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    back in black

    Eclectic Upper Kirby restaurant's new space offers patio, paleo, keto, and more

    Eric Sandler
    Dec 6, 2021 | 4:34 pm

    Paleo and keto diners across the Inner Loop are rejoicing. Houston’s bigger, better Ruggles Black has opened its doors.

    Originally opened in 2014 by chef Bruce Molzan and his partner Neera Patidar, the restaurant relocated last week to 2245 West Alabama St., the one-time Mission Burrito space that has been empty since craft beer Hops Meets Barley closed in 2018. The move keeps the restaurant in the Upper Kirby area that has always been fruitful for Molzan and the Ruggles brand.

    For those unfamiliar, Ruggles Black represents an evolution of the eclectic, globally inspired comfort food Molzan has been serving Houstonians since the original Ruggles Grill ranked among Houston’s best restaurants in the ’80s and ’90s. Its menu offers a wide range of dishes designed to meet the requirements for those following either the keto or paleo diet, kicked up with Indian flavors that honor Patidar’s heritage.

    “We have kind of a niche: good, healthy, high quality, gluten-free,” Molzan says. “I don’t think there’s anybody in town who does this kind of stuff.”

    Molzan has a controversial history with a well-documented past of lawsuits and an allegation by Texas Parks & Wildlife that he bought illegally caught fish (a representative tells CultureMap he paid a fine). In 2018, he was charged with indecency with a child — allegations his attorney vigorously denied to ABC13 and which Molzan declined to comment on. The case has been listed for disposition in February, but it has been reset for various reasons multiple times since January 2019, according to online records.

    Since the allegations, he’s stayed out of the spotlight and focused on serving Ruggles Black’s customers. His partnership with Patidar has been a fruitful one, achieving enough success that the restaurant has relocated to a significantly larger space with an expansive patio.

    “We’re different. Opposites attract, I guess,” Molzan says about Patidar. “We have our differences. Everybody does. But she’s loyal to me. I’m loyal to her. It’s been a good relationship.”

    “One of the things I respect about Bruce is he’s always evolving, he always wants to learn,” Patidar adds. “One thing that works so well is he’s very French-American, and I’m very Indian-Asian. When we get in the kitchen together, as much as I’m nervous to cook in front of him, he’s so humble. [He’ll say], ‘how did you do that? Teach me.’”

    Those collaborations have produced some of the menu’s most popular dishes, including a lamb pizza and the Angry Shrimp appetizer that uses a yellow curry sauce. Patidar adds that she’s working with Molzan on vegetarian items and egg-based dishes for a brunch menu that will roll out in the spring.

    As for the space, it’s not only larger but also more attractive. Chandeliers hang from the ceiling; Patidar jokes that they’re inspired by the oversized earrings she frequently wears. Other elements include a glassed-in kitchen that gives diners a view of Molzan and his team at work and paintings by a Mexican artist on the walls.

    The new location also puts Ruggles Black next door to Bellagreen, a restaurant Molzan helped found in its original iteration as Ruggles Green. He sold his interest in 2016, and the restaurant rebranded in 2017.

    “We’re totally different,” Molzan says about his neighbor. “That’s more like a Cafe Express. We might have some similarities. I did kiss the menu over there. We don’t really think about it.”

    Ruggles Black has a new home.

    Ruggles Black patio
      
    Courtesy of Ruggles Black
    Ruggles Black has a new home.
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    a fresh start

    Award-winning Houston cocktail bar diverts to new home in Montrose

    Eric Sandler
    Jun 12, 2025 | 5:00 pm
    Diversion cocktail bar Montrose
    Photo by Manoah Rodriguez
    The Vilanova Ritual is prepared tableside in a teapot.

    An award-winning Houston cocktail bar has found a new home. Diversión will reopen Thursday, June 19 in Montrose’s food-focused Harlow District development.

    Located at 1226 W Clay Street, Diversión Montrose will occupy one of the two houses that comprise Emma Jane, the European-inspired teahouse that opened last year. It replaces the original location of Diversión that opened in early 2021 in Spring Branch. Both Diversión’s original location and Degust, its companion tasting menu restaurant, quietly closed last year.

    Known for its polished service and elaborate cocktails, Esquire magazine named Diversión’s original iteration to its list of the Best New Bar in America for 2022. That ethos has been “refreshed” to be “a more intimate and playful setting,” according to press materials.

    Patrons will find a new cocktail menu that includes drinks such as the Operation: ‘White Flame’ (vodka, dry vermouth, Earl Grey, and caviar); the Sand Dollar Beach, an on-trend mini martini; and the Vilanova Ritual, which is prepared for two people in one of Emma Jane’s signature tea pots. Food options include Korean fried chicken, a Japanese-style mushroom salad (sunomono), and caviar service with crème fraiche dip, soy caramel, and crepes.

    While the original Diversión required a special trip to Spring Branch, the new one could be one stop on an evening in the Harlow District. Located on the property that served as the home to treasured Italian restaurants Nino's, Vincent's, and Grappino di Nino, the development now includes upscale Italian restaurant La Griglia, premier sushi spot Katami, and lively patio bar Verde Garden.

    Diversión will be open Tuesday-Sunday from 5 pm-1 am.


    Diversion cocktail bar Montrose
      

    Photo by Manoah Rodriguez

    The Vilanova Ritual is prepared tableside in a teapot.

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