HOUSTON – (Realty News Report) – Underbelly Hospitality, the Houston-based restaurant group led by James Beard Award-winning chef and owner Chris Shepherd, has signed a lease for a 5,000-square-foot restaurant with a rooftop terrace in Houston’s Inner Loop.
The new restaurant will be part of the Regent Square infill development near Buffalo Bayou Park, offering a prominent location within a growing mixed-use neighborhood.
Centered on live-fire cooking, the menu will showcase the distinct flavors that different woods contribute to food. Shepherd has been experimenting extensively with backyard smokers and grills over the past year, developing a deep interest in how specific woods influence taste and texture. The kitchen will feature woods such as post oak, hickory, pecan and mesquite as intentional flavor components in many dishes.
“We’re still working through a lot of the details,” Shepherd said, “but the idea of live-fire cooking using multiple types of wood really excites me.”
“The idea of live-fire cooking using multiple types of wood really excites me.”
The restaurant will serve as an anchor for GID Development Group’s Regent Square Phase 2, part of a broader community master plan spanning 24 acres along West Dallas Street between College Memorial Park and Waugh Drive. The eight-acre Phase 2 parcel at Dunlavy Street is planned to debut in late 2021 and will include approximately 50,000 square feet of pedestrian-oriented retail and a 600-unit multifamily building.
Designed by Boston-based placemaking firm CBT in collaboration with Houston’s OJB Landscape Architecture, Regent Square Phase 2 offers a distinct setting for three freestanding restaurant spaces. These venues will overlook two active green areas, a signature water feature, and a pedestrian promenade, creating an inviting environment for both diners and neighbors.
“While we have more surprises in store, we couldn’t help lead the beginnings of our tenant lineup with Chris Shepherd, a chef who has helped define the dynamic culinary landscape of Houston and whose passion for food, the restaurant industry and his city is unparalleled,” said James Linsley, president of GID Development Group.
Founded in 1960, GID has acquired or developed more than 86,000 residential units and 17 million square feet of commercial space across twenty-five states.
March 22, 2021 Realty News Report. Copyright 2021.
Photo credit: John Davidson.
Rendering: Courtesy GID Development.
File: Chef Chris Shepherd Leases.
For more on Houston development, see the book Houston 2020: America’s Boom Town – An Extreme Close Up by Ralph Bivins.
File: (2) Chef Chris Shepherd Leases Space in Regent Square. GID Development Group. OJB Landscape Architecture. James Beard Award.