Houston is a city that's obsessed with the latest and greatest. Along those lines, it's the newest restaurants are the ones that get almost all of the press.
We believe that one of the greatest accomplishments a restaurant can have is longevity. Keeping customers happy is hard work, and doing so for a decade is a significant achievement. Pappasito's has done this, and done it thrice. They're now celebrating 30 years in business, a milestone we think shouldn't be ignored.
“This is a big milestone for Pappasito’s, and we couldn’t have done it without the support of our loyal guests,” said Harris Pappas, co-owner and co-founder, Pappas Restaurants, Inc. “We want to thank Houstonians for their support and invite them to join our family for 30 days of celebration.”
The original Pappasito's opened on Richmond near Hillcroft back in 1983. Since then, the operation has brought its brand of high quality Tex-Mex cuisine to 13 Greater Houston area locations, with 8 others in DFW, Austin, San Antonio, and Atlanta.
In honor of this milestone, the restaurant is offering some awesome weekly specials:
Oct 1-5: Half price beef and chicken fajitas. All day, large size only.
Oct 7-11: Half price happy hour appetizers with beverage purchase. 3p-6:30p in the bar.
Oct 13-19: Half price lunch beef & chicken fajitas. Medium size only, 11am-4pm.
Oct 20-26: eClub free appetizer with Pappasito's Pass (with entree purchase, exclusions and terms apply)
Oct 27-30: Half price beef and chicken fajitas. All day, large size only.
We're big fans of Pappasito's fajitas. We're even bigger fans when they're half price.
During the 30-day celebration, customers of legal drinking age can also enjoy an anniversary drink, the Pappasito’s Reserva Margarita made with Corazon Reposado barrel-aged tequila, which has been hand-selected especially for Pappasito’s Cantina, Grand Marnier, organic agave nectar, and fresh lemon and lime juices shaken tableside and served on the rocks. Guests who order the special drink will receive a complimentary 30th anniversary commemorative glass, while supplies last.
They're also preparing a special dessert, Chocolate Tres Leches, a rich chocolate cake soaked in three milks with dark chocolate, Kahlua, and a hint of cinnamon, toasted meringue and shaved chocolate.
For more information, check their website or Facebook page.
We're fans of Black Walnut Cafe, the fast casual restaurant that started in the Woodands and has spread across the Houston area (and is soon coming to Austin and Dallas). One thing we love is the large, eclectic menu - it's a place we're not hesitant to visit with people whose food preferences we don't know.
And the menu is ever-changing. For the next few weeks, Black Walnut will be testing a few new items each week, and soliciting feedback from patrons who try them via a secret website, revealed only to those who try the dishes. We love the idea of getting direct feedback from customers, and what makes it even cooler is that one lucky customer will get the chance to name one of the dishes on the menu! (There's also a $100 gift card involved, which is certainly a good thing.)
We were excited about the opportunity to provide feedback about which items would make the next menu, so we accepted the generous offer to come sample this week's selections.
First up were the pork tacos. They're served street taco style on a sheet of aluminum foil. Of course, being a nice place like the Black Walnut, the foil was on a plate.
The patty is hand formed from high quality ground turkey, pressed fairly thin, griddled with a nice caramel-colored sear, then topped with swiss cheese and veggies. Biting into this burger was a big surprise... I LIKED IT. The expertly seared turkey patty had a nice savory flavor - the seasonings used were spot on. It didn't taste like a beef hamburger, but it was a very good sandwich that I would gladly order again. And I've never said that about a turkey burger before in my life. Kudos to the chefs at Black Walnut Cafe for doing the impossible.
Last up was an item that I saw, but didn't sample. It's an Eggs Benedict burger.
I was asked today when I started writing about food. It's something I've been doing for a long time, and the origin of this avocation is an interesting one.
I've never been a cook. Single through my 20's and 30's, I dined out a lot. And as a geek, I took notes about the places I liked the best, using my trusty PDA (think the contact, calendar, and notes part of an iPhone).
This ragtag collection of notes was at least in some semblance of order, and I wanted to share it with my friends. Enter the web. I'd recently started a web development firm (data.net communications), and I needed to devise a way for a client to publish information in a database to the web. Back then, this wasn't an easy thing to do. I didn't want to experiment with client data, but I had my trusty PDA restaurant list to use.
An idea was born.
The original one was called Albert's Austin Restaurant List. It was first published in 1994. Mentions of it can still be found if you search far enough. As a geek, I wrote a program to create the web pages based on the data in the database I'd extracted from the PDA.
We supplemented my notes with a database from a purchased list of all businesses in Austin. We sorted out only the restaurants, then manually categorized them. I remember this taking more than a week.
Reviews were added as I visited restaurants, and we got comments (In cool '90's lingo, "Buzz") from readers. We got noticed by Blockbuster Video, Budweiser, and Miller Brewing, all of whom sponsored the site at one time or another.
I was developing websites at the time, and had a few restaurant clients. So naturally I linked to their websites from the dining guide.
After today's conversation, I found the third version of the Austin Dining Guide in the Internet Archive; the first two versions predated the archive.
Here's the link to the Austin Dining Guide, 1997 edition. Be kind. The tiny page format is due to the limits of computer screens in use at the time.
The plan was to evolve it into a broader city guide, covering technology and other things of interest to those on the web at the time (in other words, geeks.) The beginnings of it are in place, but due to time constraints, it was never built out.
It was a fun project, but the rise of well-funded projects like CitySearch, Microsoft Sidewalk, and later Yelp spelled the end of small operations like the Austin Dining Guide.
Years later, after a move back to my birthplace of Houston I couldn't resist the call, and started the H-Town Chow Down blog. Thanks for reading.
We were honored (and more than a little bit surprised) to be named the Best Food Blog in the 2013 Houston Web Awards, presented by the Houston Press. This was the third annual Web Awards, highlighting the best of social media and online presences in Houston.
The award was presented Thursday, June 27 at the House of Dereon.
We'd like to thank the Houston Press, its staff, and it's readers for recognizing the work we do to put together this blog. Every time we gain a new reader we're gratified, but an award like this humbles us. Houston is fortunate enough to have a tremendous list of great food writers, and we're honored to be among them, much less to be singled out.
Thank you.
Recently Alison Cook asked me to pick ten dishes that define dining in Houston. That's a tough assignment - Houston's cuisines are incredibly varied, and there are so many great choices.
My approach focuses on the classics. I'm going for the timeless dishes that describe the dining scene in Houston - great examples of dishes that have appealed to Houstonians for years, and will continue to do so. Characteristic dishes that represent what I think of when I think of Houston cuisine. Some are from tried-and-true restaurants, some are from those who've raised the bar.
Is every dish the best example of the genre? That's certainly open for discussion. Have I missed something important? Tell me in the comments.
Fajitas from Mama Ninfa's
Cheese Enchiladas from El Real
Fried Chicken from Frenchy's
Bacon Double Cheeseburger from Hubcap Grill
Prime Ribeye from Pappas Bros
BBQ Brisket from Corkscrew BBQ
Banh Mi from Les Givral's
Fried Shrimp from Cap'n Benny's
Chicken and Waffles from the Breakfast Klub
Chocolate Souffle from Tony's
Others have weighed in on this topic.
Katharine Shillcutt's 10 Favorite Dishes in Houston
Food & Wine's Houston in 10 Plates
Eater Houston's 20 Most Iconic Dishes
Houston CVB's 15 Iconic Houston Meals
Sunday, March 24, 2013 will go down in Houston History as the first time over a dozen of Houston's best pit masters assembled and served BBQ to a devout congregation of over 1,500 BBQ enthusiasts. The Houston BBQ Festival was the first event of its kind, and hopefully not the last.
Despite unseasonably cold weather and strong winds, dedicated BBQ fans treked from all over Texas to south of the Astrodome to worship at the altar of grilled meat.
They were not disappointed.
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| Enjoying great BBQ with a thousand of my friends. Fortunately the lines were moving fast. |
Organized by BBQ gurus Chris Reid and Michael Fulmer, the event drew all sorts of enthusiasts from the Houston and Texas food scene, many of whom were volunteering to help the event run smoothly.
The media was in attendance: Katharine Shilcutt of the Houston Press, Greg Morago of the Houston Chronicle, Eric Sandler of Eater Houston, and Robb Walsh of Houstonia were all devouring 'Q and comparing the offerings. Also making an appearance was Daniel Vaughn, newly named BBQ Editor of Texas Monthly magazine, who will be a major contributor to the epic BBQ issue expected out this summer.
The festival was perhaps the best run food event in recent memory, a tribute to the hard work of the staff and the organizing skills of Reid and Fulmer. And the staff, largely composed of the notable Houston foodies on Reid's and Fulmer's rolodex (OK, iPhone address book) was constantly in motion - we don't know how staff members like Gary Wise, Joanne Witt, and Nathan Ketcham each managed to be in four places at once. Their tireless efforts were impressive to behold.
Participating BBQ joints were Blake's BBQ, The Brisket House, Brooks' Place BBQ, Burns BBQ, Corkscrew BBQ, Fainmous BBQ, Gary Burns Old Fashioned Pit BBQ, Gatlin's BBQ, Gerardo's, Killen's BBQ, Lenox Bar-B-Que, Pizzitola's Bar-B-Cue, Ray's BBQ Shack, Tin Roof BBQ, and Virgie's BBQ. Lines were long but moved fast as the BBQ pros served up samples of the meats and sides which made them famous.
Mother Nature and the Bayou City Event Center provided a beautiful but chilly backdrop for the event, and the high winds kept the crowds bundled up and gave the pit masters extra challenges. A handful of pit masters (Ronnie Killen of Killen's, Will Buckman of Corkscrew, and Jamie Fain of Fainmous) were on-site the night before and cooked their 'Q on-site, and fought against the winds to keep the fires low and the smoke just right.
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| Generous samples were provided by each pit master. |
We sampled a wide variety of 'Q from the assembled Houston BBQ royalty. There wasn't a bad plate in the bunch - Reid and Fulmer demonstrated the value of expert curation for a food event. But a few items stood out from the pack for us:
Sausage - Houston generally isn't a sausage town, but there were some standouts. Our favorite was Fainmous BBQ's house-made sausage, with Blake's BBQ serving our runner up.
Pulled Pork - Traditionally not a Texas strength, we were impressed by the pulled pork from Corkscrew BBQ and Fainmous BBQ, with Corkscrew having a slight edge in flavor and Fainmous having a slightly more tender texture. These two pits confirm that Texans can do pulled pork that compares to the best to be had anywhere.
Beef Ribs - Killen's BBQ stunned us with a superlative example of this hard-to-find meat. Ronnie Killen hasn't even opened his BBQ joint yet, but he's shown that he's going to be a formidable presence on the BBQ scene in days to come.
Pork Ribs - Virgie's lived up to their reputation for stellar ribs - flavorful, tender, and with a delicious bark. Runners up were Gatlin's and Pizzitola's Bar-B-Cue.
Brisket (Overall Best of Festival) - We concur with the sentiment we heard all over the festival - Corkscrew BBQ had the festival's overall best meat - their world class brisket. Pit master Will Buckman delivered his signature brisket: Tender with great mouthfeel, and a masterful balance of oak smoke and beef flavor. Buckman took the risk of cooking it on-site, and it paid off for him. Runners up were Greg Gatlin's phenomenally tender slice from Gatlin's and the deeply smoky offering from The Brisket House.
There are worse ways to spend a sunny Sunday afternoon that walking around, talking with friends, and eating BBQ from over a dozen of Houston's greatest BBQ pits. We think that this first Houston BBQ Festival was a roaring success, and are already counting the days until Reid and Fulmer gather their tireless staff, the talented pitmasters, and thousands of BBQ fans for the second edition of this outstanding even.
We'll be there. You should be, too.
Many of our readers are familiar with Corkscrew BBQ, the food trailer that serves some of the best BBQ in the entire Houston area. They've had universally good reviews, including a rare two-star review from The Houston Chronicle's Alison Cook. They've been so successful that they've had to expand from their original pit to a higher capacity model, and from their small food trailer to a modern, larger trailer. Even with these expansions, they still sell out of their BBQ every day. Rain or shine, in hot or cold weather.
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| Waiting for BBQ at Corkscrew |
Just about everyone who's been to Corkscrew loves 'em... with one notable exception. There's another BBQ place, called Pit Master BBQ, that's in a shopping center on the main road near Corkscrew's side-road location. Unlike Corkscrew, Pit Master is a full restaurant, with walls, air conditioning, restrooms, and all the other accoutrements that come with a brick-and-mortar shop. Yet they don't seem to be able to compete with the little BBQ trailer. It's a classic David-vs-Goliath story, but instead of David being armed with a slingshot, he's got BBQ meats as his weapon of choice.
Pit Master is only lacking two things: Great BBQ and a sense of ethics. I've eaten at Pit Master a couple of times, and found their food to be utterly unremarkable - the type of corporate BBQ that's available all over the place, and simply isn't memorable. Until Corkscrew opened, Pit Master was the only BBQ spot in the area, and without competition their unremarkable BBQ wasn't a serious problem.
Apparently the appearance of a master pitmaster like Will Buckman upset Pit Master's apple cart, because according to reports, Pit Master's owners have tried to get Corkscrew BBQ shut down. Repeatedly.
Nichole Buckman, one of the owners of Corkscrew BBQ, shares the sad tale on her Facebook page:
"Well we are working on going permanent, starting the processes this week. We'll be staying in the same location in the trailer, we'll be getting bathrooms put in and we'll be able to sell beer and wine, yea!
"Everyone can thank Pitmaster BBQ for that...why you ask? They decided to go to the commissioner and try and have us shut down for having a pit room and canopy that was APPROVED but not written in the laws of having a food truck. So all those still frequenting them, this is how they treat other local family owned business, they try and shut them down bc they are loosing business, which has NOTHING to do with us but all with the quality of their food.
"I wish they would think that when they try and shut us down they are potentially taking the roof over my kids heads way, food from their mouths and clothes off their backs. I would never do that to a person, its shameful. We will not be bullied by them, it's not the first time they've been trying to shut us down since we opened."
We make no secret about being fans of Corkscrew BBQ and their world-class food. And we applaud Nichole's positive attitude, and her drive to make her business even better. Corkscrew is a perfect example of how hard work, customer service, and dedication to a superior product will enable a small business to thrive, even in a tough economy.
We hope Pit Master tries a new approach - serving better BBQ, as opposed to whining to local government to get a family business shut down. Until that happens, we ask each of our readers to ask themselves what sort of business they'd like to support.
And we welcome a rebuttal from Pit Master in the comments. We'd love to hear your side of this sordid story.
The McDonald's Big Mac may very well be the most popular hamburger in the world. But how is it made? Is the sauce a secret? Dan Coudreaut, Executive Chef, McDonald's, shows us how to make a Big Mac at home from ingredients you can get at the grocery store.
Bon appetit.
Defend Whataburger
Never put beans in chili
Argue about the best BBQ
Eat Tex-Mex
Drink Dr Pepper
We've seen some weird products coming from Japan, but this instant DIY Happy Meal kit is truly remarkable