ElRo's World

Pass & Provisions co-founder officially opens his highly anticipated new pizza and crudo restaurant

One of Houston’s most eagerly anticipated restaurants has opened its doors. ElRo Pizza & Crudo began a soft opening last Friday, June 23, with full time lunch and dinner service beginning tomorrow (Wednesday, June 28).

Located in a converted bungalow on the border of Montrose and Midtown (2405 Genesee St.), ElRo is the new restaurant from chef Terrence Gallivan. Previously, the chef was the co-owner and co-executive chef of The Pass & Provisions, the dual-concept restaurant that ranked as one of Houston’s top spots from 2012 until it closed in 2019.

Photo by Julie Soefer

ElRo serves a variety of pizzas.

Provisions always served pizza, and Gallivan has leaned into that with ElRo. Diners will find options such as mortadella with pistachio pesto and balsamic onions, mushroom with tomato and scamorza, and a spaghetti carbonara-inspired pizza made with guanciale, parmesan, and black pepper. Gallivan has tweaked his dough recipe, which makes it a little different from the pizza he served at Provisions.

“It’s similar to the pizza at Provisions in that it’s roughly the same size and we offer a small menu of specialty pies, but differs in recipe, fermentation time, and the oven it’s baked in,” Gallivan tells CultureMap. “I am trying to have a little more crunch in the crust while still trying to be as light as possible.”

As for the crudos, ElRo offers a range of options, including tuna with pistachio and n’duja spice, snapper with pickled mango and olives, and beef tartare with egg yolk, mushrooms, capers, and parmesan. Small plates such as Caesar salad, chicken saltimboca sausage, and unagi arancini round out the menu.

“I (and most people) love pizza,” Gallivan added. “Since Houston is hot most of the time, balancing pizza with some lighter, more refreshing, cold seafood dishes is a nice combination.”

The beverage list focuses on a tidy wine list selected by Gallivan. Bar manager Patrick Dougherty, who previously worked at Bar No. 3 at La Colombe d’Or, has contributed a menu of house original cocktails named after Bruce Springsteen songs. For example, the Glory Days is a paloma riff made with tequila, grapefruit juice, St. Germain, and Cocchi Americano.

Named for Gallivan’s children, Eleanor and Ronan, ElRo occupies an intimate, 1,200-square-foot bungalow that seats about 30 people indoors with room for another 40 on its patio. The chef worked with designer Betty Maccagnan on the interior, which features blue and yellow highlights (the kids’ favorite colors), Hygge & West wallpaper, and globe lights.

“Elro is inhabiting a vintage bungalow so the whole idea is for the space to feel homey,” he says. “It will be a place you can pop in for a drink and bite with friends in shorts and flip flops or can be a date night spot.”

Opening weekend proved a bit frantic, as two power line fires occurred near the restaurant that disrupted service. Still, ElRo managed to stay busy Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

“It was surreal to be back in the kitchen. I haven’t done a restaurant service in four years but it felt like I never stopped,” Gallivan says.

ElRo opens at noon Wednesday through Sunday. Tuesday service will follow in the coming weeks. Reservations are available for the indoor seating, while the patio is open for walk-in diners.

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they're back

2 treasured Houston Mexican restaurants reopen after brief closures

Courtesy of Picos

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Two staple Houston-area Mexican restaurants are making comebacks after brief closures. Picos has already returned to service, while El Tiempo Cantina’s Webster location isn’t far behind.

After closing its Upper Kirby location on August 30, Picos reopened Saturday, September 12 in the former Cyclone Anaya’s space in River Oaks (3736 Westheimer Rd.). The move is only about two miles from Picos’ former home at Kirby and Richmond.

Chef-owner Arnaldo Richards partnered with Cyclone Anaya’s owners The Dhanani Group to transform the space into Picos. It allows Richards to preserve Picos, which opened on Bellaire Blvd. in 1984 and operated on Kirby Dr. for 12 years. Last year, Richards announced Picos would close due to declining sales but later stated his intentions to find a new, slightly smaller home for the restaurant. That dream was realized via a “last-minute agreement” with Cyclone Anaya’s owners The Dhanani Group according to press materials.

“After spending the past year searching for a new home, it truly feels like the stars aligned,” Richards said in a statement. “We were willing to do anything we could to keep Picos, and we finally found the right space for this next-generation evolution of Picos.”

Picos Westheimer River Oaks interior The new Picos features an indoor-outdoor bar.Photo by Becca Wright

At over 6,000 square feet, the new Picos still offers a spacious environment that includes an indoor-outdoor bar. It will serve the same menu as the prior locations, including fan favorites such as moles from all seven regions on Mexico, enchiladas, and the signature shaker margaritas.

“As native Houstonians, we understand what Picos means to this city and the generations of Houstonians who have supported the restaurant for more than 40 years,” said Usman Dhanani of The Dhanani Group, which still operates five other locations of Cyclone Anaya’s across Houston. “We’re excited to partner with Arnaldo and his family to carry the Picos tradition forward and ensure that a restaurant so deeply rooted in Houston remains part of the city’s dining community for years to come.”

The Houston Chronicle was first to report that Picos had reopened.

El Tiempo Cantina Post Houston El Tiempo is returning to Webster. Courtesy of El Tiempo Cantina

As for El Tiempo, franchisee Liquid Gold Hospitality surprised Bay Area diners when it abruptly closed the location at 20237 Gulf Fwy at the end of August. In a Facebook post, El Tiempo announced the location will reopen under direct management of the Laurenzo family, which founded El Tiempo and operates most of its other locations.

Notably, the post did not specify an opening date, merely that the restaurant is “reopening soon.”

El Tiempo’s Webster location opened at the end of 2017 after significant delays, including a lawsuit between the Laurenzo family and Liquid Gold. Overall, Houston is home to 18 locations of El Tiempo, with its outpost at The Post in downtown Houston being the most recent to open.

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