Introducing Elliot's Table

New Heights-area restaurant delivers eclectic cuisine and intimate vibe

In the restaurant world, “family meal” is the food served to a restaurant’s staff prior to a shift. Not every restaurant offers one, but the food at those that do — usually an improvised dish prepared by cooks who want to impress their coworkers — can be really outstanding.

That’s the other thing about family meal. Members of the dining public almost never get to experience the dishes, but a Houston restaurant veterans wants the spirit of family meal to guide his new project.

At Elliot’s Table, a new restaurant in the Heights-adjacent neighborhood of Cottage Grove, chef-owner Elliot Roddy has created an eclectic menu of dishes inspired by his stints both cooking and/or managing at restaurants ranging from LA Bar at Ragin Cajun and Pesce to Bramble and more. His time as the general manager of Pinkerton’s Barbecue inspired the spirit of the 30-seat neighborhood restaurant he just opened in the former Papa Mo’s Deli’s on T.C. Jester.

“We started cooked on Mondays [a day the restaurant was closed] at my house. I invited all the staff. We called it family meal,” Roddy tells CultureMap. “Most of the time, we wound up drinking too much and having too much fun. Now it’s come a long way. We want to connect people with good, locally sourced, sustainable products and not put a bunch of artificial ingredients in there.”

That ethos translates into fruits, vegetables, and herbs from Old School Produce, a Houston-based provider that specializes in growing hard to find varieties, as well as steaks from 44 Farms and breads from Cake & Bacon. Since Roddy focuses on savory, his desserts come from local baker JodyCakes.

Those ingredients find their way into an eclectic range of dishes inspired by Roddy’s favorites from different stops at his career. Roasted Gulf oysters with chorizo take their inspiration from Roddy’s time at LA Bar. Cucumber and tomato salad with deviled egg yolk utilizes a recipe from Southern Goods, Lyle Bento’s shuttered Heights restaurant. “Claudia’s mole” is a Oaxacan-style version of the classic dish that’s named after the woman who makes it, the restaurant’s AM prep cook.

Burgers, topped with either bleu cheese or cheddar, arrive properly medium rare (if requested). A fried turkey sandwich, topped with homemade ranch, bacon, and arugula, delivers a flavorful riff on the classic club.

The restaurant’s staff adds to the space’s personal feel. Sous chef Matt Crow is one of Roddy’s closest friends and a family meal regular. Front of house staffers Max Hartman and Eric Belmarez worked with Roddy previously and bring a passion for wine and beer to their roles.

“Max, Eric, and Matt Crow, no way I could do it without those three guys,” Roddy says. “They make it fun. They make it worth it. We have the mentality of everyone does everyone’s job.”

Currently, the restaurant is open for dinner Wednesday through Saturday and brunch on Sunday. Limited lunch service is also in the plans once things are dialed in and when Roddy can find the right employees to staff it. According to him, the restaurant has started to find an audience.

“So far the neighborhood loves us, and we’re going to keep driving ourselves to give the neighborhood what they want. That’s our goal is to service them,” Roddy says.

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Elliot's Table; 465 T.C. Jester Blvd.; 713-485-0340; Wednesday through Saturday 5 pm to 10 pm, Sunday 11 am to 6 pm

Roasted gulf oysters with chorizo.

Photo by Eric Sandler

Roasted gulf oysters with chorizo.

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the more things change

Houston's essential Jewish diner looks better than ever after refresh

Photo by Sergio Trevino

The dining room has more light than ever.

It’s tricky to renovate a restaurant that’s as essential to its community as New York Deli. A staple of Houston’s Jewish community for almost 50 years, the tiny restaurant near Meyerland will serve as many as 400 people during a busy Sunday brunch.

Still, the time had come, as the tape on the deteriorating banquettes and peeling wallpaper illustrated. With the restaurant’s lease up for renewal, co-owner Michael Saghian saw an opportunity for some updates.

“I couldn’t be the new guy who ruined the place by moving it,” he tells CultureMap. “We worked out a deal with the landlord [to stay] and did a big refresh.”

The most noticeable change is the removal of the restaurant’s front door and vestibule. Instead, diners enter through the restaurant’s companion bagel shop. Separate entrances made sense when the bagel shop was certified kosher by local religious authorities, but now that designation only applies to the Bellaire location that opened in 2020. Not only is the new setup easier for people with mobility issues to navigate, it allows more light into the dining room, brightening the place considerably..

Saghian and co-owner Riana Sherman worked with interior designer Erin Hicks on the refresh. Tables, chairs, and banquettes are all new, but the color scheme remains the same. The process yielded 10 more seats, and the furniture is a little more durable, too.

“People have flipped chairs because they’re so lightweight,” Sherman says. “We got a sturdier chair.”

Behind the scenes, an expanded kitchen allows for the restaurant’s cooks to work faster and more efficiently. An additional egg cooker should cut down the amount of time people wait for their food to arrive.

“The kitchen had one of everything. Now we have two of everything. We can pump out a lot more food,” Saghian says.

Photographs on the walls honor longtime customers such as the “bagel girls,” a group of woman who’ve eaten breakfast at the restaurant since the ‘80s. A piece of old wallpaper has been framed and hung on the wall, too, as a nod to the space’s history.

New York Deli interior changes Photographs on the walls honor longtime customers.Photo by Sergio Trevino

Photo by Sergio Trevino

The dining room has more light than ever.

Saghian says he suffered from sleepless nights as he worried about people’s reactions to the changes, but so far his customers have been effusive.

“It still feels like an old school diner,” Saghian says. “It has pieces you remember. Even the new stuff is old school.”

While the physical environment is new, the staff remains the same. To ensure he kept the same team of cooks and servers, Saghian paid their wages for the two weeks the restaurant was closed for renovations.

Even more importantly, the prices are the same. That’s something that will make even the oldest regulars happy.

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