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Houston is the place to go for world-class cuisine and for stimulating nightspots that attract the elite and the eclectic. Eating out in Houston is a treat, no matter what your taste or budget. The city is home to hundreds of fine restaurants, ranging from elegant to down-home. One estimate counts close to 6,000 restaurants in Houston.
On the casual front, barbecue and Mexican food are two favorites in a region that celebrates its southern and southwestern roots with great food. Restaurants, cafes, and other Houston joints feature these specialties in a wide array of styles. For barbecue it's Pizzitola's, Hickory Hollow, or Drexler's. Los Tios Mexican Restaurant is celebrating 28 years of serving fresh, delicious Tex-Mex. A family-owned and operated chain of five popular family-oriented Tex-Mex restaurants in the Houston area, Los Tios is famous for its frozen margaritas made from hand-squeezed limes and specialties such as enchiladas, tacos, puff-shell chile con queso, and fajitas. Other good places for Mexican food include Molina's, Escalante's, Chuy's, and Irma's.
Ethnic foods are well represented in Houston. Italian, Chinese, Greek, Ethiopian, Indian, German, Vietnamese, and Cambodian cuisines can be found throughout the city. The Kim La family showcases the food of Vietnam, known for color, flavor, and spices, at its four full-service Kim Son Vietnamese Restaurant locations and three satellite locations in the city. "These are the recipes of my homeland," said Mrs. La, who with her husband, Kim, runs the restaurants and a booming catering business. "I have been preparing these dishes since I was a little girl." People who are not acquainted with Vietnamese cooking might mistake it for a variation of Chinese food, but there are big differences in the seasonings, cooking techniques, and emphasis on ingredients.
Authentic Italian food can be found at restaurants throughout Houston. At Crapitto's, formerly Romero's, patrons have fallen in love with the Italian recipes of John Crapitto, who bought the Mid Lane restaurant in River Oaks in December 1997. "My grandmother fancied herself quite a cook and had volumes of recipes copied down on steno pads," said Crapitto. "I had a field day, and many of her recipes are on our new menu."
Other great stops for ethnic food include China Garden, downtown; Niko Niko's for Greek; and Damian's, La Strada, Collina's, and La Mora for Italian food.
For more than 25 years, the Mason Jar on Katy Freeway (owned by Clint Bone and Randy Dishongh) has been a satisfying eatery for those who enjoy a home-style, all-American meal. The restaurant's famous chicken-fried steak, a perennial Texas favorite, is served on a huge platter and the steak still hangs off the plate. The Mason Jar is one of the few restaurants in town that specializes in free-roaming beef. It is also famous for its boiled artichoke served with lime butter and curry sauce. "We're very big into getting customers to say wow when we set their plates in front of them," said Mike Collins, first assistant manager.
You can also get good ol' American food at Barnaby's, the Avalon Drug Store, and Lankford Grocery.
With so much fine dining available throughout the city, it's hard to narrow the choices. For a New York atmo-sphere, Houstonians enjoy the Capital Grille on Westheimer. Specializing in fine, dry-aged steaks, the Capital Grille's menu also features veal, pork loin, and seafood. The wine list is among the most revered in the city, offering more than 300 selections from France, Italy, California, and Australia. The restaurant recently received Wine Spectator magazine's "Best of" award of excellence for its wine selection. A cigar-friendly restaurant, the Capital Grille proudly houses a private humidor, presenting a varying selection of fine cigars. The restaurant, which hosts private parties and corporate functions, also is known for its extensive martini menu.
At the corner of Kirby Drive and Westheimer, the River Oaks Grill is an American bistro with a global influence. Owned by well-known Houston restaurateur Tony Rao, it recently introduced a new menu created by executive chef Michelle LeBleu. Featuring continental and American food favorites with an interesting flair, menu specialties include the rack of lamb and the Caesar salad. The wine room accommodates private parties, and the piano bar offers lighter entrees for the pretheater crowd. The dining experience at the River Oaks Grill is not easily paralleled.
Steak houses are enjoying renewed popularity in Houston, and one of the most famous is Pappas Bros. Steakhouse on Westheimer. Reminiscent of the forties, Pappas is known for its prime beef and its extensive collection of wines, cognacs, single-malt scotches, and premium cigars. The restaurant has been recognized with several awards from major magazines in the state and the country. Other superior steak houses include Vallone's, Sullivan's, Ruth's Chris Steak House, and Saltgrass Steak House.
Nestled in the beautiful forest of Memorial Park, on the outskirts of downtown, is a Houston institution, the Rainbow Lodge. Through the years, the restaurant has received countless accolades from magazines and newspapers across the country. It has been voted Houston's most romantic restaurant for four years in a row by Zagat's Houston Restaurant Guide. Overlooking Buffalo Bayou across from Ima Hogg's historic Bayou Bend homeplace, the Rainbow Lodge enjoys a secluded, woodsy setting in the midst of America's fourth largest city. Proprietor Donnette Hansen is constantly working on the interior design of the restaurant. She added a brick rotisserie to the main dining room, where quail, pheasant, duck, and game hens slowly cook over open flames. Texas game is a menu specialty, but excellent Texas Gulf Coast dishes are also offered. The decor includes a romantic mix of rich woods, antiques, and hunting and fishing gear. One of the most interesting aspects of the decor is the Tied-Fly Bar, created by Vermont artist Bill Herrick. Over 20 feet long and an acclaimed piece of art in its own right, the bar features an intricately carved trout stream.
In the museum district on Montrose, the menu and ambience of the Redwood Grill attract diners who appreciate excellent food, fine wines, and a quiet, relaxed atmosphere. The restaurant's separate lunch and dinner menus feature modern American cuisine with California influences. Murals adorn the walls, along with a changing variety of original artwork supplied by local galleries in the museum district.
The Redwood Grill is a smoke-free restaurant. It was named one of the top 20 restaurants in the city by Gourmet magazine.
The Post Oak Grill is a hot spot for both lunch and dinner in the Galleria and Post Oak area, offering a fresh, eclectic variety of seafood, pasta, and steak dishes. As a bonus, the jazz bar features live piano music during happy hour each evening. On Tuesday through Saturday evenings, beginning about 8:30, a live band shakes it all up with a mix of jazz, modern swing, and oldies.
DECO's restaurant in the Adam's Mark hotel is one of Houston's finer restaurants. It serves contemporary southwestern cuisine in a relaxed dining atmosphere. The new theme of DECO's menu is "Flavors of the South," with such dishes as a pecan-crusted chicken breast served with Alabama coleslaw dressed with a vodka vinaigrette. For Sunday brunches, the fare at Adam's Mark is hard to beat.
More and more restaurants are cigar-friendly, as cigar smoking has gained greater acceptance. Cigar smoking has a rich tradition in Texas and the South, according to Donnie Roberts, owner and founder of Texana Cigar Company, based in Chappell Hill, Texas, near Brenham. "Texas is on the leading edge of the rise in popularity of fine cigars," said Roberts. "Many of our leaders smoked cigars. Cigars and the outdoors go together. Smoking cigars goes right along with hunting, fishing, and playing golf." Texana Cigar Company has positioned itself as the cigar for the outdoorsman, although it is sold in many of Houston's finest restaurants, including Pappas Bros., Americas, and Cabo's. The company imports its tobacco from Central America. Some of the cigars are imported from that region, too, but many of the company's cigars are rolled and boxed right here in Texas. The company does a lot of private labeling for ranching and hunting preserves, golf courses, and corporations.