all aboard

Popular Houston chicken & waffle restaurant rolls into Montrose with 'fryders' and ice cream parlor

The Waffle Bus has arrived in Montrose.

A popular Houston food truck has opened a second brick-and-mortar restaurant. The Waffle Bus is now serving in Montrose.

Owner Phi Nguyen tells CultureMap in an email that he always planned to open in the neighborhood. Taking over the former BuffBurger space at 1540 W. Alabama St. allows the restaurant to build on the success its achieved since opening its first restaurant in The Heights two years ago.

“We added a second location, because our first location has been a big success even through COVID,” he writes. “We actually got busier every month as we worked harder to improve everything on our menu.”

Those improvements mean the restaurant’s signature chicken and waffles, chicken thunder fries (fried chicken over waffle fries with spicy mayo and ancho chile honey butter), and “fryders” (mini sandwiches with waffles fries for buns) taste better than ever. Over time, the restaurant has added a full range of chicken dishes that keep it current with the latest trends. Diners will also find new options such as a smash burger on a brioche bun and banana cream pie waffles.

Nguyen found so much success with the milkshakes at the first location that Montrose features a full ice cream parlor. Ten flavors of cereal ice cream can be paired with 10 different toppings. In addition, a soft serve machine dispenses two flavors of Dole Whip: black cherry and the more familiar pineapple.

On the beverage side, the restaurant has 11 beers on tap and a full liquor license to serve flavorful cocktails.

To transform BuffBurger into The Waffle Bus, Nguyen made a number of improvements to the space. The walls have been covered with the brand’s signature red acrylic, and a wall features nine, 65-inch TVs. An expanded patio area adds more TVs and convenient pickup windows.

As it celebrates 10 years of operations with a new location, Nguyen is already looking to the future.

“The food truck life is not an easy one, but we've put in a lot of hard work to get where we are and don't plan on stopping anytime soon,” he writes.

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elevated dining

Luxurious downtown hotel elevates with new rooftop restaurant

The Perch restaurant JW Marriott Houston Downtown

Courtesy of JW Marriott Houston Downtown

A rendering previews The Perch at the JW Marriott Houston Downtown.

The next step in a downtown hotel’s renovation and expansion is taking shape. A new rooftop restaurant called The Perch will open next year at the JW Marriott Houston Downtown.

Open for lunch, happy hour, and dinner, The Perch will serve as a complement to the hotel’s new rooftop pool. Details on the menu are light, but diners can expect “a range of thoughtful dishes that highlight Houston’s diverse culinary influences,” according to a release.

Chef Rafael Gonzalez will lead the kitchen. His resume includes a stint as executive chef at Quattro, the Italian restaurant at the Four Seasons Hotel Houston that closed in 2020 and was replaced by pan-Latin steakhouse Toro Toro.

Earlier this year, the hotel announced that it is adding the adjacent Battelstein’s Building at 812 Main to its existing footprint. In addition to adding the Perch and a rooftop pool, the expanded hotel will have more meeting rooms and a new restaurant on the ground floor. When the expansion is complete, the JW Marriott will have a total of 384 guest rooms (an increase of 56), including 89 suites.

Currently, the JW Marriott occupies the historic, 22-story Samuel F. Carter Building at 806 Main. The hotel opened in 2014.