Houston Is Having a Cultural Renaissance, Thanks to Its Melting-Pot Communities | Condé Nast Traveler

"I found Late August to be an airy midtown restaurant with cobalt-blue velvet banquettes housed in an Art Deco building that, until 2018, was a Sears department store and that was repurposed in 2021 as part of Rice University's and the city's Ion District incubator. Chef Chris Williams—who opened the restaurant last year—uses a culturally kaleidoscopic approach, testing recipes in intense kitchen sessions and collaborating broadly: Sergio Hidalgo developed a Mexican American–inspired fry bread using Williams's great-grandmother Lucille B. Smith's yeast-roll recipe (often finished with mole butter or benne seeds), and cousin Jennifer Parsons created a decadent banana-pudding–stuffed churro taco that Williams calls “ridiculous and overwhelming,” describing it as the story of the restaurant in one dessert. Late August also earned a Michelin Recommended distinction." - Kayla S. Stewart, Matt Ortile