What's Eric Eating

On today's edition of the podcast, Eric is joined by Felipe Riccio and Austin Waiter of Goodnight Hospitality. The pair speak with Eric about the vision for Goodnight Hospitality's new concept The Marigold Club, the status of the concept currently, what exactly is continental cuisine, the type of food customers can expect from the concept, the service experience at The Marigold Club, lunch/dinner plans, and more. Plus the guys speak about the upcoming reopening of March, the new menu debuting with the new season at March, the region they're focusing on with this new season, the recognition March has received, Austin's transition from Tony's to March, what drew Austin to Goodnight Hospitality, Austin's time staging in Europe, the life changing year ahead for Austin, and of course being that it's Austin's first time on the podcast it means Austin has to go through the lightning round. Follow Eric on Instagram/Threads @ericsandler. You can also reach Eric by emailing him at eric@culturemap.com. Check out some

On today's edition of the podcast Eric is joined by Michael Fulmer to dive into some of the latest happenings from the Houston restaurant and bar scene. Eric and Michael discuss Common Bond claiming a spot in Tanglewood for their 5th bistro location, Layne's Chicken Fingers opening their third Houston area location, and the opening of Hando's new second location in Spring Branch. In the Restaurants of the Week portion, 1891 American Eatery & Bar is featured.  Follow Eric on Instagram/Threads @ericsandler. You can also reach Eric by emailing him at eric@culturemap.com. Check out some of his latest articles at Culturemap.com: Common Bond Claims Familiar Tanglewood Space for 5th Bistro Location Aggie-Favorite Chicken Fingers Spot Sets Opening Date for River Oaks/Montrose Outpost Heights Favorite Sushi Spot Now Serving Hand Rolls in Spring Branch Ben Berg Kicks It Up a Notch for RodeoHouston Return of The Ranch Saloon + Steakhouse Allergy-Friendly, Healthy Eating Austin Restaurant Closes Houston Locale Whe

Today on the podcast Eric is joined by Morgan Weber of HiWay Cantina. Morgan speaks with Eric about why he and the rest of the team at Agricole Hospitality decided to change things up in the east end of Houston by closing Indianola and Miss Carousel, coming up with the ideas for HiWay Catina and Lightnin's Good Times, the development process for HiWay Cantina, making HiWay's menu items distinct from Eight Row Flint's items, how things have gone since opening, the style of fajitas, the drink program at HiWay, whether he was surprised by the success of EZ's Liquor Lounge, why he's happy doing casual concepts, what the future holds from a future projects perspective, reflecting on Coltivare as it comes up to it's 10 year anniversary, and using easy melt... yes easy melt comes up.  Follow Eric on Instagram/Threads @ericsandler. You can also reach Eric by emailing him at eric@culturemap.com. Check out some of his latest articles at Culturemap.com: Acclaimed West African Restaurant Set to Open First Brick and Mo

It's Tuesday, which means it's time to dive into the latest news from the Houston restaurant and bar scene with Eric Sandler and this week's cohost Monica Danna. Eric and Monica talk about ChópnBlọk opening its first brick and mortar location, the new wine bar from Gr8 Plate Hospitality, and since Monica missed the annual Year in Review podcast she gives her picks for some of her favorites from 2023. In the Restaurants of the Week portion, Belly of the Beast and Mi Tierra Mexican Kitchen are featured. Follow Eric on Instagram/Threads @ericsandler. You can also reach Eric by emailing him at eric@culturemap.com. Check out some of his latest articles at Culturemap.com: Acclaimed West African Restaurant Set to Open First Brick and Mortar Location in Montrose New Memorial Wine Bar from Union Kitchen Owners Uncorks 200 Bottles in Rustic-Chic Space Common Bond Claims Familiar Tanglewood Space for 5th Bistro Location Drake-Approved Pizza and Pasta Spot Bakes Up 3rd Houston Locale in CityCentre James Harden's Midto

Today on the podcast Eric is joined by Benchawan Jabthong Painter and Graham Painter of Street to Kitchen. The couple speak with Eric about how they first met, coming to American from Thailand, the story of Chef G's braised green curry brisket that ended up leading her to SaltAir Seafood Kitchen, Chef G's experience working at SaltAir, how Graham's stepmom got them introduced to Justin Yu, joining Theodore Rex, developing the Street to Kitchen concept, growing Street to Kitchen from pop-ups to brick and mortar, building a following with their pop-ups, how fried chicken almost brought everything down, life post winning a James Beard award, how Th Prsrv at Eculent came to be, how the idea for Th Prsrv changed from a tapas bar to a tasting menu, how the move to the new location for Street to Kitchen went, and more! Follow Eric on Instagram/Threads @ericsandler. You can also reach Eric by emailing him at eric@culturemap.com. Check out some of his latest articles at Culturemap.com: New Memorial Wine Bar from Un

Eric's back! The first podcast of the new year is here and on this episode Eric is joined by Mary Clarkson to catch up on the news that we missed during the holidays from the Houston bar and restaurant scene. The pair discuss Aaron Bludorn's announcement of Bar Bludorn, Kaitlin Steets leaving Theodore Rex after 8 years, and the new upscale Japanese restaurant concept taking over the former One Fifth space in Montrose. In the Restaurants of the Week portion, Street to Kitchen and Makiin are featured.  Follow Eric on Instagram/Threads @ericsandler. You can also reach Eric by emailing him at eric@culturemap.com. Check out some of his latest articles at Culturemap.com: Aaron Bludorn Dishes First Details on his New Memorial Restaurant, Plus Our Visit to Cocody Theodore Rex's Beard Award Semifinalist Chef Departs After 'Beautiful,' 8-Year Run New Upscale Japanese Restaurant Claims Former One Fifth Space in Montrose Acclaimed West African Restaurant Set to Open First Brick and Mortar Location in Montrose Peking D

We're doing things a little differently. The podcast is taking time off until January 9th, but that doesn't mean no episodes until then. Eric is bringing back some of his favorite episodes to your feeds while the podcast is away. Today's episode is a reairing of Episode 310, originally released September 5th, 2023. In this episode, join Eric Sandler, Mary Clarkson, Michael Fulmer, Monica Danna, Ryan Lachaine, and Bobby Matos as they select their ultimate burger lineup!  Here's what the teams will be drafting: a Houston Burger Restaurant Burger, a Smash Burger, a Fancy Burger, Fries or Tots, a Milkshake, and a Wildcard. Definitions: Houston Burger Restaurant - A Houston-based restaurant that serves at least 3 different burgers or has build your own options that allow for lots of variety. Greater Houston-area suburbs (Katy, Woodlands, Sugar Land, Clear Lake, etc.) are considered "Houston".  Smash Burger - A style of cheeseburger made with patties that are flattened on a griddle and typically served as a do

We're doing things a little differently. The podcast is taking time off until January 9th, but that doesn't mean no episodes until then. Eric is bringing back some of his favorite episodes to your feeds while the podcast is away. Today's episode is a reairing of Episode 266, originally released January 12th, 2023. In this episode, Eric is joined by Emmanuel Chavez of Tatemó. Emmanuel spoke with Eric about how he first got interested in becoming a chef, getting an ultimatum from his family after collage, his early stops in his career, his time in Seattle, developing his style/techniques that served as the foundation for Tatemó, coming back to Houston, developing the concept that became Tatemó, how things are going so far at Tatemó, creating the menu, getting inspiration from what Jonny Rhodes is doing, aspirations to becoming one of the best restaurants in people's minds, and much more!  Follow Eric on Instagram @ericsandler and on Twitter @esandler, you can also reach Eric by emailing him at eric@culturemap

We're doing things a little differently. The podcast is taking time off until January 9th, but that doesn't mean no episodes until then. Eric is bringing back some of his favorite episodes to your feeds while the podcast is away. Today's episode is a reairing of Episode 271, originally released February 16th, 2023. In this episode, Eric assembled a panel of Tex-Mex aficionados for the Ultimate Tex-Mex Draft. Eric alongside David Cordúa, Bryan Caswell, Mary Clarkson, Matt Harris, and Michael Fulmer select their favorite Tex-Mex dishes from different restaurants in the greater Houston area to create their ultimate Tex-Mex meal. The panel are picking dishes in the following categories: fajitas, enchiladas, tacos, chips & salsa, chips & queso, and a wildcard selection. Plus, find out which participant picks the ultimate Tex-Mex meal, as selected by special guest judge Russell Ybarra of Gringos! Follow Eric on Instagram @ericsandler and on Twitter @esandler, you can also reach Eric by emailing him at eri

We're doing things a little differently. The podcast is taking time off until January 9th, but that doesn't mean no episodes until then. Eric is bringing back some of his favorite episodes to your feeds while the podcast is away. Today's episode is a reairing of Episode 240, originally released May 12th, 2022. In this episode, Eric assembled a panel of barbecue lovers to pick the ultimate barbecue plate. Plus, 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 @ericsandler and on Twitter @esandler, you can also reach Eric by emailing him at eric@culturemap.com. Check out some of his latest articles at Culturemap.com: Houston's Best New Restaurants For 2023: 12 Favorites That Keep Us Coming Back For More Favorite Rice Village Chocolate

We're doing things a little different. The podcast is taking time off until January 9th, but that doesn't mean no podcast episodes at all. Eric is bringing back some of your favorite episodes to your feeds while the podcast is away. Today's episode is a reairing of Episode 294 with Justin Yu, originally released July 11th, 2023. Eric and Justin dove into full spoilers about The Bear season 2 including how it compared to the real life culinary world, how Justin's own culinary journey compared, stodging in Copenhagen, the anxiety inducing moments of opening a restaurant, and much more. Follow Eric on Instagram @ericsandler and on Twitter @esandler, you can also reach Eric by emailing him at eric@culturemap.com. Check out some of his latest articles at Culturemap.com: Houston's Best New Restaurants For 2023: 12 Favorites That Keep Us Coming Back For More New Upscale Japanese Restaurant Claims Former One Fifth Space in Montrose Local Foods Shutters in Tanglewood to Reopen as New, Larger Post Oak Patio Spot Dim

It's that time of year again! It's time to look back at the year that was in Houston food, it's the What's Eric Eating Year in Review - 2023 Edition. For this go around Eric is joined by Felice Sloan, Mary Clarkson, and Michael Fulmer to look back at some of the biggest stories, best dishes, saddest closures, best new restaurants, old favorites, and more! Plus, the group discuss ideas for food draft episodes in 2024. Pizza draft?! Seafood Boil?! Tacos!? Listen to find out! Follow Eric on Instagram/Threads @ericsandler. You can also reach Eric by emailing him at eric@culturemap.com. Check out some of his latest articles at Culturemap.com: Dim Sum, Sushi, and Roast Duck: Chinese Chef Has Big Plans for Medical Center Hotel Theodore Rex's Beard Award Semifinalist Chef Departs After 'Beautiful,' 8-Year Run Global Burger Joint Shake Shack Set to Open 3rd Drive-Thru Houston Locale in Bay Area River Oaks Mediterranean Fine Dining Restaurant Reopens with Elevated Menu and Cocktails Game-Changing East End Waterfront

Today on the show, Eric is joined by Aaron Bludorn and Alexandra Peña of Bar Bludorn. The trio discuss how the new Bar Bludorn concept came to be, coming up with the name, what type of food customers can expect, the design, the reactions they're getting from deciding to open in the Memorial area, and more. The group also discuss Alexandra's story of discovering Bludorn, Alexandra's experience opening Navy Blue, how things have gone in Navy Blue's first year, how the Navy Blue menu has evolved, yacht rock brunch, what they're excited about for the future, collaborating with other chefs, and which burger is better - the Bludorn Burger or the Navy Blue Burger? Plus, Alexandra goes through her first ever lightning round... Aaron was excited about that.  Follow Eric on Instagram/Threads @ericsandler. You can also reach Eric by emailing him at eric@culturemap.com. Check out some of his latest articles at Culturemap.com: River Oaks Mediterranean Fine Dining Restaurant Reopens with Elevated Menu and Cocktails Game

Eric is joined on today's edition of the podcast by Mary Clarkson to discuss some of the latest news from the Houston restaurant and bar scene. The pair react to the recent closings of Acme Oyster House and Common Bond's brasserie location. Plus, Eric and Mary discuss Ben Berg's announcement of the opening date of his new concept Tavola and Matt Pak and Shawn Bermudez announcing their new pizza concept. In the Restaurants of the Week section, Cocody Restaurant & Bar and La Griglia are featured.  Follow Eric on Instagram/Threads @ericsandler. You can also reach Eric by emailing him at eric@culturemap.com. Check out some of his latest articles at Culturemap.com: Oyster-Obsessed New Orleans Restaurant Suddenly Shutters in Montrose Common Bond's French-Inspired, Full-Service Restaurant Quietly Closes Downtown Ben Berg Reveals Opening Date and Juicy Details on His Upscale New Italian Eatery Duo Behind Burger Joint and Taco Stand Set to Debut New Heights Pizzeria Star Woodlands Chef Beefs Up Rice Village C

On today's edition of What's Eric Eating, Eric is joined by Tony Nguyen of Xin Chao and Saigon House. The guys speak about how Tony got into the restaurant business, starting Wokker, why Tony got a cease and desist letter from Chuck Norris... yes that Chuck Norris, how he started Saigon House, where Tony first got his name on the map, moving Saigon House to the northside of Houston, what they're doing at Saigon House now, how Tony came to know Christina Ha, how the idea for Xin Chao came about, collaborating with Christine on the menu, being nominated for a James Beard award, future plans for Xin Chao, future aspirations, crawfish season coming soon, a new project in the works, and much more! Follow Eric on Instagram/Threads @ericsandler. You can also reach Eric by emailing him at eric@culturemap.com. Check out some of his latest articles at Culturemap.com: Common Bond's French-Inspired, Full-Service Restaurant Quietly Closes Downtown Spring Branch Sows Wild Oats with Opening of Underbelly's Texas Tribute

On today's podcast Eric is joined by Monica Danna to discuss some of the latest happenings from the Houston restaurant and bar scene. The pair speak about Nonno's Family Pizza Tavern being named Pizza Joint of the Year as part of Esquire's Best New Restaurants in America list, Michael O'Connor being named the new executive chef at Andiron, and the opening of 1891 American Eatery & Bar in The Heights. In the Restaurants of the Week portion, Mi Cocina is featured.  Follow Eric on Instagram/Threads @ericsandler. You can also reach Eric by emailing him at eric@culturemap.com. Check out some of his latest articles at Culturemap.com: Retro Montrose Pizzeria Scores Coveted Spot on Esquire's Best New Restaurants in America List Houston's Best New Steakhouse Fires Up Kitchen with V&A Vet as Head Chef Cozy Neighborhood Restaurant from Common Bond Team Opens Doors on Heights' 11th Street Spring Branch Sows Wild Oats with Opening of Underbelly's Texas Tribute Restaurant Drew Brees-Backed Sports Bar Kicks Off i

Today on the podcast, Eric is joined by Kyle Noonan of Free Range Concepts. The pair dive into how Kyle got into the hospitality business, everything that went into starting up Free Range Concepts, creating The Rustic, working with Pat Green, developing The General Public, how they expanded their portfolio in Houston, Kyle's observations of the different areas in the city, how the different concepts fit those areas, whether we could see either MUTTS or Joe Leo in Houston, potentially growing some of their brands outside of Texas, what Kyle is most excited about in Houston currently, why he prefers reliable over new nowadays, and much more! Follow Eric on Instagram/Threads @ericsandler. You can also reach Eric by emailing him at eric@culturemap.com. Check out some of his latest articles at Culturemap.com: Retro Montrose Pizzeria Scores Coveted Spot on Esquire's Best New Restaurants in America List Inside the New La Griglia: Murals are out, Tableside Touches are in, and More Cozy Neighborhood Restaurant from

On today's podcast Eric is joined by Michael Fulmer. The pair dive into some of the latest happenings from the Houston restaurant and bar scene including the opening of Dallas-based Tex-Mex staple Mi Cocina in the River Oaks area and the beloved El Bolillo Bakery opening up their 4th location in the  Mission Bend neighborhood. In a packed Restaurants of the Week section; Rumi's Kitchen, Comalito, and Burnt Bean Company are all featured. Follow Eric on Instagram/Threads @ericsandler. You can also reach Eric by emailing him at eric@culturemap.com. Check out some of his latest articles at Culturemap.com: Iconic Texas beer Shiner Bock pops open first-ever non-alcoholic brew Why this Midtown eatery + sports bar is the perfect place to wait out weekday traffic Promising, Star-Staffed River Oaks Upscale Mediterranean Restaurant Shutters - with Plans to Reopen Pass & Provisions Star Chef Reunites with Local Foods Owner to Helm Culinary Operations Rising Star Chef Takes His Talents to Hotly Anticipated New River

Today on the show Eric is joined by Deets Hoffman of Leaf & Grain. Deets speaks with Eric about his high school sandwich shack dreams, his early culinary career, underestimating the day to day prep of a restaurant, the idea behind Leaf & Grain, what the first year taught him, how things work at Leaf & Grain, when it became clear that they could expand to more locations, coming up with the core menu items, adding dinner as an option for diners in West U., making the concept more family friendly, why the Galleria/Tanglewood area was the right spot for their 4th location, working with Gin Design Group, how the chef collabs came about, and taking things one salad at a time. Follow Eric on Instagram/Threads @ericsandler. You can also reach Eric by emailing him at eric@culturemap.com. Check out some of his latest articles at Culturemap.com: Beloved Mexican Bakery Opens in West Houston with 100 Different Fresh Items Daily Dallas Tex-Mex Staple Reveals Opening Date for Largest Locale to Date in River O

On today's podcast Eric is joined by Mary Clarkson. The pair dive into some of the latest happenings from the Houston restaurant and bar scene including Seth Siegel-Gardner becoming the new culinary and creative director for Benjy Levit's restaurants and rising star chef Tim Reading heading to Leo's River Oaks. In a jam packed Restaurants of the Week section; Hotel Lucine, The Fancy, Katami, Hudson House, and Catbirds are all featured. Follow Eric on Instagram/Threads @ericsandler. You can also reach Eric by emailing him at eric@culturemap.com. Check out some of his latest articles at Culturemap.com: Pass & Provisions Star Chef Reunites with Local Foods Owner to Helm Culinary Operations Rising Star Chef Takes His Talents to Hotly Anticipated New River Oaks Restaurant Underbelly's Beefy Burger Restaurant and New Volleyball Themed Bar Open in Spring Branch Austin-Based Wing Restaurant and Sports Bar Soars to Woodlands for 8th Houston-Area Spot 'World's Biggest Pizza Slice' Louisiana Restaurant Carves Out