More tacos downtown

Shuttered downtown Houston cocktail bar will soon serve up tacos and $5 cheeseburgers

Moving Sidewalk will soon become a new restaurant.

Photo by Alexander Gregg, courtesy of Moving Sidewalk

Veteran Houston bar owner Brad Moore has partnered with Cantina Barba owners Manuel De Leon and Steven O'Sullivan to convert the former Moving Sidewalk space at 306 Main Street into a new concept devoted to tacos, frozen drinks, and $5 cheeseburgers. The still unnamed bar and restaurant — expect the word “Barba” to be included — will open in early December.

“[Moving Sidewalk] had run its course and then some,” Moore tells CultureMap. It was becoming a pain. Not trying to candy coat it too much.”

A mutual friend suggested O’Sullivan and De Leon approach Moore about taking over operations at the space. It’s even a reunion of sorts; prior to opening the Cantina Barba brick and mortar in the Heights, the duo served tacos from the kitchen of Moore’s popular Museum District bar Grand Prize.

The menu will be similar to what Cantina Barba offers: tacos with a variety of fillings (barbacoa, smoked pork, etc.); sides like chips with guacamole or queso; and, most importantly for people who have been drinking at the bars on Main Street, a classic, no-frills cheeseburger that only costs $5. Frozen drinks, agave cocktails, and beer will also be available. Exact operating hours are still being determined, but Moore expects it to be open late, especially on weekends.

Essentially, the plan is to provide the Main Street bar crowd with an intimate space they can grab a bite to eat and a drink in a casual setting that’s more intimate than the food halls popping up in the area. It will also be something of a competitor to La Calle Tacos and its companion cantina, which have been operating a couple of blocks away for the last two years.

“It'll be something fresh down there, because it's not a town with a bunch of downtown little spots that everyone goes to late night,” Moore says. “It might fill a need — or be a place people didn't know they needed until it arrives.”

Prior to becoming Moving Sidewalk, the space served food as the Japanese izakaya and ramen shop Goro & Gun. Noodles may not have been the right fit, but, given Cantina Barba’s success in the Heights, tacos and cheeseburgers certainly seem like the right idea at the right time.

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an offer he couldn't refuse

Exclusive: Killen's Barbecue will soon shutter in The Woodlands

Killen's barbecue meat platter with sides

Photo by Robert Jacob Lerma

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Fans of Killen’s Barbecue’s location in The Woodlands have a days to make one last visit. The restaurant will close this Sunday, December 7, chef-owner Ronnie Killen tells CultureMap.

Open since 2021, Killen says that he’s in final negotiations to sell the location at 8800 Six Pines Dr. to Whataburger for a new location of the iconic Texas fast food restaurant. Neither the original location of Killen’s Barbecue in Pearland nor its Cypress location are affected by the closure of The Woodlands and will remain open.

“Whataburger made me a deal I couldn’t pass up. It would take 10 years to do that kind of revenue,” Killen writes in a text, adding that the company recently made a significant payment to keep the deal’s window open through the end of the year.

He added that the costs to operate the restaurant have gone up significantly. As one example, a cord of wood cost $175 when he opened the first Killen’s Barbecue in 2013. It costs $475 now, he writes.

If the deal falls through, Killen states that he could look for a new buyer or convert the restaurant into a second location of Killen’s Burger, the retro-styled burger joint he operates in Pearland.

The restaurant’s closure had been expected since February, when Killen sold The Woodlands’ location of Killen's Steakhouse. At the time, Killen said he also planned to find a buyer for his barbecue joint in the bustling suburb. He cited the driving distance from Pearland to The Woodlands as one reason he chose to divest both locations. He still operates Killen's Steakhouse in Pearland, comfort food restaurant Killen's near the Heights, Killen's Burger, and three other locations of Killen's Barbecue.

As it approaches its 13th anniversary in the spring, Killen’s Barbecue remains a vital part of Houston’s barbecue scene. The restaurant recently earned an honorable mention from Texas Monthly and holds a Bib Gourmand designation in the Michelin Guide. In July, it opened a new location at Hobby Airport.

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