Rodeo Best Bites 2025

Top Houston restaurants lasso big prizes at Rodeo Best Bites Competition

Marsala-braised short ribs and sundried tomato spread on cayenne pepper toast took two of the top prizes at the Rodeo season’s food-and-wine-focused kickoff event. Held on the Sunday before the cook-off begins, the annual Rodeo Uncorked! Roundup & Best Bites Competition drew a sold out crowd of more than 6,000 people to NRG Center.

More than 100 restaurants served food at the event. Attendees have the opportunity to taste almost 500 of the award-winning wines from the 2024 Rodeo Uncorked! International Wine Competition. The annual competition drew almost 2,900 entries from 20 countries, including 558 from Texas and 314 from Napa County, this year’s featured region.

While attendees enjoyed all the food and wine, a panel of judges made of chefs, media, and influencers awarded prizes in various categories. They recognized a range of dishes that included a pistachio tart from Cultivated F+B, the restaurant at the Lancaster Hotel; a Bayou Melt slide from Texas comfort food restaurant State Fare; and three desserts from Guzel Cakes, a bakery in Memorial. Once again, chicken tenders from Raising Cane’s took home one of the coveted prizes, and we’re certain it pairs well with Champagne Bollinger Special Cuvée Brut Champagne AOC, NV, the wine competition’s Grand Champion Best of Show.

Cotton Culinary regained its title of winning People’s Choice with a “Forager’s Feast,” while second place went to the crispy Thai shrimp from Davis Street at Hermann Park.

Some of the favorites from the non-winners included a chicken tikka slider from Red Dot Cuisine, a classic tamale from Henderson & Kane, a hot dog from Heights wine bar Padre’s, and the beef carpaccio pizza from Pizaro’s. Houston classic Brennan’s drew a long line for its savory crawfish cheesecake.

Best Bites serves as the unofficial kick-off to Rodeo season ahead of the trail rides and barbecue cook-off. Those who missed the festivities have the opportunity to sample some of the winning wines in the Rodeo's wine garden, and many of the bottles will be auctioned off at the Rodeo Uncorked! Champion Wine Auction & Dinner on Sunday, March 2.

Here’s the full list of winners:

People’s Choice

1st: Cotton Culinary — A Forager's Feast
2nd: Davis Street at Hermann Park — crispy Thai shrimp

Outstanding Showmanship

1st: SheShe Treats
2nd: Brothers Produce

Tasty Tradition Award

1st: Cultivated F&B — Pistachio tart with citrus and elderflower cremeux and strawberry macaron
2nd: Raising Cane’s — Chicken fingers, toast, and Cane’s sauce

Trailblazer Appetizer

1st: Robinette & Company Caterers — Sundried tomato spread on cayenne pepper toast topped with candied bacon
2nd: State Fare Kitchen & Bar — Bayou Melt Slider (smoked brisket patty, melted pepper jack cheese, zesty pico slaw and sweet and spicy jalapeno bacon jam)
3rd: Jamaica Paradise Kitchen — Paradise Bites

Lone Star Entrée

1st: North Italia — Braised short rib marsala
2nd: Merlion Restaurant — Shrimp Raad Prick (shrimp in Thai basil red curry sauce with cilantro and shallots, served over jasmine rice)
3rd: Grace Italian Kitchen — Boneless short rib with pancetta risotto and molasses bourbon glaze

Two-Steppin’ Dessert

1st: Guzel Cakes — Banana pudding cake, strawberry cheesecake, vanilla pudding with cookie butter
2nd: Hudson House — Key lime pie
3rd: Mostly Chocolate — House-made Turkish pistachio and sesame seed paste folded with crispy phyllo shreds cooked in brown butter

Rookie Award

The Cheesecake Queen — Key lime mini cheesecakes

Courtesy of Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo

Cotton Culinary won the People's Choice Award.

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What's Eric Eating Episodes 445 and 446

Meet the Texas restaurateur serving oysters and burgers in 3 states

Courtesy of MML Hospitality

Larry McGuire is this week's guest.

On this week’s episode of “What’s Eric Eating,” restaurateur Larry McGuire joins CultureMap editor Eric Sandler to discuss MML Hospitality. Known locally for Clark’s Oyster Bar, MML is an Austin-based company that operates restaurants in California, Texas, and Colorado as well as the Hotel Saint Vincent in New Orleans.

The conversation begins with McGuire sharing his path from being a University of Texas student who worked in restaurants to opening his first two restaurants with his business partner Tom Moorman, Lamberts Downtown Barbecue in 2006 and Perla’s Seafood & Oyster Bar in 2009. Their portfolio ranges from Swedish Hill, a casual bakery and cafe, to fine dining institution Jeffrey’s. Sandler asks McGuire about whether there are any commonalities between such varied concepts.

“As someone who’s been doing it for a long time now, I hope the quality and consistency in service and food, the atmosphere will be good. For restaurants to last, we’ve got a 20 year old and an 18 year old, I think there’s a level of caring and attention to detail,” McGuire says.

“What we’re more excited about and more invested in is the quality of our operations, the quality of our facilities, the quality of our team members. That culture is something we’re building that makes things last. We always wanted to build institutions. As we get deeper into it, hopefully they feel like they’re going to be there. Our employees enjoy being there. I hope that’s what we’re building. The other details we’re known for, but I don’t think they’re that special any more.”

Listen to the full conversation to hear McGuire discuss the decision to bring Clark’s to Houston and how the company decided on its location in a former auto repair shop. He also shares thoughts on which MML concepts might be next for the Bayou City as well as the status of MML’s Sixth&Blanco mixed-use development that’s currently under construction.

On this week’s other episode, Sandler and Felice Sloan discuss the news of the week. First, they recap last week’s date night draft episode. Then, they discuss the recent closure of Japanese restaurant Money Cat and conclude with a conversation about chef Tristen Epps’ Black History Month dinner pop-up series.

In the restaurant of the week segment, Sandler and Sloan review their meal at Mexican Sugar, the new Montrose restaurant from Dallas-based restaurant group FB Society. Overall, their impressions are positive, particularly the lively atmosphere and polished service, but they did find a couple of dishes they probably won’t order again. They episode concludes with a discussion of the duo’s recent meal at Killen’s Steakhouse in Pearland, where they found chef Ronnie Killen has made a number of upgrades to return the restaurant to its previous level of esteem.

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