I’m not sure why it’s taken me so long to review Catalan – it’s one my favourite restaurants in Houston and I’ve been there numerous times. I think it is because each time I go there I feel like there is so much to the restaurant for me to get to know. On my recent visit, our friend Ethel from Los Angeles was visiting us in Houston for New Years. We had been thinking about going out of town to Austin or San Antonio, but we figured we’d have a better time just staying in town in Houston – so the restaurant search was on. Booking a New Years dinner a week before is a challenge, so it’s also the time I am thankful for the Amex Platinum. Every year I try to convince myself to get rid of this high fee beast, but then I find some reason to hold me back. Well… Amex came through this year and got us the booking at Catalan.
Catalan is one of those restaurants that successfully reinvented itself from what it started off as. Originally it was a tapas/Spanish restaurant; this was when Houston was going through it’s tapas fad. This fad was destined not last very long in a city where people like their plates BIG. To help things transition, entered former Brennan’s Sous-Chef, Chris Sheppard. Like his buddy and former Brennan’s Chef, Randy Evans, Chris is very much into the local farmers markets and sourcing ingredients close to home. So expect to see many season and local ingredients in the dishes. Chris’ Brenna’s background is easily noticeable in Catalan’s menu.
The new menu retained many small plates to allow diners to sample various flavours in tapas size along with some of Houston’s best wine selections. Big Texas and southern flavours now proliferate the large plates to please the local palates. Constant favourites on the menu are the shrimp with goat cheese grits, Berkshire pork chop, and roasted bone marrow. If you see “sweet potato gratin” in any form on the menu, be sure to get it. Sweet potatoes and cheese are flavours I would have never thought to combine at home, but this side is buttery sweet goodness at its best - slightly sweet and salty. You would want to order it again as dessert.
The night we visited the duck that Ethel ordered was the best dish. It was a seared confit leg and thigh – perfectly briny and a little sweet. My wife had the “black drum gumbo with hush puppies”. It had a different name on the menu, but basically it was a gumbo. The roux was robust with taste of oregano and file, browned and tasty, but just like any other dark roux it could and did become a little too much for a night’s meal. My dish was a seared red snapper fillet over a sweet corn chowder. The chowder was in the natural corn’ starches, and not creamy, which was made for a lighter, more corn tasting dish.
The desserts are very focused on local nuts and fruits. With pecans’ being in season at this time the sweet potato creme brulee with pecan compote, Texas apple tarts, or Pecan tarts with espresso will not disappoint. Dessert here is on the expensive side, but all are original, made in house and most of all – delicious.























