 20 seats — 12 in the lounge and eight at the bar — the bar offers an intimate setting for drinks made with refined techniques and premium spirits. It regularly hosts pop-ups with guest bartenders from across the country and around the world, including Jewel of the South (New Orleans), Employees Only (New York City), and VIRTÙ (Tokyo).

Patrons make reservations for 90-minute seatings. The bar is open Wednesday-Saturday from 5 pm until midnight.

“This is an honour we are truly thrilled to have earned,” Four Seasons general manager Tom Segesta said in a statement. “We’re very proud of our Bandista team, who makes the experience there so memorable with beautifully-crafted cocktails, incredible service, and a setting like no other.”

The 50 Best brand is best known for its list of the World’s 50 Best Restaurants, which has been published annually since 2002. Disfrutar, a restaurant in Barcelona, tops the most recent edition of the list.

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Acclaimed Chef Leaves Restaurant

Acclaimed chef unexpectedly leaves high-profile CityCentre restaurant

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the best around

Houston speakeasy ranks No. 59 on 100 best bars list for North America