Inside My Table #61 | Restaurant listings
The Cheap Side of Town
Houston’s melting-pot population and relatively low cost of living help make this a great city for dining on the cheap. According to USA Today, “Houston just might be the people’s dining capital.” Below is a list of 14 of the best local eateries where you can be assured of a well-prepared meal and an average bill under $10 per head (excluding drink, tax and tip). These selections are diverse, but each provides a very good meal and great value. Decor, service and atmosphere are secondary considerations.
Note: The average meal price is shown at the end of each listing.
BOMBAY SWEETS, 5827 Hillcroft bet. SW Freeway & Harwin, 713-780-4453. The full name is Bombay Sweets & Pure Vegetarian Restaurant, a very descriptive moniker for an establishment that is both a South Indian vegetarian restaurant and a retailer of Indian dessert items. Though strictly vegetarian, their seemingly generous use of ghee (clarified butter) and paneer (cheese) means the delectable buffet items will have enough fat content to satisfy most carnivores. $4.99
BREAKFAST KLUB, 3711 Travis at Alabama, 713-528-8561. Though a slight, but welcome misnomer, the Breakfast Klub is open not just for breakfast, but also lunch. A very welcome addition to the edge of Midtown, the Breakfast Klub serves excellent, casual food (e.g. wings and waffles, catfish and grits) in an informal setting with a certain amount of cool. It’s stylish, but the owners and staff are noticeably very friendly, and the restaurant always seems to emit a warm vibe. $5.60
DUMPLING KING, 6515 Westheimer just east of Hillcroft, 713-266-1468. Apt name for a restaurant that serves some of the best Chinese dumplings in town. An order of 10 is less than $6. These are the dough pockets filled with several different minced meats, seafood or vegetables, then steamed or pan-fried in more than 15 different combinations. They also serve a large number of Chinese and Chinese-American dishes for very reasonable prices. $5.60
GOODE CO. BARBECUE, 5109 Kirby Dr. bet. Bissonnet & Westpark, 713-522-2530 and other location. The overwhelming popularity of the informal, attractive Goode Co. Barbecue restaurants is well deserved. The requisite brisket is excellent, as are the other diverse meats. One big difference between Goode Co. and each of the other proficient barbecue joints in the area is the very high quality of their sides. Both the jalapeno cheese bread and pecan pie are reasons enough for a stop. $7.70
HUNAN PLUS, 9124 Bellaire Blvd. bet. Gessner & Beltway 8, 713-995-8825. This small storefront stands out among many similar restaurants on Bellaire in that it provides one of the better combinations of usually delicious, familiar and freshly prepared Chinese food, halfway decent service and very low prices. It is also one of the few that gets an overflow crowd at lunch, both with the Chinese and non-Chinese patrons alike. Try the tung tin shrimp or shrimp in lobster sauce. $4.85
JERUSALEM HALAL DELI, 3330 Hillcroft bet. Richmond & Westpark, 713-782-2525. Located in a nondescript Arab grocery store, gorgeous skewers of beef, chicken and seasoned ground lamb are displayed behind glass prior to cooking in a charcoal-burning oven; spinners with sheets of chicken and beef await trimming; and trays of attractive Mideastern stews, dips, vegetables and salads are laid out along the steam table. $6.45
KANOMWAN, 1011 Telephone Rd. east of I-45 South, near Lockwood, 713-923-4230. Long popular with Thai food enthusiasts, the no-frills dining room is often packed with those who have made the trek that is out of the way for most. The food at Kanomwan is amazingly flavorful, while the prices are very reasonable, especially for the non-seafood items. Helping to keep the costs low in the evening is that Kanomwan is strictly a BYOB operation. $8.70
KENNEALLY’S, 2119 S. Shepherd bet. Westheimer & Fairview, 713-630-0486. Kenneally’s ad line—“Great pizza at an Irish bar?”— does seem odd, especially since many shudder at the association of “Irish” and “food.” But, Kenneally’s serves arguably the best pizza around. These fly from the kitchen at rapid rate on most nights at this convivial neighborhood bar. The sandwiches, hamburgers and freshly made fries and potato chips are also very tasty. $6
LANKFORD GROCERY, 88 Dennis north of Brazos St. & east of Taft, 713-522-9555. Located in a small old house that was once a grocery store, Lankford has earned a loyal following for their hearty and flavorful breakfasts and lunches. The biggest draw during the lunchtime hours is their excellent burgers, which are hand-formed, juicy and tasty. These are not the fancy, designer-style burgers, but the basic, unpretentious ones that you wish you could consistently make at home. $4.85
MARKET SQUARE BAR & GRILL, 311 Travis across from Market Square Park, 713-224-6133. The menu items here are somewhat typical, but more refined pub fare: finger foods, burgers, sandwiches, other grilled items, salads and even hummus. The difference is that everything at the Market Square is made to order, the ingredients are top-notch and the resulting dishes are always well-prepared. The burgers and hot sandwiches are excellent, and even the salads have drawn raves. $7
NOEMI’S TACOS, 8010 Park Place just west of I-45 South, 713-645-7907. This small, homey restaurant serves very good home-style Mexican food, especially the carne guisada and barbacoa. Since dishes are cooked to order and the kitchen tiny, there will likely be a noticeable wait. But, given the food’s quality, along with the friendliness of the owners, you won’t feel that this is much of an imposition. $5
SAIGON PAGOLAC, 9600 Bellaire in Dynasty Plaza, in the back, 713-988-6106. This is one of the very best restaurants in town in terms of the ratio of quality-to-value, especially during lunchtime. It’s not only a place that can provide a good dining value, but it offers a wide range of well prepared Vietnamese specialties (e.g.chargrilled pork over rice noodles, eggrolls, seafood dishes) in a much nicer décor and atmosphere than most area Vietnamese restaurants. $5.65
TEOTIHUACAN, 1511 Airline just north of Main & east of I-45 North, 713-426-4420 and other location. Difficulty with the name for non-Spanish speakers might be discouraging potential patrons, but this pair is more deserving of business than many of their more heavily trafficked brethren, especially the Airline location. The Mexican food is consistently very good; the portions are large; and the checks are comparatively small. Service is solicitous to help make these inviting and comfortable stops for dinner, lunch and even breakfast. $8.45
WILLIAMS SMOKEHOUSE, 5903 Wheatley north of Tidwell, 713-680-8409. Situated in a small, tidy building somewhat off the beaten track in the heavily wooded, almost rural, Acres Homes area of north Houston, this barbecue spot it well worth the drive. The pork ribs are fantastic, quite possibly the best in town. The brisket, beef links and pecan pie are also excellent — and inexpensive. $6.55
