Mark's American Cuisine
At Mark's American Cuisine, the menu is always changing, dictated by the freshest ingredients available. The only thing common to all dishes is the creativity that goes into them.
It's fun to start your meal with a cocktail such as a mojito made with ruby red grapefruit vodka, fresh mint and lime juice, or a pear drink containing vodka, pear nectar, rosemary syrup and Champagne.
For lunch, you can order a savory starter such as roasted quail with tropical fruit compote or roasted corn chowder with smoked bacon. Examples of lunch entrees include a trio of scallops, shrimp and smoked salmon in a pasta cake, and pecan-crusted breast of chicken filled with smoked mozzarella and sun-dried tomatoes.
Expect unusual fare for dinner, too, such as an appetizer of oysters topped with a ragout of shrimp, crab and leeks. An entree might be grilled salmon with pineapple-coconut rice or prime sirloin and chicken-fried bacon with roasted vegetables.
Mark's American Cuisine
1658 Westheimer Road
Houston, Texas 77006
(713) 523-3800
marks1658.com
Tony's
Tony's offers seasonal contemporary cuisine with an international twist. Depending on your taste, you can find anything from fish with an Asian influence to Italian veal shank (osso buco). You can have fun with wine, too: Tony's cellar features more than 1,000 vintages.
For lunch, try an appetizer such as marinated tuna with avocado and soy-lime dressing, or delicate lasagna with fresh mozzarella, basil and tomatoes. For your entree, consider a salad of crispy chicken and melon, or tenderloin nuggets over black rice.
Start your dinner with wild salmon sashimi, basil and fennel, and proceed to a main dish such as slow-roasted sea bass or crisp duckling with fresh berry sauce.
Tony's
3755 Richmond Ave.
Houston, Texas 77046
(713) 622-6778
tonyshouston.com
Pappas Bros. Steakhouse
Pappas Bros. takes pride in its fine preparation of classic steakhouse cuisine. Dinner often starts with an appetizer such as bacon-wrapped scallops, shrimp remoulade, fried oysters or caviar, and the next course can be a salad such as a Caesar or field greens with fruit, blue cheese and candied almonds. If you like soup, try the turtle gumbo or the special of the day.
Then comes the meat. You can enjoy various sizes of filet mignon, porterhouse, prime New York strip, prime rib-eye, three-peppercorn steak or veal or lamp chops. Main-dish alternatives include broiled salmon and Maine lobster.
Round out the meal with your pick of vegetables such as asparagus, creamed spinach or roasted mushrooms and a potato. As in any respectable steakhouse, options are numerous and include au gratin, steak fries, and baked or mashed potatoes.
Pappas Bros. Steakhouse
5839 Westheimer Road
Houston, Texas 77057
(713) 780-7352
pappasbros.com/houston
About The Author
Barbara Dunlap is a freelance writer in Oregon. She was a garden editor at "The San Francisco Chronicle," and she currently specializes in travel and active lifestyle topics like golf and fitness. She received a master's degree from the University of Missouri-Columbia and has been a Knight Foundation Fellow.
