farewell Damian's

Historic Houston Italian restaurant will shutter after 41 years in Midtown

Damian's will close in August.

Photo by © Jack Thompson

A historic Houston restaurant will soon serve its last meal. Damian’s Cucina Italiana will close on August 17, the restaurant announced on social media.

The brief statement from owners Bubba and Nancy Butera, Judy Mandola, and general manager Johnny B. Mandola reads as follows:

After 41 years of service, we at Damian’s Cucina Italiana sadly announce our closing effective August 17, 2024. We would also like to thank our loyal customers for your outpouring of support and comradery. We would like to thank our amazing staff, which is also our family, for all their hard work and dedication

It’s been a great ride. We will miss you all dearly.

Founded by chef and restaurateur Damian Mandola, Damian’s has been a Houston staple since 1983. At a time when most Italian restaurant served Italian American food, Damian’s offered a more upscale menu of northern Italian favorites such as risotto, osso bucco, and seafood dishes like Linguine alla Gamberoni — gulf shrimp with black garlic, basil, cherry tomatoes, and olive oil.

It quickly established a reputation as both a power lunch destination and a pre-theater dinner spot — complete with a shuttle to transport diners from Midtown to downtown. In addition, the restaurant featured a chef’s table in the kitchen that’s hosted countless special occasions.

Mandola sold the restaurant to his cousins Frankie B. Mandola and Bubba Butera in 1992. Frankie’s son, Johnny B. Mandola, remains the restaurant’s general manager.

Mandola tells CultureMap that Damian's never fully recovered from Covid-era shutdowns and the corresponding changes in people's dining habits. At a time when most restaurants close abruptly, he and Butera wanted to make sure that closed with dignity by paying their employees their full wages and proceeding with scheduled events in the restaurant's private dining room. He notes a few other motivations for the advance notice.

"Once we sadly decided we needed to close, Bubba and I wanted to make sure our amazing staff would have time to make proper arrangements and we wanted to spend more time with the people who worked so hard and cared for this restaurant family for the past 41 years," he writes in an email. "We also wanted to make sure we would be able to visit with so many loyal customers at least one last time and share some memories."

Long before he was a James Beard Award finalist and Food & Wine Best New Chef winner, Houston chef Bryan Caswell worked at Damian's as a bartender and captain. "That place instilled a love and respect for service that I still draw from today," he tells CultureMap.

Although trends and tastes change, CultureMap checked in on the restaurant for its 30th anniversary in 2013 and found that it was still popular, complete with a full dining room on a Wednesday night.

“Not lessened by age, the authentic Italian dining spot has not only survived, but thrived,” Marcy De Luna wrote. “And not by bowing to trends, but by offering consistently good service and delicious, high-quality fare. Reservations never lack and devotees never waiver. Damian's is a Houston institution.”

Even though the social media posts have only been online for a little bit as of this article's publication, Houstonians are already expressing their sadness at the news. People who grew up in Houston in the ‘80s and ‘90s will recall Damian’s as somewhere they dined with parents and grandparents for special occasions or before performances in the Theater District.

Damian’s is only the latest enduring Houston restaurant to close in 2024. Prego, a Rice Village staple for more than 40 years, served its last meals in May.

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rumor no more

East Coast-style Austin pizzeria confirms plans to open in the Heights

Home Slice Pizza Heights location rendering

Courtesy of the Michael Hsu Office of Architecture

A rendering previews Home Slice Pizza's new location in the Heights.

One of Austin’s pizzerias is expanding its presence in Houston. Home Slice Pizza has claimed the former Mapojeong space in the Heights (602 Studewood) for a new location that will open in the fall of 2026.

Founder Joseph Strickland tells CultureMap that Home Slice wanted to add a second Houston location that would build on the success of its Midtown restaurant that opened in late 2022. Unlike Midtown, which is counter service and offers limited seating, the Heights location will offer full service, an expanded menu, and cocktails, which is in line with Home Slice’s North Austin location.

“We saw a lot of synergy in North Austin and the Heights,” Strickland says. “They have a similar feel, a lot of families, a lot of people looking to get together in big groups. There’s also a robust bar scene on White Oak that we’re happy to be part of.”

Strickland says Home Slice had several requirements for a new location, including a larger dining room than Midtown, a decent-sized parking lot, and enough kitchen capacity to serve both dine-in and larger to-go orders. Not only did they find the right building, but they established a productive relationship with the property’s owner, Revive Development, the Houston-based firm that also owns properties that are home to Loro, Squable, Camaraderie, and the Stomping Grounds development in Garden Oaks.

“It was hard to believe at first. The more we talked with the Revive folks, there was a lot of alignment and opportunity for us to expand what we’re showing Houston,” Stickland says.

Home Slice is working with the Michael Hsu Office of Architecture to renovate the building. Strickland notes that it will require some extensive changes, including removing the butcher shop that was installed as part of its iteration as Ritual, a steakhouse that closed in 2021. Assuming everything goes according to plan, the restaurant should open sometime in the fall of 2026.

Home Slice Pizza food spread Home Slice serves New York-style pizza.Photo by Garrett Smith

Once open, Home Slice will serve its East Coast-inspired menu of New York-style pizzas (whole or by-the-slice), hot and cold Italian deli sandwiches, salads, and desserts — all of which utilize dough or bread that’s made in-house. In particular, the restaurant is known for its white clam pizza, as well as classics such as pepperoni and mushroom or sausage with ricotta and roasted peppers. In 2024, the Houston Press awarded “Best Sandwich” to the restaurant’s Italian Assorted, which is made with ham, dry salami, capicola, genoa salami, vegetables, provolone, mayo, and oil & vinegar.

Critically, the Heights Home Slice location will add wings to the New York and Sicilian-style pizzas, salads, and sandwiches that the restaurant serves in Midtown. Inspired by the wings served at the Anchor Bar in Buffalo, New York, Home Slice keeps its wings simple — medium or hot and served with a house made blue cheese dressing. “It goes with our pizza quite wonderfully,” Stickland says.

He hopes that the the wide-ranging menu, flexible menu, and late night hours will appeal to Heights locals, people patronizing the nearby bars on White Oak, and anyone else looking for a slice and a drink. The larger location and full service should make home slice an option for date nights, office happy hours, any just about any other occasion.

“We hope the neighborhood will be happy to have another offering that’s like ours, where you can bring a first date or your office or go by yourself. We offer all those experiences,” Strickland says.

openings news-you-can-eat pizza home slice pizza