Smart Financial Centre opened in Sugar Land in January. The new arts and entertainment venue is slated to hold hundreds of events annually, including concerts and shows from performers such as Sting, Billy Crystal, and the Illusionists. The 200,000-square-foot venue is climate-controlled and has moveable walls and that can create four different seating capacities, accommodating as many as 6,400 seated guests. The venue also offers corporate hospitality areas and 14 suites that can each accommodate as many as 20 guests each.
Hungry's in Rice Village moved to a 12,000-square-foot space next door in October. The two-story venue can now hold as many as 350 for receptions; for smaller events, there are two patio dining areas and two private event rooms. The second floor, which has a private dining room that seats 30 and an outdoor terrace that holds 60 reception-style, is available for reception-style events for 175. Helmed by executive chef Sue Nowamooz, the menu offers globally inspired fare with a healthy focus. The venue's old location is slated to become a parking lot for customers.
Local Foods opened its fourth location downtown in January. Housed in the historic Art Deco building designed by Joseph Finger in 1934, the scratch sandwich concept from Benjy Levit and chef Dylan Murray serves dishes made with locally sourced ingredients. The location also has the mini-chain's first ceviche program and raw bar. Designed by Michael Hsu, Micah Land, and Aaron Rambo, the venue's interior features a nautical theme and also showcases marine life-inspired artwork from local artist Janavi Folmsbee. The 10,000-square-foot, three-story space seats 160 for dining, and also offers a 4,500-square-foot basement event space for receptions of as many as 100 guests.
New brewery Craft Beer Cellar opened in the Bayou Lofts building downtown in December. The 5,225-square-foot venue features a taproom with 100Â beers on tap, a retail space that offers more than 100 local beers, and an event space for beer-focused classes and parties. The event space seats 65 and includes four taps and a projector. The entire venue holds 177 standing guests.
Rose Gold, a cocktail lounge from Eighty Six'd Restaurant & Hospitality Group, opened in midtown in January. The lounge has a cocktail program led by Luis Villegas featuring 12 cocktails on draft. The open-concept space has a minimalist interior with exposed brick and stone as well as emerald-green couches with copper and rose accents throughout. The venue, which has a food menu from chef Harold Wong, holds 200 guests for reception-style events.
Bosscat Kitchen & Libations, a Southern California-based restaurant and whiskey concept, opened its flagship Texas location in Westheimer Oaks in February. The venue serves American comfort food from a menu helmed by chef Peter Petro, and whiskey-focused cocktails from bar director Matt Sharpe. Designed by Hootan & Associates Design Studio, the venue features a glass-enclosed Whiskey Room with more than 350 whiskeys, 40 whiskey lockers for V.I.P. guests, and a 12-seat private dining table. The venue also has a mini rickhouse where V.I.P. guests can make and store barrel-aged cocktails. The 6,900-square-foot space, which includes 1,350 square feet of patio space, seats 220.
Viking-theme restaurant Ship & Shield opened in Montrose in January. Along with offering a variety of meat-focused dishes—which include wild game such as elk and rabbit—the restaurant has Viking-inspired games including a 32-foot bocce ball court and a stand-up game bar with a Scandinavian board game called Hnefatafl. The restaurant has 2,400 square feet of interior space and a 1,500-square-foot patio, accommodating 150 reception-style. Feast tables are available for groups of 12 to 15, and a semiprivate area holds 30 for receptions.
Brasserie du Parc opened on the ground floor of One Park Place across from Discovery Green park. The French bistro comes from chef Philippe Verpiand and his wife Monica Bui. Designed by Bui, the venue has a brown, yellow, and copper interior with a variety of seating and a glass-enclosed indoor-outdoor patio. Chef Romain Mauger's menu includes fare such as crepes, steak frites, and coq au vin. The restaurant seats 180 including a 24-seat private dining room upstairs.
Kiran's reopened at a new location in Kirby Grove in January. Chef Kiran Verma's restaurant serves a variety of North Indian cuisine including biryani and offers three daily tasting menus. The 7,633-square-foot restaurant seats 144 and has two private dining rooms that can be combined. Both private dining rooms have audiovisual capabilities.
Houston's first Shake Shack opened at the Galleria in November. Specific to the new location is a Texas-theme Lockhart Link Burger and a variety of signature frozen-custard concretes made with ingredients from local vendors. Designed by Articulture Designs, the venue features a living moss wall on the entrance, tabletops made from reclaimed bowling alley lanes by CounterEvolution, and a Battle of Gonzales-inspired Shake Shack flag. The 3,500-square-foot space seats 120.
