Chef Justin Yu Is Selling a Piece of Oxheart History

Oxheart may be gone forever, but Chef Justin Yu is giving nostalgic Houstonians an opportunity to own a piece of the beloved restaurant.

As he prepares for the new restaurant that will open in the space, Yu is selling the iconic dining counter that once offered the best seats in the house at Oxheart. According to Yu’s Instagram, the original buyer for the counter fell through, and now he’s selling it in two pieces to a lucky restaurant obsessive.

The wood was reclaimed off of an old house floor and is long leaf pine-- now an endangered species,” Yu wrote in the lengthy post. “I sat at this counter five nights a week doing my nightly check outs, spilling wine (and sometimes whiskey if [Justin Vann] was nice) over it. Plenty of people have spent their nights celebrating here. Some probably spent it fighting.”

At present, Yu is working on opening Oxheart’s successor Theodore Rex. Details are scarce on the concept as of yet, but Yu is planning to offer a totally a la carte menu prepared by chef de cuisine Jason White. Throughout the month of June, White will pop up at Eight Row Flint’s Outdoor Cooking Series on Tuesday nights, serving up dishes like coal-grilled chicken with broth and chicken fat rice. "It's a simplified, patio-friendly version of something that might show up at T. Rex,” Yu tells Eater.

Yu didn’t disclose the price at which you can own your very own piece of Oxheart history, but don’t expect to pick this one up on the cheap.