Ostia

Go ahead and lick your fingers after scarfing down chef Travis McShane’s enviable Roast Chicken—just try to make it sexy while you do. Ostia’s ambiance will help, with tiny tables and mood lighting, an open kitchen firing scratchmade pastas and Whole Branzino, and a verdant greenhouse and patio combo known to ratchet the romance factor up quite a few notches.
How to order: Order take-out via Toast.

Hometown chef Travis McShane brings his impressive culinary chops back to Houston, with a damn good roast chicken by his side. McShane, a Houston native who climbed the ranks in acclaimed chef Jonathan Waxman’s haunts from Barbuto in New York to Adele’s in Nashville, plays with Mediterranean- and Italian-influenced New American fare. Don’t miss the Half Chicken, a simple stunner with lemon, salsa verde, and herb jus, or the ever-changing lineup of gnocchi, bucatini, linguine, and other fresh pasta favorites.
How to order: Order takeout via Toast.

There’s a three-course, family-style brunch that needs to make its way to your radar, and it’s stacked with seasonal pastas, seasonal pizzas, and chef Travis McShane’s oh-so delightful Roasted Chicken and salsa verde. You’ll have to shell out $42 per person (designed for three or more people), but it’ll be well worth every penny, especially if you enjoy it all in the gorgeous greenhouse room and attached patio. The rotating menu is also available a la carte, with offerings from scratch-made gnocchi to frittata.

Just outside Ostia’s gorgeous greenhouse dining space sits a tiny but mighty open-air patio, perfectly poised with citrus and Bougainvillea plants, gas lamps, and a plate of chef Travis McShane’s delightful roast chicken, if you know what’s good for you. Score an outdoor table and relish in that bird alongside beautiful house cocktails and seasonal Mediterranean-inspired eats from Drunken Mussels and scratchmade Gnocchi to a fat, juicy Porterhouse done right.