Piola Impresses With Food; Drinks Not so Much

Happy hour is a thing of beauty and finding one in Houston is somewhat overwhelming. The category can be divided into two camps; 1) cheap drinks 2) food deals. With Piola, you get them both...sort of.

We decided to try out the colorful, chic Midtown space after revisiting the positive review it garnered late last year in reference to, not surprisingly, its happy hour. Had it kept all of its HH charms since the original review?

Food: On a scale of meh to euphoria, it falls somewhere around ecstatic. The kitchen guys brought out one dish after another of fresh pizzas, dips for their breadsticks including a creamy tuna dip and guacamole, mini stromboli-like bites with cheese, hearts of palm and other goodies. There were also crostinis with a fresh, crispy all-vegetable salad tossed in a vinaigrette, but the piece de resistance was a sample plate of their fresh gnocchi tossed in a light cream sauce. By the time it was all over, we had no room for the famed thin crust pizzas.

Drinks: While the food was plentiful, free and delicious, the drinks hovered around mediocre...at least the ones on special for happy hour. The saving grace was a sprightly white Sangria, and at only $3 a glass, we can't complain about the price. It's worth it to get a glass off the wine list that's not on special, if only for the free appetizers.

Details: M-F, 5-7pm. *Only at the bar.

· First Look at Piola [EOW]