The Annie (photo by Jenn Duncan)
AFTER LAST-MINUTE shopping, wrapping gifts, mailing cards, and playing Santa, are you feeling too exhausted to cook this holiday? When it comes to Christmas Eve, we’ve got delicious dining-out ideas, ranging from French cuisine to Thai, Indian, top-notch Mediterranean, and fare as American as apple (or pecan) pie. Anything goes in H-Town!
The Annie
Score reservations for Christmas Eve brunch or dinner service with the regular brunch and dinner menus available, along with a few chef specials. Christmas carolers will be spreading cheer at the restaurant from 6:30-8:30pm.
B&B Butchers & Restaurant
B&B dining room
Join the steakhouse for Christmas Eve brunch or dinner, featuring Christmas carolers making merry as well as a festive reindeer for photos with the kiddos.
Backstreet Cafe
Serving a three-course menu ($55 per adult, $15 per child), dinner highlights include lobster risotto, lamb shank with cauliflower puree, and chocolate cake with macerated cherries. Complimentary eggnog!
Benny Chows
This still-new Cantonese concept from Berg Hospitality is festively decorated for the holidays. On Christmas Eve, lunch and dinner from the regular menu will be served. Or guests can enjoy the four-course prix-fixe menu for $95 per person.
Bludorn
The Montrose staple will be open during regular hours on Christmas Eve, as well as for brunch. Don’t miss seasonal favorite Beef Wellington elevated with rich umami infusion of wild mushrooms encased in a robust pastry crust and lit up by Perigourdine sauce. Optionally, guests can take this holiday classic to bake at home. Order the limited-edition Beef Wellington a la carte or as a full feast online for pick-up on Christmas Eve from 11am-3pm.
Etoile
Etoile
This chic French haunt in Uptown Park will offer Christmas Eve lunch from the regular menu and dinner from 5 to 9PM serving a special three-course menu ($84 per person, $34 per child 10 and under). Expect options like duck foie gras au torchon, venison medallions with braised Savoy cabbage, red wine pears, and au poivre rosé sauce, and bûche de Noël for the finale.
Hugo's
Hugo's
Guests can feast on the Cena de Noche Buena, a special Christmas Eve buffet ($52 per person, $15 per child) from 5-8pm. Optionally, there is a full holiday take-out menu available for pre-order.
Le Jardinier
Spend Christmas Eve in a beautiful setting in the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston. The modern, French dining institution by The Bastion Collection is celebrating with a five-course dinner ($175 per person). Anticipate Scallop Crudo with heirloom beets, lime cream and Royal Kaluga caviar; AOP Gruyere Cheese Souffle with shaved black truffle and winter mushrooms; Saffron Carolina Gold Rice Risotto with halibut and clams; Red Wine Braised Chuck Beef, and a Black Forest Log cake with kirsch macerated cherry and chocolate cremeux. Make reservations via Resy or call the restaurant.
MaKiin
This luxurious Thai newcomer in the Hanover River Oaks will be open from 11am-10pm both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Rest assured that the chefs are serving a special upscale menu full of creative surprises for both occasions.
Numero28
Numero 28
On Christmas Eve, keep it casual and order a pizza for the whole family, salads, and the signature Cacio e Pepe tossed and served table-side in a pecorino cheese wheel. Open for lunch and dinner. Walk-ins are welcome; parties of 5-plus, call 713.485.5248 to reserve. Click here for menus.
Rosalie
Rosalie
Celebrate Christmas Eve with the Italian-American holiday tradition the Feast of Seven Fishes. The special menu features Insalata Di Mare with marinated scallops, mussels, squid and tuna; Spaghetti alla Chianti with crawfish and rapini; Monkfish with potato, clams, olives; and kumquat-Gianduja Torte for dessert. Dinner runs from 5-10pm ($75 per person). Reservations via Open Table.
Sorriso
Sorriso's Feast of Seven Fishes
Catch the Feast of Seven Fishes, available only on Christmas Eve in The Woodlands: a three-course, family-style dinner ($65 per adult, $22 per child ages 13 and under). Menu highlights include roasted oysters on the half shell with Meyer lemon and ciabatta breadcrumbs; fritto misto brimming with scallops, shrimp, calamari, and spicy marinara; Gulf shrimp risotto, and more. Tiramisu and strawberry panna cotta for dessert.
Wild Oats
Underbelly Hospitality’s Texas-inspired, family-friendly restaurant has arrived in Spring Branch and is welcoming guests to Christmas Eve Brunch ($40 per person) and two screenings of How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Screenings run at 11am and 2pm. The family-style feast includes Who Pudding (bread pudding French toast sticks), Who Hash and Roast Beast with eggs (potato hash and prime rib), plus Grinch Popcorn (Caramel popcorn with a green twist).
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Maria Moncada Alaoui and Kristen Cannon
