Foodie News

Where to eat right now: 10 hot Houston restaurants

The Burger Guys' hamburger topped with a fried egg

Photo by Ruthie Johnson Miller
Catalan's flatbread

Photo by Ruthie Johnson Miller
Deli-style sandwich at Kraftsmen Cafe

Photo by Ruthie Johnson Miller
Arborio-dusted calamari at Catalan

Photo by Ruthie Johnson Miller

Need a lunch or dinner recommendation? Here are 10 places around town that are turning some heads and taste buds. Some are new restaurants entirely, while others are seasoned venues with fresh offerings.

Bootsie’s Heritage Café
Randy Rucker's foodie delight (located in Tomball) concentrates on local ingredients served up in outrageously delicious way using interesting techniques. Try the “3rd coast menu,” a five-course culinary fireworks display for just $35.

Piola
This new Italian joint in Midtown offers thin-crust pizza and happy hour meal deals. Piola also offers all-you-can-eat gnocchi (for $13) on the 29th of every month.

The Burger Guys
Creative burgers (like the Sydney with thin-sliced pineapple and beets, plus a fried egg), plus duck fat fries and fabulous milkshakes, draw Houstonians beyond the beltway to the new Burger Guys.

Don’t miss the soda fountain, which boasts throw backs like Dublin Dr Pepper and Big Red.

Samba Grille
A Brazilian churrascaria in Bayou Place downtown, Samba Grille offers fabulous meats, incredible popovers, and a burger inspiring raves. Need more? Samba also offers a nice three-course lunch special for $19 and an inspiring cocktail list.

Catalan
Catalan, arguably the best restaurant in the city, continues to keep diners on their toes. They’ve recently added a kickin’ daily happy hour and a family-style meal on Sunday nights. Last Sunday’s Italian-themed meal earned praise for cheese-filled meatballs, while the previous week’s dinner was Cajun.

The Queen Vic
Houston’s newest gastropub offers a cleaner, higher-end take on standard bar fare. The menu combines British pub food with regional Indian specialties … short rib samosas, fish and chips, curries, Scotch eggs, and paneer, all in a bright, shiny atmosphere.

Stella Sola
Bryan Caswell’s Texas-Tuscan restaurant in the Heights is still abuzz with the crowd that comes when you serve great food with great prices in a great atmosphere. They’ve recently revised the cocktail menu, which means it’s high time for another tipsy looksie.

Hubcap Grill Burger Truck
Parked most nights in front of Liberty Station on Washington, Ricky Craig’s red burger-truck-that-could offers unique inventions like a Cheeto-Cheeseburger and a Peanut Butter Sticky Burger. Follow @hubcap_grill to confirm days and hours.

Kraftsmen Café
Scott Tycer’s new casual lunch spot takes over the former Textile location and offers seasonal soups, gorgeous pastries and creative sandwiches (served on fabulous Kraftsmen bread, of course). Sandwiches are a pricey, but come packed with delicious and fresh ingredients.

Café Bello
It seems odd that the storied Tony Vallone would open a no-frills Italian place like Café Bello, but the new Montrose restaurant is just that. Yes, it’s got the typical pastas, mains, and service you’ve come to expect from Tony, but the real reason to go is the fantastic pizzetta.

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bring on barnaby's

Favorite Houston comfort food spot picks Garden Oaks for 10th location

Courtesy of Barnaby's Cafe

Barnaby's Cafe is coming to the Stomping Grounds this fall.

Earlier this week, real estate developer Bryan Danna promised “big news…very soon” about a new tenant for the former LuLoo’s Day & Night space at his Stomping Grounds development in Garden Oaks. That news is that Houston favorite Barnaby’s Cafe has claimed the space for a new location that will open later this year.

When a Barnaby’s decal appear on the restaurant’s door a couple of days ago, news of the restaurant’s imminent arrival spread quickly on social media. It will be Barnaby’s tenth location, joining outposts in Montrose, River Oaks, the Heights, and more.

The restaurant will occupy a 2,250-square-foot space at the Stomping Grounds. It will offer a to-go window for people hanging out in the development’s green space as well as a gated, dog-friendly patio. Houston artist Roberto Cervantes will contribute works to the restaurant’s interior.

Founded in 1992 by restaurateur Jeff Gale, Barnaby’s is known for its wide-ranging and affordable menu of classic American fare, including salads, sandwiches, breakfast items, and dinner entrees. Customer favorites include the Lebanese chicken fattoush salad, chipotle black bean burger, baby back ribs, and green eggs, which are scrambled with spinach and artichoke hearts. Dogs can snack on a special “puppy menu” of ground beef, sliced chicken breast, or scrambled eggs over brown rice.

Stomping Grounds green space A to-go window will expedite orders for people in the Stomping Grounds' green space.Courtesy of Stomping Grounds

“Bringing Barnaby’s to Garden Oaks and Oak Forest has been on my wish list for more than a decade, so I’m incredibly grateful that Jeff Gale and his team saw Stomping Grounds as the right fit,” Danna said in a statement. “Jeff and I go back to his first Heights location, which was one of Barnaby’s first big moves north of Montrose, and I have always respected what he and his longtime team have built. Thirty years in the restaurant business is a serious accomplishment. You do not make it that long unless you know how to take care of people, build loyalty, and become part of the neighborhood.”

When it opens this fall, Barnaby’s will be open daily from 11 am to 9 pm. It will join other restaurants at the Stomping Grounds, including Fat Cat Creamery, Tex-Mex restaurant La Mex, Bollo Woodfired Pizza, casual sushi restaurant Himari, Little Sister Cake Shop, and High Five Mini Bar. Earlier this week, casual Vietnamese restaurant Pho Prime announced that it had claimed the space formerly occupied by The Pho Fix for a new location that will also open this fall.

news-you-can-eat openings stomping grounds barnaby's cafe