What's Eric Eating Episodes 326 and 327

Meet Houston's new hospitality head honcho, plus our visit to Ben Berg's beautiful brasserie

Jonathan Horowitz Houston Hospitality Alliance

Jonathan Horowitz is this week's guest.

Courtesy of Houston Hospitality Alliance

On this week's episode of "What's Eric Eating," Jonathan Horowitz joins CultureMap food editor Eric Sandler to discuss his new role as president of the Houston Hospitality Alliance. The hospitality veteran has held a number of roles, including serving as a partner in The Tasting Room and president of Ninfa's owner Legacy Restaurants.

After recapping his recent work for real estate development firm Midway and Buffalo Bayou Brewing Company, the conversation turns to the Houston Hospitality Alliance. Horowitz explains that it's a new organization that evolved out of the Greater Houston Convention and Visitors Bureau. As its name implies, it seeks to unite all aspects of Houston's hospitality communities — restaurants, bars, hotels, attractions, and other businesses. That makes it distinct from industry-specific organizations such as the Texas Restaurant Association.

"We have the ability and the opportunity to be a connector. All of these other organizations are fairly specific, and they deal with one aspect of an industry. We're all of hospitality. We have the opportunity to bring all of these entities together . . . and give them an opportunity to communicate with one another in a central place," he says.

"We are hyper-local. We are just about Houston. There will be a lot of communication with City Council, whether that's about labor issues or permitting. All of the pain points that everybody's experiencing. There will be advocacy that we're going to do."

Listen to the full interview to hear Horowitz's plans to build the organization in its first year. He and Sandler also discuss the conversations the organization has had with political candidates ahead of this year's elections. The interview concludes with the duo discussing some recent trends in the food world along with a light-hearted wrapup of Sandler's recent trip to Vegas to see U2 at The Sphere.

In this week's news episode, Sandler and co-host Linda Salinas look at the latest happenings in the food world. Their topics include: the new restaurants coming to The Thompson Hotel; KP's Kitchen opening a second location near the Bellaire Triangle; and Rice Village staple Prego moving to a new location within the development.

In the restaurant of the week segment, the two friends share first impressions of Annabelle Brasserie. Listen to the episode to hear what they liked about Ben Berg's new French restaurant in the Autry Park mixed-use development.

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Jonathan's new job

Houston hospitality veteran picked to lead beloved Junior League tea room

Courtesy of the Junior League of Houston

Jonathan Horowitz is the new general manager of the Tea Room at the Junior League.

A Houston hospitality veteran has found a new home at one of the city’s most iconic dining rooms. Jonathan Horowitz is the new general manager of the Tea Room at the Junior League of Houston.

Over the course of his two decade career, Horowitz has held many roles, including being an equity partner in LASCO Enterprises, which operated The Tasting Room and Max’s Wine Dive; spending five years at the CEO of Legacy Restaurants, the company behind The Original Ninfa’s and Antone’s Famous Po’ Boys; serving as the president of the Houston Hospitality Alliance, an organization that fostered relationships across all aspects of Houston's hospitality communities; and operating Convive Hospitality, a consulting firm that helped open several establishments around town.

Most recently, Horowitz has been working in commercial real estate. His responsibilities have included both pleasant aspects such as helping operators find an ideal location to expand their businesses and more negative aspects like helping others sell or close a struggling operation. The highs and lows had him looking for a new opportunity right when the Junior League needed a new general manager.

“I had made contact with a national recruiting firm after their current GM left the job after 41 years,” Horowitz tells CultureMap. “I looked at it from a current life situation and what I wanted to do going forward — the opportunity to get back into operations is very exciting and something I’m familiar with.”

"Jonathan Horowitz stood out from a strong candidate pool for his extensive experience in hospitality, business development, law and leadership, alongside his deep Houston culinary ties and alignment with our mission," the Junior League Tea Room General Manager Search Committee said in a statement. "He respects our traditions while bringing the collaborative leadership needed to enhance staff partnerships and advance our premier food and beverage operations in our newly renovated building. As we enter our next century of service, we are thrilled to welcome Jonathan as the new general manager."

Although he’s only a couple of days into the job, Horowitz already has some ideas how to enhance the Tea Room, which underwent extensive renovations a couple of years ago. Of course, fan favorite dishes such as the taco salad, crepes, and pecan ball aren’t going anywhere, but Horowitz has already heard from members who want more vegetarian options. He’s also gauging interest in themed game nights such as mahjong or bingo.

Behind the scenes, Horowitz is planning on some technological upgrades that will allow the operation to run more smoothly. Knowing his predecessor held the job for more than 40 years has Horowitz feeling optimistic that he’s found a long-term home.

“We’re on day three and you never know what the future hold, but I certainly look at it that way. That’s how I’m approaching it. I ain’t no spring chicken,” he says with a laugh.

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