Doug Fordyce

Strip House downtown- great steaks, pricey, expensive wine list Pappas - same as above, better wine list Lynn's on Dairy Ashford- a hike from downtown but worth it and wonderful, reasonable wine list esp for wines with bottle age Non steakhouse steaks Catalan ribeye + fabulous wine list Cafe Rabelais - ribeye with shallots and mustard - wow Churraso's for a churrasco steak (tenderloin)

Honestly, my favorite wine bars are Catalan, Ibiza & Reef. Take 4 people and get 2 bottles. Retail +$6 + great selections. No need for dinner just appetizers.... Also SoVino is fun - good list and a lot less crowded than others. Am a fan of Cova and 13 Celsius, too - just want as many choices as possible!

Someone else is on my quest! Hong Kong supermarket is great (and the kids love it). Very good selection and prices. A bit of a hike from inner-loop but closer than Seabrook. Have been pretty unsuccessful in finding great and reasonable places. Like Airline and it's much closer. Selection seems to vary a bit. WF and CM (esp CM) are awesome but it's hard to pay the same price for snapper as ribeye steaks. Would be happy to participate in some sort of service - maybe hire a buyer (?) to make weekly runs. Would one of the Seabrook places deliver if there was enough volume?

Walked over a couple weeks ago from my office for lunch - absolutely fantastic. Great service, good atmosphere, pretty quick, too. I had the steak salad (delicious) and my colleague had a risoto appetizer and the venison burger. Very reasonable prices for the quality of the food. Am headed back for dinner soon-

Went on Saturday - packed. Can't complain about a 20 minute wait with wine glass in hand, perusing an interesting selection in the retail section. Service spotty - it needs some work - but food was great, as was the wine selection. Any place that allows me to order a bunch of food friendly wine and pick out a great bottle of wine from the store to go with it is fantastic. Kinks will get worked out, I am sure - just want to make sure this one survives!

Good luck on the opening. I work in Chase Tower and am excited to have another great and interesting option within walking distance - pics look good -

You've got lots of great suggestions. The Med Center is pretty close to the central business district and a bunch of great restaurants in the Rice Village, West University, Mid Town and Montrose districts. I live about two blocks from the Med Center so will pass on some spots within a short drive: Rice Village - Cafe Rebalais is a great French bistro. No reservations so wait can be a bit long even if you show up early. Cafe Saigon may be the best upscale Vietnamese around. Also good and a lot of fun is Mi Luna, a tapas restaurant that attracts a lively crowd on weekends and has live Latin music at night. Cafe Istanbul is a casual Turkish/Medditerranean spot that we like. Kubo - on the second floor of the Village - is one of my favorite sushi spots and is very consistent. Kirby (just up the street from Rice Village) - try Goode Co. Barbeque for bbq (sit outside on benches amd people watch) and Goode Co. Taqueria for burgers and tex mex (both casual). Also in the Goode Co empire is the new Armadillo Cafe which is a slightly more upscale burger/tex mex/steak place with an hommage to Texas theme. Azuma is also on Kirby for sushi. Lupe Tortilla is up the street on the other side of 59 - it's always a mess (has a sandbox for the kids) but has just delicious fajitas. Just a little bit further north is the new and very fun and good Moroccan restaurant, Saffron. Richmond Ave - a number of good tex-mex joints: El Pueblito - outdoor patio, sometimes live music, good seafood dishes. Maria Selma - slightly more upscale, good patio, more traiditonal tex mex. La Tapatia - a chain (I know, I know) but reliable and quick with great service. If you are a choco-holic don't miss The Chocolate Bar on Richmond - a temple of everything chocolate and a fun scene at night. Slightly further down the street is Austin-implant Amy's Ice Cream if you haven't consumed enough sugar at the Chocolate Bar. Mid-town - Ibiza for upscale Med food, great wine list (Champagne selection is fantastic and reasonable) and a fun scene. Good Vietnamese area - pho shops, the pork sandwiches are awesome, vermicelli bun, etc. New Orleans ' Brennan's has an outpost that is pricey but good (and attempts to do NO food and some Texana). Seconds (thirds?) on T'afia and its next door neighbor The Breakfast Klub for hearty breakfasts. Very close to Med Center - Southwell's for hamburgers and fries, NY Pizzeria for pizza (delivers). Check out Central Market - best grocery store I have ever seen (still makes me laugh that the NYers have gone crazy for Whole Foods). Whole Foods on Kirby is trying to keep (catch?) up. Houston has a light rail that runs thru Med Center. Can take downtown to 17 (also one of my faves) and Bank. A bunch of other good (or at least fun) restaurants on Main Street - Cava Bistro, Samba, El Rey (cuban/mex). Also stops in mid-town near T'afia, Julia's (latin) and B'fast Klub. (Also runs to Reliant Stadium if you are a Texans fan!) Best sources for more info - www.houstonpress.com, www.my-table.com and texasmonthly.com. The foilks at MD Anderson are the best in the world so you will be in good hands!