What's Eric Eating Episodes 312 and 313
Meet the dynamic duo behind seaside smash Pier 6, plus our trips to 2 Heights hot spots
On this week's episode of "What's Eric Eating," Pier 6 Seafood & Oyster House owner Raz Halili and chef Joe Cervantez join CultureMap food editor Eric Sandler to discuss their restaurant. It's been about three years since Halili and Cervantez opened the waterside establishment in San Leon.
The conversation touches on a number of topics, including ways the restaurant has changed in three years, its semifinalist nomination for Best New Restaurant in the James Beard Awards, and the challenges Cervantez and chef de cuisine Lexy Garcia face by having to maintain standards for such a large restaurant.
"On expectations, the volume we operate at the restaurants. During the summer, we'll do 1,500 to 1,600 covers a day," Halili explains. "It gets pretty insane on the weekends during those peak times, and being able to execute at that high level is a lot. It's something day-in, day-out the attention has gotta be there."
"When you're doing numbers that high, you really have to make sure we're not slinging food out of the kitchen," Cervantez adds. "Things still have to have their garnishes and look pretty. It's not just throwing food on the plate and sending it out."
Listen to the full interview to hear Halili's take on the new breed of appelation oysters such as Murder Points and Barrier Beauties that are making a splash in the market. Cervantez also shares his impressions of Navy Blue, Aaron Bludorn's seafood restaurant in Rice Village.
In this week's first episode, Sandler and co-host Linda Salinas discuss the news of the week. Their topics include: Reserve 101 offering vintage spirits; Dak & Bop returning to its original location in the Museum District; and the opening of Betelgeuse Betelgeuse's second location in Montrose.
In the restaurants of the week segment, Salinas and Sandler share their thoughts on two establishments in the Heights. First, they discuss their meal at Moon Rabbit, the modern Vietnamese restaurant on 19th St. Then, they turn their attention to Best Regards, the stylish lounge and cocktail bar that recently opened in the former Chivos space.
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