By any measure, Drake’s Hollywood has been one of Houston’s most successful restaurants since it opened in the summer of 2024. Beginning this Saturday, January 17, the restaurant’s most passionate fans have a new opportunity for an even deeper connection to the restaurant when Maître D, its new private club, opens for the first time.
Photo by Becca Wright for Vandelay Companies
Maître D opens Saturday, January 17.
Located next to Drake’s Hollywood in the former Hay Merchant space, Maître D is an invite-only private club that’s intended to offer a more refined experience compared to Drake’s lively atmosphere.
“Due to the explosive popularity of Drake’s and the snowballing narrative of members’ areas in restaurants across the country, we thought this was a natural fit as we expand into other markets,” Vandelay Companies CEO Hunter Pond tells CultureMap.
“There was just a giant appetite for it. We floated the idea around Houston. Everyone just freaked out. We got a glowing response.”
From Pond’s perspective, the ideal members are people who are already Drake’s regulars. They’ve also got to be capable of paying an annual fee of $3,000 for an individual, $5,000 for a couple, or $2,000 for people under 30. Pond says they’ve already received more than 500 applications, which will take them six months or so to evaluate.
“We’re looking for people who are giant fans of the genre and the brand and are looking to expand on their existing experiences,” he says.
That experience starts with Maître D’s distinct look. Instead of Drake’s oversized murals of Hollywood legends and red leather booths, members of Maître D will find a more subdued interior that’s inspired by some of Pond’s favorite hotel lobby bars. Think brown leather chairs, polished wood, and brass accents.
“It still adheres to a timeless Old Hollywood theme. It has the same connective tissue, but it feels like a totally different world,” Pond says.
Members have access to the full Drake’s menu as well as some unique shareable bites such as snow crab hand rolls, chips with French onion dip and caviar, and filet mignon sliders. Entree choices include an expanded selection of wagyu steaks and the “Private Cheeseburger.”
In addition to a full range of cocktails, Maître D will offer a limited selection of premium wines by-the-glass which will poured via a Coravin, the device that uses argon gas to keep wines fresh. They range from a $20 glass of Orin Swift Sauvignon Blanc all the way to a $300 glass of Hundred Acre Wraith, a highly coveted Cabernet Sauvignon from Napa Valley.
While Maître D is new, Vandelay already operates a members-only club at Tei An, its sushi restaurant in Dallas. Pond offered one example of the sort of premium experience that his team can create for members.
“Just last month, someone asked to do a suckling pig roast for their birthday party with a DJ on the rooftop. We made it happen. We enclosed the patio. We had a pretty famous DJ come in from Las Vegas. It was epic,” he says.
