El Tiempo 1308 Cantina Stakes Claim in La Casa del Caballo Closing Next Week

Hearts broke when Roland Laurenzo, owner and operator of El Tiempo's restaurants announced the impending closure of El Tiempo 1308 Cantina in October. A favorite among fajita and margarita lovers, the landlord of the 1308 Montrose Blvd property sold the land to developers, leaving Laurenzo to search for a new location. Last evening, Houston Chronicle reported Laurenzo found a new home. Good news for El Tiempo but bad news for the staff of La Casa del Caballo.

The Mexican steakhouse located on the corner of Westheimer and Taft will close at the end of the month, making way for El Tiempo 1308 Cantina. Despite receiving continued praise from Chronicle restaurant critic Alison Cook and landing on her annual Top 100 list, rumors have swirled for months surrounding La Casa del Caballo's closure.

Laurenzo tells the Chronicle, "we will remodel it during January, February and March, more or less... We expect to move there on April 1 at the latest at which time 1308 will close." No word if the restauranteur plans to bring on the staff at La Casa del Caballo who will be left without a job after the holidays.

El Tiempo 1308 Cantina's move to the 322 Westheimer space could be the location's saving grace. La Strada, the former Italian restaurant occupant, transformed the space as the to be-seen place with the introduction of Sunday Fundays. After closing in 2009, restaurants that followed failed to gain traction, all shuttering in a short span of time (Vallone's Caffe Bello, Don Julio's Mexican and now La Casa del Caballo). Maybe the third Mexican restaurant and try is the charm. With devoted customers flocking to the Montrose fajita haven daily, the chances are high that El Tiempo will fare better than its predecessors. The ongoing legal battle with Liquid Gold Hospitality is a different story.