Photo by Troy Fields

The caldo Tlalpeño at Tacos del Julio

For the next 20 weeks, we'll be rounding up the runners-up to our 2011 Best of Houston® winners. In many categories, picking each year's winner is no easy task. We'll be spotlighting 20 of those categories, in which the winner had hefty competition from other Houston bars and restaurants.

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Photo by Katharine Shilcutt

This year leading up to our annual Best of Houston® issue, we're counting down our 100 favorite dishes in Houston. This list comprises our favorite dishes from the last year, dishes that are essential to Houston's cultural landscape and/or dishes that any visitor (or resident) should try at least once.

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Photo by MarkScottAustinTX

"But the food is really good, I swear!" -- Your boyfriend

"Hi, I'm Carla. I'm a Twin Peaks Girl at Twin Peaks Houston. I hope to see you real soon at Twin Peaks for our awesome hearty man food, ice cold beer and all the sports you can handle. It's why we are the best sports bar in Houston! And, of course, because I'm here. ☺ Hope to see you soon!
XOXO, Carla"

This is an actual quote from the Twin Peaks Web site...and this is where I was convinced to meet some friends for lunch last week. But the worst part of it all? I actually enjoyed it.

I've heard the chatter from my guy friends about the city's newest breastaurant:

"They're like slutty lumberjacks; it's awesome."

"See, there's an order to the hotness, starting from the hostesses and moving up the scale to the bartenders."

and...

"The shorts are just soooo small."

This doesn't exactly make me want to run right there to eat a burger, but they swore, "The food is actually really good!" That, coupled with the claim that they had seen Arian Foster and the fact that I could use this trip against my fiancé in the future, pushed me to the dark side.

And I was pleasantly surprised. I'd been to a few Hooters in my day, with the busty waitresses running around a dark bar serving fat, drunk guys wings -- it hasn't ever been my first choice in dining. If I can make better wings at home and avoid having a camel toe in my face, I'm in.

But Twin Peaks was different...

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All photos by Ginny Braud

When you walk into Reserve 101, you're immediately greeted by a wall of whiskey bottles. Like, so many whiskey bottles. I grabbed a spot at the bar and ordered one of their house signature cocktails, the Hemingway, because honestly that wall o' whiskey was kind of intimidating.

Behind the bar was Veronica. In her early 20s, with a figure I really wouldn't be pissed about having (when she's not slinging whiskey, she's modeling) and about 1.5 sleeves, she doesn't seem like the kind of girl who tolerates much bullshit. "Yeah, you have to have patience," she tells me. "I mean, people are in here drinking whiskey."

Something else it seems you need to have to work at Reserve 101 is a pretty damn good knowledge of your product. My whiskey education is quite limited, but when I decide to advance it, this might be a really good place to start. I ask Veronica how she can even remember everything on the list. "Knowing what we have isn't hard," she says. "But we taste them all so we know exactly how to describe them and help customers find exactly what they're looking for. When someone comes in here knowing more than you, that's not cool. We're here to teach people about whiskey and how to enjoy it."

Over my Hemingway, I got to know a little about Veronica and her whiskey bar.

Where are you from?
Houston, Texas. Born and raised.

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Patrise Shuttlesworth

Ronnie Killen
Killen's Steakhouse
2804 South Main, Pearland
281-485-0844
www.killenssteakhouse.com

This is the second of a three-part chef chat series. Click here to read part one.

As I talked more with Chef Ronnie Killen, a picture emerged of a man who is humble, soft-spoken and sensitive, with high integrity. He is also intensely competitive. We talked about his leadership style and how he believes yelling doesn't motivate people. Ronnie has a fiercely loyal staff at Killen's Steakhouse, and he treats them well.

We talked about his early years in the business and his childhood growing up with his Aunt Margie and Grandmother Millie. They helped form the man and chef he is today. His eyes get a little misty when he talks about the life-changing accident his son had and its effect on both of them. I spent a fascinating afternoon with Chef Killen and learned he is quite a paradox and very gifted when it comes to all things food-related.

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Photos by Katharine Shilcutt

Photographing tacos when all you want to do is eat them is torture, people. TORTURE.

I get the feeling that Mission Burrito is suddenly trying to compete with newcomer Torchy's Tacos, the Austin import that features tacos with fillings like fried chicken and names like the Dirty Sanchez or the Trailer Park.

Why? Because the Houston-based burrito chain has now introduced a new line of "Ten Tasty Tacos" at three of its locations -- the original on West Alabama (which opened in 1996) as well as on Durham and Highway 6 -- with more family-friendly names such as the Tree Hugger, the Sloppy Cowboy and the Confused Farmer.

In keeping with the competitive spirit, each taco has somewhat non-traditional fillings: The Black Magic comes with fried shrimp (or tilapia) on a corn tortilla with jicama slaw and horseradish sauce, for example. The aforementioned Sloppy Cowboy sees pulled pork topped with grilled potatoes and onions, chile de arbol salsa, shredded cheese and Mission Burrito's famously irresistible serrano-cilantro ranch dressing. (I mix that stuff into my queso, into my Que Mas salads, into everything I order there.)

And if the question here is whether or not Mission Burrito is trying to compete with Torchy's, the answer is clear: It is, and it's winning -- as far as I'm concerned.

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Photos by Mai Pham

An order of toro nigiri from Kata Robata, where Chef Ryan Hildebrand may be seen eating on Monday nights.

I am always asking people where they like to eat. I'll go anywhere. A $1 fried chicken place in a gas station, a hole-in-the-wall strip mall affair on the west side, a hot dog stand on the sidewalk underneath a freeway -- if it's good, I'm totally game. And generally speaking, if a chef recommends a place, it's bound to be good.

Which is why I'm compiling a treasure trove of tips from our city's finest chefs to share with you, the lucky reader. Inspired by the Greater Houston Convention and Visitors Bureau's "Where the Chefs Eat" tours of the city, I'm asking chefs to to share their favorite eats in Houston.

Today, we talk to chefs Ryan Hildebrand, Michael Pellegrino and Kaz Edwards.

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Photo by Jeremy Parzen

In the wake of last week's post on The Wine Lover's Bill of Rights, I wanted to turn the tables (no pun intended) and address one of the wine lover's responsibilities in the unique social compact that is sealed when you sit down for a meal in a restaurant.

In most states, corkage -- i.e., bringing your own bottle to a restaurant and having your server open it for you for a fee -- is legal.

In Texas, corkage is illegal unless the venue does not have a spirits license. In other words, if spirits are served, corkage is forbidden by law. (I'll devote a future post to this bizarre nugget of Texas legislation.) Many sommeliers allow corkage regardless of this restriction. But, for the most part, our corkage options in Houston are severely limited.

There are, however, a handful of great Houston restaurants where corkage is encouraged.

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Photos by Katharine Shilcutt

The marinated rib eye (front) was the favorite of the night.

Nabi has quickly turned into my favorite neighborhood restaurant.

It's the answer to the question Where do I want to eat tonight? when I'm not dining out for work and instead want to relax over good food with good friends. It's inexpensive -- especially during happy hour -- and offers a range of options for everyone in the group, from sushi to ramen, from fried chicken to fresh vegetables.

And now there's a new range to explore: a Korean barbecue side that offers sizzling platters of meat such as marinated slices of rib eye and garlic-soy sauce short ribs, each served with rice and daikon radish kimchi.

The traditional Korean barbecue dishes are given a signature Nabi twist, mixing in Japanese ingredients and served up on hot comals that would normally hold fajitas.

"It's a Tex-Mex twist," I told chef and owner Ji Kang last week. "I like it."

"That was the whole idea," he beamed back.

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Photo by Katharine Shilcutt

This year leading up to our annual Best of Houston® issue, we're counting down our 100 favorite dishes in Houston. This list comprises our favorite dishes from the last year, dishes that are essential to Houston's cultural landscape and/or dishes that any visitor (or resident) should try at least once.

More >>