Curious where Houston's in-the-know crowd is eating and drinking? It's easy to spot lines out the door, but some underlying trends are harder to see.
We took a data-driven look at the question, using Yelp to discover which restaurants have been in the spotlight this month.
To find out who made the list, we looked at Houston businesses on Yelp by category and counted how many reviews each received. Rather than compare them based on number of reviews alone, we calculated a percentage increase in reviews over the past month, and tracked businesses that consistently increased their volume of reviews to identify statistically significant outliers compared to past performance.
Read on to see which spots are on a hot streak this summer.
El Paso Mexican Grill
Open since May, this Mexican and Tex-Mex spot is trending compared to other businesses categorized as "Tex-Mex" on Yelp.
Citywide, Tex-Mex spots saw a median 2.8 percent increase in new reviews over the past month, but El Paso Mexican Grill saw an 84.6 percent increase, with a slight downward trend from a four-star rating a month ago to 3.5 stars today.
It's not the only trending outlier in the Tex-Mex category: Calle Onze has seen a 12.4 percent increase in reviews.
Located at 7607 Cypress Creek Parkway in Willowbrook, El Paso Mexican Grill offers traditional Mexican fare such as nachos, quesadillas, enchiladas, tacos and fajitas. (Click here to view the full menu.)
Maggie May's Coffee
Whether or not you've been hearing buzz about the Heights's Maggie May's Coffee, the cafe, which offers coffee and tea and more, is a hot topic according to Yelp review data.
While businesses categorized as "Coffee & Tea" on Yelp saw a median 5.1 percent increase in new reviews over the past month, Maggie May's Coffee bagged a dramatic 108.3 percent increase in new reviews within that timeframe, maintaining a stellar five-star rating.
Open at 726 W. 19th St., Maggie May's Coffee offers coffee, tea and smoothies, along with pastries, cookies and muffins. It also sells vintage vinyl records and provides listening stations to sample the music.
The Oyster Bar at Prohibition
Downtown Houston's The Oyster Bar at Prohibition is also making waves. Open since the spring of 2017, at 1010 Prairie St., Prohibition Theatre, the cocktail bar, which offers seafood and more, has seen a 44.4 percent bump in new reviews over the last month, compared to a median review increase of 3.3 percent for all businesses tagged "Seafood" on Yelp. Moreover, on a month-to-month basis The Oyster Bar at Prohibition's review count increased by more than 400 percent.
There's more than one hot spot trending in Houston's seafood category: Hu's Cooking has seen a 40.9 percent increase in reviews, and BB’s Tex-Orleans has seen a 15.1 percent bump.
The Oyster Bar at Prohibition features a menu that includes raw and chargrilled oysters in flavors such as chimichurri (garlic, olive oil and cilantro) and Rockefeller chargrilled (cream spinach, fried proscuitto and herbs). You'll also find sandwiches, entrees (like Sriracha Cajun chicken) and an extensive bar menu. Over the past month, it's seen its Yelp rating improve from 3.5 stars to four stars.
Perry’s Steakhouse & Grille
Neartown - Montrose's Perry’s Steakhouse & Grille - River Oaks is the city's buzziest steakhouse by the numbers.
The steakhouse, which opened at 1997 W. Gray St. since January, increased its new review count by 33.3 percent over the past month, an outlier when compared to the median new review count of 2.2 percent for the Yelp category "Steakhouses."
Perry’s Steakhouse & Grille serves steaks like filet, rib-eye and New York strip, surf and turf and seafood such as lobster, salmon and Ahi tuna. (Click here to view the menu.)
Indianola
Downtown Houston's Indianola is currently on the upswing in the bar category on Yelp.
While businesses categorized as "Bars" on Yelp saw a median 2.8 percent increase in new reviews over the past month, this bar and breakfast and brunch and traditional American spot increased its new reviews by 14 percent—and kept its rating consistent at four stars.
There's more abuzz in the world of Houston bars: The Rustic has seen a 11.8 percent increase in reviews.
Open for business at 1201 St. Emanuel St. since November, the business offers snacks, salads, small plates (summer squash and slow-cooked pork ribs), medium plates (rainbow trout and wood-grilled cauliflower) and large plates (Gulf red snapper and pork chops). View the full menu here.
This story was created automatically using local business data, then reviewed and augmented by an editor. Click here for more about what we're doing. Got thoughts? Go here to share your feedback.
