Openings
Seasons 52, which bills itself as a "fresh grill and wine bar restaurant," has announced plans to open a branch at Millennium High Street in spring 2013. It will include a custom-built wine cellar, piano bar, two private dining rooms and a chef's table. The menu will offer seasonally inspired items such as steak and cremini mushroom flatbread and cedar plank salmon. As at the other locations, no dish on the menu will exceed 475 calories. Seasons 52, 4410 Westheimer Rd., Houston, TX 77027, no phone.
Houston’s Lower Westheimer Curve --- home to such famous eateries as Indika and Dolce Vita Pizzeria & Enoteca --- now has a new entry. Chef German Mosquera and partners have opened Roots Bistro, a casual neighborhood restaurant featuring vegetarian and vegan farm-to-fork dishes and a retail wine program designed by Tony Elsinga, a nearly three-decade veteran of the wine business. The restaurant itself is Green Certified and the patio is also dog friendly. Roots Bistro is in the former home of So Vino and Café Moustache. Roots Bistro, 507 Westheimer Rd., Houston, TX 77006, 713-524-1000.
From a food truck to a brick-and-mortar --- the guys behind the popular Eatsie Boys gourmet truck are set to open their first restaurant this summer. The new Eatsie Boys 100-seat café will be in the former home of the Kraftsmen Baking café in the 1940-era building known as The Campanile, originally built as a brick church. Co-owner Ryan Soroka says the interior will be revamped to reflect the funky Montrose area vibe with a design inspired by a local graffiti artist. The food will be similar to that served at the food truck, featuring gourmet sandwiches, pastries, ice cream, breakfast fare and light dinners. Soroka, along with partners Alex Vassilakidis and chef Matt Marcus, are also busy building their 8th Wonder Brewery. “We’ve always planned on having a restaurant and a brewery,” Soroka says, “but Texas laws don’t allow brewpubs to sell the beer they make, so we’re having to have two separate locations.” The new café will share the building with a city library, Cezanne jazz club and the Black Labrador pub. Eatsie Boys, 4100 Montrose Blvd., Houston, TX 77006, no phone.
News
Bytes
Small Plates, Big Pours at Fleming's Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar Fleming's Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar is offering a Small Plates, Big Pours promotion in the bar area through May 10, 2012. For $24.95, guests can select a small plate (sliced filet mignon, seared ahi tuna, lobster tempura, etc.) paired with an oversized wine pour. The selections range from Cakebread Sauvignon Blanc from Napa Valley to Penley Estate Gryphon Merlot from Australia. Fleming's Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar, Center at River Oaks, 2405 Alabama St., Houston, TX 77004, 713-520-5959.
Chef Shuffle
Check back soon for more news.
Closings
In a surprising move, Landry’s Pesce fine seafood-dining eatery closed over the April 1st weekend. But this was no April Fool’s joke, as the phone, website and sign are now gone. Pesce was a hot spot for most of its ten years in the Upper Kirby area but faced recent competition from the newer Eddie V’s Prime Seafood at West Avenue. Located in The Centre at River Oaks, which also houses a shuttered Borders bookstore, the former Pesce spot may not stay empty for long. The national chain Brio Tuscan Grille has pulled renovation permits for the location. Pesce, 3029 Kirby Dr., Houston, TX 77098, no phone.
View our calendar of Wine Dinners & Tastings in Houston
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