where to order thanksgiving

13 Houston restaurants serving up Thanksgiving feasts to-go

Thanksgiving is around the corner and hosts might be looking for a little help. Whether it's a few side dishes or a whole meal, Houston restaurants offer a variety of dishes to feed a few or a crowd. Here are our recommendations.

Esther's Cajun Café and Soul Food
To-go feasts that serve between eight and 10 people are available for between $139.99 and $199.99. The $139.99 base package includes Cajun-fried turkey or spiraled ham, cornbread dressing, giblet gravy, and cranberry sauce. The deluxe package ($199.99) offers the same selections, along with three sides and sweet potato pie. A la carte options of side dishes and desserts are also available. See the full menu online. To order call 713-393-7373 or email esthers.catering@yahoo.com.

Feges BBQ
The popular barbecue joint has a whole 12-to-14-pound turkey or a spiral-cut, bone-in, rum-glazed smoked ham, available hot and ready for pickup on Thanksgiving morning for $150 each. Side selections include pimento mac and cheese, loaded potato mash, and sweet and spicy sprouts ($40 each). For dessert, pick up a rum raisin bread pudding that serves between 10 and 12 people for $40. See the full list of offerings online. All orders must be placed by November 16.

Hungry's
The Rice Village and Memorial locations offer a family feast that includes oven-roasted turkey with brown gravy, cornbread stuffing, mashed potatoes with poblano mushroom sauce, green bean casserole, cranberry sauce, dinner rolls, and a seasonal pie. The cost is $210 and the meal feeds between 10 and 15 people. Orders require a 24-hour notice and must be picked by November 23 at 3 pm. See the full menu and ordering details here.

KP's Kitchen
For $150, get a Thanksgiving feast for four people. The meal includes oven-roasted, bone-in turkey with dressing and gravy; a choice of roasted Brussels sprouts with fish sauce, crispy cauliflower with marcona almonds and currents, or a vegetable medley with herb butter; twice whipped mashed potatoes, bacon-wrapped figs, a harvest salad with herb vinaigrette, and a peacn-apple crumble. Order online or call 713-677-0921.

Lagniappe
The Heights hot spot has a host of a la carte items to create a custom Thanksgiving feast. Select from dishes such as the house-smoked holiday ham to feed between six and 10 people for $75, oyster cornbread stuffing for $16, a charcuterie and cheese board for $40, and chicory bread pudding with a caramel drizzle for $24. Need cocktails? Try the Port Hurricane or the Lagniappe Sangria for $32 each. Order here and select a pick-up date between November 21 and 23 when you check out.

Liberty Kitchen and Oysterette
A Thanksgiving feast to feed between four and six people is available at both the River Oaks and the Memorial locations. The cost is $275 and includes hand-carved roasted turkey, green bean casserole, Boursin mashed potatoes, mac and cheese, oyster stuffing, and Parker rolls with bacon jam. Place orders by 9 pm Sunday, November 20 and pick up November 22 or 23.

Lucille's
Put Southern soul food on the table with side from this Museum District fave. A half pan feeds 10 to 15 people and a full pan feeds 20 to 25. Options include Lucille's braised collard greens ($60 half; $95 full), baked mac and cheese ($65 half; $100 full), sweet potato casserole made from a family recipe ($65 half; $95 full), and cranberry sauce ($8 half; $14 full). View the full menu and order online or by calling 713-568-2505. All orders must be placed by midnight November 17 with pickup on November 23 between 11 am and 3 pm. Delivery to select ZIP codes is available on November 23 between 8 am and 5 pm.

Pondicheri
Give Thanksgiving an Indian flair with takeout options from this Upper Kirby institution. The Herbivore Holiday Meal is $210 and comes with selections such as potato and herb samosas, winter green salad, vegan truffle mac and cheese, and turmeric soup. The Omnivore Holiday Meal is $230 and offers dishes such as tandoori paneer kabobs, mustard potatoes, and crab samosas, among others. Diners can opt for gluten-free selections for an extra charge. Order online by November 20 for pickup on Thanksgiving Day at 10 am or noon.

State Fare
All three locations offer a Southern-style Thanksgiving package that includes smoked turkey, turkey gravy, bacon-y green beans, and jalapeno andouille cornbread stuffing. The cost is $250, and the meal feeds between four and six people. Sides are available a la carte for $30 each. Orders must be placed by 9 pm on November 20 and pick up is on November 22 or 23.

Three Brothers
The bakery has pies available for Thanksgiving dessert. Options include a salted caramel pecan pie for $29.99, pumpkin pie for $24.99, cherry pie for $24.99, apple pie for $24.99, and more. See the full listing here. Place orders by November 16 and pick up in the store on November 23.

Tony's
The iconic restaurant has a Dinner for Six option for $330, which includes sliced turkey breast and dark meat, mashed potatoes, gravy, Italian green beans, cornbread stuffing, cranberry relish, pumpkin pie, and pumpkin bread. Have more people? No problem. Extra portions are available for $60 per person. And those wanting additional options, such as Tony's classic lasagna ($75) or wine recommendations (try the 2018 Frank Family Merlot from Napa for $98) can check out the full menu online. Place orders here. Pick up is Wednesday, November 23 from 11 am to 3 pm.

Traveler's Table
Put a little tropical flavor into Thanksgiving with selections such as island-spiced turkey breast for $75, Tahitian taro and coconut stuffing ($32), cardamom and rum candied sweet potatoes ($30), curried green beans and rice casserole ($32), and more. The full menu is here. Order by 2 pm on Monday, November 21 and pick up on Wednesday or Thursday, November 23 and 24 between 10 am and 2 pm.

Urbe
Hugo Ortega's street food-focused restaurant has a selection of a la carte items available. Get an oven-roasted turkey breast that wills serve eight for $115. Barbacoa and brisket are each $28 per pound. Brisket tamales or pork tamales with adobo are both $24 per dozen. Get a dozen Mexican street corn for $62 or a quart of Mexican rice for $16. Bourbon-pecan cheesecake and pumpkin pie are $32 each. A quart of Hugorita is available for $44. See the full menu and order online. Pre-order by Sunday, November 21 for pickup on November 24.

Picture of a roast turkey on a platter surrounded by plates of sausage and brisket, mac and cheese, potatoes, carrots and a jar of Alabama White sauce

Photo by Jenn Duncan

Get a large turkey to go at Feges BBQ

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service switcheroo

Street food-inspired Houston restaurant swaps counter service for servers

Photo by Andrew Hemingway

Traveler's Cart is add new dishes to its menu, including steak frites and chicken parm.

A globally-inspired Houston restaurant is making a big change to its service model. Traveler’s Cart will switch from counter service to full service beginning this Monday, November 17.

When owners Thy and Matthew Mitchell opened Traveler’s Cart last year as a more casual sister concept to Traveler’s Table, their globally-inspired Montrose restaurant, they decided counter service would match the restaurant’s street food-inspired menu and lower price point. With a year of experience, they’ve decided full service — where diners sit down and order from a server — will improve the customer experience in a number of ways.

First, they noticed that some of their online reviews go to great lengths to explain the ordering process. Moving to traditional table service will elimination that confusion.

“We want to be like a great brasserie or izakaya where people come and enjoy food and drinks at a reasonable price,” Matthew Mitchell tells CultureMap. “There’s a lack of intuitiveness about the process right now. Almost a year in, we’re still having to explain where you go and how you order. That tells you we probably missed the mark.”

He also recognizes that the inherent uncertainty of counter service — people are concerned about how long they’ll have to wait to order and whether a table will be available once they do — limits the restaurant’s appeal as a date night option or for larger groups who want the certainty of having a place to sit.

Even though the restaurant has been a financial success, according to Mitchell, he thinks Traveler’s Cart is missing out on revenue with its counter service model. “I think people order less at the counter. You may not order a cocktail, and you certainly won’t get back up and order more drinks,” he says.

Switching to full service will also help the restaurant’s perceived value. With entrees mostly priced between $15 and $25, the restaurant may feel expensive relative to other fast casual restaurants. Once servers are added, Mitchell thinks diners will appreciate the value, particularly since its prices are about half of sister concept Traveler’s Table.

“I feel like the food quality is outstanding for the price, but when it crosses that $20 or $30 threshold, people perceive it as pricey,” he says.

Traveler’s Cart has other ways to enhance the value of its offering, such as its $18, three-course lunch that includes iced tea or a fountain drink. Happy hour, available Monday through Friday from 3-6 pm, includes $8 cocktails, $3 drafts, $8 small plates, and more.

Along with the new service model, Travelers Cart is updating its menu with a number of new dishes. They include Thai chili queso, Baja shrimp tacos, salmon donburi bowl, chicken parmesan, and steak frites. The cocktail menu has also been refreshed with a Mexican espresso martini and a Tuk Tuk Old Fashioned, named for the vehicle that now sits in front of the restaurant’s entrance.

Recently recognized by the Texas Restaurant Association as Restaurateurs of the Year for the Houston region, the Mitchells hope that these changes will lead to even more success. With the service style refined and the menu dialed in, they’re already looking for another location.

Photo by Andrew Hemingway

Traveler's Cart is add new dishes to its menu, including steak frites and chicken parm.

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