Crisp Earns a Star; Grub Burger Surprises

The Houston Chronicle's Alison Cook comments on the proliferation of drinks-forward establishments in recent times. She visits Crisp Wine, Beer & Eatery where she enjoys the unique wine dispenser system, a Toscano pizza that "killed" and a "respectable" burger. Cook awards the eatery one star in this review. "Does the food really rise up to meet the beers and wines? Not quite. But there's not a huge, dispiriting gap, either, and that makes Crisp work. It's a sprawling place that manages to seem warm and cozy, with a welcoming oblong bar near the center of the dining room."

The Houston Press' Kaitlin Steinberg visits College Station import Grub Burger and finds that it stands up to any of the great burger places we have in town. She does find a flaw, however: "For all that Grub does right, the restaurant does get one minor thing wrong: the buns." The ghost pepper sauce-laden burger, Steinberg writes, was so spicy that it made the "room spun a bit as heat rushed from my mouth into my sinuses and back behind my eyeballs. I groped for the ice cream, never before so happy to see a tiny dollop of soft-serve."

More reviews: Joanna O'Leary heads to Radical Eats for this Urban Swank review. A guest writer for H-Town Chow Down heads to Black Walnut at Lone Star Executive Airport, where she's surprised by the high quality. Hank on Food goes to newly opened and highly touted Coltivare for this post.