Feed the Heights!

I normally don't post anything about a restaurant until it's been open for a few months, but Lola has been getting a lot of publicity recently, so why not? Consider this posting more of a one visit observation. There's been a lot of chatter over the world wide interwebs about Lola, you would think it's the most significant restaurant to open in the Heights in the last year. I won't quite go that far, but consider this: its shtick is the woefully under-represented mid-tier food market and it's smack dab right in the middle of the Heights. None of this Washington Ave nonsense. 11th and Yale: doesn't get much more definitively "Heights" than that.

The wife and I visited for breakfast last Sunday. I ordered the chicken and waffles and my wife ordered the skillet (chicken fried steak and eggs). Order at the register, pay, receive your drink cup and number on a stick and go grab a table. In a few minutes, your food is delivered to your table for consumption. Much has been made over the prices and how this doesn't jive with the counter service model. Didn't bother me. Coffee was decent, and juices looked fresh squeezed.

We experience some highs and lows. First, the chicken and waffles were a huge disappointment. The chicken (breaded and fried boneless chicken breast) was incredibly salty and inedible, although incredibly juicy (no small accomplishment with white meat). The waffle itself was soggy and depressing as it lacked a crunchy exterior. Included extras (bacon and fruit) were actually quite good.

While the chicken and waffles were left half eaten, the chicken fried steak is probably the best in the Heights area at that price point. Think about that for a minute: Barbecue Inn, Triple A, Hickory Hollow. I know it's a bold statement, but they're all inferior. Included cheese grits and eggs were nothing special, so I'm thinking the dinner serving of the CFS is where it's at. Both the breading on the CFS and chicken looked eerily similar, so I'm a little perplexed how the results could be so different.

All in all, I think Lola shows promise (lots of people appeared to be enjoying the pancakes; anyone have them?). We look forward to eating here again in the future and hope the mentioned execution problems get rectified. Remember folks, it's still a young pup.

Details
1102 Yale St.

My Waldo's Coffee post got a lot of comments, mostly from those recommending Antidote. Hey, I'll take requests! Especially when we're talking about coffee.

My first visit to Antidote was last summer during the White Linen Nights festivities. We enjoyed listening to a truly outrageous band, complete with banjo, trash cans and coffee can string instruments. I clearly remember that it was a typical steamy night, so I ended up with a cold beer inside with the air conditioning. Coffee was probably the last thing on my mind.

This past weekend, we made a return visit and got to experience a more relaxed Antidote. We ordered an espresso and a Cajeta latte. The espresso had good acidity, but not enough body. The latte was extremely good. Served with skim milk, the latte still had great richness and flavor. Antidote serves a wide assortment of breakfast pastries, almost to a fault. There are at least 10 different croissants, muffins, and other varities of baked goods, none of which are labled. It was obvious to us that we were holding up the line of regulars who just wanted to get their caffeine on. We quickly ordered a chocolate croissant and turkey croissant.

Cajeta latte, right

Seating was adequate, although the free wi-fi attracts single campers who occupied every two seater table inside. We found a picnic table by the parking lot with a good view of the Civic Hybrids and Subarus.

We were quite pleased with Antidote. It's obvious that they've taken the good of Starbucks (comfortable seating and decent coffee) without any of the bad (focus group determined hip CDs for sale). The baked goods are also an improvement, although that's not really hard to do. We do wish the croissants had a more crispy than doughy texture. Although we still prefer Catalina for its no-nonsense superior coffee, Antidote would be a good addition to any neighborhood. The Heights is lucky to have it.

Sometime last week, one of the Houston Chowhounds asked on Twitter: If you had to pick one Tex Mex restaurant in Houston for one night, which would it be? I answered the original Ninfas on Navigation, but Café Teotihuacan was my 1a.

Much has been written about Teotihuacan (or ta-HOO’-a-HOO’-a as we lovingly call it) that it almost seems redundant to mention. The corn tortillas, the bargain parilladas… all are worth the attention they have received.

9 out of 10 times I find myself at Teotihuacan, it is breakfast time. In fact, last September, just 14 short hours before Hurricane Ike would strike, there we were. Teotihuacan was eerily quiet that morning, not surprising as it wasn't a Kroger with its shelves picked clean or I-45 to Dallas. The world was about to end, and I wanted me some eggs and corn tortillas!

Oh man those corn tortillas rock the house, and this just in, they go just as well with their breakfast dishes. For some reason I have yet to figure out, breakfast at Teotihuacan doesn’t get any press. The prices are ridiculously low and the portion sizes have returned (thankfully!) to their previously unmanageable size. For the last year or so, I have noticed some subtle changes for the worse: prices have inched slightly higher, the dining room (and outside seating areas) has become more crowded, portion sizes and quality was down. Last Saturday, I was glad to see a return to form.

"Dear corn tortilla, I love you."

Service can be an issue, which might explain the drop in quality. Hopefully the major issues have been recently addressed, but you should be advised that the service can be curt and the wait for food can seem unusually long. Make sure to ask for the red salsa before your breakfast arrives, or you may be consuming lukewarm eggs several minutes later.

Bonus: For those looking for a more authentic experience, Teotihuacan also serves Menudo for breakfast.

Details

1511 Airline Dr
(713) 426-4420‎
8AM-10PM 7 Days