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Fine Dining Gets Fresh at Monarch

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Hotel ZaZa Houston Monarch

New Dinner Menu Delivers Organic, Seasonal American Cuisine with a Tuscan Twist

HOUSTON, Texas – One of Houston’s top dining destinations, Hotel ZaZa’s Monarch restaurant unveils a new dinner menu that echoes Executive Chef Bradley Manchester’s dedication to providing an unsurpassed culinary experience. Manchester’s ingredient-focused American cuisine adds a decidedly Tuscan twist with the fusion of Mediterranean flavors and choice selection of seafood and steaks. Building upon a foundation of seasonal ingredients and the premise that everything is made in-house, Chef Manchester has developed a menu with the idea that items will change with the seasons and ingredient availability. Diners can always enjoy something new, as Monarch’s dinner menu will continue to evolve.

Click here to see Monarch’s new dinner menu.

Taking cues from Mother Nature, Chef Manchester looks to the seasons for culinary inspiration. Plates are robust and vibrant in both color and flavor. Produce, often locally procured, is organic and picked at the height of its season. Hydroponically-grown micro-herbs are used for their flavorful intensity, while Chef Manchester opts for baby vegetables whenever possible, citing their more subtle flavor and texture. Pastas, breads, sauces and more are all made in-house. Scallops are shucked to order. Meats and poultry are grass-fed and free-range. Combined with Monarch’s elegant setting, the overall experience is an epicurean odyssey found nowhere else.

This spring, diners will enjoy the Miso Glazed Sable Fish, served with a green onion and rock shrimp risotto, coconut foam and sweet chili. Crispy wonton shrimp, chipotle yam puree and mango coconut chutney complements the Kurobuta Pork Tenderloin. The vegetarian Spinach and Mushroom “Lasagna” features ricotta, grilled vegetable relish and Kalamata vinaigrette. The Deconstructed Ahi Roll, a popular Monarch favorite, is again on the new menu. This sushi- inspired appetizer layers sushi rice with ahi tartar, avocado, crab ceviche and white truffle dressing. The Green Tea Marinated Angus Filet, dressed with a ginger butter, is served with braised choy sum and enoki mushrooms. (See complete dinner menu attached.)

Elegantly appointed throughout, Monarch is a beautiful destination for breakfast, brunch, lunch, dinner and nightlife. Windows throughout the restaurant allow sweeping views of the nearby Mecom fountain. A Baroque-inspired dining room with high-backed chairs and vibrant wall art features beveled ceilings and zebra-print carpeting. The lounge emits an exclusive vibe, aided by marble tile, dark wood-plank flooring, low-lit chandeliers and plush drapes along a far wall. Just outside the lounge, Monarch’s Terrace offers beautiful garden and fountain views. Spacious and scenic, the Terrace is filled with wrought iron tables and chairs flush with potted flowers and foliage.

For more information, or to make a reservation, please call (713) 527-1800 or visit www.hotelzaza.com/houston.

About Hotel ZaZa

Hotel ZaZa’s soul lies in a rich combination of sensual design, an impeccable attention to detail and a “can-do” staff whose mission is to exceed every expectation. Hotel ZaZa is designed to deliver both style and substance for hard-working, fun-loving souls. Each hotel offers unique accommodations, one-of-a-kind themed suites and world-class dining. Hotel ZaZa provides travelers with a welcoming environment that embraces its signature elements of luxury, comfort, style and fun. It is uniquely different and anything but ordinary.

Hotel ZaZa Dallas features a casual yet seductive Mediterranean elegance, and is conveniently located in the chic Uptown neighborhood. The hotel provides 4,500 square feet of meeting space, 153 rooms, 17 concept suites, The Magnificent Seven Suites, award-winning Dragonfly restaurant and the über-zen ZaSpa. Dallas’ Hotel ZaZa is a feast for the senses, exhibiting a style and substance rarely found in today’s hotels. The hotel is located at 2332 Leonard Street, Dallas, Texas, 75201 and reservations can be made by calling 214-468-8399 or by visiting www.hotelzaza.com/dallas.

Hotel ZaZa Houston debuted in June 2007 and is located in the heart of the city’s buzzing Museum District. Extravagant and lush while still quietly intimate, the Houston property boasts 17,000 square feet of meeting space, the beautiful Monarch restaurant, restorative ZaSpa, over 300 rooms including ZaZa Petites, Pool Bungalows, Pool Villas, Concept Suites and The Magnificent Seven Suites. The hotel is located at 5701 Main Street, Houston, Texas 77005 and reservations can be made by calling (713) 526-1991 or visiting www.hotelzaza.com/houston.

Hotel ZaZa was created by Charles S. Givens and Jeff Records and is owned by Givens-Records Developments.

Source: Kelle Jackson, The Buzzell Company

Willie Burger

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Source: Willie Walker, HoustonTexasFood.com visitor | Share Your Recipe

Ingredients:

  • 1 lb. ground chuck
  • 1 lb. ground beef
  • 1 lb. pecan smoked sausage
  • 1 lb. of hot pan sausage
  • 1 cup chopped seasonings(red,yellow,green bell peppers, red & green onions)
  • 1/2 cup of spices & herbs(no salt)
  • 1 1/2 cup of seasoned bread crumbs
  • 1 pkg. of Lipton’s Savory & Garlic soup mix
  • 1 pkg. of Grillmates Zesty Herb marinade mix
  • 14 cup of Sweet & Tangy Steak Sauce
  • 14 cup of Sweet & Spicy BBQ sauce
  • 14 cup of Louisiana Seafood Sauce

Directions:

  1. Grind smoke sausage in food processor to consistency of ground meat, as well as chopped seasonings to be very fine.
  2. In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients, spreading the spices, bread crumbs, & sauces sparringly. Mix very well with your hands, assuring an evenly mixture.
  3. Form your patties to be slightly larger than your buns, because shrinkage will be minimal. Set your patties in the refrigerator for an hour or freezer for 15 minutes.
  4. Prepare your grill with the coals being white or medium high with gas or propane. I use a combination of (hickory, mesquite, pecan & apple) wood chips (chips smoke much better than chunks). If you can’t use wood to smoke, pour about 3 tbsps. of Liquid Smoke into your mixture, when preparing.
  5. Sear each side 2-4 minutes to lock the juices in, then smoke remainder of time.

Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour
Serves: 10-12

Chicken & Pea Skabetti

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HoustonTexasFood.com visitor LaMisha Carter submitted this recipe.

Ingredients:

  • 1 lb. chicken breast
  • 1 can sweet peas
  • 1 can rotell sauce
  • 1 can cream of chicken
  • 1 can cream of mushroom
  • 1 Block of velvetta cheese
  • 1 pack of thin spaghetti noodles
  • 1 1/2 cups of milk

Directions:

  1. Boil water in a deep pot for noodles (add 1/2 tsp. salt).
  2. Oil a small sauce pan, season chicken & cook until done.
  3. When noodles & chicken are done, combine both in deep pot and add milk.
  4. Using 1/2 can of cream of chicken, cream of mushroom, peas & rotell suace (whole can of rotell may be too spicy), combine all into deep pot & stir under med fire.
  5. Cut cheese into small blocks put into pot & continue to stir until cheese is completely melted. It should be soupy (if not add milk).
  6. Then pour the Chicken & Pea Skebetti into long pan put it it in the oven @ 350 degrees for 15-20mins.
  7. Let cool & serve with garlic bread along with a ceasear salad!!!

Mom’s Meat Balls

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HoustonTexasFood.com visitor Pat Connor submitted this recipe for Mom’s meat balls.

Ingredients:

  • 1 pound ground chuck
  • 1/2 pound ground turkey
  • 4 ounces dried bread crumbs
  • 4 large eggs
  • 4 ounces can milk
  • 6 ounces grated Romano cheese
  • 3 ounces grated red onion
  • 2 ounces finely diced fresh garlic
  • 2 ounces finely chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves
  • 2 ounces finely chopped fresh basil leaves

    • Directions:

    1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
    2. Spray a baking sheet with olive oil cooking spray. Mix all ingredients thoroughly in large bowl.
    3. If mixture seems a little loose add more breadcrumbs. Roll meatballs loosely about the size of a golf ball and place on baking sheet.
    4. Place into preheated oven for approximately 35 to 40 minutes.

    Nino’s Celebrates 30 Years

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    Strong Mandola Family Tree Grows Rich Restaurant Legacy

    It may have been three decades ago, but Vincent Mandola still has vivid memories of standing at the window of Nino’s on West Dallas and watching for the sign of car lights coming down the then-lonely stretch of road.
    “Everybody to your stations,” he says he would yell every time lights appeared. He was shouting to three other people in an otherwise empty restaurant. “Then we would all stand there as the car drove on past.”
    It’s a bit different today. Reservations are almost always necessary for the greatly expanded Nino’s each of the six days a week it is open. It’s the same story for the larger Vincent’s next door and the expansive Grappino’s ‘small bites’ bar and patio directly behind. And where Vincent and his wife Mary were renting the space for Nino’s on the first floor of an old general store (renters still lived in rooms upstairs), the family now owns all but a few lots on the entire city block.
    The 2800 Block of West Dallas is now surrounded by apartments and condominiums, and no one would stand more than a few seconds waiting for a car to come by. What’s more, a lot of those cars now stop at one of the Mandola’s three dining spots in this well-landscaped Italian park. (And what other restaurant family actually owns an entire city block on the edge of downtown?)
    It was November 23, 1977, that Vincent and his wife, Mary, joined up with his brother and sister-in-law, Tony and Phyllis Mandola, to open Nino’s. They named it after Vincent and Tony’s father. From the launching, daughters Vinceanne who was 9 at the time and Dana who was 7, found themselves helping out. Of course, with a constant flow of relatives coming in to check out the venture and not an overwhelming number of paying customers, the early days were more like extended family dinners than the start of a restaurant empire.
    Tony and Phyllis later left Nino’s to begin their own restaurants, and that left Vincent, Mary and their daughters to totally merge restaurant time and family time into what has made shining successes of both.  They later purchased an ice house/motor cycle bar next door to begin Vincent’s, then more land behind them to begin Grappino’s di Nino and eventually all but a few lots on the entire near-Downtown block where they have created a small Italian compound. A little more than two years ago, the now-grown daughters formed a partnership and opened the family’s first casual Italian concept, Pronto, located a few blocks east on Montrose. They opened a second Pronto in Bellaire this past summer.
    While have a restaurant for 30 years is quite an accomplishment in itself, the fact that five restaurants are all still firmly rooted to same family tree is especially unique.
    The Mandola lording over the kitchen will still be Vincent, recognizable by his familiar white hair and beard and sharp, sharp sense of wit. The genius behind the decor, design and warmth will be Mary, slender, refined and uncannily observant. And taking the reins at the two bustling Pronto’s are the next generation – daughters Vinceanne Mandola Green and Mary Dana Corbett, certainly combinations of their talented parents. 
    Like ingredients in the perfect recipe, each in this has a strong personality, an opinion and plenty to contribute, but the resulting positive energy when they are together is a wonder to feel. At home or at meals, the talk is constant, mixing business and family as though each time is a rare get-together.  Food, wine and laughter – all mixed well with advice for the business, suggestions for the cook and lots of good-natured kidding – gives these gatherings a Hollywood script. 
    Of, course, a lot of families have businesses. A lot of businesses support families. Yet somehow the Mandolas have so perfectly blended the two they’ve created what tritely can be called a legacy.  
    Or just the grandest family tree in the forest.
    To learn more about the restaurants, go to http://www.ninos-vincents.com/about.html.

    Cooking in the FOX Grill with Cleverley and Caroline Rhea

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    Houston Food


    Actress and stand-up comedienne Caroline Rhea and Houston radio, TV and online restaurant journalist Cleverley Stone cook up something delicious in the FOX Grill. (They can do that?) Rhea performs at the Houston Laff Stop starting April 3 until April 5.

    Watch this video to get a laugh while Caroline cooks.

    Get the recipe here.