What's Eric Eating

Today on the podcast Eric is joined by Linda Salinas to discuss the latest happenings in the Houston restaurant and bar scene including 2 Houston food vets coming together for a new Italian concept, Rise Soufflé is coming back to the Houston area, and a new brewery opening in Hardy Yards. In the Restaurant of the Week portion Amrina. In the Guest of the Week section, for the first time ever on the podcast, Eric is joined by Justin Yu of Theodore Rex and Thorough Fare Hospitality. Justin speaks with Eric about what he remembers about starting Oxheart, working with Kaitlin Steets at Theodore Rex, what Justin's day to day schedule is like, stepping back at Better Luck Tomorrow, working with Michael Connor, how did the business relationship with Bobby Heugel evolve into what it is today, how did the hotel project come about, what makes Galveston appealing for this project, what to expect from The Fancy food wise, the current state of the James Beard Awards, and more!

Follow Eric on Instagram and Twitter, plus check out some of his latest articles at Culturemap.com, such as:

Today on the podcast Eric is joined by Mary Clarkson to discuss some of the latest news from the Houston restaurant and bar scene including further discussion/celebration of Alba Huerta's James Beard award, Agricole Hospitality announces their plans for a new lounge concept, promising self-serve concept Shoot the Moon closing it's doors permanently, and March being named one of the best new restaurants of 2022. In the Restaurants of the Week section Street to Kitchen is featured. In the Guest of the portion Eric is joined by Jason Andaya and Cole Hoang of Dinette. Jason and Cole speak with Eric about the new concept Dinette, why a Vietnamese restaurant concept was the next step for Jason after Hando, the evolution of Vietnamese food in the city, dishes people will see on the menu, what the Dinette twist is on Vietnamese food, the offerings that will be at Dinette, what Cole learned from his time working with Christine Hà, how things are going at Hando, what Jason attributes Hando's success to, why now was the right time for a 2nd location for Hando, what made Spring Branch the right choice for that 2nd location, and much more!  

Follow Eric on Instagram and Twitter, plus check out some of his latest articles at Culturemap.com, such as:

Today on the podcast Eric is joined by Matt Harris to discuss the latest happenings in the Houston restaurant and bar scene including the James Beard Awards announcing their winners for 2022, Phat Eatery announcing a 2nd location, Willow Villarreal and Jasmine Barela working with Killen's restaurants now, and Nando's Peri-Peri is coming to Houston. In the Restaurants of the Week portion Hugo's is featured. In the Guest of the Week section Eric is joined by Top Chef finalist Evelyn Garcia. Evelyn speaks with Eric about what motivated her to join the show, the preparation that she did to prepare for the show, finding out the show was going to be set in Houston, her favorite challenges that she went through on the show, when did she start thinking of ideas for the final 4 course meal for the finale, what was going through her mind walking up to the judges in the finale, getting to know her fellow contestants, letting her emotions show on camera, how life has changed for her since being on the show, has the show helped her business in a way, how she started working with Henry Lu, timeline for her restaurant, the concept behind her restaurant baby, and much more!

Follow Eric on Instagram and Twitter, plus check out some of his latest articles at Culturemap.com, such as:

No guest on the show this week so Eric and cohost Michael Fulmer catch up on the latest happenings in the Houston restaurant and bar scene including what they thought of Top Chef season 19 which filmed here in Houston, did it depict the city well? Plus Evelyn Garcia's run in the competition and how she represented the city. The guys also discuss Greg Gatlin and Michelle Wallace opening a new comfort food concept and the family behind Rice Epicurean Market closing it's last location. In the Restaurants of the Week section 1751 Sea & Bar and Flying Fish are featured. 

Follow Eric on Instagram and Twitter, plus check out some of his latest articles at Culturemap.com, such as:

On today's edition of What's Eric Eating, Eric is joined by Linda Salinas to discuss some of the latest happenings from the Houston bar and restaurant scene including recapping the winners from this year's Tastemaker Awards, Austin bar Nickel City coming to Houston, and Robert Del Grande announcing that he's taking a step back. In the Restaurants of the Week section Height's & Co. is featured. Then in the Guest of the Week portion Eric is joined by Nicole Morris of Lucy Pearl's. Nicole speaks with Eric about how she first got interested in baking, getting started in the farmers market, how she got connected with Post Houston, learning from the family, figuring out the family recipes, why the counter/open kitchen are key parts of the design for Lucy Pearl's, what customer's are asking, meeting Eric, what Lucy Pearl's menu has to offer, the non cake options, the wild cake sales numbers, developing the different options for customers, making connections with other vendors at The Post, future plans, and much more! 

Follow Eric on Instagram and Twitter, plus check out some of his latest articles at Culturemap.com, such as:

Houston's Best Restaurant, Chef, and More Star in 2022 Tastemaker Awards 

On today's edition of What's Eric Eating, Eric is joined by Felice Sloan to discuss the latest from the Houston restaurant and bar scene including Bobby Heugel and Justin Yu opening a new concept in Galveston, the "world's biggest pizza slice" coming to Houston, and Zach Harris' newest concept coming to the Shady Acres area. In the Restaurants of the Week Uchiko is featured. In the Guest of the Week portion Eric is joined by Brian Doke of Savoir, Pattons, and Heights & Co. Brian speaks with Eric about how Brian got into the hospitality industry, how he grew at Tiny Boxwoods, deciding to go out on his own, the vision behind Savoir when starting it out, working his chef Eric Johnson, why he decided to with a steakhouse as his second concept, how Patton's has been going so far, what feedback he's gotten from customers, developing the idea behind his newest concept Heights & Co., what they do at Heights & Co. to separate themselves from the competition, how he'd like to see Heights & Co. evolve, developing the food offerings for Heights & Co., what's next on the concept front, and much more!

Follow Eric on Instagram and Twitter, plus check out some of his latest articles at Culturemap.com, such as:

Today on the podcast Eric is joined by Mary Clarkson to discuss some of the latest happenings in the Houston restaurant and bar scene including Loro's 2nd location being revealed, Bobby Heugel's new bar opening this week, and a 2nd location of Hando heading to Spring Branch. In the Restaurants of the Week Hamsa and Cafe Louie are featured. In the Guest of the Week section Eric is joined in studio (yes in studio for the first time since March 2020) by Will and Nichole Buckman of CorkScrew BBQ. Will and Nichole speak with Eric about the state of CorkScrew BBQ, retaining staff through the past difficult 2 pandemic years, why they're always present, ways they have grown, the possibility of opening another restaurant in the future, the idea of relevance when it comes to restaurants, whether they cared about falling out of Texas Monthly's Top 10 BBQ places, the most overlooked item, speaking with Daniel Vaughn, what shows they're binging, why they don't mix barbecue and politics, Will's hobbies, and much more!

Follow Eric on Instagram and Twitter, plus check out some of his latest articles at Culturemap.com, such as:

Instead of doing the normal format Eric is switching things up today with a special edition of the podcast, it's the Ultimate Houston Barbecue Draft. Eric has assembled a panel of barbecue lovers to pick the ultimate barbecue plate. Then Dozier's Barbeque pitmaster Jim Buchanan looks over the selections to decide who assembled the ultimate BBQ plate. What goes number 1? Whose draft strategy will prove best? Who reached with their selection? Which items got snubbed? Find out all of that and more on this special edition of the podcast!

Follow Eric on Instagram and Twitter, plus check out some of his latest articles at Culturemap.com, such as:

Today on the podcast Eric is joined by Mary Clarkson to discuss the latest in restaurant and bar news from the Houston area including Bellaire Broiler Burger making it's long awaited return, Lankford Grocery opening a second location, and Uchiko announcing it's opening date. In the Restaurants of the Week portion Marmo is featured. In the Guest of the Week section Eric is joined by Paul Miller of Gr8 Plate Hospitality. Paul catches Eric up on what's been going on with Gr8 Plate Hospitality since he was last on the podcast, what he's learned about operating a business such as his during these past 2 years in the pandemic, wanting more staff, how he's adapted the business these past 2 years, why he decided to open the new Italian concept Passerella, what type of Italian style does Passerella bring to the market, developing the menu for the new concept, the dishes he's excited for people to try, the future for Gr8 Plate, when Passerella is launching, and much more!

Follow Eric on Instagram and Twitter, plus check out some of his latest articles at Culturemap.com, such as:

It's a celebration! Not just because it's a new episode of the podcast but because today marks the 5 year anniversary of What's Eric Eating! A huge thank you to everyone that listens, shares, subscribes, reviews, or however you engage with the podcast. We wouldn't be able to do this for the 5 years and running without you all. A huge thank you as well to all of the great cohosts and guests over the years. It's been an amazing ride and we look forward to providing more great podcast content to you all!

Now for today's podcast Eric is joined by Linda Salinas to discuss some of the latest news from the Houston bar and restaurant scene including Uchi announcing a new dedicated omakase space, Chris Shepherd's shake up at the tavern formerly known as Georgia James, and a new nightclub popping up in the Heights area. In the Restaurants of the Week section Reikina and The Warwick are featured. In the Guest of the Week portion Eric is joined by Tasos Katsaounis and Drew Gimma of Bread Man Baking Company. Tasos and Drew catch Eric up on what's been happening with Bread Man, the big moves the company has been making, why Bread Man Baking Co. made sense as the next step for Drew, moving into a space that's ten times bigger, the production load they manage now, how they're preserving the artisan quality with the larger production volume, putting Drew's stamp on the products, how consumers will notice the difference, the possibility of introducing other products, the future goals for Bread Man Baking Company, and much much more!

Follow Eric on Instagram and Twitter, plus check out some of his latest articles at Culturemap.com, such as: