Feast

name of restaurant :: Feast
address :: 219 Westheimer Road
hours :: 5-10PM, lunch F, Sa 11AM-2:30PM
meals served :: L & D
prices :: lunch $13-16 , dinner $21-28
dress code :: casual
reservations :: walk-ins welcomed
website :: http://feasthouston.googlepages.com/home
review :: Based on some good press (and boredom), I decided to pop on over to Feast for lunch. I was a bit apprehensive; Feast has a reputation as an eatery for the "adventurous", you see. The British chef & owner imported their "nose-to-tail" cuisine to Houston - homey, hearty "peasant" food that's not afraid to use the whole animal. Think fried pig tails w/ dipping sauce, snail fritters, black pudding, stuffed calf's heart... you get the picture.

The place really does have a cozy vibe - stout, dark wood furnishings in what basically looks like a converted home (what I imagine one in Europe would look like, no less). There's also a nice upstairs deck with views of downtown - so I've heard - but I was comfortably perched in the main room amid a small, thirties+ crowd.

To my surprise, most of the menu is actually "normal" stuff, but I'm feeling a little bold so, at the recommendation of the friendly waiter (who I later found out is the wife of the owner - the equally-pleasant English chap who showed me to my seat), I start with a "chicken onion". It turns out to be a whole onion marinated in olive oil (and other stuff I forget), covered in chicken skin and baked in an oven. The deliciousness will haunt my dreams forever.

Next I sampled the lamb stew with dumplings and mashed potatoes. It's as good, aroma-tastic, and filling as you can imagine. I can put away food as good as anybody, but their 3-course lunch meal put me under the table. I barely finished the upside-down plum cake w/ ginger for dessert (not for lack of trying). Red-faced from a bottle of "Imperial" Stout, I returned to work stuffed and weirdly happy (and sleepy) .

I can't wait to return and taste whatever other surprises they may have to offer, plus I felt the price-to-quality/quantity-of-food ratio was ridiculously reasonable, at least for lunch.
rating :: 5 forks
reviewed by :: John Malone