Thanks, Houston, for a decade of memorable meals

Since the Michelin Guide’s arrival in Texas, it has been rare for any included restaurant to close, but Killen’s, chef Ronnie Killen’s Southern restaurant that holds a Bib Gourmand designation, will serve its final meals on Sunday, July 19.

Open since 2020 in the space previously occupied by Hickory Hollow, Killen’s serves a Southern-inspired menu based on chef Killen’s family recipes. That includes chicken fried steak and fried chicken, as well as Killen’s signature items such as barbecue and smoked pork belly bites. Last year, chef Killen recruited chef Ryan Hildebrand (formerly of Triniti) to elevate the menu and upgraded the restaurant with new furniture, dinnerware, and silverware.

All of which is to say that chef Killen’s decision to sell the property for $3.5 million to a new owner — who plans to convert it into a gas station — comes as a bit of a surprise. As he tells CultureMap in an exclusive interview, a number of reasons played into the decision.

Why Killen’s is closing

First, the chef has been consolidating his operations over the past few years. Closing Killen’s follows the 2023 closure of Mexican-inspired Pearland restaurant Killen’s TMX; the 2024 shuttering of Killen’s STQ, his live fire steakhouse in Briargrove; and the 2025 closures of both of his restaurants in The Woodlands, Killen’s Steakhouse and Killen’s Barbecue.

As Killen has discussed before, a number of injuries and surgeries have limited his mobility and caused him considerable pain. A couple months ago, he had another back procedure that’s left him unable to bend over to tie his shoes but has improved his overall health.

“The chronic pain was so much worse than it was [before the surgery]. I’m not taking drugs everyday not to be in pain,” Killen says.

In addition, the chef’s confidence in the restaurant’s location has also waned due to increased crime in the area. In one particularly bizarre incident, he spent $8,000 to remove graffiti by a mentally unstable woman who accused the restaurant of causing harm to her stuffed monkey.

“When I first bought the place, I could walk to H-E-B and get stuff. I was never asked for money. or worried about getting held up,” he says. “Now, i get asked for money three different times on every corner. I think the area has gotten worse.”

Finally, despite the Michelin recognition and new energy chef Hildebrand brought to the restaurant, it simply hasn’t performed as well financially as it needed to in order to stay open. The money he’ll make from selling the land is far more than the restaurant will earn, even over the next couple of years.

“If the place were doing $10 million a year, I would have looked at the restaurant value instead of the land value,” Killen says.

Ryan Hildebrand’s perspective

Chef Hildebrand understands Killen’s business decision to cash out and move on. He went through a similar process at Triniti, his critically-acclaimed fine dining restaurant that closed in 2017. He’s committed to staying with the restaurant until it closes — at which point, he’ll be looking for a new job.

“I’ve been an owner,” Hildebrand says. “I’ve owned the real estate. When someone makes you an offer and the restaurant isn’t doing what you wanted, you have a decision.”

Ultimately, Hildebrand thinks the changes he made — including adding more seafood and other items to move the restaurant slightly upmarket — confused regular customers who just wanted the restaurant’s original dishes and heaping portions.

“The challenge was to not shock the system too harshly. To hang onto the clientele that was existing and that was loyal. They were entrenched in barbecue,” Hildebrand says. “We had to maintain the identity and at the same time change things. We probably needed to rebrand the whole show. Shut it down. Change the name. Change the menu.”

Still, he's proud of the work he did in the eight months he spent at the restaurant, and he's eager to take on his next challenge.

"I definitely want to stay in Houston," he says. "We’re home. We’re much happier. The search starts now. You can announce it. I am wildly available."

Closing Killen’s will leave Ronnie Killen with just five restaurants — three locations of Killen’s Barbecue in Pearland, Cypress, and Hobby Airport; Killen’s Burgers in Pearland; and Killen’s Steakhouse, which is currently closed for renovations that Ronnie Killen hopes will help it earn a Michelin star (more on that in the weeks to come).

“It’s just business and timing,” Killen says. “Trust me, it’s very hard. That place means so much to me. It was built with recipes that my grandmother and my godmother made. It was the food I ate as a kid that made me want to become a chef.”