Made a visit with a friend for Houston Restaurant Week (HRW) $20 lunch…read more Entered a fairly quiet dining room with 3 other tables, and was greeted immediately by a friendly waiter. I opted for the charcuterie board and the salmon. Presentation was a beautiful work of art for both plates. Charcuterie board had a decent variation of meats and also had a sort of super rich salmon pate (initially I thought it was cheese). As far as the entree goes, I felt as if I had a plate of salmon alongside a bunch of random decorative vegetables. Presentation was very nice, portion was fairly large, just more so random to me. Taste was ok. We didn't opt for the $5 supplemental dessert, however we were given 3 delightful complimentary coconut and banana white chocolate truffles upon receiving the check. I'm thankful for opportunities like HRW to give me a chance to try places that I normally wouldn't go to. Not sure if I'd return though.

Le Bistro is a French restaurant located inside the Culinary Institute Le Notre. What initially…read morestarted off as a bad experience made a dramatic reversal. I tried to stop by on a Friday evening for dinner. Le Bistro is located on the north side of town, is not in the best area, so it was a bit of a drive. Once we arrived, we were asked if we had a reservation. We did not. They were unwilling to accommodate us as they require reservations. We had to leave and dine elsewhere. For the inconvenience, we were offered a free glass of wine on our next visit. Le Bistro is a small restaurant so I get it. But, when we visited the next week, the restaurant wasn't full. That's not to say it wasn't when we tried. Either we were unlucky or they use an antiquated system without the flexibility that diners expect in this day and age. Rant over. Fast forward to the following Friday and we stopped by for Houston Restaurants Week. They start you off with some warm bread, fresh out of the oven, with butter. A lot of it too. We demolished all of it. For my appetizer, I had the scallops which are served with risotto. Scallops are easy to mess up but they cooked them just right. Soft in the middle with a nice crispy sear on top. The risotto complimented the scallops nicely. For my entree, I had the waygu strip which is served with potato sticks (the fancy kind) and green beans. For all the steak eaters out there, you know that waygu is an expensive cut of meat. I was expecting a small portion as a result. It was not. 10 ounces which was a lot more than I expected. This dish alone is probably worth more than the $45 you pay for three dishes during HRW. This was my first time having waygu and it was as advertised. A little fatty on the outside but flavorful, chewy, and buttery when you take off the fatty ends. An excellent cut of steak that everyone should try at least once! The sides were also good. For my dessert, they were out of two out of three of the desserts listed but offered us some alternatives. I went with an apricot flan which was alright. Throughout the meal, we had a bottle of red wine which was also great. Eating at a culinary institute is an experience in itself. You're going to receive excellent service. The waiters and waitresses are students so they have an incentive to provide great service. Not only are they getting a tip but they're being graded. At the end of the meal, they give you a card to rate your experience and sign up for any culinary classes that you're interested in. Not only do they have several classes available, but you can also get a diploma as well as an associates or bachelors if you're trying to become a master chef. The chefs are from France so you're learning from the best. The presentation of the food should also be noted. The food looks like art. Which is what you would expect at a fancy French restaurant. We had a 5-star experience. The service was friendly and efficient. Just make sure to make a reservation.

During the beginning of the pandemic, I did a LOT of virtual cooking classes. This kept me…read moreconnected to others and helped me to feed my family, who all came home, a variety of international and local flavors. So happy to see a virtual cooking class on the Weekly Savor from Central Market. So easy to invite several of my friends who I met cooking virtually at many, many Yelp cooking events. The free live online class and discussion with Chef and Restaurateur Einat Admony, who is known for her fresh, sophisticated Mediterranean palate, was fabulous. So interesting to learn about Chef Admony's journey and challenges as a chef and then cook along with her using chicken, lemons, herbs, onions and olives in Braised Chicken with Olives and Citrus. She also did a bonus Tahdig recipe. The food turned out amazing!! Chef Admony was one of the first chefs to introduce Israeli cuisine to Americans. I would love to eat at her flagship New York eatery, Balaboosta. She sold her Taim franchise to Chipotle, the Mexican fast-food chain. She has competed on the Food Network's reality television show Chopped and won twice. She is also a comedian and is a great teacher. Her passion really shined during this virtual class. Thanks to Chef and Restaurateur Einat Admony for sharing your wonderful story as a chef and your cooking tips. You are an inspiration. Thanks also Central Market Cooking School for offering this great class virtually. Thanks for the recipe and the recording. Braised Chicken with Olives and Citrus. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Put the chicken, olives, onion, preserved lemon, dried limes, lemon slices, oil, honey, salt, cilantro, garlic, turmeric, cumin, paprika, and red pepper flakes in a large bowl. Using your hands, mix everything thoroughly, making sure the chicken pieces are well coated with the spices and herbs. Arrange the chicken pieces skin-side down in a deep baking dish in a single snug layer. Arrange the rest of the mixture over the chicken. Whisk the stock with the orange juice in a measuring cup and pour over the chicken.

Thank you,to Central Market Cooking Classes and Chef Admony for a fun and creative cooking…read moreexperience. A special thanks, to my friend Helene for recommending this class. In this busy world we live in, I love the simplicity of a one pot dish. I feel like I have made every chicken dish imaginable, until I learned Chef Admony's recipe. The chicken, onion, olives, lemon, limes, and spices all go into one dish. You bake it on 400 degrees for 40 minutes and take it out, flip the chicken skin side up and put it back in for 20 more minutes. Voila! Your dish is done. It is delicious and aromatic! My kitchen smells so good. I also really liked Chef Admony's recipe for a Jasmine rice cake with saffron butter and toppings. A perfectly balanced and tasty meal, that I can make in my kitchen. I really enjoyed listening to Chef Admony talk about the balance between work and kids, that is a real struggle for women everywhere. I have seen Chef Admony on Chopped and Beat Bobby Flay. She is a fierce competitor and knows her flavor profiles. I am kicking myself for not taking pictures, but I was taking careful notes on the cooking procedures and tips to making these dishes successful. I really do miss Yelp's virtual events, but Central Market Cooking Classes really helped fill that niche. Thank you Chef Admony and Central Market Cooking Classes.

I saw this adorable house converted into a Swiss pastry store during a BCO bike ride from Onion…read moreCreek to Urban Harvest Farmers Market. There were homey hand-written signs, the Swiss flag banner, and this lady standing on the porch waving at us as we rode by. I already knew that this would be a cute pace with sincere, friendly service. I immediately made a mental note to return. I did and am so happy to have done so! This place is owned by a Swiss family who used to have a bakery long ago but now sells Swiss pastries wholesale to various grocery stores and for holidays. They decided to open a this neighborhood store to bring their unique Swiss pastries to the community. They host birthday parties, have chocolate bar making classes, and host special Swiss raclette dinners. Sylvia and Lance welcomed me in with much enthusiasm and immediately began to show me around. As we looked around, admiring the adorable Swiss decorations, Lance told us that the red chairs with the Swiss symbol were specially ordered and made in Houston for them. There were cuckoo clocks on the walls, paintings of the Swiss countryside, and more adorable Swiss decorations. It really makes you feel like you are in another country! They explained how a few rooms is for the various classes and parties, and these rooms people tend to come in for a nice communal Swiss breakfast. They explained that they sell Danish style filled croissants, pretzel-shaped butter cookies, key lime cheesecakes, apple strudel, quiches, sweet breads, and more. All the pastries looked so good. Sylvia explained that the Danish style of croissant is different than French and American, plus they had the option of hazelnut or almond fillings. She immediately got excited and gave us samples of the croissants and butter cookies. I loved the hazelnut-filled one and loved the butter cookies. The almond one was good as well, but hazelnut was better. The prices are affordable too: :$2.50 for the filled croissants and $1 for the cookies. They also left gingerbread men for sampling at the front. They also offer espresso so you can sit down and enjoy the pastries there. I want to return to try the apple strudel! Sylvia showed us a giant gingerbread man that you can decorate in one of the parties. It is actually a traditional lebkuchen, not gingerbread, dough. This is a flavor and texture that old-world Germans may be familiar with and enjoy, but I warn Americans who are used to butter and sugar-laden gingerbread, that this is not what that tastes like. This particular lebkuchen is denser, less sweet, and has a strong anise flavor, which is like the original recipe. Don't let this turn you off; the dough is more structural than edible for the purpose of the gingerbread man-decorating and gingerbread house-making parties. All-in-all, my first experience was absolutely charming. Sylvia's father even came in and chatted with some other Swiss people. It is such a cute neighborhood place with good pastries and is a great place to host kid's parties or attend a fancy Swiss dining experience. I highly suggest stopping by! *PS, as of this post, it is only open Saturdays from 9am-2pm.

Kindli House is a cute little shop right down the street from Gelazzi, and Kindli House definitely…read morefeels like a family-run place. I think they're only open on Saturday. It's decorated outside with gingerbread men, so when I walked in that's what I wanted, even though they have tons of other pastries and sweets. The gingerbread man was delicious--soft enough to be delicious and just hard enough to keep the gingerbread man shape.

I had such a great experience in this cooking class! Ashley was incredibly knowledgeable and made…read moreeverything feel user friendly. She broke things down in a way that actually made sense and gave helpful tips throughout the process that I know I'll use again. The highlight for me was learning how to make amazing grits (seriously), they came out so flavorful and perfectly textured. I've had. Overall, it was fun!! I'd definitely take another class with her!

Thank you Hailey for an amazing Thai night!! Will definitely recommend and we will be back for…read moreanother night!

Etta's Little Kitchen is a pop up restaurant on Wednesday and Sunday at Bar 5015. This was my first…read moretime visiting bar 5015...really cute bar! I also enjoyed the music collaboration with DJ RedSoda. We came on a Wednesday for dinner. We ordered at the bar and were given a number. I think the menu changes. I tried to shrimp and grits and oxtail: the grits are served in a tasty fried square. The oxtail was very tender. Excited to come back for more and maybe brunch (although it sounds like there's a wait!)

I decided to give Etta's another chance after my bad experience. The customer service was amazing…read more It was a complete 360 from the time before. The food was delicious as usual. I'm glad I didn't give up on Etta's. I will be continuing to support!!

I had the pleasure of taking an authentic Indian cooking class with Tina and it was wonderful!…read moreShe's knowledgable about all things food related and very patient as a teacher. Her decades worth of experience shows through. She brings joy into the kitchen and makes you excited for the process of creating and especially feasting. Her food is mouthwateringly delicious and I'm excited to show off some of my new skills at our next dinner party! I very highly recommend her.

From the owner: One-on-one Indian cooking classes in the North Houston, Texas, area.read more

My daughter and I did this last Summer and it was great!!…read more We had the most beautiful mother-daughter date at urbanCHEF, and it was truly an exceptional experience. We made paella, and it was absolutely delicious! Learning the techniques, working alongside each other, and then sitting down to enjoy what we created made the entire evening so special. The instructors were engaging, patient, and made the class both fun and informative. From the atmosphere to the organization of the class, everything was seamless. You can tell they take pride in what they do. The space was welcoming, the energy was upbeat, and the overall experience felt elevated yet comfortable. Every detail was simply amazing. We left full, happy, and already talking about coming back.

Came here for a work event. I was impressed with the kitchen and the organization. Our instructor…read morewas amazingly patient and gave tips throughout the process. I had a blast. Generally it's 2 hours of cooking and 1 hour of eating. I will definitely go again with a group.