Underbelly
A terrine of pig's head with five-minute egg and house mustard is one of the spicy dishes at Underbelly that pairs well with Chris Frankel's Americano cocktail. Photo by Alison Cook
Korean braised goat dumplings a dish by chef Chris Shepherd of Underbelly, 1100 Westheimer, Tuesday, March 27, 2012, in Houston. ( Melissa Phillip / Houston Chronicle )
Lamb stripstrami with Brussel kraut a dish by chef Chris Shepherd of Underbelly, 1100 Westheimer, Tuesday, March 27, 2012, in Houston. ( Melissa Phillip / Houston Chronicle )
Slow roasted brisket with fava beans and breakfast radish a dish by chef Chris Shepherd of Underbelly, 1100 Westheimer, Tuesday, March 27, 2012, in Houston. ( Melissa Phillip / Houston Chronicle )
Green-curried pancake dessert with spiced peanuts and local honey with kecap manis at Underbelly.
Tete de cochon, a terrine of pig's head, with mustard and 5-minute eggs at Underbelly.
Korean "Buffalo style" oysters with kim chee butter and nuoc mam salad at Underbelly.
Charred fava beans with house made mozzarella and Galveston sea salt at Underbelly.
A cleaver high on the wall at Underbelly.
Chris Frankel's aromatized riesling- and Madeira-based phosphate cocktail that's a tribute to his beloved Pak Kola, off the menu at Underbelly. Photo by Alison Cook
Beet flan dessert at Underbelly.
Soft shell crab with kim chee butter at Underbelly.
Texas-made sparkling cider, one of the unusual choices on Underbelly's thoughtful beverage list.
Flatiron steak with seared cabbage and green salsa on a huarache at Underbelly.
Akaushi tenderloin carpaccio with Texas olive oil, Galveston sea salt and pickled vegetables at Underbelly.
General Tso's meatballs at Underbelly.
The open-to-view kitchen line at Underbelly.
The calm before the dinnertime service at Underbelly.
The charcuterie room at Underbelly.
Art work displayed at Underbelly, 1100 Westheimer, Tuesday, March 27, 2012, in Houston. ( Melissa Phillip / Houston Chronicle )
Canned items displayed at Underbelly, 1100 Westheimer, Tuesday, March 27, 2012, in Houston. ( Melissa Phillip / Houston Chronicle )
A seasonal stash of pickles and preserves lines one of the walls at Underbelly.
A custom cut of lamb ribs from Underbelly's in-house butcher shop.
Onalda snapper a dish by chef Chris Shepherd of Underbelly, 1100 Westheimer, Tuesday, March 27, 2012, in Houston. ( Melissa Phillip / Houston Chronicle )
Chef Chris Shepherd, poses at Underbelly, 1100 Westheimer, Tuesday, March 27, 2012, in Houston. ( Melissa Phillip / Houston Chronicle )
Slow roasted brisket with fava beans and breakfast radish a dish by chef Chris Shepherd of Underbelly, 1100 Westheimer, Tuesday, March 27, 2012, in Houston. ( Melissa Phillip / Houston Chronicle )
Chris Frankel, bartender at Underbelly, with some of his house-brewed aromatized wine cocktails. The red one is quinquina; to the right, Americano; left, the White Portonic. Photo by Alison Cook
Chris Frankel's Quinquina cocktail, based on Grenache Rose wine, at Underbelly. Photo by Alison Cook
Chris Frankel's house-bottled sparkling White Portonic cocktail at Underbelly, based on white port and house-made tonic water and infused with Goan spices. Photo by Alison Cook
Matthew Pridgen, general manager at Underbelly, poses for a photo with a bottle of 2008 Ehlers Estate Merlot Monday, March 12, 2012, in Houston. ( Brett Coomer / Houston Chronicle )
Chef Chris Shepherd poses for a photograph for SAM Magazine in the Houston Chronicle Photo Studio, Tuesday, July 19, 2011, in Houston.
Shepherd is opening a new restaurant called Underbelly in the fall where all the meat will be hand butchered,
( Michael Paulsen / Houston Chronicle )
Chef Chris Shepherd poses for a photograph for SAM Magazine in the Houston Chronicle Photo Studio, Tuesday, July 19, 2011, in Houston.
Shepherd is opening a new restaurant called Underbelly in the fall where all the meat will be hand butchered,
( Michael Paulsen / Houston Chronicle )
6. Underbelly
This, at last, is the restaurant Chris Shepherd was born to run. There is no chef in Houston who has embraced the city’s kaleidoscopic ethnic food scene more wholeheartedly, foraging in far-flung neighborhoods and staging briefly in various Asian and South Asian kitchens. Now he brings that passion to bear in a big, airy room with a sleek industrial vibe, anchored by a groundbreaking in-house butcher shop and a sweep of open kitchen that makes mealtime a rollicking theater piece. The flavors rollick, too: from Korean-spiced braised goat with dumplings to General Tso’s meatballs, lion’s-head size and snapping with chile heat. It’s not all meat all the time, either. Deftly seared cabbages lighten up Akaushi skirt steak on a masa huarache base, swooshed with electric green salsa. Big pods of fava beans get charred on the grill, to devour like outsize edamame. Fat soft-shell crabs greet kim-chi butter as if they were old friends. Cobbler seems brand-new when it’s made with green tomatoes. And a well-priced, interesting wine list by Matthew Pridgen (rosé of Chinon, anybody?) makes it all go ‘round. Though the restaurant is young, the execution already seems steadier than it was at Shepherd’s last gig, the well-loved Catalan.
Cuisine: American
Entree price range: $$-$$$
Where: 1100 Westheimer
Phone: 713-523-1622
Web: underbellyhouston.com
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