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Category: Dining

Chris Shepherd

Nov. 06, 2019

Chef/Owner, Underbelly Midwest-raised Chef Chris Shepherd spent weekends as a child scouring farms throughout Oklahoma in search of straight-from-the-vine tomatoes, fresh corn and peas. He left boundary-pushing Catalan restaurant to open Underbelly in March 2012, featuring locally-sourced food inspired by the ethnic diversity of Houston. The Art Institute-alum and former Executive Sous Chef-turned-Sommelier of Brennan's brings his farm-to-table passion to fruition at the new spot, which was…

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Grant Gordon

Nov. 06, 2019

Executive Chef, Tony's In 2010, Houston native Grant Gordon took over as executive chef of Tony's at the age of 24-parlaying his experience and skills into the top job at one of the city's most venerated restaurants and earning him a position on Forbes' 30 under 30 list. Gordon graduated from the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York and proceeded to hone his skills at restaurants in New York, Napa Valley and Austin before returning to his hometown. Clearly a quick study, the chef…

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Greg Gatlin

Nov. 06, 2019

Chef/Owner, Gatlin's BBQ With a culinary family history, food has always played a prominent role in Greg Gatlin's life. But it took some time for the owner and pit master of Gatlin's BBQ in the Heights to discover that the restaurant business was his calling. The Rice University grad was a business consultant before starting a small catering company on the side. Demand for his delicious barbecue grew and when an opportunity to take over a small cottage in the Heights presented itself in 2010…

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Hugo Ortega

Nov. 06, 2019

Chef/Owner of Hugo's and Backstreet Cafe Mexico City-born Chef Hugo Ortega is living the American Dream. He immigrated from Mexico to Houston and began in the restaurant business as a dishwasher at Backstreet Café. He moved to the kitchen, graduated from culinary school and is now its executive chef/owner. He also crated Montrose-set Hugo's restaurant and Caracol in the Uptown area. There, he's rediscovered the foods of his homeland, serving up Authentic Regional Mexican cuisine and gaining…

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Irma Galvan

Nov. 06, 2019

Chef/Owner, Irma's It's not an exaggeration to call Irma Galvan a Houston culinary legend. After all, she has the James Beard Award to prove it. Born in Brownsville, Galvan moved with her family to Houston's Second Ward as a child and worked in local bakeries when she was young. After an early career in furniture retail, this spunky lady opened her namesake Mexican restaurant in a depressed part of Downtown in 1989. Since then, the quaint, funky Irma's has become a go-to spot for judges, bankers…

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Justin Yu

Nov. 06, 2019

Chef/Owner, Theodore Rex Native Houstonian and Chef Justin Yu has crisscrossed the globe honing his culinary skills. He earned his bachelors in Hotel and Restaurant Management at the University of Houston and culinary arts degree from New York's Culinary Institute of America. In Houston, Chef Yu worked at *17 and The Grove, before heading west to man the stoves at the vegetable-focused, Michelin-rated Ubuntu in Napa Valley. In 2010, he ventured back to his hometown, teaming up with Seth…

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Monica Pope

Nov. 06, 2019

Chef/Owner, Sparrow Bar + Cookshop Dubbed the "Alice Waters of the Third Coast," German-born, Houston-reared chef Monica Pope has been revolutionizing Houston's culinary scene since she opened her first restaurant in 1992. She shares her passion for connecting local farmers and consumers with weekly cooking classes, an online cookbook and Sparrow Bar + Cookshop and Beaver's restaurants. Pope has also enjoyed national recognition in the form of a James Beard award nomination and a spot competing…

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Paul Petronella

Nov. 06, 2019

Chef/Owner, Paulie's Nearly a decade after his parents opened Paulie's in Montrose, Paul Petronella took over his namesake restaurant in 2007, bringing new vitality and innovation to the corner Italian eatery. Classic recipes stayed, new ones were added and house-made pasta and high-caliber coffee became signature elements. Petronella has also forged partnerships with other Montrose chefs, bringing their expertise to his kitchen. A hands-on owner/chef with plenty of energy, Petronella has…

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Rebecca Masson

Nov. 06, 2019

Chef/Owner, Fluff Bake Bar Pastry Chef Rebecca Masson, a recent contestant on Top Chef Just Desserts , has earned a pretty sweet reputation in Houston's culinary world. Known locally as the sugar hooker, the Le Cordon Bleu grad has manned the mixer at restaurants like New York's Daniel and The Red Cat, as well as Houston's Ibiza and 17* Restaurant. Her Fluff Bake Bar has been a long time vision for Masson. The Midtown spot, which marries a bakery and bar concept, opened in late May 2015, making…

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Seth Siegel-Gardner

Nov. 06, 2019

Chef/Owner, The Pass and Provisions Real estate fate brought Chef Seth Siegel-Gardner back to his hometown of Houston. After manning the stoves at NYC's Aquavit, Alto and Maze, as well as H-Town's Laidback Manor and Chicago's C-House, a vacant restaurant opportunity in Houston's Montrose neighborhood prompted the talented chef to pack up in summer 2010 and make his way back to the Lone Star state. Together with longtime friend Chef Terrence Gallivan and West Coast-trained Chef Justin Yu, the…

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