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    Dining for a cause

    Houston restaurants and bars think pink with cool cocktails and dishes for Breast Cancer Awareness Month

    Holly Beretto
    Oct 12, 2023 | 1:00 pm

    As we know, October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and restaurants and bars across the city are offering multiple ways diners can pay tribute to this important cause.

    Proceeds from specialty dishes and cocktails will be donated to various breast cancer nonprofits (some listed below). Diners looking to support this important cause should check out these pink picks of fun dishes and drinks from a host of Houston restaurants, coffee bars, bars, and more below.

    Amrina
    The Woodlands hot spot is serving the Pink Ribbon cocktail this month. It's a blend of High West Double Rye, Amaro Nonino, fresh lime juice, and raspberry puree, topped off with a splash of lime-yuzu soda, making it a cool refresher for Houston's current patio weather. $1 from each drink will be donated to Houston Methodist Cancer Center.

    Arnaldo Richards' Picos
    The Upper Kirby Mexican favorite hosts a special Pink Ribbon Brunch on Sunday, October 15 from 9 am - 4 pm. The restaurant is donating $5 from every adult brunch and $2 from every child brunch to The Rose Breast Center of Excellence. The buffet includes options such as migas, ceviche, tamales, a carving station, and build-your-own waffle and omelet stations. The cost is $42 for adults and $30 for children. Learn more and make reservations online.

    Can't make brunch? Stop in all month long for the signature Pico Rita and know that $1 from its sales are going to The Rose.

    BB’s Tex-Orleans
    All locations are taking part in supporting breast cancer awareness this month. Diners can purchase the Big Shrimpin' Platter, which includes a half pound of boiled shrimp, six fried shrimp, six grilled Creole lemon shrimp, shrimp and grits, shrimp cocktail, and corn and potatoes, for $34.99. BB's will donate $3 from every platter sold to the Susan G. Komen Foundation.

    Bread Zepplin
    Stop in for the Pink Lady Salad, a special creation for Breast Cancer Awareness Month. It's a combination of Pink Lady apples with candied pecans, creamy goat cheese, tangy red onions, and grilled chicken, tossed with Arcadian salad mix and spinach, and crowned with a Champagne vinaigrette. Proceeds from its sales will go to The Rose.

    Dessert Gallery
    This sweet spot has created special confections in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Choose form Raspberry Sugar Cookies or Pink Ribbon Cookies, available for $4.95 each. A portion of the sales from the treats will go to Metavivor, an organization dedicated to advancing metastatic breast cancer research, providing essential support, and raising awareness.

    Etoile
    Diners who opt for the four-course, pre-fixe menu this month will be helping the restaurant support The Nancy Owens Breast Cancer Foundation, a nonprofit service that provides financial support to charities that are in the fight against breast cancer. The menu includes selections of appetizers, entrees, and desserts, featuring classic French fare. The cost is $74 per person and $8 will be donated to the nonprofit. Diners opting for the three-course brunch menu, which is $38 per person, will see $4 of their purchase donated.

    J-Bar-M Barbecue
    Head downtown for the restaurant's Rose Cinnamon Roll, a giant, gooey confection smothered with strawberry icing and crowned with a sprinkle of freeze-dried strawberries for $18. A portion of proceeds from this month's sales of the themed twist on a menu signature will be donated to The Rose.

    Los Tios
    Stop by any of the six Los Tios locations across the city this month and sample the restaurant's strawberry margarita. Los Tios will donate $1 from the sale of each cocktail, available frozen or on the rocks, to The Rose.

    Marmo
    Drink pink at the Montrose Italian chophouse throughout October. The restaurant is donating $1 from every glass of rosé sold this month to the Susan G. Komen Foundation. Whether sipping the Cesarini Sforza Brut Rosé ($18 a glass), made from Chardonnay and Pinot Nero, with its hints of bright red fruit and a zesty ting, or the Scaia Rondinella ($12 a glass) noted for its bright bang of strawberries and lemon, or any other specials on the wine list, the result is the same: drinkers get a great wine, and a great cause is supported.

    Ojo de Agua
    The Mexico City newcomer in River Oaks District donates $1 from every bright pink Pitaya Bowl to The Rose. The dish is sorbet served with banana, raspberry, blueberry, plum, and topping of coconut flakes that costs $16 for one scoop or $23 for two.

    Southside Sporting Club
    The Stafford gathering spot offers a special Breast Cancer Awareness Month cocktail, the Drink Pink Rita. It's a frozen margarita infused with juicy watermelon and tropical pineapple. Proceeds from its sales will go to The Rose. The Sporting Club's sister establishments, KAMP Houston and Prospect Park, each have their own take on frose this month, and are also giving proceeds to The Rose.

    Sugar Frk
    The new dessert café in Midtown's Post Midtown Square development has two specials created to honor Breast Cancer Awareness Month. The Double Strawberry Glaze Donut is a strawberry glaze doughnut striped with strawberry caramel and strawberry buttercream sprinkles. The Frosé is a frozen, blended rosé wine concoction. Sugar Frk will donate a portion of the proceeds from sales of each to The Rose.

    Tacos A Go Go
    All locations of the fast casual favorite are serving up a special taco for the month of October. The Ta Ta Taco is served in a vibrant pink corn tortilla, colored with beet juice, and filled with shredded chicken, julienne carrots, crispy jicama, pickled onions and radish, and cilantro, then topped with xoconostle cactus fruit sauce. Proceeds from sales of the dish go to The Rose.

    Taste Kitchen + Bar
    The Blood Orange Lemon Drop Bold Martini was created in honor of the bold women and men battling and surviving breast cancer. Throughout Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Taste will donate a portion of the proceeds for every Bold Martini sold ito The Rose.

    Three Brothers Bakery
    Inspired by a family member's battle against breast cancer, all of the bakery's locations will donate 50 percent of the proceeds of its pink ribbon delicacies to Janice's Race for the Cure fundraising efforts on behalf of the Susan. G. Komen Foundation. Some of the options include a pink ribbon petit four pack of six for $15.99, a six pack of pink ribbon gingerbread men for $34.99, or a pink ribbon cake for $49.99.

    Truluck's
    The upscale seafood spot is partnering with winemaker J. Lohr this month for a program the restaurant is calling "parings with purpose." For each bottle of J. Lohr Carol’s Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon sold, Truluck's will donate $20 to the National Breast Cancer Foundation’s breast cancer education and early detection programs. Priced at $138 per bottle, the Napa wine has notes of dark berry and spice, according to Truluck's.

    Wild
    The Montrose coffee shop, bar, and dispensary has crafted a special cocktail for Breast Cancer Awareness Month. It's the Wild Dragon, made with Diplomatico Mantuano, Cointreau, Falernum, "Dragon’s Blood," and lime and pineapple juices, creating a multilayered drink. Proceeds from the drink will benefit The Rose.

    The Wild Dragon cocktail at Wild

    Photo by Steven Cromer

    Proceeds from the Wild Dragon cocktail at Wild go to The Rose.

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    firing up Montrose

    New Houston seafood restaurant adds live-fire flair to Japanese flavors

    Eric Sandler
    Dec 3, 2025 | 10:02 am
    Casa Kenji restaurant
    Photo by Becca Wright
    Spanish sea bass, scallop crudo, nigiri, bluefin binchotan, and bluefin crudo.

    An ambitious new seafood restaurant is coming to Montrose next week. Casa Kenji will open on Tuesday, December 9.

    Located in the former Andiron space (3201 Allen Pkwy), Casa Kenji is the first Houston project for New Orleans restaurateur Malachi DuPre, a former LSU standout who played briefly in the NFL before establishing Kenji and Kenji Kazoku restaurants in New Orleans. Together with former LSU teammate John “B-John” Ballis and Houston chef Bigler “Biggie” Cruz, Casa Kenji will blend Latin and Japanese influences while also incorporating live-fire elements into the restaurant’s dishes. Cruz, whose resume includes a lengthy stint at Uchi as well as working at critically acclaimed Houston seafood restaurant Golfstrømmen, tells CultureMap that Casa Kenji’s approach is the first time he can be himself in the kitchen.

    “My perfect restaurant was always based on the live fire and sushi combination,” Cruz says. “My mom cooked with wood for my entire life. The live fire creates completely different flavors. The smoky flavors, the sear from the charcoal — they create a different type of memory for me.”

    The use of live fire techniques will permeate Casa Kenji’s menus in ways both big and small. For example, diners will be able to feast on prawns grilled directly on charcoal and served with yuzu chili garlic, or savor lightly seared Japanese wagyu tataki paired with mushrooms. Even raw dishes will benefit from the restaurant’s wood-burning grill and stove.

    “Every vegetable we peel, we make into an ash that’s a topping for the dishes. It adds a different layer of flavor,” Cruz says. Look for it in the scallop aguachile, among others.

    Even vegetables get a smoky component, as in a cabbage dish that’s braised with dashi and soy sauce before being roasted and served with an onion soubise that Cruz says he developed based on techniques he learned from Golfstrømmen chef Christopher Haatuft.

    “It’s rich, super savory, with smoky layers, and you get brightness from the shiso gremolata. I think it will be a signature dish for us,” the chef says.

    One change to the interior is the addition of a six-seat omakase counter that looks into the kitchen. Cruz promises those diners will have an even more elevated experience than the restaurant’s regular menu, including ingredients such as Japanese wagyu and premium fish flown in from Tokyo’s Toyosu fish market.

    Beyond its cuisine, Casa Kenji hopes to stand out with its spacious outdoor patio. Since very few Japanese-inspired restaurants in Houston offer outdoor seating, it should appeal to diners who want a little vitamin D along with their tuna crudo.

    “We’re proud to showcase the craft and creativity that defines Casa Kenji,” co-founders Cruz, Ballis, and DuPre said in a statement. “With chef Bigler Cruz at the helm — blending live-fire technique with the discipline of Japanese tradition — we’re equally honored and excited to share a unique concept that is truly rooted in passion, culture, and community.”

    Casa Kenji will be open for dinner Tuesday through Sunday beginning at 4 pm. Reservations are available on Resy.

    Casa Kenji restaurant

    Photo by Becca Wright

    Spanish sea bass, scallop crudo, nigiri, bluefin binchotan, and bluefin crudo.

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