A Dallas-born restaurant chain famous for serving the coldest martini in the world appears to be plotting its biggest Houston restaurant yet, this time in the busy Memorial City area. Hudson House has not formally announced the new location, but a permit filing points to plans for a restaurant at Greenside, a mixed-use development at 1085 Gessner Road.
The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation received a Hudson House permit filing on September 16, according to Chron. Per the filing, renovation work is expected to begin in mid-November and wrap up by April 2027, with the project estimated to cost around $2 million. The Memorial City restaurant is set to occupy 6,095 square feet, making it slightly larger than Hudson House's existing River Oaks and Rice Village locations, per the same filing.
At Greenside, Hudson House would join Pizzana, Honest Mary's and Kirby Ice House, adding another dining name to a development that's already become a draw for West Houston diners. The chain is known for its East Coast-inspired menu and its signature “World's Coldest Martini,” a drink that gained attention when Hudson House opened its River Oaks location.
How the Coldest Martini Became a Signature
That River Oaks restaurant opened at 1966 West Gray on Nov. 1, 2023, filling a 4,600-square-foot space with navy leather booths and seating for 129 people, according to the Houston Chronicle. There, a bartender mixes a total of 3 ounces of liquor — part Wheatley vodka and Blackland Gin — to produce the frozen-glass cocktail that's become something of a calling card for the brand. The same River Oaks menu leans on East Coast staples: raw oysters, a burger, steak frites, lobster rolls and crabcakes, the Chronicle reported.
Hudson House's raw bar also includes shrimp cocktail and sushi rolls alongside its East Coast oysters, according to Vandelay Companies. Diners across the chain's locations can also order a cheeseburger, lobster mac and cheese, or chicken parm, according to CultureMap Houston. It's a menu built around comfort food with a coastal accent, a formula the chain has leaned on since it left Dallas.
From Highland Park to a Texas-Wide Push
Vandelay Hospitality Group opened the first Hudson House in Dallas's Highland Park neighborhood in 2017, and the brand has expanded to 11 locations across Texas, with most still concentrated in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. The company is operated by Dallas's Vandelay Hospitality Group, according to Hudson House, which describes itself as taking its cues from the East Coast, particularly the neighborhood restaurants of New York's West Village.
Beyond Memorial City, Hudson House has a planned location at LaCenterra at Cinco Ranch shopping center in Katy, where it would occupy the space formerly home to World of Beer, as previously reported. That Katy project involves a tenant remodel combining two existing spaces into a single restaurant concept. The chain is also eyeing The Shops at Highland Village near Dallas for another restaurant, part of a broader wave of growth for the brand across the state.
Whether the Memorial City project moves forward on the timeline outlined in the permit remains to be seen, since Hudson House has not confirmed the location publicly. For now, the filing offers the clearest sign yet that the chain's signature martini and East Coast-style menu could soon be landing in one of West Houston's busiest retail corridors.
