The Raw and the Cooked

UCHI 

904 Westheimer
Houston, TX 77006

http://uchirestaurants.com/houston/

Burpette writes:

After months of begging a reticent Big Burp to take me to Uchi to use the $100 gift card that he so thoughtfully gave me for Christmas, I stuck to my guns and prodded Burp to finally make reservations for Uchi tonight.  Uchi is super popular, and by that I mean that when Burp called early this afternoon to make reservations for tonight, a Tuesday, he was told that we could eat at 5:00 pm or make reservations for next Wednesday at 6:00 pm.  Since we are not quite ready for the Early Bird Special and reruns of Matlock, we decided to try our luck and just show up for seats at the bar.

What luck!  We arrived at ten till 6:00 pm, and were told that we could either grab a seat at the bar or take a seat on the cocktail patio and wait for something to open up at the sushi bar.  We couldn't find a seat inside, so we went out to the patio for drinks until something opened up.  

The cocktail patio is charming, the only problem being that an afternoon thunderstorm had just dried up, causing my heels to sink into the little puddles that were formed under the pebble strewn patio floor.  We ordered a nice Willamette Valley Pinto Noir called Siduri for the reasonable restaurant price of $47.00 a bottle.  To our surprise, a friendly server brought us Grilled Edamame finished with olive oil.  I've never had grilled edamame before, and I have to say that it adds a char nice flavor.  We were also served candied pecans dusted with sea salt which did not suck!

Approximately 28 minutes later, we were seated at the sushi bar and introduced to our own sushi chef for the evening, Patrick.  Hot towels for our hands and a palette cleanser for our mouths were brought out to ready us for our Uchi experience.

Even though we ordered after the happy hour had ended, wonderful Patrick offered us the happy hour price for our order of Spicy Crunch Tuna Roll with Sweet Chili Sauce and Aioli and our Pitchfork Roll with Miso Tamari Sauce.  Did I say amazing Patrick?  

Spicy Crunch Tuna Roll with Sweet Sauce and Aioli

 

Pitchfork Roll with Tamari Sauce

If you are not a sushi person, may I suggest the Pitchfork Roll?  It is in a word, awesome.  If you are a Beefy Mc Beeferton lover, you will appreciate the big beef taste in these little beef rolls.

Big Burp also ordered the Ham and Eggs Roll, which prompted him to exclaim, "Where have you been all of my life?!?" to his pork belly, aioli, and tamari sauce roll.  It's like bacon sushi!  What the what?  I sampled the Sake Toro Sushi topped off with salmon roe.  Oh yeah!

Another friendly server came bearing Flash Fried Brussels Sprouts in a Sweet Chili Fish Caramel, courtesy of the wonderful folks of Uchi.  Hell-o Salty Goodness!  

Who is this benevolent Uchi?  Why is he/she so generous?  Who cares!  Keep it coming!

Next up was the Hamachi Nabe, a traditional Japanese comfort food like a seafood rice stir fry in a clay bowl.  A raw egg is cracked into a bowl of rice, perfectly cooked yellow tail, bonito flakes and soy which are mixed together in front of you to form the paradisaical rice bowl of your dreams.

Hamachi Nabe

When Burp's rather loud exhortations prompted our neighbor at the sushi bar to chime in with, "If there's a better restaurant in Houston, I haven't found it", we knew he was right.

...............................................................................................................

Wait there's more!

We ordered two glasses of bubbly, refreshing Cava to accompany our pre-dessert and our dessert.  We selected Brie Ringo, a tempura fried brie with an apple chutney, served on a sweet potato crisp for the "pre-dessert".  Big Burp's reaction, "It's like Heaven was shot down out of the sky and harvested for us, lightly fried and served on a sweet potato chip".  And this from a man who drug his feet taking me to Uchi for the past 4 months!

Finally, we wrapped things up with dessert, Fried Milk.  The fried milk is actually pastry cream that has been frozen,  rolled in corn flakes, frozen again (a couple more times) and then fried, served with chocolate mousse, chocolate powder, iced milk sherbet and wafer-thin chocolate cookies. It's like grown up milk and cookies, but like no milk and cookies that I've ever had.  
 

Milk and Cookies

That extra little synergy of flavors goes a long way to making this possibly the best meal that I've ever had.  We drove home with the top down in a food coma!

Now, sitting at home in a comfy pair of yoga pants and my ancient Psychedelic Furs concert tee, braless, serene, I am able to reflect on our dinner at Uchi and put it in its proper perspective:  If he wasn’t getting lucky earlier, he certainly is now.  Ladies, it’s Uchi for your coo@#ie!

Big Burp writes:

I'm going to have this big, dippy smile on my face the rest of the night.


Burp Factor:  Euphoric

French Eatin' in the USA

BRASSERIE MAX & JULIE

4315 Montrose Blvd.
Houston, TX 77006
http://www.caferabelais.com/Brasserie/

Burpette writes:

There are so many wonderful places to eat lunch in Houston, and when a girl has an amazing man who works from home a couple of days a week, and is willing to pick up his loving woman for lunch, the choices abound.

Today we dined at one of our favorite French establishments, Brasserie Max & Julie.  Named for the owners' children, Max & Julie, the restaurant has a quaint, authentic French brasserie feel with lots of wood, brass accents and cozy seating.  Brasserie M & J is owned by the same people that operate the ever packed Cafe Rabelais in Rice Village, so you know that the quality is always excellent.  

Brasserie Max & Julie

Upon seating, an, appetite-ruining, gut-expanding basket of fresh French country bread is placed before you.  Crusty on the outside and tender on the inside, it is just the thing to munch on while you are contemplating the menu choices.  Brasserie M & J has lots of French comfort food favorites to choose from, all guaranteed to make you go ooh la la.

The Plat du Jour for Tuesdays is Parmentier au Goût du Jour (house made Parmentier), which is an evil French take on a Shepherd's Pie.  Ground beef and veggies covered with mashed potatoes and swiss cheese are baked to decadent perfection, and yes, it tastes as good as it sounds.  Big Burp had to keep himself from licking the dish clean and even went so far as to suggest to the server that they should serve it with a spoon, so that he could scoop all of the delicious leavings into his gullet.

Parmentier au Goût du Jour

I can never stop myself from ordering Le Normandie, by far one of my favorite sandwiches in the world.  Roast Turkey, spread with pear preserves and topped with creamy wonderful brie is wedged between two pieces of that dirty, dirty French country bread mentioned above that has been slathered in butter and grilled to a sexy crunchiness.  Can I get a Hells Oui?  Take a bite, it will make you do that crazy eye roll thing, I promise.  It's served with ethereally light and crisp house made chips.  Crunch.  Crunch.  Bet you can't eat just one!

Le Normandie

Brasserie Max & Julie is always a positive dining experience; the waitstaff is very professional, and give you that French experience without the French attitude.   But, be aware that Le Normandie is not available on the weekend brunch menu, unless of course you know the chef ;-).

C'est parfait for lunch.  C'est genial for brunch.  And c'est si bon for dinner!



Big Burp writes:

That sure was a good Parmentier thing.  I'm glad Burpette shared some of her sandwich.

Burp Factor - Haute!

Rockin' Rollin' Prints 2013

Rockin' Rollin' Prints 2013 at Saint Arnold Brewing Company

Saint Arnold Brewing Company
2000 Lyons Ave., Houston, TX 77020

http://www.saintarnold.com/

Burpette says:

Over the last few years, a phenomenon has been brewing throughout the Houston area known as the craft beer phenomenon.  Houstonian beer drinkers know that well-prepared, tasty beer can be found at local breweries such as, Saint Arnold, Karbach Brewing Company, and Buffalo Bayou Brewery, to name but a few.

Saint Arnold Brewing Co. keeps it local with several events throughout the year that involve the community.  Today's event was Rockin' Rollin' Prints - 2013.  The brewery invited local artists to bring their painstakingly carved woodcuts to the parking lot to be inked and then run over by a steamroller.  What a creative way to use heavy construction equipment!  The taps opened at noon, and the printed pieces were hung throughout the brew house like so much artsy laundry hung out to dry.

The event brought out the art crowd, young and old, as well as the usual brew rats who like to attend as many Saint Arnold events as they can (and get a free artist-designed Saint Arnold pint glass, thank you very much!). 

The weather, having recovered from last night's frightening thunderstorms and flooding, was warm and clear, the sun beating down on the onlookers forced them back and forth to the taps for cool draft after draft (after draft) to slake their thirst.  With popular local food truck H-town strEATs, https://twitter.com/Htownstreats, strategically stationed outside the parking lot gates, no one went hungry.

Big Burp and I frequent several of the local food trucks and have had the pleasure of sampling H-town strEATs's culinary creations in the past.  Big Burp was happy to finally have the honor of ordering the Shorty Mac, a short rib, mac and cheese concoction, lovingly sandwiched between two pieces of grilled bread (it sure doesn't suck).  Once before, he stood in line for over 45 minutes waiting and salivating for it only to have the customer in front of him order the very last Shorty Mac of the day.  Poor Big Burp!

I ordered the Burger with Pimento Cheese and Bacon, even though I am not necessarily a fan of pimento cheese.  The bun was fantastic, just the kind of tender yet substantial bun that you want on your burger.  Overall, it was a little too salty with the pimento cheese and the bacon, but went down satisfyingly well when chased with a cold pint of Saint Arnold Summer Pils.

Big Burp says:

Cool art.  Cold beer.  Great food.  Burrrp!

Burp Factor: Belchtastic!

SPARROW Bar + Cookshop
3701 Travis St., Houston, TX 77002

http://sparrowhouston.com/

Burpette Writes: 

Where to go on a cloudy Saturday morning for breakfasty lunch?  Sparrow will do just fine.  With famed local restauranteur Monica Pope at the helm, Sparrow is a cozy spot to roost. 

After disdainfully viewing the snaky line around the Breakfast Klub next door, we were extremely pleased to walk in and be seated immediately.  The interior is charming with its exposed brick walls, well-stocked bar, and intimate seating.  The brunch menu is delightful with a mix of tasty items, and the wine and cocktail list is tempting.

My eye was immediately drawn to the Roasted Garlic Bulb with Goat Cheese and Seeded Boule.  YUM!  We could not keep ourselves from squeezing the aromatic roasted bulb til it oozed its delectable oil all over the plate.  No dainty eaters are we!  The goat cheese was creamy goodness, and we were happy to find out that it is sourced from the Houston Dairymaids.  Just slather it all over that warm, seeded boule.  How great is that?

I opted for the Biscuits and Red Onion Gravy with lamb sausage, local honey and scrambled egg.  DELICIOUS!  The biscuit was light and heavenly, smothered in thick, peppery cream gravy.  The egg was scrambled perfectly and sat atop the house made lamb sausage like a fluffy, eggy cloud.  Just the hint of the lightly sweet local honey shone through.

Big Burp chose the burger, since he read the Alison Cook write up in the Houston Chronicle, which rated it an A+.  While Burp agrees that the burger topped with fried onions is exciting, he gives it an A.  At first, he thought that perhaps it was a bit over cooked, since he prefers that pink band that denotes a medium cooked patty, but was soon pleased to find that it was in fact cooked perfectly.  You can smear your buns with an array of condiments that come separately and include a house made Sparrow Sauce with a tiny bit of kick.

Our waiter, replete in a leather apron, was knowledgeable about the wine list,  and apparently holds some clout with the Houston Dairymaids.  All in all, it was a delicious repast.  We will definitely fly back to Sparrow for dinner in the near future!


Big Burp says:
"Only really glanced at the wine list.  Immediately saw just a 50% mark up on The Prisoner."

BURP FACTOR - Excellent! 

Welcome to Burp Houston!

Outsiders most likely associate Houston with big hair, big boots and big accents.  However, as most Houstonians know, the city has much to offer beyond hair spray, cow flops and Southern drawls.  Houston's changing landscape has become a mecca for transplants from all over the world, flocking to the city for jobs and affordable housing.  Along with the boom in population, has come a boom in restaurants, food trucks and bars.  Eating establishments are popping all over the city, and it's becoming difficult to sample all of the wares.

This blog ain't about chain restaurants and Budweisers, we'll leave that to the 'burbs.  This blog is dedicated to the ever-evolving food and drink scene in Houston.  Big Burp, a Houston transplant from Michigan and Burpette, a native Houstonian are inner-loopers who love to eat, drink and take in the arts around town.   

The "snob factor" is low, the "cheese factor" can be high.  Good wine doesn't have to cost more than $10 a bottle, and a satisfying meal doesn't have to break the bank.  It's about what is enjoyable and makes your mouth happy.

Join us as we eat and drink our way around Houston!

Cheers!  Ya'll come back now, you here!