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The Most Anticipated Houston Restaurant Openings, Summer 2025
Summer has arrived — the kids are out of school, the heat is on, and vacation is calling, hopefully with a drink in hand. Fortunately, Houston's dining scene never rests. This summer, a new slate of long-awaited openings joins some of the hottest restaurants in town. From a pop-up-turned-burger joint in East End to the latest restaurant from the team behind omakase restaurant Neo and hand roll bar Kira, here are the most exciting restaurants opening this summer.
Location: 2510 Navigation Boulevard, East End
Key player: Chef Joseph Boudreaux
Projected opening date: July 2025
After around four years of popping up all over the city, chef Joseph Boudreaux has finally found a permanent spot for his brainchild, Boo's Burgers. Boudreaux will join some of his favorite dining hotspots on Navigation Boulevard's the Esplanade with a burger stand that slings his signature smash burgers. Newcomers can expect crispy-edged smash burgers topped with molten American cheese, smoky remoulade, shredded lettuce, sliced tomatoes, and homemade pickles. Boudreaux says the new burger joint will also offer fries and drinks, and, in the future, will be a space for engaging community events.
Location: 746 W 24th Street, West University
Key players: Comma Hospitality; Samee Ahmed, Saber Ahmed
Comma Hospitality, the group behind Neo and Kira, will open its third restaurant this summer, offering a new presentation of Japanese cuisine. Set in a gable-roofed building with expansive windows, the 24-seat hinoki counter restaurant will dish out a combination of sushi, curated tastings, and seasonal dishes. The early menu preview includes Madai nigiri with freeze-dried creme fraiche and chives, a clever nod to the iconic lox bagel; swordfish crudo with kimchi tamari; Alaskan black cod slow-cooked over charcoal with seaweed butter; and banana caviar ice cream. If it's anything like Neo or Kira, the menu's dish descriptions won't fully do the food justice — you'll have to try it yourself to understand its nuances. Drinks include Japanese ingredient–inflected cocktails, sake, and wines meant for pairing.
Location: 2410 Richmond Avenue, Upper Kirby
Key players: Pappas Restaurants
Projected date: August 2025
Pappas Restaurants has tackled Tex-Mex, barbecue, burgers, steak, wine, seafood, diner eats, and Creole cuisine. Now, it's paying homage to its Greek roots. The beloved local restaurant group will open Yiayia's Greek Kitchen in August, whose Greek theme and menu pay tribute to the family's matriarch, Yiayia Mary, and the yiayiades (grandmothers) of Greece, with a robust slate of meze-style shared plates. Greek and Mediterranean dishes will round out the menu with prime rib-eye souvlaki with blistered tomato; dolmades made with beef, lamb, basmati, grape leaves, and pistachio; kalamata olive bread; and traditional moussaka.
Location: 2615 Riverside Drive, Riverside Terrace area
Key player: Chef Dominick Lee
Projected opening date: Summer 2025
Not to be confused with Hotel Saint Augustine, this new Creole restaurant is slated to open this summer in the Black-owned boutique Hotel King David, located in the Riverside Terrace area not far from Third Ward. Fittingly, New Orleans native and chef Dominick Lee, formerly of Poitín, will lead the kitchen, serving 'progressive Creole' cuisine rooted in tradition but with a modern touch. Though the menu is still under wraps, Lee has been teasing dishes at private dinners and high-profile pop-ups, including an impressive fall collaboration with the team at chef Aaron Bludorn's Navy Blue. Lee has held membership-only supper club events and dinners at the hotel with other chefs, including Boudreaux of Boo's Burgers, Top Chef: Houston finalist Evelyn Garcia and recent Top Chef winner Tristen Epps. Eater has tried Lee's pork muffuletta with crispy cracklins; pillowy beignets; crab bisque with hand-rolled fregola; and a take on Lee's grandmother's okra stew crowned with fried okra. If these dishes are any indication of what will be on Augustine's menu, it should be one of summer's most exciting debuts.
Location: 6450 Cross Creek Bend Lane, Fulshear
Key players: Eat Local Concepts
Projected opening date: Summer 2025
The hospitality group behind local restaurant chains Local Table and Hungry's is expanding its reach with a new family-friendly restaurant. Housed in the former space of Italian Made Cafe, the Local Spot will open in Fulshear's Cross Creek Ranch area and offer casual American fare, cocktails, and a menu that features entirely new dishes and some of the favorites — think fettuccine with cream sauce, pizza, salads, and kebabs — from its sister restaurants. See More:
