Mr. Peeples [Photos: Gary Wise]
The Chron's Alison Cook vistied Mr. Peeples: She writes that the lackluster service with which she was greeted quickly changed when an employee recognized her, at which point "suddenly nobody could do enough for" her. Cook does applaud the "well-spoken, intelligent servers" who "are a credit to the restaurant, and to the profession." She considers the food "too erratic for its considerable price point at this stage of the restaurant's life," including a $90 Wagyu cowboy ribeye that was merely good, not great. On the plus side, she found the scalloped potatoes to be "exemplary" and writes that "pastry chef Johnny Wesley's desserts can disarm." Overall, Cook awards the place no stars.
The Houston Press' Kaitlin Steinberg went to Heights General Store: She notes that the hospitality here is as Southern as chef Antoine Ware's food, and that owner Alli Jarrett's market-meets-restaurant establishment was an attempt to fill a gap in that neighborhood's food scene. As for the food, Steinberg wasn't impressed with the "underseasoned" meat loaf and the overcooked burgers. She admits that she and her dining companions went by when the eatery portion of the place when wasn't technically open, and she commends the owner for serving them anyway. Overall, Steinberg concludes that with relatively expensive groceries, she "can't quite tell if it's filling a niche in the neighborhood."
Eater reviews:: Check out the admirable new Eater critics' first reviews. Bill Addison—who is assembling a map of the country's essential 38 restaurants—checks out Los Angeles restaurant Republique, Ryan Sutton heads to Brooklyn for a meal at Roberta's. As for Robert Sietsema, he heads to Korean barbecue place Mapo. More info on the critics here.
