Born and raised in Galveston, TX, Jeffery Balfour developed a love for his native cuisine and the freshest ingredients, all of which are evident in Citrus’ ever-changing menu. After realizing his culinary passion 15 years ago while studying at the University of Texas at Austin, Balfour switched gears and transferred to Conrad Hilton School of Hotel and Restaurant Management at the University of Houston, returning to the gulf coast.  While working in kitchens in Houston, including the former La Reserve, a Mobil Four Star-rated restaurant, located at the AAA Five Diamond Omni Houston Hotel, he honed his skills in French and American cuisine under several of the nation’s top chefs.   

In 2002, Balfour moved to San Antonio after being given the honor of creating the food service concept for a new downtown hotel property, Hotel Valencia Riverwalk.  Under his direction, Citrus Restaurant became known as one of San Antonio's most innovative fine dining restaurants. Citrus has been recognized numerous times, including winning three consecutive first prizes at Blue Star Arts and Eats.  The restaurant has been profiled in Southern Living, San Antonio Woman, San Antonio Current, SA Magazine, SA Express News, and Bon Appetit. Citrus was featured in San Antonio Express News in 2009, 2010, 2011 as a “Best Hotel Restaurant”, taking silver in 2009 and 2011 and gold in 2010.  In 2011 he was given 3^rd place Best Chef by the Reader’s Choice in SA Current.  Later that year Balfour tied for Best Chef in the city, Editor’s Choice for SA Magazine.  Balfour is currently San Antonio’s Paella King, taking first place in the 2011 Paella Challenge.  He has earned numerous other awards.

Balfour is committed to using locally grown and seasonal produce and wild and sustainably produced fish and game to create eclectic, New American cuisine. He is a proud supporter of the Go Texan Program and the Chef’s Collaborative and is active in the San Antonio community, giving his time to local charities including the San Antonio Area Food Bank and Boys and Girls Club.  He was also chosen to be in the 2011 Leadership San Antonio Program, which provides a forum for leaders with diverse backgrounds, values and points of view to come together in a neutral setting to examine the nature and inner workings of the city and to discuss its issues, challenges and problems. Balfour is married with 2 children and spends his free time with his children who are active in swimming, skateboarding, baseball and dance.

Born in the beautiful country of Lebanon, Chef Jovi Beiz was blessed to grow up in a place with lavish beaches, breathtaking mountains, historical cities with extravagant architecture, and of course, divine delicacies. Growing his love for food, he ventured away from home and found his way to France where he attended the world renowned culinary school, Le Cordon Bleu Paris. There, he worked under the direction of now retired, Chef Marc Thivet, who has won numerous awards for his work throughout Europe and Mexico. Upon graduation in 1993, Chef Beiz made another move to the United States, working at MGM Grand in Detroit and Las Vegas at the restaurants of Chef Wolfgang Puck. While living the luxurious life of a chef, he was graced with his most precious gift of all, his daughter. He decided to give up his career in hotel restaurants, and moved to Houston where he can be with his daughter. In less than two years, Chef Beiz has made a name for himself in Sugar Land after opening and operating two restaurants in the area, with plans to produce more. With his passion for Asian influenced cuisine, expect this chef to take a traditional dish from any culture and garnish it with his own flare and taste to it.

Native Texan and lifelong Houstonian Neal Cox found his way into his first restaurant kitchen while studying Criminal Justice in college. Little did he know, what he saw and learned as a server and bartender would lead him to the culinary helm of some of his own hometown’s finest restaurants and earn him a growing reputation as one of the city’s most talented and innovative chefs.

“I was always in the kitchens watching the cooks and asking questions,” he said. “Then I would go home and try to recreate those dishes and share them with family and friends. I just couldn’t get enough!”

Recognizing that his interest had become a true passion, Chef Cox enrolled at the Art Institute of Houston in 1998, where he found inspiration. Before long, he was working for some of Houston’s premier restaurants including Churrasco’s and Americas, as well as Trevisio (where he worked under renowned Chef Alan Ashkinaze). 

Before long, Chef Cox himself was handed over the reins of a prominent Houston kitchen when he was named Chef at Zula. He later moved on to become the Chef of Pappas Bros.  Steakhouse, where he was instrumental in earning the restaurant the coveted title of “No. 1 Steakhouse in Texas” by Texas Monthly Magazine.

Given this success and growing profile, it was little surprise that this rising hometown star found his way to one of the crown jewels of the Houston culinary scene at The Houstonian Hotel, Club & Spa. Chef Cox joined the team there as Executive Sous Chef under the property’s longtime Executive Chef, Jeff Everts. When Everts was promoted to the position of Food and Beverage Director in April of 2011, the executive team at The Houstonian had no need to look outside its own kitchen to help ensure the continuation of its long tradition of culinary excellence.

“I could not be happier to be in the position I am,” Chef Cox said. “As a lifelong Houstonian, I feel a great amount of pride about leading what has been not only a culinary leader here in Houston but one of the top culinary destinations in the country.”

One way he does that is by drawing on a wide range of cultural culinary influences and sharing his formidable skills with Houston’s society notables and the major celebrities, business and political leaders who regularly visit.

“Black-eyed peas, lady creamers, butter beans, zipper cream, purple hull, cream crowder peas…” Ask Chef Randy Evans what his favorite variety of peas is – or any other type of produce – and you receive a passionate, knowledgeable list. Taking deep and competitive pride in sourcing out the highest quality, fresh-from-the-earth product from local farmers and purveyors, Evans often drives out to the farms during the day to handpick his produce from the vine, soil or the back of a farmer’s pick up truck for that night’s meals.  The goal: to create dishes for his guests that are at their seasonal peak, offering maximum flavor and freshness. 

Little wonder that Haven, Evans’ latest culinary endeavor of which he serves as executive chef and co-owner, was Houston’s most highly-anticipated restaurant opening for 2009. The green-certified restaurant located at Houston’s 59/Kirby corridor opened in December 2009.

“Haven’s menu is farm-to-table, and what I call New Texas Cuisine,” says Evans, who was born in Houston and raised an hour North of Houston in Willis, Texas.  “It features favorite foods that I enjoyed as a child, but with new vision.”  According to Evans, the menu changes weekly, depending on what’s best in the fields that week.  Everything is local, fresh and handmade.  A chef’s garden, just outside the kitchen, instills the importance of utilizing only the freshest ingredients.

Evans, who grew up near his grandfather’s farm eating the freshest produce and vegetables and watching his mother bake countless country desserts, had no intentions of becoming a chef. Instead, he studied biology at Baylor University, planning to become a doctor, like his sister.  But after hosting numerous dinner parties and bragging about his latest antique cookbook find to friends, he discovered that cooking in the kitchen was where he truly belonged.

While completing the culinary program at The Art Institute of Houston in 1996, Evans joined Brennan’s of Houston, working his way through every station and rank in the kitchen; he was appointed executive chef in November of 2003. Evans’ cookbook, The Kitchen Table (Bright Sky Press, November 2006, $29.95) received the gold medal in the cookbook category at the 11th Annual Independent Publisher Book Awards. The Kitchen Table features a plethora of recipes served over the past 15 years at Brennan’s unique Kitchen Table, situated in the middle of its bustling kitchen.
 
 
Evans’ other big culinary interest lies in organic gardening.  “I knew a lot about gardening but wanted to learn more, so I recently completed a course on organic gardening offered by Urban Harvest,” he says.  “I want to teach my kitchen staff to have respect for the food and ingredients we serve.  Our chef’s garden will be a natural, sustainable garden, with no chemicals, and cisterns to collect rain water.”  

As for awards, Haven was named Best New Restaurant in Houston by My Table Magazine in October 2010, Top 20 Best New Restaurants in the Nation by Esquire Magazine in November 2010, One of 5 Best New Restaurants in the South by Southern Living in January 2011, Second Best New Restaurant in Texas by Texas Monthly in February 2011, and Best New Restaurant by the readers of Houston Business Journal in May 2011.

Chef Evans also gives much of his time and energy to a number of philanthropic organizations and events in the Houston area, such as:  Recipe for Success; Urban Harvest; Texas Foodways; and many more. Chef Evans also currently serves as a spokesman and consultant for the Texas Department of Agriculture’s Shrimp Marketing Board and Texas Department of Forestry and Horticulture.

Photo courtesy of Steven Harris.

Maurizio Ferrarese picked the right time to cook Italian at Four Seasons Hotel Houston. The Executive Chef of Quattro and its wine bar, Vinoteca Quattro arrived in the Space City in summer 2010 expecting a slow culinary scene and was happily surprised. “Steaks are the main course in Houston, no doubt about it,” he says. “But wherever I go, I see chefs putting their hearts into their work. Regardless of the product, they want to show off their talents with good presentation and innovative concepts and ideas.”

Ferrarese’s own bright idea was to let quality carry the day at Quattro. Unlike on some of his previous Four Seasons assignments, including London to San Diego, he now cooks for locals as much as for hotel guests, with a return-engagement-friendly menu offering traditional Italian selections alongside reasonably priced, casual options and small plates to play off the bar’s 50 wines by the glass.

He uses main ingredients only at their seasonal peaks and prepares them with as little fuss as possible. “Every chef bases cuisine on their own experiences. My experience is that Italian should be very simple, with few ingredients and straightforward preparation so that each flavor shines through.”

A semi-professional soccer player in Italy until work and a torn ACL sidelined him for good, Ferrarese hasn’t always focused on his native cuisine. “But you can’t take that away from me!” he notes with a laugh, adding that his hotel restaurant experience includes cooking Asian in Hawaii and Jewish and Indian in London.

The new Quattro menu is 95% Ferrarese, he says, and predominately Italian, with antipasti, risotto, fresh pasta, eggplant and more replacing the Tex and Mexican influences of the restaurant’s past. Ferrarese believes that he is the first chef to leave the kitchen at Quattro to meet and greet guests: Not necessarily for chitchat, but for honest assessments. “I want to make sure they like what I create. If they don’t, I want to know what they’d prefer.”

Born and raised in the Piedmont region of Italy, Ferrarese discovered the significance of seasonal peaks at a young age and chose to pursue a culinary career with his parents’ encouragement. Finding the quality he expects so far from the coasts in Houston has been an “interesting challenge,” he says. “I’m still figuring out what my suppliers are capable of. In the meantime, I just make sure to get the best out of whatever I have.” Buon appetito!

Jean-Philippe Gaston currently serves as Sous-Chef at the award-winning Haven restaurant in Houston.

Born in Paris and having spent his youth living and traveling the world to include Europe, Asia and South America, Philippe has been blessed with the experience and understanding of diverse cultures and their varied cuisine. He has staged in 3 Michelin-star restaurants in Paris and also had the opportunity to learn 2000 year-old Aztec recipes from the indigenous people of Oaxaca. These vast and diverse experiences have impacted him greatly. Says Philippe, “I’m passionate about bringing it all to the table every day.”

With more than fifteen years in the industry, Philippe began his college career at the University of Texas where he paid his bills by working in restaurants. He quickly developed a passion for the work and ended up enrolling in the Cordon Bleu program in Austin, setting his other coursework aside. Within a short time, he realized culinary school wasn’t going to provide him with as much knowledge as he could provide for himself with his drive to learn so he obtained his Communications degree from UT and continued his love of cooking and learning. With every chance he had to return to Europe, he utilized the opportunity to stage, working at places like Le Crillon, Les Embassadeurs and other great Michelin Star restaurants where the passion for fine dining began. Eventually he obtained a second degree from the University of Houston’s renowned Conrad N. Hilton College of Hotel and Restaurant Management.

In 2005, he joined renowned Chef Robert Gadsby at Noe in the Omni Hotel and after Gadsby’s departure, Philippe helped lead at Noe until he was recruited by Chef Gadsby to open Soma Sushi. After a year of serving as Gadsby’s right-hand man, Philippe took the helm, becoming the youngest Executive Chef of one of Houston’s most important restaurants, to national acclaim.

A year later, the great Manabu Horiuchi had a tasting at Soma and loved it so much, he offered Philippe a job at Kata Robata, as his Chef de Cuisine. Shortly after joining forces, they became nationally recognized and regarded as one of the top Japanese restaurants in America. In 2007, Chef Bryan Caswell asked Philippe to become his Chef de Cuisine at REEF, where he learned the art of southern-style cooking and most importantly, how to utilize local ingredients.

After departing REEF, Philippe returned home to Paris where he worked for a bit and then returned to consult for some of the city’s best restaurants before joining forces with the great Randy Evans at Haven. Working at Haven brought Philippe’s mostly seafood training full-circle in terms of product knowledge. Chef Evans has taught Philippe everything about butchering and farming to make his range of cooking one of the most extensive in the city, helping Philippe to win “Up and Coming Chef of the Year” at the 2011 Houston Culinary Awards. Philippe feels that he is privileged to have worked amongst the best - in Houston, the nation and the world as he continues to endeavor as a chef who continually strives to be the best.

After nearly three years at the helm of award-winning Uptown Houston landmark, Gigi’s Asian Bistro, Junnajet “Jett” Hurapan has landed at new Sugar Land Town Square restaurant and lounge, Blu, as executive chef/owner.  Encompassing an airy and contemporary, 5,600-square-foot dining room and expansive, 1,400-square-foot patio, Blu features a menu of Euro-Asian cuisine influenced by Hurapan’s Thai background and cross-cultural culinary career.  His new position continues a tradition started more than seven years ago; Hurapan’s wife, Jira, has worked side-by-side with him as pastry chef since their courtship began.

Prior to moving to Houston in late 2007, Hurapan, who was born in Bangkok, spent most of his childhood and adult life in New York City.  His introduction to the world of food and beverage, as a 14-year-old kitchen prep cook at an Upper West Side restaurant, came at the urging of his father, now a noted chef and restaurateur in his own right.  Designed as a way to keep a watchful eye on his rambunctious son, the summer job soon transitioned into something more with the teenager eagerly taking on increasingly important roles.  And as his father’s career blossomed, so did opportunities for Jett.  Perhaps most pivotal to both men’s successes was an alignment with then fledgling BR Guest and famed restaurateur, Stephen Hanson, who remains a friend and mentor after two decades.

Before finishing high school in 1988 and entering culinary school, Jett got his first taste behind the stove at runaway hit, Isabella’s, where his father was a chef.  After graduation, he began his career in earnest with BR Guest, landing his first milestone position as sous chef at Isabella’s, the Upper West Side haunt of families and celebrities that was immortalized in numerous “Seinfeld” episodes.  A Mediterranean influenced menu gave way to New American in 1995 when he was hired on the opening team of BR Guest’s Gramercy Park debut, Park Avalon.  In 1998, Jett was on the move with BR Guest and back to the   union square with the launch of Blue Water Grill, a chic jazz room, seafood and oyster bar.

After a career-changing run as executive chef of BR Guest’s West Side Ruby Foo’s concept, which generated a two star review in the New York Times and spurned a follow up location in Times Square, Jett’s father stepped in a second time, encouraging his son to get back to his Thai roots and discouraging his “fusion confusion.”  In 2000, he took on the role of executive chef at Rain, where the older Hurapan was a partner.  The three-year post helped to realign his cooking, earned several industry awards, led to a chance meeting with his wife and launched a second career as a race car driver with VW/Audi which ended in 2003 after a bad crash.

Following his recuperation, Jett was back behind the stove, serving as executive chef of Hue, a West Village restaurant and lounge, which also drew raves and a VIP clientele.  He held that position until 2005 and then consulted on projects for the following year before joining SRO GROUP, where he worked at the Meatpacking District’s famed Buddakan in preparation for an executive chef role at Buddakan’s Atlantic City launch.

With initial plans for only a temporary gig in Houston, Jett has now settled into Houston life and happily resides in Sugar Land, where he now enjoys Mondays off and his short commute to Blu.

Chef Peng S. Looi’s life is as eclectic as the dishes he serves.   He was born and grew up in Ipoh, Malaysia before continuing his high school education in Manchester, England.   In 1981, Chef Looi came to the United States and earned his degree in civil engineering.   He soon realized his heart was with cooking not engineering while doing his internship.

In 1987, Looi opened his first award-winning restaurant August Moon Chinese Bistro (www.augustmoonbistro.com) featuring contemporary Chinese cuisine with south east Asian influences reflecting his ethnic background.   In 1994 came the upscale casual Asiatique Restaurant (www.asiatiquerestaurant.com) serving his own unique and artful interpretation of East - West Pacific Rim cuisine.   Local and regional food critics have quoted Looi’s work as ‘works of edible art’.

Recognition came soon, with exceptional reviews from every Louisville area food writer and other national features in The Courier-Journal, Louisville Magazine, Leo Magazine, American Automobile Tour Guide, Mobil, Scene Magazine, Delta Airline, Southwest Airline, Air Canada and Vegetarian Times.   Looi’s works were also featured in Asian Restaurant News, Bon Appetit and Chef’s Magazine.

His first establishment was awarded ‘Best Oriental Restaurant’ by Louisville Magazine.   In addition, the restaurant received the Leo Magazine’s ‘Outstanding Chinese restaurant’ award for multiple years.   It also won the ‘Best Upscale Casual 2008’ award by Prep Magazine.

Asiatique Restaurant was awarded ‘Best Asian restaurant’ by the Louisville Magazine and Leo Magazine.  It has also won the Citysearch “Best Asian” and Bon Appetit magazine’s “Top 125 restaurants nationwide”.  Both restaurants were also awarded the Wine Spectator “Award of Excellence” for multiple years.

Chef Looi has been invited to cook at the prestigious James Beard House four times and was a master chef at the World Gourmet Summit in Las Vegas and Dubai, UAE.  In 2007 and 2009, he was invited by the Chefs Association of Malaysia, Malaysian Hotel Association and the Ministry of Tourism Malaysia, to judge at the prestigious Culinaire Malaysia, the largest culinary competition in the South East Asian region.  He is also invited for guest chef appearances nationally like the Epcot Food + Wine Festival, Disney, Florida for five consecutive years and Grand Food + Wine Affair, Houston.  In March 2009, he appeared at the Charleston Food and Wine Festival and Boca Bacchanal, Boca Raton 2010.

In March 2008, Chef Looi was honored with the nationally prestigious Jefferson Evans award for ‘Chef of the Year’ in New York.   This was the first time the award honored an Asian chef.

Well known for his commitment to community and charitable causes, Chef Looi has been the coordinating chef for the Crane House (an Asian Institute based in Louisville, Ky) annual biggest fundraiser, Asian All-Star dinner, for numerous years.  He has also assisted in raising funds for the Salvation Army Culinary program and Kosair Children Hospital Cancer wing.  Besides community work, he is also an advisor to the Culinary Department, Sullivan University.  He and his family resides in Louisville, KY

Brian O'Hea grew up on Long Island (NY) and was destined to become a New York City policeman – at least that would have been the bet, given the fact that his paternal grandfather was a New York City policeman, as was his father, as was his older brother. Brian’s early passions were soccer, hockey and the New York Yankees. His introduction to the food industry came during high school when he began working part-time for the Bagel Boss Café, an affiliation he maintained through college in the early to mid 1990s. Following high school Brian decided to test the waters of a culinary career by enrolling in the Restaurant Management program of Nassau Community College – graduating in 1996. Two internship experiences with Walt Disney World (Orlando, FL) at the Dixie Landing Resort and the Grand Floridian Resort exposed him to the possibilities of life in a high quality kitchen. Still hedging his bets by retaining his application option in the New York City Police Academy, Brian enrolled in the Culinary Arts program of the Culinary Institute of America (CIA).  Several significant occurrences at the CIA between 1997 and 1998 gave shape to Brian’s future professional and life plans. First, both his classroom experiences and his externship at the Ocean Reef Club (Key Largo, FL) confirmed his long-term interest in the kitchen. Second, his introduction to a CIA classmate, Shanna Horner, led to their marriage in 2001 at an historic inn on the coast of Maine.  Following graduation from the CIA, Brian took a position as Executive Chef in the campus dining division of ARAMARK before moving on to become a private chef for a prominent French family in New York City. He then accepted a position on the kitchen staff of the 5757 Restaurant at the Four Seasons Hotel (New York City), followed by a position with the Greenwich Country Club (CT).   Since 2003 Brain and Shanna have been the Chef-Owners of The Kennebunk Inn (Kennebunk, ME). This 1799 property with 26 guest rooms and suites and a 100 seat restaurant, anchors Main Street in one of Maine’s most popular tourist destinations. Shanna and Brian have recreated the Inn’s restaurant as Academe…Maine Brasserie and Tavern. The menu of Academe is intentionally broad and the style of service informal to cater to both local, year-round residents and tourist season patrons from around the world. The contemporary culinary creativity of Shanna and Brian set in a late 18^th century, historic inn has been noted in numerous recent reviews. As one reviewer put it, “The youthful energy of owners and chefs Brian O’Hea and Shanna Katherine Horner O’Hea has transformed the dining room of the Kennebunk Inn into Academe a top notch brasserie where the quality of the cuisine is matched only by the cozy fireplace-warmed atmosphere.” Down East Magazine, February 2007. 

HOUSTON…Compared to “an inside-the-park home run” by a discerning Houston restaurant critic, Mockingbird Bistro Wine Bar on the edge of Houston’s tony River Oaks is operating at bases-loaded capacity every night.

Owner/Executive Chef John Sheely, a 38-year veteran in the restaurant business, gives his diners comfort food at a sophisticated level typically found at world-class restaurants.  A casual and comfortable neighborhood eatery, Mockingbird is Sheely’s Texas take on that French institution, the bistro. 

Typical of Sheely’s straightforward and gregarious manner, the food at Mockingbird, which opened in January 2002, is simply prepared and presented, but with a deft touch that only a talented chef can accomplish.  Soon after opening, Gourmet magazine named Mockingbird “a neighborhood gem.”  And by November 2002, Esquire named the bistro “One of America’s Best New Restaurants.”

Sheely, a native Houstonian, came to cooking not by choice, but by default.  During high school in the Memorial area of Houston, Sheely worked part-time in fast-food restaurants to earn spending money.  On a spring break ski trip to Colorado, the chef-to-be set his sights on returning to the area to be what he terms, “a ski bum.”

After graduation, Sheely moved to Colorado to indulge his passion for skiing.  He fell in love with Vail where, to support himself, he turned again to restaurants.  Too young to work up-front in restaurants that served alcohol, he fortuitously ended up in the kitchens of several of Vail’s best dining establishments. Sheely stayed in the upscale ski resort 18 years.  He eventually purchased his own restaurant, L’Ostello, which he operated for two years.

By the mid-’90s, Sheely decided that he had skied to his heart’s content and was ready to return to Houston to open a restaurant.  In August of 1995, he found a spot on Houston’s west
side where he debuted the Riviera Grill in a small center on Westheimer at Gessner. Based on the elegant and irresistible food at Riviera, Sheely was honored as a “Modern Master,” by noted restaurant critic John Mariani and named one of Houston’s “Top Ten” chefs by Houston’s city magazine.  Sheely eventually moved Riviera Grill to a Memorial-area hotel where he operated it until spring of 2002.

Kudos continue to roll in for both Sheely and his new Mockingbird.  Already a neighborhood hangout for the well-heeled inside-the-Loop diners, the bistro adds yet another star to Sheely’s now-lengthy culinary résumé.

Sheely is a board member of the Greater Houston Restaurant Association, a member of Chaîne des Rotisseurs, and was recently named “Chef of the Year” and “Restaurateur of the year” at the 2006 Houston Culinary Awards.

When he is not cooking in the kitchen, Sheely enjoys traveling and discovering great food and wine with his wife, Violeta, and skiing in Vail, Colorado.

Rolando “Roland” Soza serves as Executive Chef of Houston’s acclaimed Bistro Alex www.bistroalex.com, a Brennan’s Family Restaurant.  Soza was previously Bistro Alex’s Chef de Cuisine and before that, Executive Sous Chef, a position he has held since prior to its debut in November 2009.  The dramatic, bi-level venue, which encompasses Bistro Bar at street front and the main dining room with “Chef’s Bar” on the second floor, has become a culinary anchor of the CITYCENTRE district, a dining destination for locals as well as visitors.

Soza is pivotal in the menu direction and ingredient sourcing for Bistro Alex, Bistro Bar, neighboring Hotel Sorella’s Monnalisa bar and Lobby Lounge.  He brings more than a decade of experience in contemporary fine dining to his role.  Prior to joining the Bistro Alex opening team, he served as a Sous Chef for Brennan’s of Houston, a Brennan’s Family of Restaurants flagship in Midtown.  Soza first worked at Brennan’s of Houston in 1999 as a Line Cook after earning a degree in Culinary Arts from Houston Community College, where he graduated with honors.

While employed as a Line Cook at Aries, Zula, Trevisio and Tony Ruppe’s, he was able to train under some of the city’s most notable chefs, earning valuable experience in a broad base of cuisines, ranging from Texas Creole and Modern American to Italian and French.  He also collaborated on an award-winning cookbook ”The Kitchen Table” with Executive Chef Randy Evans, formerly of Brennan’s and now the Chef/Owner of Haven in Houston.

Bistro Alex is located at 800 Sorella Court.  Breakfast is served daily from 6 am until 10 am, and Sunday brunch is featured from 11 am until 2 pm.  Lunch is available Monday through Saturday from 11:30 am until 2 pm.  Dinner is served daily from 6 pm until 10 pm.  Bistro Bar is open Sunday through Thursday from noon until midnight and Friday and Saturday from noon until 2 am.  Valet parking as well as garage self-parking is available.  For information or reservations, call 713-827-3545 or log onto www.bistroalex.com.

After careers in real estate and on Wall Street, native Austinite Kevin Williamson chose a career in cooking.  His work included cooking in La Jolla, California, New York City and Aspen, Colorado.  While in Aspen, he worked for the famed Ajax Tavern with Chefs Michael Chiarello and Nick Morfogen.  Chef Williamson returned to Austin in 1996 where he worked as Chef for the original Central Market, located on North Lamar.  In 1998, Williamson opened Ranch 616, a South Texas-style ice house reminiscent of his many years hunting and fishing the lands of South Texas and the Gulf of Mexico-- where ice houses served him some of his finest meals and memories.  At Ranch 616, Williamson combines the flavors of the Gulf Coast with the spices of the border towns of Texas.  As quoted by Texas Monthly, “If there was a Texas-style diner in Manhattan, it would be Ranch 616.”