where to eat on Thanksgiving

More than 20 Houston restaurants serving lunch and dinner on Thanksgiving 2023

Don’t look now, Thanksgiving is only two weeks away. If the thought of trying to get your house ready to host guests in that amount of time gives you hives, an alternative exists.

Instead of making dinner at home, make reservations. More and more Houston restaurants are open on Thanksgiving Day with an array of tempting options that offer an easy alternative to the endless debates about the best way to roast a turkey. Sure, you might not have leftover turkey sandwiches — unless you go to Rainbow Lodge (see below) — but going out also means someone else does the dishes.

This list focuses on restaurants serving some sort of traditional, American-style Thanksgiving — think turkey, stuffing, and pumpkin pie. Those looking for an alternative will find it in places such as Bellaire Blvd’s Chinatown or Katy Asian Town. After all, dumplings and roast pork are always a good idea.

Amrina
This Indian fine dining restaurant in The Woodlands Waterway will serve a five-course, $85 prix-fixe feast that also includes family-style sides. The meal includes dishes such as roasted pumpkin soup, sweet potato dumplings, roast turkey breast, braised short ribs, and brownie bottom pumpkin cheesecake.

Amore
The Upper Kirby-area Italian restaurant will serve a four-course, $80 menu (kids menu $25) from 11 am-4 pm. Start with a choice of corn soup, roasted pumpkin salad, or seafood cocktail. Add an extra primi course of tagliolini with black or white truffles ($25 or $50). Entree choices include turkey, halibut, or lamb chops — all of which are paired with Thanksgiving-style sides such as sweet potatoes, Brussels sprouts, and whipped potatoes. Finish with choice of dessert.

The Audrey
This Woodlands restaurant’s three-course, $55 prix-fixe meal ($18 for kids) includes choice of lobster bisque or pumpkin and burrata salad, turkey with trimmings, and pumpkin pie.

Berg Hospitality
Five of the company’s restaurants will be open on Thanksgiving Day. They are:

The Annie Cafe & Bar: three courses, $90 per adult, $35 per child
B&B Butchers: three courses, $90 per adult, $35 per child
B.B. Italia: four courses, $58 per adult, $25 per child
Trattoria Sofia: four courses, $68 per adult, $25 per child
Turner’s: three courses, $250 per person

Follow the links above for menus and reservations information.

Blossom Hotel
The Medical Center hotel will serve a Thanksgiving buffet ($79.95 per adult and $29.95 per child) that features a turkey carving station, salad bar, made-to-order omelets, cold seafood, entrees, and more. Reserve via OpenTable or by calling 713-902-6968.

Cleburne Cafeteria
For those looking for a more affordable option, this Houston favorite will be open for both dine-in and to-go from from 11 am-8 pm with a full range of starters, sides, entrees, and desserts.

Etoile Cuisine et Bar
The Uptown Park French restaurant will be open from 11 am-8 pm with a three-course, $78 menu ($28 per child). Begin with one of four appetizers, including leek and mushroom soup, blue cheese crostini, or foie gras torchon. Entree choices include turkey with trimmings, braised short ribs, roasted salmon, and vegetable risotto.

Eunice
This Creole restaurant in Greenway Plaza will supplement its regular menu with Thanksgiving specials such as pumpkin bisque, Cajun-stuffed turkey, and pumpkin pie tart. It will be open from 11 am-4 pm.

Gold Tooth Tony's
Anthony Calleo's new Detroit-style pizzeria will be open its regular hours of 4-10 pm — just in case a pizza topped with Spam and roasted pineapple sounds better than turkey and stuffing.

Himalaya
On Thanksgiving, chef-owner Kaiser Lashkari adds masala-spiced turkey and dressing to his extensive menu of Indo-Pak fare. Remember, the restaurant is BYOB, so plan accordingly.

Jonathan’s the Rub
The Memorial Green location of this eclectic comfort food restaurant will be open on Thanksgiving Day from 11 am-8 pm. Chef-owner Jonathan Levine will serve menu built around entree choices that include herb-roasted turkey ($53), beef tenderloin ($65), and halibut ($57) — all of which are paired with family-style sides such as candied yams, garlic mashed potatoes, green bean almondine, and traditional stuffing. Add soup, salad, or dessert for an additional fee.

Le Jardinier
The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston’s French fine dining restaurant will serve a four-course, $165 prix fixe menu. Starters include burrata with apple compote and figs, chicory salad, and cured hiramasa with avocado mousse. Entree choices include heritage turducken ballotine, scallops with sunchoke puree, and braised short ribs — all of which come with sides for the tables. Add a touch of luxury with optional Royal Kaluga caviar ($100 for one ounce or $190 for two ounces).

Pappas Bar-B-Q
Get a Thanksgiving plate with turkey, ham, and sides for $19.95. Served from 9 am-6 pm, it’s the only meal on this list that can be picked up at a drive-thru. The restaurant will also be serving its full menu, which means people can pick up brisket, ribs, or pecan pie to supplement their Thanksgiving table.

Perry’s Steakhouse & Grille
This restaurant with locations all over the Houston area will serve a $49, two-course menu with choice of Honeycrisp apple salad or butternut squash soup and sliced turkey bread with all the trimmings. Add a slice of pumpkin cheesecake for $9.

The Post Oak Hotel
The luxurious hotel's Thanksgiving Fall Harvest will take diners on a journey throughout the property. Priced at $165 for adults and $75 for children ages 5-12, the buffet feast includes a range of stations including cold seafood, salads, cheeses, sushi, charcuterie, and a carving station that will offer turkey, ham, prime rib, salmon, and more. Finish at Bouchée Patisserie for for seasonal pies and other treats. Reservations required, 11 am - 5 pm.

PS-21
Join chef Philippe Schmit at his Upper Kirby bistro for Thanksgiving dinner. Open from 11:30 am - 8 pm, the restaurant will supplement its regular menu with specials that include pumpkin soup, mushroom tart, and roast turkey with trimmings (sweet potato creme caramel, broccoli rabe, chestnut and mushroom stuffing, cranberry relish, gravy, and cornbread). Add a slice of pecan pie for $12.

Rainbow Lodge
The restaurant’s three-course, $75 meal includes duck gumbo, roast turkey, and smoked nilgai. Add a late-night snack pack with all the ingredients for a turkey sandwich for $6.

Red Lion Pub
This River Oaks-adjacent pub offers an affordable, $38 Thanksgiving turkey plate that comes with stuffing, yams, Brussels sprouts, mashed potatoes, roast potatoes, green beans, carrots, cranberry sauce, and gravy. It will be open from 11 am-12 am. Walk-ins welcome.

Roma An Italian Eatery
Priced at $45 for adults and $23 for children, this Rice Village restaurant’s Thanksgiving menu includes choice of soup or salad, turkey with trimmings, and choice of pumpkin or pecan pie. Add wine pairings for $35.

Rudyards
If too much family time has you feeling like a burger and a pint, the classic Montrose pub will be open on Thanksgiving and serving its regular menu.

Steak 48
This modern steakhouse will supplement its regular menu with a Thanksgiving dinner ($74) that includes turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, and cranberry sauce. Add a slice of pumpkin pie to complete the experience.

Toro Toro at the Four Seasons Houston
Downtown’s pan-Latin steakhouse will feature a decadent brunch for $145 per person and $65 per child. Selections include roast turkey, rosemary-crusted prime rib, roast lamb, cornbread stuffing, and a Texas cheese display. Other choices include a cold seafood tower, sushi rolls, and plenty of desserts.

Truluck’s
The seafood restaurant will supplement its regular offerings with a three-course, $59 Thanksgiving dinner ($29 kids 12 and under). It includes choice of soup or salad, turkey and trimmings, and carrot cake or pumpkin cheesecake. Enhance the meal with some of the restaurant’s signature Florida stone crab claws.

The Warwick
The Galleria-area restaurant will supplement its regular menu with Thanksgiving specials such as deep-fried turkey, sweet potato pie, and Hawaiian-glazed ham. Finish with a slice of carrot cake that uses a recipe from co-owner Rob Wright’s mother.

Photo by Kirsten Gilliam

Head to The Annie for a full Thanksgiving feast.

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the more things change

Houston's essential Jewish diner looks better than ever after refresh

Photo by Sergio Trevino

The dining room has more light than ever.

It’s tricky to renovate a restaurant that’s as essential to its community as New York Deli. A staple of Houston’s Jewish community for almost 50 years, the tiny restaurant near Meyerland will serve as many as 400 people during a busy Sunday brunch.

Still, the time had come, as the tape on the deteriorating banquettes and peeling wallpaper illustrated. With the restaurant’s lease up for renewal, co-owner Michael Saghian saw an opportunity for some updates.

“I couldn’t be the new guy who ruined the place by moving it,” he tells CultureMap. “We worked out a deal with the landlord [to stay] and did a big refresh.”

The most noticeable change is the removal of the restaurant’s front door and vestibule. Instead, diners enter through the restaurant’s companion bagel shop. Separate entrances made sense when the bagel shop was certified kosher by local religious authorities, but now that designation only applies to the Bellaire location that opened in 2020. Not only is the new setup easier for people with mobility issues to navigate, it allows more light into the dining room, brightening the place considerably..

Saghian and co-owner Riana Sherman worked with interior designer Erin Hicks on the refresh. Tables, chairs, and banquettes are all new, but the color scheme remains the same. The process yielded 10 more seats, and the furniture is a little more durable, too.

“People have flipped chairs because they’re so lightweight,” Sherman says. “We got a sturdier chair.”

Behind the scenes, an expanded kitchen allows for the restaurant’s cooks to work faster and more efficiently. An additional egg cooker should cut down the amount of time people wait for their food to arrive.

“The kitchen had one of everything. Now we have two of everything. We can pump out a lot more food,” Saghian says.

Photographs on the walls honor longtime customers such as the “bagel girls,” a group of woman who’ve eaten breakfast at the restaurant since the ‘80s. A piece of old wallpaper has been framed and hung on the wall, too, as a nod to the space’s history.

New York Deli interior changes Photographs on the walls honor longtime customers.Photo by Sergio Trevino

Photo by Sergio Trevino

The dining room has more light than ever.

Saghian says he suffered from sleepless nights as he worried about people’s reactions to the changes, but so far his customers have been effusive.

“It still feels like an old school diner,” Saghian says. “It has pieces you remember. Even the new stuff is old school.”

While the physical environment is new, the staff remains the same. To ensure he kept the same team of cooks and servers, Saghian paid their wages for the two weeks the restaurant was closed for renovations.

Even more importantly, the prices are the same. That’s something that will make even the oldest regulars happy.

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