Restaurants in Houston

8332 SW Freeway Outer Loop - SW

713-988-5838

Chinese, Restaurants, Recommended, Sponsor

The favorite restaurant of Houston's Beijing expat community, this is the place for Peking duck, Peking noodles, meat pies and all the other favored delicacies of the Chinese capital. The lunch special's soup, egg roll and entrée format may be Westernized, but the food is anything but, and you don't have to ask them to make it extra-spicy. This may be the best deal on Chinese lunch in the whole city.

Shipley Do-nut Shops

5800 Kirby Kirby-West U

713-667-7572

Pastries, Restaurants, Best Of, Sponsor, Readers' Choice

As with Dunkin' Donuts fans in the Northeast, there's something about Shipley's that Texans can't get enough of. Started in 1936 in Houston, Shipley's is in just about every Texas town and throughout the South. The offerings here are always fresh and, if your timing is good, the hot glazed "do-nuts" will go straight from the cooling tray at this Village location to your takeout box. There are more than 60 varieties here, but the maple-frosted and chocolate-filled are insanely good. Several types of kolaches are also available.

4 articles

Sylvia's Enchilada Kitchen

12637 Westheimer Rd. Memorial

281-679-8300

Mexican, Restaurants, Critics' Pick, Best Of, Sponsor, Menu, Slideshow

Owner Sylvia Casares started building her reputation as Houston’s Enchilada Queen at a tiny strip center off of Westheimer. Later, the shop moved to its current, nicer location. The enchiladas, of course, are the star of the show, especially the cheese-filled ones. The homemade tortillas, rolled and filled with a blend of cheddar cheeses and topped with Sylvia's signature enchilada chili, are smooth and lack the seemingly requisite pools of grease. Meat enchiladas, too, are a win. They're packed with fresh, well-seasoned meat, and kicked up a notch by the thin, homemade sauce. Another plus is that portions are reasonable—especially for Tex-Mex/Mexican fare—and not slathered with superfluous amounts of cheese.

10 articles

3-6-9 Oriental Bistro

1009 Westheimer Montrose

713-524-8686

Chinese, Restaurants, Recommended, Menu

While this place is clean, modern and serene, a bistro it is not. Sill, the small restaurant in a strip mall has been around for quite a while and does a good takeout business. There are some dishes that are worthwhile, like the Sesame Seaweed Salad, the Crispy Shrimp With Walnuts and the Chicken Wraps.

59 Diner - CLOSED

17695 Tomball Parkway Jersey Village

832-237-7559

Diner, Restaurants, Recommended, Menu

Great breakfasts are served all day long, and there's comfort food for lunch and dinner. The daily Blue Plate Specials include perennial favorites like pot roast, turkey and gravy, catfish and roast pork. Traditional floats, malts and milkshakes alone are enough to make the trip here worthwhile.

4 articles

Al-T's Seafood & Steakhouse

244 Spur 5 Highway 124, Winnie Outside Houston

409-296-9818

Cajun, Restaurants, Recommended, Menu

Al-T's is a classic Tex-Cajun roadhouse located an hour east of Houston with a diverse menu of fried foods, gumbos, étouffée and homemade boudin. Menu highlights include chicken and sausage gumbo, fried catfish, and the Dirty Herbie - an original concoction of dirty rice, étouffée and chunks of rib-eye steak.

Alamo Tamale & Taco

2310 Navigation East End

713-223-1446

Mexican, Restaurants, Recommended, Best Of

A Houston institution since 1960, Alamo Tamale has not just branched out into several different locations around the city, but can be had from anywhere in the country. Yep, you can order their tamales online and they'll second-day-air them to you anywhere in the continental United States. The tamales are still made according to old family recipes, and hand-wrapped before shipping. The Tamale Factories themselves offer only take-out and delivery.

1 article

Alicia's Mexican Grille

25725 Katy Freeway, Katy Outside Houston

281-347-1800

Tex-Mex, Restaurants

Alma Latina Taqueria

902 Telephone Rd. East End

713-926-7609

Mexican, Restaurants, Recommended

Beware: Not all Alma Latina restaurants are created equal. But if you make it to the correct one - the location on Telephone Road in the Second Ward - your journey will be richly rewarded. Stay away from the breakfast tacos and instead focus on dishes like the hot, vividly flavored menudo or the hearty huevos rancheros. Both will either fuel you for a long day ahead or take the edge off that raging hangover and allow you to salvage what's left of your day, even if you didn't get up until noon. That's right: Alma Latina serves breakfast all day, although they charge a little extra after 10:30 a.m.

1 article

Amalfi

6100 Westheimer Rd. Galleria

713-532-2201

Restaurants, Menu

13 articles

Amazon Grill

5114 Kirby Dr. Lower Shepherd-Kirby

713-522-5888

South American, Restaurants, Recommended, Best Of, Menu

This self-service grill, part of the Cordúa empire, serves casual Latin cuisine. You're guaranteed to get in and out fast unless, of course, you can't stay away from the plantain chips and salsas that are free for the taking. Enjoy a delicious ceviche, an amazing burger or the dish that made Cordúa famous, the churrasco steak, a beef tenderloin served with that famous chimichurri sauce. Finish with one of the best tres leches cakes in town and a cafecito.

3 articles

Amrina

3 Waterway Square Pl #100, The Woodlands Out of Town

(936) 444-4150

Restaurants

Amy's Ice Creams

3816 Farnham Lower Shepherd-Kirby

713-526-2697

Dessert, Restaurants, Best Of, Menu, Slideshow

Amy's started out as an Austin institution, but Amy's in Houston opened its doors in the early 1990s. Since then the ice cream, in its quirky little spot on Farnham, has grown to be a local favorite. The loud plaster cow and eccentric exterior makes it fit right in with its equally fun neighbors. Seven regular flavors are paired with seasonal and limited time-flavors, making every visit quite possibly something new. Mix-ins, specialty cones, and the occasional non-dairy favorites are also available. Part of the application process for potential employees is decorating a paper bag, which should tell you something about the staff.

3 articles

Amy's Ice Creams

6584 Woodway Dr. Galleria

713-465-2697

Dessert, Restaurants, Best Of

1 article

Antica Osteria

2311 Bissonnet Kirby-West U

713-521-1155

Italian, Restaurants, Recommended, Menu

Old-fashioned Italian food in a charming little cottage with a romantic atmosphere. For an intimate evening, reserve a table in the tiny bar, or ask for a table on the patio if the weather is right for dining al fresco. Delightful, sophisticated menu options include the duck breast sautéed in pepper and herbs, Fontina-stuffed chicken breast served with a light wine sauce and an antipasto dish of thinly-sliced and air-cured beef filet with greens and truffle oil.

2 articles

Arcodoro Ristorante Italiano

5000 Westheimer Galleria

713-621-6888

Italian, Restaurants, Critics' Pick, Menu

Since 1988, Efisio Farris has been serving upscale Italian while introducing the city to the food of his homeland, Sardinia. The setting is Galleria chic, as are the patrons. Each of the striking dining rooms makes you feel like you're eating in a Tuscan village. The Sardinian specialties at Arcodoro are noted on the menu, like the sa fregola, or clam soup; the gnocchetti sardi al cinghiale, a ragu of wild boar; or the seadas al miele, puffed pastry stuffed with cheese covered in honey. A wood-burning oven is used for the pizzas and steaks. Traditional Italian pasta dishes round out the menu.

3 articles

Arirang Korean Restaurant

9715 Bellaire Blvd. Outer Loop - SW

713-988-2088

Korean, Restaurants, Best Of

Open until the wee hours, this outstanding Korean barbecue joint caters to lovers of grilled meats. The grills aren't lit during the daytime, but don't let that discourage you. The bento-box lunch is not only outstanding, it's very cheap.

2 articles

Artista

800 Bagby Downtown/ Midtown

713-278-4782

South American, Restaurants, Services, Critics' Pick, Best Of

This has to be one of the most beautiful restaurants in Houston, with one of the best views of downtown. The food is spectacular. Since it is on the second floor of the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts, the menu has a performance art theme, divided into "acts." Standout dishes include Peruvian lobster bisque, crispy soft-shell crawfish taquitos and the signature churrasco steak. The tres leches is one of the best in town.

10 articles

Ashland House Tea Room Restaurant

7611 Westview Outer Loop - NW

713-682-7611

American, Restaurants, Recommended

This onetime Heights institution lost its lease and ended up in a former hair salon in Spring Branch. But the change in locale has done nothing to alter the tearoom charm of the food; that charm can be variable, true, but the cheese soup, the chicken berry salad and the homemade desserts are all worthy of the ladies who lunch.

Au Petit Paris

2048 Colquitt Lower Shepherd-Kirby

713-524-7070

French, Restaurants, Recommended, Menu

Salads, seafood dishes and chilled white wines are the things to order at this cozy French restaurant in a refurbished bungalow on Colquitt. The interior is decorated with bad paintings of Paris street scenes and frumpy lace curtains, but the crowd of well-heeled socialites doesn't seem to mind. Elaborate $8 desserts are the best deal on the menu.

2 articles

Backyard Cafe & Grill

4410 Westway Park Blvd. Outer Loop - NW

713-460-4225

American, Restaurants

1 article

Banana Leaf

9889 Bellaire Blvd. Outer Loop - SW

713-771-8118

Malaysian, Restaurants, Recommended, Menu

Banana Leaf is one of the few Malaysian restaurants in town, but it's the best. The friendly service and exciting dishes, such as the sweetly spicy sambal shrimp or the hand-tossed roti canai, make the restaurant a destination despite its casual atmosphere and low prices. Take advantage of its generous BYOB policy and bring a bottle of Riesling to supplement the savory pan-Asian cuisine.

2 articles

Banana Leaf

9896 Bellaire Blvd. Outer Loop - SW

713-271-2338

Malaysian, Restaurants, Recommended

The second location of Banana Leaf offers the same solid menu of Malaysian and Singaporean cuisine, ranging from chow fun to Thai-style soft shell crab, but in a much larger space. You can get private rooms here or a spot in one of the palapa-shaded booths if you're lucky. It's still BYOB (with no corkage fee), but you'll still have to wait for a table on busy nights.

1 article

Bankersmith, Texas

7905 Old San Antonio Rd., Fredericksburg Austin

512-953-9428

Restaurants

Barnaby's Cafe

604 Fairview St. Montrose

713-522-0106

Cafe, Restaurants, Best Of, Slideshow

The original Barnaby's, on Fairview, is a homey Montrose mainstay, and much more eclectic-feeling than its four siblings (River Oaks, Midtown, Woodway and the new Market Square location downtown). The American food is the same as the other Barnaby's outposts, though, with interesting twists on traditional sandwiches and salads: pesto chicken sandwich with artichoke hearts, the turkey breast with cranberry mayo, blue-cheese fondue waffle fries, the buffalo burger, and more. (You can still get a regular beef burger or a piece of grilled salmon, of course.) Breakfast and bunch draw long lines at the “Baby Barnaby’s” expansion attached to the main restaurant, which serves only lunch and dinner.

5 articles

Barnaby's Cafe

2802 White Oak Dr. Heights

Cafe, Restaurants, Slideshow

COMING SOON

2 articles

Baytown Seafood Restaurant

9205 S. Main Braeswood

713-666-7070

Seafood, Restaurants, Recommended, Best Of, Menu

It takes four big bites to down one of the biggest fried shrimp in Houston. But be advised that the sea monsters served here are from the tiger shrimp species, which can be a bit bland. If you prefer the full flavor of Gulf shrimp, try Baytown's boiled shrimp and grilled shrimp dishes. There's also shrimp gumbo, shrimp étouffée, shrimp cocktail, shrimp fried rice…You get the picture.

1 article

Bazille

1201 Lake Woodlands Dr., The Woodlands Outside Houston

New American, Restaurants

2 articles

BB's Beef and Hot Dogs

11611 W. Airport Blvd., Stafford Outside Houston

281-302-5748

Hot Dogs, Restaurants, Critics' Pick, Best Of

Prepare to take your food to-go or belly up to a three-person stainless-steel bar at this wholly authentic, Chicago-style restaurant in an unassuming strip mall in Stafford. The Italian beef here is the best you'll get outside of Little Italy, and no hot dog place in town has better Chicago-style, all-beef hot dogs (no ketchup!). French fries are decent although frozen, and the greasy yet delicious pizza puff will stay with you for days. Don't forget to grab a cup of Italian ice on the way out. You can even purchase a tub of giardiniera - Italian-style pickled vegetables - to take with you if you want to attempt your very own Italian beef at home.

1 article

Becks Prime

2615 Augusta Galleria

713-266-9901

American, Restaurants, Recommended, Best Of, Menu

Developer man, spare that tree! For shading their commodious deck with a great-granddaddy live oak, the Becks boys deserve our thanks. And for their unprefabricated yuppie fast food -- real fries, fine mesquite-smoky burgers on eggy sesame buns that others would do well to emulate -- they deserve our business.

2 articles

Becks Prime

2902 Kirby Lower Shepherd-Kirby

713-524-7085

American, Restaurants, Recommended, Best Of, Menu

he Becks boys deserve our business. Becks Prime serves un-prefabricated yuppie fast food, such as hand-cut Idaho fries, fine mesquite-smoky burgers on eggy sesame buns, fresh garden salads, malts and fountain drinks, as well as an impressive 16 ounce Texas rib eye steak done over mesquite coal.

3 articles

Becks Prime

11000 Westheimer Memorial

713-952-2325

American, Restaurants, Recommended, Menu

The Becks boys deserve our business. Becks Prime serves un-prefabricated yuppie fast food, such as hand-cut Idaho fries, fine mesquite-smoky burgers on eggy sesame buns, fresh garden salads, malts and fountain drinks, as well as an impressive 16 ounce Texas rib eye steak done over mesquite coal.

Bellagreen

748 E 11th St. Outside Houston

713-714-8460

Health, Restaurants

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Restaurants in Houston