Levi Goode is ready to share more details about his plans to bring Goode Co. Kitchen & Cantina to the River Oaks Shopping Center.

As CultureMap reported in October, Goode has claimed the former La Griglia space for Kitchen & Cantina’s fourth location; it will also be home to a speakeasy-style bar called Bar Buena. With construction well underway, both the restaurant and the bar should open in March.

[Update 3/3: The restaurant announced it will open on Wednesday, March 12. An opening date for Bar Buena has not been set.]

The chef and restaurateur explains that part of the decision to open in River Oaks stems in part from the good-natured grief he’s been getting about the restaurant from regulars at his four establishments on Kirby Drive. They wanted to experience its food without having to drive to the Heights or Memorial.

“Everybody is very territorial on where they live and eat,” Goode says. “I think it’s funny. I’ve been getting lots of jokes about Credence and Kitchen and Cantina, ‘Are you ever going to do this inside the loop?’ It was exciting we were able to secure a really iconic restaurant space and evolve it into Kitchen & Cantina.”

Turning La Griglia into Kitchen & Cantina requires extensive renovations. One that people will notice immediately is that the bar has been moved back a little bit to make it easier to enter the restaurant. A large tree in the middle of the dining room will emphasize its high ceilings.

One element that will remain are the concrete pavers that local celebrities signed when the restaurant opened. Its a nod to the space’s history and as well as a bygone era of Houston restaurants.

Just as Credence’s speakeasy Sidebar has a distinct feel from the main restaurant, Bar Buena will have a difference environment than Kitchen & Cantina. Occupying La Griglia’s former private dining room, the bar takes inspiration from Goode’s extensive travels throughout Mexico, including to places like Jalisco and Oaxaca.

“Bar Buena is going to be a bit more refined than what we’ve done at Kitchen and Cantina,” he says. “If it’s ranch-inspired, very Texas-Mexican frontera, you’re going to get more a polished finish at Bar Buena. It’s a small space, very intimate. A place where we’ll be well suited for great hospitality with small bites, great cocktails, and tastings of agave-based spirits.”

Of course, the food menu will be familiar to anyone who’s dined at Kitchen & Cantina’s existing locations. Like all Goode Co. restaurants, it features meats grilled on mesquite. Expect favorites such as fajitas, redfish on the half shell, carnitas, and campechana along with an extensive selection of agave-based cocktails.

Courtesy of Goode Co. Restaurants

Goode Co. is bringing its mesquite-grilled fajitas to River Oaks.