This next series comes to you at the request of two friends who are getting ready to embark on a multi-week road trip through Texas. (I wish you a lovely and safe trip, L and J.) In previous posts, I have shared about my time in Austin, along with a very brief stop in San Antonio.
Until recently, these were the only two cities I had visited in Texas. During the past several months however, I had the good fortune to visit both Houston, which I will write about first, and then Dallas. Let's get started!
Houston, Texas
Houston is the largest metropolis in all of Texas and the fourth most populated city in the United States, trailing New York, Los Angeles and Chicago. My most recent trip to Texas actually centered around a work conference in Dallas and was not originally supposed to include a stop in Houston.
Fortunately, a friend sent me a link to an episode of Anthony Bourdain's Parts Unknown (thanks D.C.), in which Bourdain stated that Houston is the most diverse city in the U.S. This is in fact true, and for that reason (and the $70 roundtrip flight I found from Dallas), I set out to explore one of the fasting growing cities in the United States.
Buffalo Bayou Park at Sunset
Within two hours of landing in Houston, I heard eight different languages spoken and was able to engage in dialogue in four (well, 3.5 more accurately). If there was a place that I was going to bring my dormant language skills back to life, it was apparently Houston. This is true for everyone, as there are at least 145 languages spoken in the city, by people from at least 90 different nations.
This also translates (no pun intended) to a dynamic and top-notch culinary scene. The fine dining scene in Houston is great and I am very much looking forward to sharing about it soon. For this post however, I'll jump in with the best, casual dining restaurants I visited.
ChòpnBlọk
ChòpnBlọk
First up is ChòpnBlọk. West African cuisine has taken Houston by storm thanks, in part, to this fast-casual eatery in Houston's Post Market. ChòpnBlọk began as a pop up started by Ope Amosu, a 2024 James Beard Emerging Chef Semifinalist. Amosu, who is Nigerian, grew up in Houston, which is home to the largest Nigerian population outside of Nigeria.
Motherland Plate
The most popular dish at ChòpnBlọk is the Motherland, which comes with steamed rice, Yaji vegetables, sweet plantains, and their signature Motherland curry, made with a base of coconut milk and West African spices.
To that, you can add your choice of chicken, shrimp or steak. I added the latter. This meal was delicious and filling. If you don't have time to dine at the market, it's also the perfect dish to eat on the go.
Crawfish and Noodles
Crawfish and Noodles
Another Houston, must-try, casual, dining eatery is Crawfish and Noodles, where Cajun and Vietnamese cuisines converge and explode with flavor. Crawfish and Noodles opened in Houston's Asiatown in 2008 under chef-owner and James Beard Award semifinalist Trong Nguyen. Today, you will find the restaurant in the Houston Farmer's Market.
Gulf Oysters
Before getting to the Viet-Cajun portion of the menu, I was persuaded to try the fresh, gulf oysters. They were creamy and briny with just the right amount of brightness, contributed by a squeeze of lime.
Viet-Cajun Shrimp Plate
I was hoping to try the crawfish, since that is the restaurant's signature dish. Sadly, I did not visit when crawfish were in season, so I went with the shrimp, prepared similarly. I was not disappointed.
The crustaceans are bathed in a sauce made from a garlic and butter base. Beyond that, I couldn't get any information on the proprietary spice blend. I can tell you that whatever the ingredients, the sauce was amazing. I will definitely try to return during crawfish season to taste those and other dishes on the menu that intrigued me.
The Original Ninfa's
The Original Ninfa's
The third restaurant I visited was Ninfa's. The restaurant, which opened in 1973, claims that they serve, "the best Mexican food in Texas, since Texas was in Mexico." With a statement like that, I had to check it out.
Mama Ninfa Laurenzo
It all started with Mama Ninfa Laurenzo.
Spicy Margarita
Mama Ninfa faithfully served at the restaurant until 2001 when she passed away. Thereafter, the restaurant continued serving up quality food that was noticed by the James Beard Foundation in 2019, when Ninfa's became a James Beard Award Semifinalist.
Steak Fajitas
The restaurant is best known for Mama Ninfa's grilled steak, which she would place in handmade, warm, flour tortillas. That dish was originally called tacos al carbon.
Today, the dish is known as fajitas, the bedrock of Tex Mex cuisine. At Ninfa's, you can order the fajitas alone, or with a side of rice, beans, guacamole, onions, nopales and pico de gallo.
Captain Foxheart's Bad News Bar and Spirit Lodge
Entrance to Bad News Bar
The final, laid-back spot on my list does not serve any food, but they do have incredible cocktails. The Bad News Bar is a speakeasy hidden behind a door that makes one believe they are entering a law office. It's almost as though they are suggesting lawyers have an affinity or propensity for drinking alcohol. Completely uncalled for (insert heavy sarcasm).
Walk through the doors and you'll find this narrow, red, carpeted staircase leading up to a nondescript wooden door that will lead you inside the bar.
Once inside, you can choose to sit on the balcony that overlooks Main Street, or ...
... inside at the more intimate and very well-stocked bar, where the talented and knowledgeable bartenders will make you anything on or off the menu.
This was my no name, custom cocktail. I only told the bartender that I wanted a gin base and something with a touch of heat and he took care of the delicious rest. This is a great spot to come for happy hour or after dinner.
That's it for this installation of my continuing Texas series. There's more to come on Houston and then I will turn my attention to my time in Dallas and Fort Worth, a.k.a. the Metroplex, as I was recently informed by a local.
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