Chef Nick Wong and partner Lisa Lee created this long-awaited Asian American diner. Named for Wong’s parents, Agnes and Sherman explores a blend of Wong’s Chinese and American heritage with a lineup of playful fusion dishes: scallion waffles topped with sambal honey butter, a wedge salad peppered with Chinese sausage and Taiwanese-style doughnuts, chicken-fried steak with Vietnamese gravy, French toast infused with pandan, and good-at-anytime egg foo young (an assembly of an egg-loaded crawfish gumbo gravy over rice, best experienced in-house). Cocktails get just as inventive, with a Lean Kwai Fong old-fashioned, a clever ode to both Hong Kong and Houston’s cough syrup culture.

After years of pop-ups, chef Joseph Boudreaux opened his first brick-and-mortar restaurant in the neighborhood where he grew up. Nestled on Navigation Boulevard, the colorful stand offers walk-up service with burgers (beef and mushroom), crispy fries, and bottled sodas. Diners who opt for the cheesy smashburger are guaranteed a juicy, grilled patty topped with fresh “shrettuce,” tomato, and shaved onion, all piled onto a slightly sweet, buttered Cake & Bacon challah bun with its signature smoky OG burger sauce.

Shawn Gawle’s “fine-casual” restaurant is built on sharing. French technique underpins American flavors: Manchego cheese curls, tarte flambée with bacon lardons and fromage blanc, Instagram-worthy salt-baked celery root, heirloom tomato pie, and carrot cavatelli. In 2025, the prix fixe menu, available for two or more diners, featured similar bites, along with a tender veal osso buco, a savory skate wing Basquaise plated with blistered shishito peppers, and mouthwatering beeswax gelato with candied almonds and meringue.

Tucked inside the Thompson Hotel, this sleek dining room brings modern French cooking with Texas flair. Chef E. J. Miller’s delivers refined small plates—think airy gougères stuffed with aged Comté and topped with Iberico ham, Gulf shrimp poached in spices with a sharp gin cocktail sauce, and wild boar paired with pecan-muscadine gelée. Larger entrées include rich wagyu beef cheek bourguignon, layered with lardons and pearl onions; steak frites, available with several premium cuts; and a shareable lobster au poivre. Desserts embrace French tradition with a touch of theater: a roving cheese trolley, profiteroles with caramel ice cream and chocolate drizzle, and Le Grand Macaron au Chocolat, presented with raspberries and hazelnut gianduja mousse.

High design that channels Blade Runner and Kill Bill meets Asian-diasporic flavors at this futuristic lounge. An upside-down bonsai tree and video installations set the scene for inventive sushi, like the Murakami roll—king crab, A5 wagyu, and caviar, with a dripping crab butter candle—plus vegetarian nigiri made with bell pepper and eggplant that will have you fooled; fried ube balls that double as a side or dessert; and thrilling cocktails, including creamy purple-hued ube espresso martinis. Guests can also explore its extensive lineup of sake and Japanese whisky, and for nondrinkers: a charming pear-based, alcohol-free lychee “Champagne.”

Often credited with helping establish Houston’s Gulf Coast cuisine, chef Bryan Caswell returned to the local dining scene this year with Latuli. Appetizers serve as the perfect reintroduction, featuring a smoked redfish dip and an heirloom tomato and burrata salad. Seafood shines with roasted grouper served with a housemade corn pudding, but the ultratender wagyu barbacoa, crowned with slices of pear and jalapeño, also impresses. Hot yeast rolls, Gruyère corn bread, and peach cobbler à la mode make the bread and dessert programs standouts.

First opened in August 2023 as a taco-focused restaurant with an intricate masa program, Maximo reemerged in January 2025 under then-26-year-old executive chef Adrian Torres with a completely rebranded menu of “progressive Mexican” dishes. Find thick shrimp-chorizo queso fundido, a zingy and refreshing hearts of palm salad, brisket suadero tacos, decadent masa corn bread crowned with caviar and a nutty chicatana butter, and banana pudding buñuelo served with housemade banana ice cream. Torres calls it Maximo 2.0—a revival worth celebrating.

Netflix-famous chef Luis Robledo Richards and Culinary Khancepts (Liberty Kitchen and Leo’s) opened this Mexico City–inspired restaurant in Autry Park. Tacos Mar y Tierra—cheese-crusted tortillas filled with beef cheek confit, Gulf shrimp bathed in adobo, and avocado—headline a vibrant menu that also includes dishes like bluefin tuna tostada and slow-cooked carne asada. Named for the Aztec goddess of agave and fertility, Mayahuel pays homage with sips made with additive-free agaves, including G4 tequila, agave-based vodka, and Derrumbes mezcal.

When Austin-based group Bunkhouse Hotels debuted Hotel Saint Augustine in January, it also launched Perseid, with chef Aaron Bludorn and director of operations Cherif Mbodji at the helm. Named for the annual meteor shower, this hotel restaurant nods to both the skies and Houston’s space history while fusing French cuisine with flavors of Houston and the Gulf Coast. The result? A signature burger layered with duck liver mousse, foie gras served with biscuits, and crawfish sausage with a Creole sauce. For dessert: plump beignets and an éclair brightened with raspberry ganache and pistachio ice cream. Early risers can get in on the fun, too, with pancakes, collard greens and duck confit quiche, and omelets.

Beloved hospitality group Pappas Restaurants is known for chains that have mastered Tex-Mex, burgers, barbecue, and more, but this year it opened an homage to its Greek roots and family matriarch Yiayia Mary. The kitchen dishes out savory keftedes (beef and lamb meatballs), crispy calamari, refreshing oysters, a classic seafood youvetsi, and a hearty heritage chicken souvlaki with tomato, pickled fennel, and tzatziki. Desserts steal the show, with baklava cheesecake, cocoa-soaked chocolate sokolatopita, and brûlée panna cotta with citrus-honey spice cake.

Yet another Autry Park newcomer in 2025, Annam invites diners in for Vietnamese cuisine, including flavor-packed fish heads with fish sauce, lobster asparagus soup, and shaking filet mignon in a European-inspired interior.

Jane Wild, who gained a following through pop-ups and even a previous bakery in Tomball, debuted her first solo brick-and-mortar bakery earlier this year in the Heights. Expect sustainable, fresh ingredients (Wild has a no-waste policy), and enjoy an ever-changing selection of toast, sandwiches, salads, and egg tarts.