In this month's installment of The Full Menu, food writers discuss their favorite places to eat in Montrose and Midtown.

In the audio above, we hear from Eric Sandler of CultureMap Houston, Felice Sloan of the Swanky Maven lifestyle blog, David Leftwich of Edible Houston and Houston Food Finder.

Establishments Mentioned in this Edition:

Candente
The Pit Room
Andiron
Elro Pizza + Crudo
Ostia
Clark’s Oyster Bar
Little’s Oyster Bar
Blacksmith
Citizens of Montrose
The Breakfast Klub
Spicy Girl
Mala Sichuan Bistro
Cooking Girl
Taste of Mulan
Siu Lap City
Cali Sandwich & Pho
Thien An Sandwiches
Pho Saigon
Graffiti Raw
Katami
Winnie’s
Josephine’s Gulf Coast Tradition
Bludorn
Paulie’s Restaurant
Romano’s Pizza
Hugo’s
The Gypsy Poet
Brennan’s of Houston
Nonno’s Family Pizza Tavern
Uchi

Valentine’s Day is a week from today – consider yourself warned. Houstonians contemplating a date night on or near the holiday need to look no further.

In this month's installment of The Full Menu, food writers discuss their favorite places for a romantic date night. In the audio above, we hear from Eric Sandler of CultureMap Houston, Felice Sloan of the Swanky Maven lifestyle blog, and David Leftwich of Edible Houston and Houston Food Finder.

Establishments Mentioned in this Edition:

Clark’s Oyster Bar
BCN Taste & Tradition
Lombardi Cucina Italiana
Turner’s
Squable
Doris Metropolitan
Rainbow Lodge
Tatemo
Bludorn
Toro Toro
Houston Dairymaids
Giacomo’s cibo e vino
Andiron
13 Celsius
Tavola
Aya Sushi

From the lines of customers (including some celebrities) at Trill Burgers, to the first Houston chef to win a certain James Beard Award, 2023 was full of exciting developments in Houston’s food scene.

Reportedly pizza had a good year (who knew?) and sandwiches too, at least according to our group of Houston food writers, who discuss their favorite new restaurants of the past year and look forward to what’s coming in 2024 in this month's installment of The Full Menu.

In the audio above, we hear from Eric Sandler of CultureMap Houston,  Felice Sloan of the Swanky Maven lifestyle blog, and David Leftwich of Edible Houston and Houston Food Finder.

Establishments Mentioned in this Edition:

Trill Burgers
Little’s Oyster Bar
Jūn
Clark’s Oyster Bar
Balboa Surf Club
Katami
Mimo
Rumi’s Kitchen
Rado Café & Market
Comalito
Andiron
LuLoo’s Day & Night

Coming Soon:

Bar Bludorn
The Pit Room (Memorial City)
Maximo Canteen
The Marigold Club

The holidays may bring some family or friends to town. If you’re hosting them, you might also seek out some good options to feed them. In this month’s installment of The Full Menu, food writers discuss what Houston-area restaurants to visit if you want to show them the best of the local food scene.

In the audio above, we hear from Eric Sandler of CultureMap Houston, Felice Sloan of the Swanky Maven lifestyle blog, and David Leftwich of Edible Houston and Houston Food Finder, who give us a tour of the city by type of cuisine.

Establishments Mentioned in this Edition (By Cuisine):

Barbecue:

Truth BBQ
Corkscrew BBQ
Gatlin’s BBQ

Tex-Mex:

Candente
The Original Ninfa’s
El Tiempo Cantina

Seafood:

Little’s Oyster Bar
Goode Co. Seafood
Josephine’s Gulf Coast Tradition

Vietnamese:

Moon Rabbit
Huynh
The Blind Goat

Other Restaurants:

Jūn
Craft Burger
Picos
Crawfish & Noodles
The Toasted Coconut
Winnie’s
Trill Burgers
Fish and Chips Houston
Aga’s Restaurant & Catering
Katy Asian Town

The weather in Houston is finally bearable -- even cold at times. So, unlike most of the country, it's a great time to get outdoors. In this month's installment of The Full Menu, food writers discuss their favorite places for outdoor dining in Greater Houston.

In the audio above, we hear from Eric Sandler of CultureMap Houston, and David Leftwich of Houston Food Finder.

Establishments Mentioned in this Edition:

Elro Pizza + Crudo
Giacomo’s cibo e vino
Georgia James
Pastore
Nancy’s Hustle
Tiny Champions
Café Leonelli
Le Jardinier
Coltivare
Trattoria Sofia
St. Arnold
Axelrad
Better Luck Tomorrow
Winnie’s
Slowpokes
Clark’s Oyster Bar
Pier 6
Annabelle Brasserie
Beck’s Prime (Augusta location)
Brasil

In this month's installment of The Full Menu, food writers discuss their favorite places in Houston to grab a quick -- but delicious -- lunch.

In the audio above, we hear from Eric Sandler of CultureMap Houston, Felice Sloan of the Swanky Maven lifestyle blog, and David Leftwich of Houston Food Finder.

The biscuits at Gatlin's Fins & Feathers.

Establishments Mentioned in this Edition:

Rado MKT
Lucille’s
Kathmandu Curry & Bar
Himalaya
Rainbow Lodge
Luloo’s Day & Night
Treebeards
Gatlin’s Fins & Feathers
Gatlin’s BBQ
ChòpnBlọk
Soy Pinoy
J-Bar-M Barbecue
The Brisket House
Eunice
We’re-Dough
Dish Society
Melange Creperie
Good Dog
Navy Blue
Kata Robata
Loch Bar

In this month's installment of The Full Menu, food writers offer their recommendations for solid pizza joints around town.

In the audio above, we hear from Eric Sandler of CultureMap Houston, Felice Sloan of the Swanky Maven lifestyle blog, and David Leftwich of Houston Food Finder.

Establishments Mentioned in this Edition:

Home Slice Pizza
Nonno’s Family Pizza Tavern
Elro Pizza + Crudo
Meek’s Vegan Pizza
Neighbors Social Club & Wine Bar
Pizaro’s Pizza
Gold Tooth Tony’s Detroit Pizza
Rudyard’s
Coltivare
Ostia
Tiny Champions
Brother’s Pizzeria
Love Buzz Pizza Pub
The Gypsy Poet
Via 313

August is here, and, while that’s bad news for Houstonians already fatigued by the opressive heat, it’s great news for foodies.

That’s because August is Houston Restaurant Weeks, the month-long charity dining event where local restaurants roll out special menus with special pricing. And proceeds benefit the Houston Food Bank.

In this month’s installment of The Full Menu, our food writers preview what some restaurants are offering on those special menus and what dishes they’re most excited to try.

MORE: Houston Restaurant Weeks celebrates 20 years

In the audio above, we hear from Eric Sandler of CultureMap Houston, Felice Sloan of the Swanky Maven lifestyle blog, and David Leftwich of Houston Food Finder.

HIGHLIGHTS FROM THIS CONVERSATION:

Felice Sloan: Felice made note of the opportunity to get a high-end meal for a little less money at Pappas Steakhouse Downtown where she recommended the Caesar salad, a steak (of course), and a slice of key lime pie.

She also recommended the burnt ends and the brisket enchiladas at Brett's BBQ Shop in Katy.

David Leftwich: David said HRW is a great opportunity to try a new restaurtant. Once such establishment he mentioned was Mimo and said their Italian-style hoagie is probably the best of its kind in Houston right now.

David also recommended the four-course HRW lunch menu at The Lymbar in midtown where you can choose from one of their empanadas, a salad, a taco or smaller lunch plate, and a dessert, such as their strawberry crumble.

Eric Sandler: Eric brought attention to Hamsa, a Mediterranean restaurant in Rice Villiage, where he recommends the lamb hummus and also the falafel, one of the best in the city, he said.

Eric also recommended the "Nine Napkin Burger" at Brett's.

Plus, he talked about the Peruvian-Japanese fusion restuarant Pacha Nikkei in west Houston where he mentioned the ceviche, the lomo saltado (stir-fried beef tenderloin), and churros for dessert.

HRW Menus for Establishments Mentioned in this Edition:

Pappas Steakhouse (Downtown)
Mimo
Hamsa
Brett’s BBQ Shop
Pacha Nikkei
The Lymbar
Roost
Coltivare
Davis Street
B&B Butchers
The Annie Café
Lucille’s

In Greater Houston, you can find good Mexican food and Tex-Mex on almost every block. But where are the best places in the city?

In this month's installment of The Full Menu, food writers talk about their favorite places right now. In the audio above, we hear from Eric Sandler of CultureMap Houston, Felice Sloan of the Swanky Maven lifestyle blog, and David Leftwich of Houston Food Finder.

HIGHLIGHTS:

Sloan says if you go to Candente, just order the menu.

"Anything on the menu -- point," she said. "You can go anywhere on the menu."

The restaurant is owned by the same people who own The Pit Room, a barbecue joint next door. Sandler says their tortillas are particularly good because they take their rendered brisket fat from smoking meat and use it to make their tortillas.

"Which gives them a richness -- a little subtle smokiness -- that's distrinct from other people's flour tortillas," he said.

Leftwich highlighted Tatemó, which was a finalist for a James Beard Award for best new restaurant.

Sloan mentioned a classic favorite: the fajitas and carnitas at El Tiempo Cantina.

And Sandler drew attention to the work of chef Victoria Elizondo of Cochinita & co. and dishes like her cochinita pibil, pork pastor, and shrimp tacos.

"Everything she does is just so flavorful and so delicious," he said.

MORE: Victoria Elizondo discusses her taco cookbook, Taco-Tastic

Establishments Mentioned in this Edition:

Candente
Tatemó
El Tiempo Cantina
La Mexicana
Diego’s Famous Carnitas
Gerardo’s
El Topo
Alma Latina
Papalo Taqueria
Cochinita & co.
Verde Garden
Tacos Doña Lena
Belly of the Beast (coming soon!)
Xalisko

Plenty of exciting new restaurants have opened in the first half of 2023 so far. Houston food writers discuss some of their favorites in this month's installment of The Full Menu.

In the audio above, we hear from Eric Sandler of CultureMap Houston, David Leftwich of Houston Food Finder, and Danielle Dubois of Hangry Houstonian.

Establishments Mentioned in this Edition:

Mimo
Albi
Ciel
Kuji Kitchen
Jūn
Muse
The Blind Goat (new brick and mortar location)
LuLoo’s Day & Night
Verde Garden
Andiron
Xalisco