the polls are open

16 of Houston's best new restaurants compete for coveted Tastemakers title

For 10 of the 11 categories in the 2024 CultureMap Tastemaker Awards, our panel of former winners and local food experts picks the winners. Best New Restaurant is the exception.

Our readers — food experts in their own right — choose the winner in a bracket-style, head-to-head tournament. The competition always produces surprising results. For example, who could have predicted that Aiko would edge out Burger Bodega for last year’s title?

Just as winning one of the judges’ prizes is extremely difficult, so too is winning the Best New Restaurant tournament. To keep things interesting, round one always matches up restaurants that have a common tie, whether it’s geography, style of cuisine, or something a little more ephemeral. Let the debates begin!

Voting is open now at this link. People may vote once per day. The results are closely monitored for cheating and other shenanigans, so don’t even try to game the system. Round one ends at 11:59 pm on Sunday, March 10.

Which restaurant will win? Find out March 27 at the Tastemaker Awards party. We’ll dine on bites from this year’s nominated restaurants and sip cocktails from our sponsors before revealing the winners in our short and sweet ceremony.

Buy your tickets now. VIP passes are already sold out. Don’t miss out on the remaining General Admission tickets.

Here are the eight matchups in the Best New Restaurant contest:

Andiron vs Annabelle Brasserie
Our first matchup features two of the newest restaurants to open along Allen Parkway. Andiron takes its owners' experiences at The Pit Room and Candente and applies it to steakhouses. The result is a live fire destination that serves luxurious ingredients in an intimate environment. French-inspired Annabelle is one of three restaurants Berg Hospitality opened in 2023. The restaurant’s classic comfort fare — think beef bourguignon and moules frites — matches with the interior’s eye-catching ceiling installation.

Balboa Surf Club vs Rumi’s Kitchen
This pairing features two of the restaurants raising the game on Post Oak Boulevard. Dallas-based Western Addition opened California-inspired Balboa as a follow up to 2023 Best New Restaurant nominee il Bracco. Both restaurants share a fastidious attention to detail that’s reflected in Balboa’s precisely prepared crab cake, fried oysters, and sushi rolls. Rumi’s comes to Houston via Atlanta, where its earned a sterling reputation for elevated takes on classic Persian cuisine. Houstonians have been quick to embrace dishes such as mushroom hummus, lamb ribs, and duck fesenjoon.

Josephine’s Gulf Coast Cuisine vs Katami
While these two restaurants serve different cuisines, they do share both a common owner in restaurateur Yun Cheng and a common perspective in that they serve as showcases for their talented chefs. Mississippi native Lucas McKinney draws upon his personal history and time spent working for Chris Shepherd to serve a menu that’s inspired by the entire Gulf Coast. At Katami, former Tastemaker Awards Chef of the Year winner Manabu Horiuchi elevates the cuisine he serves at Kata Robata with more premium fish, Japanese beef, and luxurious ingredients like uni and caviar.

Baso vs Jūn
Two of the most exciting new restaurants in the Heights square off in this matchup. In-the-know diners have been flocking to Baso for its Basque fare that’s cooked on the restaurant’s wood-burning hearth. At Jūn, chefs Evelyn Garcia and Henry Lu blend their childhood influences with their professional experiences working at restaurants in New York City to produce “New Asian American” cuisine. Both restaurants feature natural wines, but only one will move on to round two.

Clark’s Oyster Bar vs Little’s Oyster Bar
Surely the most obvious first round pairing is the battle for best oyster bar on West Alabama. Hailing from Austin, Clark’s see-and-be-seen patio has been full since day one as Houstonians gather over oysters on the half shell, oak-grilled octopus, and cocktails. Pappas Restaurants applied all of its knowledge about seafood and wine to create Little’s, which features a retro, Art-Deco design, a can’t-miss caviar service, and a seafood-friendly wine list that’s the lighter, fresher counterpoint to the company’s celebrated steakhouse.

Mimo vs Pastore
Two different takes on contemporary Italian fare square off. Mimo reflects the personal vision of its owners, chef Fernando Rios and sommelier Mike Sammons, who prefer more rustic fare paired with an all-Italian wine list. Carefully made pastas allow Rios to show off the skills he acquired at Da Marco and Weights + Measures.

Pastore’s bright, coastal-inspired setting reflects its seafood-oriented menu. Underbelly Hospitality culinary director Scott Muns has been tweaking things of late by adding more pastas and enhancing the menu’s already strong selection of shareables.

Gold Tooth Tony’s vs Trill Burgers
The tournament’s only fast-casual restaurants face off in this matchup. Anthony Calleo’s affection for Detroit-style pizza has a dedicated home at Gold Tooth Tony’s. Diners can get classic toppings like pepperoni or meatballs alongside more unusual riffs like the Sebastian's Big Idea, a Hawaiian-style pie topped with crispy Spam and roasted pineapple. No wonder he’s already looking for a second location.

Between co-founder Bun B and endless endorsements from his celebrity friends — Drake called it “the best I’ve ever had” — Trill Burgers’ success speaks for itself. The secret is the way the burger’s elements — its tangy Trill sauce, melty cheese, and crispy, smashed burger patties — come together to create an utterly craveable bite. Bun recently revealed on Chris Shepherd’s TV show Eat Like a Local that Trill Burgers has plans for two more brick and mortar locations, which will only enhance its popularity.

ElRo Pizza & Crudo vs Nonno’s Family Pizza Tavern
Two very different pizzerias are pitted against each other in round one. At ElRo, chef Terrence Gallivan serves carefully constructed crudos and precisely topped pizzas in an intimate setting with Houston’s best wallpaper. At Nonno’s, Nobie’s owners Sara and Martin Stayer pay homage to Chicago pizzerias by serving thin crust, tavern-style pies and epic mozzarella sticks in a room dripping with Gen X nostalgia.

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The 2024 CultureMap Tastemaker Awards event runs 6-10 pm Wednesday, March 27 at Silver Street Studios (2000 Edwards St.).

The Tastemaker Awards ceremony is brought to you by Stella Artois, Rías Baixas Albariño, Topo Chico Sparkling Mineral Water, 8th Wonder Cannabis, and more to be announced. A portion of proceeds will benefit our nonprofit partner, the Southern Smoke Foundation.

ElRo serves a variety of pizzas.

Photo by Julie Soefer

ElRo Pizza & Crudo

news-you-can-eat tastemakers

service switcheroo

Street food-inspired Houston restaurant swaps counter service for servers

Photo by Andrew Hemingway

Traveler's Cart is add new dishes to its menu, including steak frites and chicken parm.

A globally-inspired Houston restaurant is making a big change to its service model. Traveler’s Cart will switch from counter service to full service beginning this Monday, November 17.

When owners Thy and Matthew Mitchell opened Traveler’s Cart last year as a more casual sister concept to Traveler’s Table, their globally-inspired Montrose restaurant, they decided counter service would match the restaurant’s street food-inspired menu and lower price point. With a year of experience, they’ve decided full service — where diners sit down and order from a server — will improve the customer experience in a number of ways.

First, they noticed that some of their online reviews go to great lengths to explain the ordering process. Moving to traditional table service will elimination that confusion.

“We want to be like a great brasserie or izakaya where people come and enjoy food and drinks at a reasonable price,” Matthew Mitchell tells CultureMap. “There’s a lack of intuitiveness about the process right now. Almost a year in, we’re still having to explain where you go and how you order. That tells you we probably missed the mark.”

He also recognizes that the inherent uncertainty of counter service — people are concerned about how long they’ll have to wait to order and whether a table will be available once they do — limits the restaurant’s appeal as a date night option or for larger groups who want the certainty of having a place to sit.

Even though the restaurant has been a financial success, according to Mitchell, he thinks Traveler’s Cart is missing out on revenue with its counter service model. “I think people order less at the counter. You may not order a cocktail, and you certainly won’t get back up and order more drinks,” he says.

Switching to full service will also help the restaurant’s perceived value. With entrees mostly priced between $15 and $25, the restaurant may feel expensive relative to other fast casual restaurants. Once servers are added, Mitchell thinks diners will appreciate the value, particularly since its prices are about half of sister concept Traveler’s Table.

“I feel like the food quality is outstanding for the price, but when it crosses that $20 or $30 threshold, people perceive it as pricey,” he says.

Traveler’s Cart has other ways to enhance the value of its offering, such as its $18, three-course lunch that includes iced tea or a fountain drink. Happy hour, available Monday through Friday from 3-6 pm, includes $8 cocktails, $3 drafts, $8 small plates, and more.

Along with the new service model, Travelers Cart is updating its menu with a number of new dishes. They include Thai chili queso, Baja shrimp tacos, salmon donburi bowl, chicken parmesan, and steak frites. The cocktail menu has also been refreshed with a Mexican espresso martini and a Tuk Tuk Old Fashioned, named for the vehicle that now sits in front of the restaurant’s entrance.

Recently recognized by the Texas Restaurant Association as Restaurateurs of the Year for the Houston region, the Mitchells hope that these changes will lead to even more success. With the service style refined and the menu dialed in, they’re already looking for another location.

Photo by Andrew Hemingway

Traveler's Cart is add new dishes to its menu, including steak frites and chicken parm.

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