Brennan’s of Houston has unveiled its renovated bar.
On the ripe age of 58, the Cajun-Creole basic Brennan’s of Houston is getting into its subsequent period because of its reimagined Courtyard Bar. It’s the newest native restaurant to breathe new life into its bar space—the Pondicheri workforce not too long ago up to date theirs—giving Houstonians much more enjoyable choices for after-work drinks.
The area now boasts black-and-white tile flooring, an expanded seating space with a horseshoe-shaped bar and zinc counter tops, a brand new cocktail and small bites menu, and an inviting French Quarteresque ambiance. It’s a part of a transfer to welcome diners in a brand new, extra informal approach with vinyl nights and wine tastings.
“We’ve been recognized for fine-dining special day for all these years, and we actually wished so as to add the side of what we name ‘wonderful informal,’” says Alex Brennan-Martin, coproprietor of Brennan’s of Houston.
Though the workforce broke floor on the renovation final April, the concept for the bar’s change has been within the works for for much longer. Throughout Hurricane Ike in 2008, the restaurant caught fireplace, destroying the roof and burning the second flooring, forsaking smoke and water harm.
The bar was moved from its unique dwelling underneath the steps to a different room, attributable to mechanical causes. However Brennan-Martin says he at all times felt like that area was too small, so in 2019, he lastly went to work on bringing a brand new bar to life. The Courtyard Bar is now the place the outdated “Phrases” eating room was—named for its look within the oyster scene of Phrases of Endearment—and its former house is an informal eating room.
“We mentioned to heck with it, let’s construct the place we need to hang around,” Brennan-Martin says.
He and his cousin Brad Brennan, who can be a coproprietor, enlisted Studio Purple Architects, the agency that had beforehand helped with the hurricane restoration. Nonetheless, they determined to carry off on critical talks till after Mardi Gras in 2020, primarily to let the busy season die down.
Brennan-Martin says he’ll always remember the day he and the architect workforce lastly sat down for preliminary sketches. They had been all sitting across the outdated bar and had the TV on when all of the sudden, the announcement in regards to the rodeo’s shutdown attributable to COVID-19 was plastered throughout the display. After that, Brennan-Martin knew he needed to put his concept on the again burner as soon as once more, as a result of all he was centered on was surviving the uncertainty that was to comply with. After issues calmed down and normalcy semireturned, in late 2021, he determined it was time to select it again up. Talks for design and planning took off, and allowing and development finally adopted.
The bar boasts black-and-white tiles and zinc counter tops.
A lot of Brennan-Martin’s inspiration got here from his love for Parisian bistros. When starting his profession, he labored and lived in Paris for just a few years, and have become enamored with the informal vibes of the smaller neighborhood joints, and oddly sufficient, the zinc counter tops.
“I simply fell in love with [them] and have at all times wished to do it,” Brennan-Martin says. “So, we simply determined that we might incorporate that into our design. It has an actual old-world, substantial really feel to it, prefer it’s speculated to be there.”
Different components of the design pay homage to his hometown of New Orleans. The bar’s black-and-white tiles emulate the flooring that he remembers seeing in his aunt’s home. And for those who pay shut consideration to the images on the partitions, you’ll see a glimpse of her home, too. The bar’s reconceptualized design additionally options chandeliers with handcrafted mermaid fixtures which might be a recreation of those that had been as soon as displayed in Brennan’s wine room previous to the fireplace, in addition to Parisian blue partitions, and quilted silver and blue banquettes.
The renovations additionally sparked a facelift to the restaurant’s drink menu. A notable new cocktail is the Parisian Fuel Lamp. Brennan-Martin says folks had been strolling previous the Durenne fuel lamps outdoors of the restaurant for years with out actually noticing that they’re distinctive to Brennan’s of Houston. So, he and the workforce determined so as to add a drink that honors the fixture. It’s influenced by the Tremblement de Terre cocktail, which options cognac, absinthe, and lemon. Brennan’s model is crafted utilizing Rémy Martin’s VSOP cognac and Cointreau Noir and is completed off with a flaming orange peel.
The Parisian Fuel Lamp is a brand new notable drink on Brennan’s menu.
Frozen cocktails at the moment are on the restaurant’s beverage menu, too. The bar’s enlargement additionally created room for a soft-serve ice cream machine, which doubles as a good way to make drinks like an Irish channel espresso, a brandy milk punch, and a P&G Cosmo made with Weber Ranch Vodka, Cointreau Noir, lime juice, cranberry juice, and easy syrup.
Diners can order from a newly added bar meals menu, which incorporates plates like pickled deviled eggs, muffuletta sliders, and New Orleans–model barbecue shrimp.
“It’s simply an amalgamation of numerous various things, and possibly meals that isn’t extra for, you realize, a white tablecloth special day fine-dining expertise,” Brennan-Martin says.
Brennan-Martin says the brand new area lends itself to many alternatives to additional the restaurant’s attain locally. He and his workforce are significantly enthusiastic about vinyl nights. As he was organising the sound for the bar and attaching it to the remainder of the restaurant, it dawned on him that an occasion like this is able to be excellent. Visitors will have the ability to both usher in their very own information or select some music from the restaurant’s personal assortment.
Brennan’s of Houston will probably be introducing wine tastings and is celebrating crawfish season with its personal boils this spring. Two have already been held, and extra are deliberate for April 24 and Could 14. Brennan Martin says there’s a lot pleasure about what’s to come back with this new chapter.
“We’re a lovable band of misfits, and we take pleasure in creating nice reminiscences and Southern hospitality for our company,” he says.
