Where to eat/drink in Houston?

by Jacob Grier on December 24, 2009

I’ll be back in my hometown December 25-29. Obviously I want to stop in at Anvil, where bartender Bobby Heugel is serving up creative cocktails. And word is David Buehrer has finally brought great coffee to Houston with his Tuscany Coffee. Good Tex-Mex is a must and easy to find. I’d usually consider barbecue essential, but Podnah’s Pit in Portland is such a good fix that I might do without. Where else should I visit?

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solinox 12.24.09 at 7:16 am

Oh my gosh, you HAVE to go to Chuy’s Tex Mex!!! Queso is the best in the world, margaritas are big and awesome, tortillas are fresh made in house. Try a steak burrito with hatch green chili sauce, it’s my favorite! Chuy’s is so good, we’ve had visitors fly it up here to Michigan with them on the plane, because you can’t get anything like it here!

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Chad 12.24.09 at 8:58 am

It’s a sad story when you have to ask your blog readers where the highlights are in your own hometown. Almost as sad as the fact that your top picks are the same things you would do if you were visiting any other town for the first time.

I would pick on you further for this, except I’ve been away from my hometown long enough that I think the same thing is starting to happen to me…

To the previous commenter’s suggestion, Chuy’s actually is some of the best Tex-Mex I’ve had. Get something with Deluxe Tomatillo sauce.

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Ron Diggity 12.24.09 at 9:39 am

Cross posting…

Vieng Thai
http://viengthaihouston.com/

Hugo’s
http://www.hugosrestaurant.net/

Thelma’s BBQ (new location)
http://blogs.houstonpress.com/eating/2009/03/thelmas_new_location.php

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Jacob Grier 12.24.09 at 10:31 am

Thanks for the suggestions.

@Chad: I go back every year hoping for good coffee and cocktail bars, this just happens to be the first year there are ones to be excited about! Well, not exactly true: I had a good time at Heugel’s previous place, Beaver’s, the last time I was in town. But visiting the suburb of the 4th largest city in the US for only a few days a year makes it hard to know the city.

@Ron Diggity: Vieng Thai looks great. Traditional Mexican is something I haven’t explored in Houston. My favorite Vietnamese place closed a few years ago, but with such a large population there I’m sure there are good options.

Other places I’ve enjoyed on recent trips back: Max’s Wine Dive, Black Labrador, and Kelvin Arms.

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Paul 12.25.09 at 10:28 pm

Coffee/Cafes: Antidote on Studewood (), Onion Creek also in the Heights(, Catalina in the 6th Ward(), or the Montrose trifecta: Brasil (), Empire (<a href=http://www.yelp.com/biz/empire-cafe-houston title=Yelp), and Agora ()

Booze: Absinthe (), Leon’s (), Poison Girl (), Catbirds (), The Flat ()

Wine: Block 7 (), 13 Celsius (), Max’s (), Boheme (), La Carafe ()

Beer: West Alabama Ice House (), Alice’s Tall Texan (), Kay’s (), Hans’ Bierhaus (), Rudyard’s ()

Food: Monica Pope’s T’afia or Beaver’s (where Bobby was before Anvil) ( and ), Reef (), Indika (), and Feast ()

enjoy!

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Paul 12.25.09 at 10:29 pm

@Paul: Boy. I messed up those tags. Hopefully you can read that without the links.

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Aarti 12.28.09 at 12:10 am

I know you’re about to leave soon, but I hear Indika is a really good Indian place. I plan to try it on one of my trips.

http://www.yelp.com/biz/indika-houston

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