The Laura Hotel in Houston Opens Steamboat-Themed Restaurant Hull & Oak | Eater Houston

"Set in The Laura Hotel at 1070 Dallas Street, I found Hull & Oak (which opened March 24) to lean heavily into nautical vibes with a renovated dining room featuring high archways, boat-like curves, and sea-green chairs. The menu draws on Southern and Texas traditions: breakfast and brunch offerings include pound cake French toast with blueberry compote and lemon curd, fried cheddar grits with crawfish etouffee, a pulled pork Benedict, and Johnny cakes topped with strawberry preserves, fresh berries, whipped lemon ricotta, and smoked maple syrup; dinner brings starters like deviled eggs and hot honey wings and heartier entrees such as a smoked half chicken, a seared salmon with blackened shrimp, savory cajun bread pudding with green beans, and a double bone pork chop with sweet corn puree, roasted succotash, and fried okra. Executive chef John Nguyen—who previously worked at Michelin-starred SPQR in San Francisco and served as executive banquet chef at the Austin City Convention Center—leads the kitchen. A major highlight for me was the barrel-aged cocktail program (including a traditional and an Oaxaca Old Fashioned made with both mezcal and tequila) and classics like a Vieux Carré; the standard cocktails also impress, from the theatrical “Smokin In The 713” (Woodford Reserve, amaro, salted honey, bitters, finished with smoked cedar) to a vodka-based Southern Tea with sweet tea, peach, amaro Montenegro, and lemon and a rum-based “S.O.S.” with banana, cinnamon, pineapple, and lime. The restaurant plans special programming—tastings with local distillers, mixology classes, and collaborative dinners (including a three-course Duckhorn Portfolio dinner on April 27)—and serves breakfast, brunch, and dinner on the schedule listed on its website." - Brittany Britto Garley