Tag: Houston

I was in Houston for the holidays, and I was told I had to visit House of Pies to kick off the holidays properly. This restaurant is exactly what it sounds like, a place dedicated to so many different homemade pies. They also have a great menu of breakfast and lunch dishes. They have been making Houston residents and visitors happy since 1967.

The line was out the door when we got there. Now part of the line was customers just picking up pies to go. The other line was for a table. Luckily, we did not have to wait too long. I was starving.

Inside the restaurant, it still had the vibe from the 60s when it opened. I loved it, very retro. Their pie flavors were on the wall so that you could order easily.

Everyone at the table ordered something different to eat. That was good for me because I would get to try different dishes. I ordered the Griddle Platter. I got French toast with scrambled eggs and bacon. I did get something traditional, but I figured the French toast would be great since this was a bakery. The bread was sweet, even without the powdered sugar on top. It was slightly crispy from being on the griddle. I loved how the center of the bread was gooey and soft. The bacon was nice and crispy. I broke it up and mixed it into my scrambled eggs.

A Griddle Platter Deluxe was also ordered. This was a stack of freshly made buttermilk pancakes, topped with chopped up pecans and banana slices. The pancakes just by themselves were delicious. They were light and fluffy. The pecans and bananas mixed with maple syrup made the pancakes more like a dessert.

The other breakfast dish ordered was the Eggsadilla. This was an egg quesadilla. They scrambled eggs with sausage and O’Brien potatoes. They put it all in tortilla shells with Cheddar and Pepper jack cheese. They put it on the griddle to help melt the cheese and make the tortilla a little crispy. They also served it with a side of frijoles (beans). I liked the potatoes that had peppers and onions chopped up. Those mixed in with the sausage and eggs made this a hearty breakfast. I was easy to eat with your hands. This was a different take on a breakfast sandwich.

There was a sandwich ordered as well, the Patty Melt Deluxe. The lean beef patty was cooked up on the flattop to a nice medium. They melted American cheese and topped the patty with grilled onions and tomatoes. They added a special sauce to each side of the herb bread. The bread was amazing because it too was freshly made. They grilled it up and was crispy on each side. The patty was juicy, and the onions were caramelized nicely. The cheese just made each bite creamier.

Now we made sure to order pies but there was no way we could eat them there. We were just too full from breakfast. We thought they would be good for later in the evening. They had pies staged everywhere, so many choices.

Their menu was large; they have something for everyone’s tastebuds.

The first pie we got was the Strawberry Rhubarb. This was a tart pie filled with fresh rhubarbs and sliced strawberries. The tartness hit you when you took the first bite, but then got sweeter as you took the remaining bites. The crust was buttery and flakey. It helped tie the whole pie together.

The second pie was the Bayou Goo. This is a house specialty. This really was a gooey pie. There were chopped pecans in a sweet cream cheese. All of that was under a mix of vanilla and chocolate pudding. They covered the top with a fluffy whipped cream, powdered sugar, and chocolate shavings. This pie was crazy. It was super sweet and really creamy. The pecans added a nice crunch with a hint of saltiness. This was a rich pie. I could not eat too much of it. But it was a hit with everyone.

I cannot wait to go back to House of Pies so I can try something else. I will have to go after the holidays, so they do not run out. They also have some awesome looking cakes and pastries to try.

Their food menu was great, and they portions are big. Everything truly is “Bigger in Texas”. It is a great place to go with family.

Check out their menu at www.houseofpies.com

They are a must visit in Houston. They do have two locations!

Enjoy!

T

20 years ago, when I moved to Texas, I was introduced to a pastry called Kolaches. These became a staple for any breakfast get together. And when I moved away from Texas it because impossible to find these specialties.

For those of you that are not familiar with what a kolache is, let me give you a quick history lesson. Back on the early 1800s, Texas welcomed settlers from Central Europe. As they settle the vast land, they introduced a pastry from their homeland called the kolache. This pastry started off as a sweet fruit filling. It later evolved to include savory fillings. There is everything from egg filled for breakfast to pizza filled for a fun afternoon snack.

Since I was visiting Texas for a few days, I decided to indulge on kolaches since it is next to impossible to find outside of the state. I thought it would be fun to write about the different places I went in one big blog post.

My first stop was at Shipley Do-Nuts. While their main focus is donuts, they do offer a few kolaches choices. I went for the ham and cheese. This is perfect for lunch time. They use slices of ham and American cheese. That is then placed inside of the bun. It is baked up till the bread is fluffy and the ham and cheese is hot. When I bit in the cheese was nice and melted. There was a nice saltiness that complemented the sweetness of the bread.

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www.shipleydonuts.com

The next shop I visited was the Kolache Factory. This is my favorite place. They offer one of the largest assortments of kolaches. They have breakfast fillings which are perfect for the first thing in the morning. I went for the bacon, egg, and cheese. They scramble the eggs and mix in chunks of crispy bacon and creamy cheese. What I love most about their kolaches is the bread. It is a yeast roll that is a little dense. It holds up well to the more robust ingredients they use for fillings. The yeast flavor gives the bread an extra sweetness.

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www.kolachefactory.com

My last stop was to a shop called Bucees. This place is amazing and I will be having a separate blog write up about Bucees. Rather than doing another savory kolache, I went for a dessert one here. This is the traditional kolache that came over from Central Europe, more specifically Czechoslovakia. It is very similar to a danish. I got the cherry filling. It was sweet with pieces of sour cherry throughout. The dough was slightly sour which went well with the cherries. They had other fruit fillings but cherry is my favorite.

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www.buc-ees.com

I had such a fun time getting kolaches from Houston to San Antonio. I only hit 3 places but there are so many more places out there to try. I am going to have to do this again for sure. If you are in Texas check of these places. Each of them have several locations. I included links to each of their websites for everyone to visit.

Enjoy!

T

About 10 years ago I had the pleasure of trying a local steakhouse in Houston called Taste of Texas. The steak I had was the BEST I have ever eaten. I was recently back in Houston and I had the opportunity to go back. I took 3 friends with me so that they could experience the mouth watering steaks for themselves. Let’s just say there was not a lot of conversation at the table when dinner arrived.

This place is a Houston institution. It’s been around since 1977 and is the largest Independently owned restaurant in the state. They serve Certified Angus Beef and to add to the experience, you can actually visit their butcher shop and select the steak you want to eat.

To start your visit off right, you must try their salad bar. It is loaded with fresh ingredients so that you can build the salad exactly how you want – including an assortment of salad dressings to choose from. Do you like cheese? Then you will be pleased to see the Texas size blocks of white and yellow cheddar that you get to slice yourself.

Now for those folks that are not watching their carbs, the restaurant offers 3 types of freshly made breads: Jalapeno corn bread, Asiago cheese roll, classic yeast roll. It is hard to decide on just one, so grab a bread basket and try all 3. If you like butter on your dinner rolls, they offer 2 homemade choices: apple butter & cinnamon apple butter.

For the star of the show, I chose the 6 ounce center cut filet. You can get it bacon wrapped if you want but it is not necessary. I like my steaks medium so that it is still a little juicy when it comes out. The trick that Taste of Texas does is they serve the steaks on a sizzling plate, it helps not only keep the steaks hot, but it finishes them off just right. From a seasoning stand point, you have the option of adding a lemon pepper or you can try the melted garlic herb butter or melted blue cheese butter. My favorite is the garlic herb, it adds a dynamic flavor to the steak that sets it apart from all others I have ever had.

I know that the steaks are the star of the show, but you can’t overlook the supporting cast – the side dishes. They have so many to choose from including: macaroni & cheese, Texas Au Gratin Potatoes, Brussels Sprouts with bacon jam, fresh asparagus with Hollandaise sauce. I went for the Brussels Sprouts, mainly because of the bacon jam. The jam really complemented the bitterness of the Brussels sprouts.

If red meat is not your thing its ok – they have a nice selection of chicken, tuna, salmon, and shrimp to choose from, all of which sound delicious and are cooked with the same love as they do their steaks.

I was lucky to be at the restaurant during the Christmas season, so I was able to see their beautiful decorations.

I was so happy to get back to Taste of Texas and I was thrilled that every bite was exactly how I remembered. I recommend this to anyone heading to Houston. See their full menu at www.tasteoftexas.com

Enjoy!

T