And The Winners Are

Raise a toast to delicious winners of Rodeo Uncorked! & Best Bites Competition

More than 5,000 foodies flocked to NRG Stadium on February 19 for the Rodeo Uncorked! Roundup & Best Bites Competition, the Rodeo season's food and wine-focused kickoff event.

Hosted by the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, the annual competition brought together signature dishes from renowned Houston-area culinary establishments, with more than 110 of the region's premier restaurants serving tasty tidbits at the event.

These were skillfully paired with an impressive selection of nearly 450 award-winning wines from the 2024 Rodeo Uncorked! International Wine Competition, including the Grand Champion and Reserve Grand Champion.

If you missed the festivities, you still have the opportunity to sample some of the winning wines in the Rodeo's Champion Wine Garden, presented by Frost Bank. The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo runs through March 17, 2024.

Without further ado, here are the Best Bites winners:

People’s Choice Award
1st place: Grazia Italian Kitchen
2nd place: Cotton Culinary

Outstanding Showmanship Award
1st place: Eculent
2nd place: Sheshe Treats

Tasty Tradition Award
1st place: Messina Hof Harvest Green Winery & Kitchen – Mushrooms stuffed with goat cheese, mascarpone, ricotta, and Gruyere cheese
2nd place: Cultivated F+B – Raspberry white chocolate and vanilla verrine

Trailblazer Appetizer Award
1st place: Pier 6 Seafood – Wood-grilled coconut shrimp
2nd place: Goode Co. – Campechana
3rd place: Loro – Curried brisket rice

Lone Star Entrée Award
1st place: Raising Cane’s – Chicken fingers on garlic butter Texas toast with Cane’s sauce
2nd place: The Capital Grille – Kona-crusted dry-aged sirloin finished with a shallot butter sauce and au gratin potatoes
3rd place: Grazia Italian Kitchen – R-C Ranch smoked wagyu chuck eye pancetta risotto topped with a blueberry-rosemary garlic port reduction

Two-Steppin’ Dessert Award
1st place: Egghaus Gourmet – Strawberry tres leches croissant
2nd place: 1848 Handcrafted Heritage Ice Cream – Buckshot Caramel stracciatella with praline ethiope and whiskey caramel swirl
3rd place: Guzel Cakes – Perfect Love: Vanilla pudding cake with strawberry cheesecake

Rookie Award
Money Cat – BistecBao: Filipeno-inspired bao with braised beef chuck, calamansi aoili, pickled red onion, cilantro, and chicharron

The 2024 Rodeo Uncorked! International Wine Competition champions included:

Grand Champion Best of Show: Beau Joie Brut Champagne AOC, NV
Reserve Grand Champion Best of Show: Smith-Madrone Riesling, Spring Mountain District, 2018
Top Texas Wine: Meierstone Vineyards The Airship Red, Texas High Plains, 2021
Top Red Wine: Marchesi di Barolo DOCG, 2018
Top White Wine: Perissos Vineyards and Winery Winemaker’s Reserve Pape Blanc, Texas High Plains, 2022
Top Sparkling Wine: Champagne Telmont Reserve Brut Champagne AOC, NV
Top Dessert Wine: Quady Winery Essensia Orange Muscat, California, 2020
Top Region Wine: TerraNoble CA1 Andes Carmenere, D.O. Colchagua Valley, 2020
Top Value Wine: Animus Vinho Verde DOC, 2022
Top Wine Company: Nice Winery
Top Region Wine Company: E & J Gallo Winery
Top All-Around Winery: Winebow Import
Top Texas Winery: Kiepersol

The 21st annual wine competition featured 2,985 entries from 22 countries. In addition, 539 entries came from Texas wineries and the 2024 featured region, Chile, had 161 entries.

The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo promotes agriculture by hosting an annual, family-friendly experience that educates and entertains the public, supports Texas youth, showcases Western heritage, and provides year-round educational support within the community.

Since its beginning in 1932, the Rodeo has committed more than $600 million to the youth of Texas and education. For more information, visit rodeohouston.com and follow @RodeoHouston online via Facebook, X (Twitter), Instagram, and YouTube for all the latest news.

Photo courtesy of HLSR

Some restaurants and wineries really showed up and showed out.

wine chefs rodeo winners promoted

What's Eric Eating Episodes 518 and 519

Meet the men behind River Oaks' new destination for bowls and broth

Photo by Becca Wright

Find Honest Mary's in the River Oaks Shopping Center.

On this week’s episode of “What’s Eric Eating,” Honest Mary’s founder Nelson Monteith and COO Andrew Wiseheart joined CultureMap editor Eric Sandler to discuss the Austin-based restaurant that just opened its first Houston location in the River Oaks Shopping Center (2047-A West Gray St).

Monteith shares that he started the restaurant in 2017 in order to fulfill his vision of a restaurant which could serve food that’s fast, fresh, and affordable. A trained chef who operated pioneering Austin restaurant Contigo, Wiseheart joined the group to bring both culinary expertise and operational acumen to the grouping company.

Part of what sets Honest Mary’s apart is that diners can add cooked vegetables to the rice and proteins at the heart of every bowl. The “Market Sides” section includes an array of roasted vegetables — including sweet potatoes, cauliflower, broccoli, beets, and Brussels sprouts — as well as black beans, maple-glazed carrots, and green lentils. Bowls can be further enhanced with toppings such as Texas pecans, crispy chickpeas, goat cheese, avocado, and apples as well as sauces such as creamy poblano, cashew lime crema, sesame vinaigrette, spicy peanut, chimichurri and apple cider vinaigrette

Monteith explains that looking at the ingredients on display usually inspires him when he’s deciding what to eat at Honest Mary’s.

“I will almost always look at the line and see what looks fresh and good,” Monteith says. “Today, I got the salted kale with white rice. Then, I got garlic-pepper steak. I added on lentils — they’re my go-to in the winter. They blend everything together, and I love it Then Brussels sprouts looked green. I got some jalapenos. Avocados, cause that’s healthy. Then I got the chimichurri sauce.”

Honest Mary’s is also known for its hearty broths, a classic chicken and a vegetarian option made with seaweed and mushroom. Sandler raves about the chicken broth to Wiseheart, who shares how it’s made.

“We spent six or seven months testing recipes and drinking it ourselves to see if it’s a good idea,” Wiseheart says. “I talk about it as a great complement to the menu. It’s healthy. It’s really simple. Most of the kitchens I came up with were rooted in French cuisine. This is just chicken stock with salt in it.”

Listen to the full episode to hear more about Honest Mary’s plans for additional locations in Houston and Dallas. Then Monteith asks a Sandler a few questions about the Houston dining scene.

In this week’s other episode, Sandler and co-host Mary Clarkson discuss the news of the week. Their topics include Home Slice Pizza opening a new location in the Heights; the closures of Brett’s BBQ Shop in Katy and Killen’s Barbecue in The Woodlands; and Esquire including ChòpnBlok on its list of America’s best new restaurants.

In the restaurant of the week segment, the two friends discuss their recent meal at Hypsi, the Italian restaurant in the newly-opened Hotel Daphne. Listen to the episode to hear their favorite dishes and other thoughts on the meal.

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Subscribe to "What's Eric Eating" on Apple podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Hear it Sunday at 9 am on ESPN 97.5.

Photo by Becca Wright

Find Honest Mary's in the River Oaks Shopping Center.

news-you-can-eat podcasts interview