Heights switcheroo

Houston Tex-Mex restaurant to shutter and reopen as a casual steakhouse

A restaurant in the Heights is switching from Tex-Mex to steaks. Rocket Farm — the Atlanta-based hospitality company behind State of Grace, Little Rey, and La Lucha — will close its Tex-Mex restaurant Superica on February 15 and reopen the space as Star Rover, a casual steakhouse, on February 26.

Although Superica had a successful seven-year run, Rocket Farm owner Ford Fry decided the time was right to make a change. Drawing inspiration from restaurants such as Hofbrau and Steak & Ale, Star Rover will offer steaks at a lower price point and in a more casual environment than an upscale steakhouse.

“Star Rover lets us lean into an everyday, nostalgic steakhouse vibe, something there isn’t a lot of in Houston, and still keep touches of what guests have loved about Superica, like brunch” Fry said in a statement.

Culinary director Bobby Matos tells CultureMap that Star Rover’s menu will be an expanded version of Star Rover Sound, Rocket Farm’s restaurant and honky tonk in Nashville. As with the original, Star Rover’s Houston location will serve a selection of steaks — think cuts such as filet, ribeye, t-bone, skirt — all of which include a salad, onion rings, french fries, and dinner rolls.

Exclusive to Houston will be dishes such as redfish, crab cakes, and lobster as well as an expanded appetizer menu that will include raw and fried oysters, shrimp cocktail, and potato skins. Desserts will include a selection of pies and soft serve ice cream. Notably, Star Rover’s weekend brunch menu will feature some of Superica’s most popular dishes, including its signature pancakes.

Like those old school steakhouses, Star Rover will have its own eating challenge. Named the 76’er Challenge, anyone who can eat a 76-ounce standing rib roast, milk roll, side salad, onion rings, and fries in under an hour will get the meal for free as well as a t-shirt and the opportunity to sign a winner’s wall.

“I’m most excited to be able to offer quality steaks and a full meal in a family friendly environment at an affordable price,” Matos adds in a text message. “Our goal is to really make it a neighborhood restaurant.”

Courtesy of Superica

Superica is closing in February.

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crawfish season is here

Essential Houston crawfish joint heads to Beaumont for new location

Photo by Paulina Olague

BB's Tex-Orleans is bringing its boiled seafood to Beaumont.

One of Houston’s favorite destinations for crawfish is heading east. BB’s Tex-Orleans will open 12th location in Beaumont.

Slated to open in April, BB’s will occupy the former home of The Park on Calder (2325 Calder Avenue). With 3,200 square feet inside and a massive, 5,000-square-foot patio, BB’s will seat 70 people inside and 175 people outdoors. The patio has enough space for a children’s play area and a 225-inch outdoor screen for showing the day’s games.

“At BB’s, we like to say that our culture is making Maw Maw, my grandmother, proud,” founder and CEO Brooks Bassler said in a statement. “So many of our recipes are inspired by Maw Maw’s cooking, but even more than the great food, it’s a way of living: family, hard work, fairness. Maw Maw was born in Winnie, and her sister still lives there, so BB’s roots actually start in the Golden Triangle. Finally opening a location in Beaumont feels like coming home.”

The menu will feature all of the dishes that have made BB’s a go-to for Cajun fare. That starts will boiled seafood, including crawfish, shrimp, and crab legs — all of which can be enhanced with Prasek’s smoked garlic sausage, alligator andouille sausage, corn, button mushrooms, red potatoes, and BB’s “Monsta Greens.”

Diners also turn to the restaurant for po’ boys, such as the Bedtime in the Bayou (fried shrimp) and the South Texas Fire Po’boy (marinated outside skirt steak topped with melted pepper jack cheese, avocado, sautéed peppers, and onions, topped with a spicy pepper cheese sauce).

Here’s founder Brooks Bassler with a Bedtime in the Bayou.

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Founded in 2007 in Montrose as a late night po’ boy destination, BB’s has grown across the Houston area. BB’s Cajun Cantina in San Antonio adds Tex-Mex flavors to the mix.

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