Unsure 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 uncover which eateries have been seeing especially high review volumes 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 extra cool, right now.
Los Tios
Open since August, this Tex-Mex and Mexican spot is trending compared to other businesses categorized as "Mexican" on Yelp.
Citywide, Mexican spots saw a median 2.4% increase in new reviews over the past month, but Los Tios saw a massive 190.9% increase, maintaining a superior four-star rating throughout.
The franchise opened in 1970 and now has five outposts around the Houston area. Located at 5161 San Felipe St., Suite 100, in Greater Uptown, Los Tios offers Mexican favorites like nachos, quesadillas, enchiladas and fajitas. (Find the full menu here.)
Los Tios is open from 11 a.m.–10 p.m. on Monday-Thursday, 11 a.m.–11 p.m. on Friday, 10 a.m.–11 p.m. on Saturday and 10 a.m.–10 p.m. on Sunday.
La Marisquera Ostioneria
Whether or not you've been hearing buzz about Mid West's La Marisquera Ostioneria, the Mexican spot, which offers seafood and more, is a hot topic according to Yelp review data.
While businesses categorized as "Seafood" on Yelp saw a median 1.6% increase in new reviews over the past month, La Marisquera Ostioneria bagged an 84.6% increase in new reviews within that time frame, with a slight upward trend from a four-star rating a month ago to its current 4.5 stars. It significantly outperformed the previous month by gaining 5.5 times more reviews than expected based on its past performance.
There's more that's trending on Houston's seafood scene: The Juicy Crab has seen a 24.4% increase in reviews.
There are three locations around Houston for this local chain. Open at 5851 Westheimer Road since July, La Marisquera Ostioneria offers fish, oysters, ceviches, shrimp, tacos, salad and tacos. (Check out the rest of the menu here.)
La Marisquera Ostioneria is open from 11 a.m.–10 p.m. on Monday-Thursday and Sunday and 11 a.m.–midnight on Friday and Saturday.
Purple Kow
University Place's Purple Kow is also making waves. Open since August at 2531 University Blvd., the spot to score coffee and tea, bubble tea and juices and smoothies has seen a remarkable 266.7% bump in new reviews over the last month, compared to a median review increase of 2.7% for all businesses tagged "Coffee & Tea" on Yelp.
There's more than one hot spot trending in Houston's coffee and tea category: Kiwi Creamery & Coffee Co. has seen a 150% increase in reviews.
This San Francisco-based franchise offers tea, coffee, iced milk, fruit teas, milk teas and slushes. Drinks can be topped with homemade grass jelly, tcho chocolate pudding, matcha pudding, green tea and amber jelly. The spot also offers finger foods like chicken nuggets and fried zucchini. (Explore the rest of the menu here.)
Over the past month, Purple Kow has seen its Yelp rating tick down from five stars to four stars.
Purple Kow is open from 11 a.m.–10 p.m. on Monday-Thursday and Sunday and 11 a.m.–11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.
Penny Quarter
Neartown - Montrose's Penny Quarter is the city's buzziest wine bar by the numbers.
The wine bar and cafe, which offers coffee and tea and more and opened at 1424 Westheimer Road in August, increased its new review count by a notable 171.4% over the past month, an outlier when compared to the median new review count of 1.6% for the Yelp category "Wine Bars."
It's not the only trending outlier in the wine bar category: The Gypsy Poet has seen a 61.4% increase in reviews.
Penny Quarter offers sandwiches, salads and steak, with a selection of wine and beer by the glass. On the dinner menu, look for the fried chicken sandwich (with sprouts and spicy green zhug) and the bistro steak (with salsa verde, sunny egg and kale). (Find the full menu here.)
Penny Quarter is open from 7 a.m.–midnight on Monday-Wednesday and Sunday and 7 a.m.–2 a.m. on Thursday-Saturday.
Olive & Twist
Greenway/Upper Kirby Area's Olive & Twist is currently on the upswing in the New American category on Yelp.
While businesses categorized as "American (New)" on Yelp saw a median 1.5% increase in new reviews over the past month, this cocktail bar and New American spot increased its new reviews by 58.3% — and kept its rating consistent at 4.5 stars.
Open for business at 2712 Richmond Ave. since July, Olive & Twist offers pizza, pasta, steak, seafood, soup and salad. (Here's the entire menu.)
Olive & Twist is open from 4–10 p.m. on Monday-Thursday and 4 p.m.–midnight on Friday and Saturday. (It's closed on Sunday.)
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.
