What's Eric Eating Episodes 345 and 346

Goodnight’s dynamic chef duo dish on their posh new restaurant, plus our trip to 1891 American Eatery & Bar

On this week’s episode of “What’s Eric Eating,” chefs Felipe Riccio and Austin Waiter join CultureMap food editor Eric Sandler to discuss the latest news from Goodnight Hospitality. Riccio, a partner in the overall group, and Waiter, chef-partner for The Marigold Club, have a lot of news to share.

The conversation begins with Waiter discussing The Marigold Club, a Continental restaurant that will open later this spring in the former Goodnight Charlie’s space. He shares a few of the reasons why he left Tony’s two years ago to join the project and discusses his time staging at restaurants in London as part of the preparations to open it. Waiter shares a few details about the menu, including that it will feature an extensive raw seafood program and offer afternoon tea service.

Sandler asks Riccio how Marigold Club fits in with its sister concepts March and Rosie Cannonball in the Goodnight portfolio.

“Rosie leans so heavily Italian. We play around with French flavors here and there. With Marigold, getting to lean in to that classic technique, through the eyes of London . . . into the rest of Europe, playing off those classic flavors from French cooking will be a lot of fun.”

Waiter adds that one of the lessons he’s brought from Tony’s is the importance of finding a balance between his perspective as a chef and serving food that customers want to order.

“I think that the difficult part is staying true to what Felipe and I and the business partners love about food and what we’re focusing on and still making sure the guest comes first,” he says. “I’m not the one sitting there eating dinner every night. I think our guests need to take priority.”

From there, the discussion turns to March. The Mediterranean-inspired fine dining restaurant will roll out its new tasting menus devoted to Països Catalans — a region where people speak Catalan that includes parts of Spain, Italy, France, and islands such as Ibiza and Mallorca — on January 30.

“What is the through line, what are the differences between these people that share a common language? What’s their food style? What are the ingredients that are important? What are their rituals? All of those things are part of the research,” Riccio explains.

The menu will include freshwater seafood and ingredients sourced from the Pyrenees Mountains. Beverage options will feature an homage to sangria as well as wines sourced from the Penedès, a region south of Barcelona.

In this week’s other episode, Sandler and co-host Michael Fulmer discuss the news of the week. Their topics include Common Bond bringing a new bistro location to Tanglewood, Layne’s Chicken Fingers opening inside the loop, and Hando opening in Spring Branch.

In the restaurant of the week segment, they visit 1891 American Eatery & Bar. Created by the culinary team behind Common Bond, the restaurant combines a comfort food menu with quality cocktails and a casual, sports bar atmosphere.

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what's on tap

Dough-obsessed pizzeria picks River Oaks for first Houston location

Courtesy of Pie Tap

A Dallas pizzeria known for its artisanal dough is coming to Houston. Pie Tap will open its first Bayou City outpost in June.

Located next to Fielding’s River Oaks in the Novel Residences luxury apartment building, Pie Tap is an endeavor from Dallas restaurateur Rich Hicks and Italian chef Giovanni Mauro. The chef is responsible for the restaurant’s pizza dough, which uses a mother starter and a 96-hour fermentation process that uses natural yeast to achieve a good balance of crunch and chew.

"Without great dough, you can't have great pizza," Mauro told CultureMap Dallas when the first location opened in 2016. "The idea that the crust is simply a vehicle for toppings is the wrong approach. There has to be a perfect balance of sauce and topping, but you have to have a commitment to the dough. If dough is everything it should be, the pizza is stellar."

Using Italian flour and natural yeast are essential components of the dough’s flavor, Mauro added.

"It's the kind of dough our great-grandparents used to eat," he says. "It's a very natural, slow process. We don't use any commercial yeasts. We started a 'mother dough' with a starter that's proprietary to us. It's a five-day process, an absolute minimum of 96 hours, from when we start to when we put the pizza on the plate."

The restaurant uses that dough to create pizzas that include classics like a margherita, pepperoni, and veggie. Some of the more creative options include the Prosciutto (topped with dates, pistachio, arugula, cheese, and balsamic) and the Salami (calabrese salami, fennel sausage, pepperoni, bacon, and mozzarella).

In addition to pizza, the restaurant touts its rotisserie chicken, which is served both as a half bird with mashed cauliflower and vegetables and as part of sandwiches, pastas, and salads. Other pastas include pappardelle bolognese, ricotta gnocchi, and the on-trend rigatoni in spicy vodka sauce.

Having covered “pie,” let’s turn to the “tap” portion of the restaurant’s name. The bar program starts with 30 beers and wines on tap. They’re joined by cocktails, more wines by-the-glass, and non-alcoholic options. Taken together, it’s a compelling package that earned Best New Restaurant in the 2017 CultureMap Dallas Tastemaker Awards.

“Our talented and dedicated team has been anxiously awaiting this exciting entrance to the Houston market as it is the epitome of all things interesting in food and culture and one of the friendliest and most diverse cities in the U.S. When it comes to our brand, if it is not exceptional, it is unacceptable,” Hicks said in a statement. “We are proud that we have one of the most clean, healthy, and delicious artisan pizzas you can enjoy out there because it has no preservatives, fillers, or additives.”

Pie Tap will be open for lunch, dinner, happy hour, and weekend brunch.

Courtesy of Pie Tap

That's what crust looks like when its dough is fermented for 96 hours.

pizza openings news-you-can-eat pie tap

What's Eric Eating Episodes 345 and 346

Goodnight’s dynamic chef duo dish on their posh new restaurant, plus our trip to 1891 American Eatery & Bar

what's on tap

Dough-obsessed pizzeria picks River Oaks for first Houston location

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