John and Dominique de Menil brought their deep understanding for arts and culture to Houston when they settled here in the 1940s. The couple’s legacy lives on through the Menil Collection in Montrose and still inspires people every day, including the team at Bunkhouse Hotels, an Austin-based hospitality group.

Fueled by a strong pull to the Menil’s campus (there's no affiliation; just enthusiastic fandom) and the neighborhood’s character, the Bunkhouse team decided to debut its first Houston property, Hotel Saint Augustine, steps away from the art museum. The concept, which spans 2.2 acres, boasts 71 rooms, an all-day lobby lounge, a heated pool, an 1,850-square-foot indoor and outdoor event space dubbed the Montrose Ballroom, and chef Aaron Bludorn’s newest restaurant, Perseid.

To keep up with its tradition of using patron saints for hotel names, Bunkhouse chose “Augustine,” which honors Augustus Chapman Allen, one of Houston’s founders, and the abundance of Saint Augustine grass throughout the city.

Omar Abreu, Hotel Saint Augustine’s general manager, says the team didn’t want the hotel to stick out like a sore thumb with a vertical layout, stuffy halls, and cookie-cutter rooms like a typical hotel. Instead, they created an open floor plan with five unique buildings that are connected through catwalks and outdoor pathways.

“For the [hotel’s] overall vision, we wanted to make this a destination for travelers and locals alike,” Abreu says.

Walking into the lobby will make you feel like you’re stepping into a millionaire’s home. To the right, by the front desk, is a space with back-lit red lacquered shelves that hold Bunkhouse branded items and other products for sale. Turn left to enter the main lounge, which also doubles as a listening room, complete with a record player and a restored reel-to-reel tape deck for entertainment. Keep walking through the space and you’ll be met with a larger lounge with intimate, cozy seating nooks and a bar serving cocktails, wine, beer, and some light bites created by Bludorn. It’s perfect for guests, as well as locals who are looking to mingle.

Saint Augustine has eight “petite” rooms that are about 200 square feet and include a queen bed. The hotel also offers options for a studio king with a dedicated lounge or workplace area, a studio double queen, a deluxe king, a deluxe king with a terrace, a premier king suite, and an atelier king suite. The price varies depending on the day of the week, but typically begins at $300 a night.

For the buildout, Bunkhouse enlisted the help of Post Company, a New York– and Wyoming-based design studio, and Texas-based architecture firm Lake Flato. The hotel and its rooms include nods to the Menil family. The suites’ sofas are decorated in a Charles James design—the fashion mastermind behind Dominique’s looks. In her own home, she found the white on the closets to be boring, so she painted each by hand to make them more fun. To honor her legacy, each closet panel is a different color. However, if you pay close enough attention, you’ll notice a lack of art on the walls. This was done on purpose—Abreu says creativity is already flowing through the space and the neighborhood.

“I really would love for us to be the beacon of the community,” Abreu says. “At the same time, we’re looking to build Houston as a destination for culture and arts.”

And of course, it’s no surprise that the hotel turned to one of the best chefs in Houston for the on-site restaurant: none other than chef Aaron Bludorn of Bludorn, Navy Blue, and Bar Bludorn. Perseid, which is named for the meteor shower that happens every summer and the city’s history as a space epicenter, explores the diversity of Houston through the lens of a French- and Gulf Coast–inspired bistro.

“Because Houston’s culinary hospitality scene is just growing right now at such an exponential rate, there are so many young, independent operators doing really cool stuff and really pushing the boundaries—making this city a true culinary destination,” Bludorn says. “I hope [Perseid] only perpetuates that.”

Cherif Mbodji, director of operations and partner at Bludorn and its sister restaurants, says when conversations first began there was an immediate connection between the two groups, and given that he and Bludorn both have French culinary backgrounds, it felt as if the stars aligned.

“The concept of a French bistro through the eyes of Houston…I think it is just a love letter to Houston as a culinary city, where you have so many different influences [and] where the vibrancy of food is so palpable,” Mbodji says. “And French cuisine has a direct tie to some of the Southern influences that we all experience.”

The Perseid menu will change seasonally. The current menu includes stuffed squash blossoms with jambalaya, shrimp, and celery salad; crawfish sausage with Creole sauce; and blackened grouper with long beans and black garlic hoisin.

In the summer, menu items will be more vegetable-focused, light, and refreshing. Bludorn says the same sentiment goes for the restaurant’s cocktails. While we continue to survive the unpredictable Houston winter, the menu will include more spirit-forward cocktails, but come summer, expect fresh juices and other lighter ingredients.

Perseid also boasts a dessert program led by Bludorn’s executive pastry chef Maria Riddle. Think beignets with spiced berry coulis and crème brûlée with pineapple, as well as coconut and makrut passionfruit anglaise.

Hotel Saint Augustine and Perseid are welcome additions to Montrose and to the broader Houston area. The city is home to several vertical eyesores concentrated in neighborhoods like Uptown and downtown, but this Bunkhouse property gives tourists a new way to explore the city, while also serving as another place for us locals to play.

“If you want to meet up with some friends or [have] a date night, this [hotel] is pretty much a one-stop shop for that,” Abreu says.