Jump to content

Heights West Restaurant At 2307 Ella Blvd.


Moose

Recommended Posts

The old Marty's Bar across from Tony's on Ella is now Heights West restaurant & bar.

Drove by this morning and their sign says: "Southern by Day, French by Night."

It looked like they may be open or close to opening. I saw someone decked out in what looked like typical chef attire, minus the hat, going in.

Anyone know any details?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

"Heights West" what a joke. Ella... not a chance. Shepard yes. The historical boundary stops midway between Durham and Beall right where the alley ways end and the old acre lots of Shady Acres begins (with the exception of the last few blocks before 610 where fiesta liquor is). And of course to the south of W 16th there is the Houston Heights Annex where, though not originally included, the area was annexed by the Houston Heights while it existed.

Here is a link to a portion of the original Houston Heights plat of the John Austin survey from 1824. This is the 800 block of W 18th St. At this location Nashua is now Durham and the "No Street" is now a continuation of W 18th in Shady Acres from midway between Durham and Beall. Sorry to get all technical, but I work in cadastral mapping so I look at this stuff all day long and getting it right is sort of a pet peeve for me.

http://books.tax.hctx.net/v020/AE1997_19-20_0426.jpg

If you are ever bored (and nerdy) and want to find out the true, technical boundaries of a "neighborhood" just do a search at the county here:

http://www.tax.co.harris.tx.us/Property/blockbooks/default.aspx#RSearch

This is a great resource for historical work, but new subdivisions are not indexed.

All that said, I still think the name is cheesy! :D

Link to comment
Share on other sites

"Heights West" what a joke. Ella... not a chance. Shepard yes. The historical boundary stops midway between Durham and Beall right where the alley ways end and the old acre lots of Shady Acres begins (with the exception of the last few blocks before 610 where fiesta liquor is). And of course to the south of W 16th there is the Houston Heights Annex where, though not originally included, the area was annexed by the Houston Heights while it existed.

Here is a link to a portion of the original Houston Heights plat of the John Austin survey from 1824. This is the 800 block of W 18th St. At this location Nashua is now Durham and the "No Street" is now a continuation of W 18th in Shady Acres from midway between Durham and Beall. Sorry to get all technical, but I work in cadastral mapping so I look at this stuff all day long and getting it right is sort of a pet peeve for me.

http://books.tax.hct..._19-20_0426.jpg

All that said, I still think the name is cheesy! biggrin.gif

You did get all technical. rolleyes.gif Shady Acres is generally considered Heights. This forum has accepted that, celebrating/defining Cedar Creek and receiving Samiamj's open invitations to be involved in Shady Acres activities.

Southern by day, French by night?

WHAAA? That doesn't even make sense. blink.gif

Red, you just don't get the nuvo-Cajun scene. It's about compartmenalizing (and small plates, of course!). It's woohoo-merveilleux!happy.gif

Link to comment
Share on other sites

"Heights West" what a joke. Ella... not a chance. Shepard yes. The historical boundary stops midway between Durham and Beall right where the alley ways end and the old acre lots of Shady Acres begins (with the exception of the last few blocks before 610 where fiesta liquor is). And of course to the south of W 16th there is the Houston Heights Annex where, though not originally included, the area was annexed by the Houston Heights while it existed.

Here is a link to a portion of the original Houston Heights plat of the John Austin survey from 1824. This is the 800 block of W 18th St. At this location Nashua is now Durham and the "No Street" is now a continuation of W 18th in Shady Acres from midway between Durham and Beall. Sorry to get all technical, but I work in cadastral mapping so I look at this stuff all day long and getting it right is sort of a pet peeve for me.

http://books.tax.hctx.net/v020/AE1997_19-20_0426.jpg

If you are ever bored (and nerdy) and want to find out the true, technical boundaries of a "neighborhood" just do a search at the county here:

http://www.tax.co.harris.tx.us/Property/blockbooks/default.aspx#RSearch

This is a great resource for historical work, but new subdivisions are not indexed.

All that said, I still think the name is cheesy! :D

I really appreciate the links to the old neighborhood maps. Some of the folks who have lived in our neighborhood since they were young have talked about an old cemetery that used to be on Maxwell Lane, immediately behind one of our boundaries and I was eager to take a look at an old plat.

Imagine my surprise to find that, while Idylwood itself is listed, there is no map of it!

I searched all the "Lawndale" listings since that is one boundary. Nothing came up showing Idylwood. Maps of Forest Hill are there, listed as Lawndale Estates.

We are a small subdivision, about 350 homes. The oldest dates to 1928. Surely there is a map somewhere in the city records.

Would it do any good to use the 'contact us' link to let the city know?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

You did get all technical. rolleyes.gif Shady Acres is generally considered Heights. This forum has accepted that, celebrating/defining Cedar Creek and receiving Samiamj's open invitations to be involved in Shady Acres activities.

Red, you just don't get the nuvo-Cajun scene. It's about compartmenalizing (and small plates, of course!). It's woohoo-merveilleux!happy.gif

Shady Acres is NOT the Heights. Samiamj works for the City of Houston and has been pushing the "Super Neighborhood" concept with SLJ since their first meeting that I attended- basically they don't want to deal with all of the sub groups (the Heights, Woodland Heights, Shady Acres, Norhill etc concerns that they find trivial) and want one point of contact for the entire area. SJL picked a leader out of the attendees that basically vomited what she was trying to push.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The subdivision link appears to be broken. Searching for addresses on Sylvan returned a map:

http://books.tax.hctx.net/v062/AE1997_62_0202.jpg

And here's an index map for the entire original land grant:

http://books.tax.hctx.net/v041/AE1997_41-1_0047.jpg

Thanks, I really appreciate those links. Is there any way to date these maps? I ask because the cemetery I'm wondering about would have been in Sylvan Dells, right behind Idylwood toward I-45. Also, it's interesting that IDYLWILD is shown where the old country club now Gus Wortham Golf Course is located. I've been in the area 25+ years and never heard that area called Idylwild.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Shady Acres is NOT the Heights. Samiamj works for the City of Houston and has been pushing the "Super Neighborhood" concept with SLJ since their first meeting that I attended- basically they don't want to deal with all of the sub groups (the Heights, Woodland Heights, Shady Acres, Norhill etc concerns that they find trivial) and want one point of contact for the entire area. SJL picked a leader out of the attendees that basically vomited what she was trying to push.

Just for correction:

Funny how I was reading this post and people were talking about me. rolleyes.gif

Actually I don't work for the City of Houston. I am just a Shady Acres resident who was part of the Shady Acres Civic Club executive board. I have never been to a Super Neighborhood meeting and I am not a fan of SJL.

Heights West will be a welcome addition to Shady Acres. One less bar, I am happy with it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just for correction:

Funny how I was reading this post and people were talking about me. rolleyes.gif

Actually I don't work for the City of Houston. I am just a Shady Acres resident who was part of the Shady Acres Civic Club executive board. I have never been to a Super Neighborhood meeting and I am not a fan of SJL.

Heights West will be a welcome addition to Shady Acres. One less bar, I am happy with it.

LMOA!!! Funny how you post Greater Heights Super Neighborhood Council (SNC) reformation process Summary notes the same day the pdf is created....but just after working hours.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

SPOT ON! http://www.heightswest.com/

Granted, we were one of the only tables, but they have hit it. We both had the mushroom salad. I had the salmon. Mrs P. had the rabbit (poor little bunny). I sampled her dish. MMMM. The components of the meal sang and were well melded. Yeah, I'm all foodie about this meal, and for good reason.

The environment is...interesting. The fabric on the garage doors of the former ice house is luxurious. The paint job on the walls...took effort. Not too many tops. When the place becomes more popular, there will be wait time.

The chef and wait staff seem a bit tetched. I think that's what Southern by day, and French by night means. biggrin.gif As long as the chef stays off boogie boarding on White Oak Bayou, this place can be a real go.

Oh, and they swear no affiliation or conspiracy with SJL, and recognize they are not in Heights proper...just in case you have issues around that kind of thing rolleyes.gif (or other issues).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

SPOT ON! http://www.heightswest.com/

Granted, we were one of the only tables, but they have hit it. We both had the mushroom salad. I had the salmon. Mrs P. had the rabbit (poor little bunny). I sampled her dish. MMMM. The components of the meal sang and were well melded. Yeah, I'm all foodie about this meal, and for good reason.

The environment is...interesting. The fabric on the garage doors of the former ice house is luxurious. The paint job on the walls...took effort. Not too many tops. When the place becomes more popular, there will be wait time.

The chef and wait staff seem a bit tetched. I think that's what Southern by day, and French by night means. biggrin.gif As long as the chef stays off boogie boarding on White Oak Bayou, this place can be a real go.

Oh, and they swear no affiliation or conspiracy with SJL, and recognize they are not in Heights proper...just in case you have issues around that kind of thing rolleyes.gif (or other issues).

Thanks for the review!

When I saw you were the last poster to this thread, I thought before I even opened the post "He went there. He'll be the 1st to try anything" :lol: Glad you did and per your feedback, I will add it to my list

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 months later...

The wife and I finally tried "Heights West" at the recommendation of some neighbors and I must say that we were really impressed. We sat outside which offered zero ambiance, but other than that we had a great experience - the food was outstanding, the service was friendly and prompt, and the chef came out to chat with us a bit.

I'm not going to make this a food review, but I wanted to post because I really hope this place survives. They are relying only on word of mouth and I know that I would have overlooked it if it wasn't recommended to me first.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The wife and I finally tried "Heights West" at the recommendation of some neighbors and I must say that we were really impressed. We sat outside which offered zero ambiance, but other than that we had a great experience - the food was outstanding, the service was friendly and prompt, and the chef came out to chat with us a bit.

I'm not going to make this a food review, but I wanted to post because I really hope this place survives. They are relying only on word of mouth and I know that I would have overlooked it if it wasn't recommended to me first.

We've been there for three dinners and one lunch. All has been great. We've been there with friends they have liked it, too.

It's very affordable for extremely good fare.

Meat the way it should be cooked so you experinece its depth. Vegetables well-cooked, but crisp and full of flavor. Starch not overcooked and sticky, but not crunchy either...just done. Things not over-salted. Heights West can make you appreciate what you are missing elsewhere.

Three months ago, I dropped a rep on the restaurant and thought that I was part of the synergy around the place. I am surprised this place has not caught on more. It's getting positive reps on multiple forums. Perhaps, French is not as attractive in a Houston summer. I get that. I hope fall (such as we have it) willl enchant more people.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

We still haven't been, although it continues to be on our radar. I will say Allison Cook skewered them! I usually trust Allison (and my trust in food writers is seriously tempered by the opinions of real people. Frankly, I prefer b4-u-eat.com) but I thought she was a little tough on them. Will have to make up my own mind soon...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

We still haven't been, although it continues to be on our radar. I will say Allison Cook skewered them! I usually trust Allison (and my trust in food writers is seriously tempered by the opinions of real people. Frankly, I prefer b4-u-eat.com) but I thought she was a little tough on them. Will have to make up my own mind soon...

I missed her review and cannot link to it either. Do you have a link?

I did see that she was hard on the BRC (so to speak).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Speaking as Friend of Porchman who has been twice now with him and Mrs P., I will chime in. The food is perfectly cooked and sauced, and remarkable at the price. I suspect a very short French menu served in an odd place is not everyone's cup o tea, but to have both rabbit and duck on a 6-entree menu, wow. Don't go there for a wine paring, but the few they have are familiar, inexpensive and perfectly good with the menu.

The chef is a freak, in a good way. He serves his salmon mousse (so good I could eat a cereal bowl full of it) with the appropriate Python "Meaning of Life" reference. I hope they stay afloat. We'll be going back soon. He was out of the rabbit, and I really want some.

PS Porchman, plus one for the 'hard on the BRC' remark. yuk yuk yuk

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I had missed this thread from the first time around. Had lunch there today. Got there after 1PM and they had run out of the pork chops. So the other lunch special was the fish & chips w/coleslaw. I'm not a fan of any coleslaw so they kindly substituted the black eyed peas/okra (which was excellent) from the pork chop special. Very good meal for right under $10.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 9 months later...

Shady Acres is NOT the Heights. Samiamj works for the City of Houston and has been pushing the "Super Neighborhood" concept with SLJ since their first meeting that I attended- basically they don't want to deal with all of the sub groups (the Heights, Woodland Heights, Shady Acres, Norhill etc concerns that they find trivial) and want one point of contact for the entire area. SJL picked a leader out of the attendees that basically vomited what she was trying to push.

You are somewhat confused. SamiamJ does not work for the city.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I’m sorry to report that they have closed. Their last night of service was last week.

The food was great. On that, most would agree. The leek terrine, the mushroom salad, the salmon...mmmm. The complaint I heard most was about the service. Also, I can imagine that the limited A/C system became a challenge for patrons with the current weather situation.

It has been announced that the new venture at that location will be El Gran Malo. This may be a good fit for the former ice house. I’m wondering how it will play with Tony’s across the street. Maybe some synergy is in the equation for the new joint.

(Reposted after seeing an egregious typo - ugh!)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Truly sad to hear. Admittedly, I did not eat there nearly as often as I thought about eating there... shame on me. The food was wonderful, especially the leek terrine, so I hope the chef can be a part of a different (more successful) venture in the area again soon.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • The title was changed to Heights West - New Restaurant & Bar On Ella Blvd.
  • The title was changed to Heights West Restaurant At 2307 Ella Blvd.

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...