Levi Goode is going solo. The chef, restaurateur, and president of Goode Company Restaurants announced he’s opening two new fine dining restaurants in The McKinley at Memorial City luxury high-rise under his personal brand.

They are:

• Credence, described in press materials as a South Texas ranch-inspired upscale restaurant that will utilize live fire cooking
• Sidebar, a steakhouse and cocktail bar devoted to classic American fare.

Whereas Goode Company restaurants don’t have a named chef, Levi Goode is the executive chef for both Credence and Sidebar. In comments provided by a representative in response to CultureMap’s questions about the restaurants, Goode explains that his personal brand is distinct from Goode Co., the Houston-based restaurant group founded by his late father Jim Goode, in other ways, too.

Photo by Jody Horton

A preview of Credence's food offerings.

“The key difference is the Levi Goode brand is filtered through my personal tastes, travels, experiences, memories — as a fifth-generation Texan, an outdoorsman, a chef, a lover of people coming together around good food, drink and music,” he writes. “It’s a way for me to flex my creative muscle and take the Goode Co. mission and values into the wild and off the beaten path. We’re both headed the same direction, but if Goode Co.’s route is a paved highway, mine’s a dirt road — expect a few more bumps, turns, and surprises along the way.”

At Credence, those bumps and turns will manifest as a dishes such as a Fire Roasted Seafood Tower, Dry Aged Duck for Two and Hearth Roasted Swordfish on the Bone that will be cooked on the restaurant’s wood-burning grill. Other possibilities include parisa (a variation on steak tartare served in Medina County), roasted bone marrow, and mushroom and cornbread gnocchi. They’ll be paired with classic cocktails including a paloma, an Old Fashioned, and a Negroni.

On the other hand, diners should not expect to see Goode Co. staples such as seafood campechana or pecan pie.

“Credence is a South Texas luxury ranch-inspired, upscale dining concept exploring my perspectives on the region’s food, people, and culture,” Goode explains. “It is unlike any existing Goode Co. concept. The menu is still evolving, and will likely pull inspiration from my family’s recipes, but will not serve the same menu items as our current restaurants.”

Similarly, Sidebar will be a reservation-only restaurant and cocktail bar that will be accessible either from its own door or from within Credence. An extensive cocktail program will feature infused spirits and elevated takes on classics such as the martini, Manhattan, and Old Fashioned. In addition, it will offer an extensive wine list with a focus on “highly-allocated champagne.” Expect classic American fare such as dry-aged steaks and oysters topped with caviar.

While Levi Goode is opening these two new restaurants, he will also remain president of Goode Company Restaurants. Asked about why Credence and Sidebar aren’t part of Goode Co., the restaurateur replied as follows:

“Credence is a personal concept developed through the lens of my stories and experiences. Think of it as my solo album, adjacent to the anthology of hospitality concepts created by our Goode Co. team,” Goode writes.

Does that make Credence the Wildflowers to the Full Moon Fever that is Goode Co. Fish Camp or Tex-Mex concept Goode Co. Kitchen and Cantina? That will become more clear when these restaurants open in the summer of 2024.