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Presenting Houston's 10 best patios for outdoor drinking and dining

Each year, the CultureMap Tastemaker Awards includes a wildcard category that’s unique to that year’s ceremony. For 2024, CultureMap’s editors have selected Best Patio.

After all, Houstonians love to eat outdoors. Sure, it becomes tricky in July and August, but our mild winters mean plenty of al fresco opportunities. Recognizing that reality, restaurant and bar owners have provided their fellow Houstonians with any number of comfortable spaces for drinking, dining, and socializing.

Our nominees run the gamut from a down home ice house to River Oaks’ ultimate see-and-be-seen spot. Some have a view of a parking lot, while one offers one of the best places to admire the downtown skyline. All of them offer an ideal environment for escaping the stress of city life.

Which establishment will win? Find out March 27 at the Tastemaker Awards party. We’ll dine on bites from this year’s nominated restaurants and sip cocktails from our sponsors before revealing the winners in our short and sweet ceremony.

Buy your tickets now. VIP passes are already sold out. Don’t miss out on the remaining General Admission tickets.

Axelrad
Since it opened at the end of 2015, Axelrad has welcomed patrons to its spacious backyard patio. Whether lounging in a hammock or gathering for community events like movie nights and concerts, Axelrad’s outdoor space facilitates a wide array of experiences. The extensive beer selection, craft cocktails, and the ability to order pizza from Luigi’s all contribute to the experience.

Courtesy of Saint Arnold

Saint Arnold Brewing Company.

Backstreet Cafe
This River Oaks institution has a small exterior patio, but the true prize is its spacious interior courtyard. The tree-shaded space has a magical ability to feel cool during all but the hottest summer days. It feels even more special during Sunday brunch, when diners feast on chef Hugo Ortega’s creations while sipping on selections from the extensive wine list.

Better Luck Tomorrow
The sprawling patio at Bobby Heugel and Justin Yu’s neighborhood bar has become a Heights staple. Friends gather on it for casual weeknight dinners or as a place to grab drinks before wandering around the neighborhood. Recent upgrades to the furniture make it an even more comfortable place to spend an afternoon.

Brasil
Choose from two experiences at this Montrose cafe. The front patio gets energy from its proximity to the bustling intersection of Westheimer and Dunlavy. An inner courtyard offers a quiet escape from the city’s hustle and bustle. Either way, Brasil’s casual, affordable menu will satisfy almost any craving.

Brasserie 19
Houston’s ultimate see-and-be-seen patio provides a venue for its River Oaks regulars to schmooze and socialize. Trays of oysters and bottles of bubbles provide sustenance, or indulge in French classics like Nicoise salad and trout almondine. B19’s patrons add an extra level of excitement by rolling up in the latest hypercars or a vintage Ferrari.

Coltivare
Houstonians have been eating pepperoni pizzas and bowls of black spaghetti on Coltivare’s patio for 10 years. The patio connects to the restaurant’s massive garden that supplies the kitchen with herbs and produce to demonstrate its commitment to only using the freshest seasonal ingredients. When the weather warms up, the signature gin & tonic helps cool things off.

Giacomo's Cibo e Vino
Lynette Hawkins’ River Oaks restaurant remains one of Houston’s most satisfying Italian eateries. Its patio serves as an ideal place to enjoy Giacomo’s carefully curated menu of vegetable dishes, pastas, and other favorites. The ivy-covered fence adds a natural element that will lift anyone’s spirits. Even better, it’s dog friendly.

Saint Arnold Brewing Company
If this category were titled “Best Patio View,” then Saint Arnold’s look at the downtown skyline would make it the automatic winner. A large canopy — complete with a fountain made from an upside down brew kettle — provides an all-weather space where patrons can enjoy beers, pizza, and more. The brewery displays Astros games on a giant screen, making it a perfect place to root for the home team.

West Alabama Ice House
Not to get too romantic, but something special happens in this bar’s sprawling backyard. Houston may not have better spot to gather on a sunny afternoon. Grab a beer. Play a lawn game or two. Snack on tacos from the adjacent Tacos Tierra Caliente truck. It doesn’t get better than that.

Winnie's
It’s a simple fact that po’ boys and cocktails taste better when eaten outdoors. Thankfully, Winnie’s has a spacious patio with picnic tables that provides a proper setting for sampling its wares. The patio also serves as a venue for pop-up markets and other happenings that keep regulars coming back again and again.

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The 2024 CultureMap Tastemaker Awards takes place 6-10 pm Wednesday, March 27 at Silver Street Studios (2000 Edwards St.).

The Tastemaker Awards ceremony is brought to you by Stella Artois, Rías Baixas Albariño, Topo Chico Sparkling Mineral Water, 8th Wonder Cannabis, Tito's Vodka, and more to be announced. A portion of proceeds will benefit our nonprofit partner, the Southern Smoke Foundation.

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New York Times critic awards Houston restaurant 2 stars in glowing review

Courtesy of ChòpnBlọk

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Let’s just call 2025 the year of ChòpnBlọk. In a review published Tuesday, December 16, the New York Times has awarded the Houston restaurant two stars (“very good”).

Written by chief restaurant critic Tejal Rao, the review touts many of the same qualities that the Times already praised when it included ChòpnBlọk on its list of America’s 50 best restaurants.

Rao writes that she usually avoids restaurants that serve food in bowls, but she’s impressed by the way that chef-owner Ope Amosu has put a West African spin on the concept.

“For inspiration, Ope Amosu looked to the kind of chain restaurants that were built to scale, where flavors are often subdued to appeal to the broadest possible audience, focus-grouped to death. But the delight of ChòpnBlok is in its sure sense of self, its lively, multidimensional cooking and clear, delicious vision for modern food from the Black diaspora,” Rao writes.

She singles out specific dishes, including the Nigerian red stew with short rib, the Black Star bowl with shrimp, and the signature Motherland, made with chicken, greens, and plantains. “It’s utterly simple, but draws you in for more with the mouthwatering twang of not-too-much MSG — an international shortcut to building umami that tends to be used carefully, and layered with other forms,” she writes.

The review also touches on the way Amosu switched the restaurant from counter service to full service — described as “warm, informal, and quick with the jokes” — and his time working at Chipotle to learn the basics of the restaurant operations.

A two-star review is only the latest instance of ChòpnBlọk receiving national attention. In addition to the Times 50 best list, Esquire recently named it one of America’s best new restaurants. The Michelin Guide awarded it a Bib Gourmand designation for 2025. Amosu earned a semifinalist nomination for Best Chef: Texas in the 2025 James Beard Awards.

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