Marcus Bar & Grille – fried chicken and cornbread waffles

The restaurant is open for dinner and weekend brunch. Standout dinner dishes include fried chicken and cornbread waffles, shrimp and grits, and dry-rubbed pork ribs, while the brunch menu adds a crab benedict, French toast, and vegetable shakshuka.

Ezov – Austin

Ezov is a new Mediterranean restaurant from Emmer & Rye Hospitality Group, whose portfolio includes Austin restaurants Emmer & Rye, Canje, Hestia and Kalimotxo, as well as Ladino in San Antonio. It opened April 27 in East Austin with Tel Aviv-born chef Berty Richter in the kitchen. Richter is also a chef/partner at Ladino and formerly ran the now-shuttered Israeli restaurant, TLV, in Austin.

Ezov – falafel with tahini and green shug

Ezov is the Hebrew name for hyssop (a shrub related to mint, and one of the main ingredients in the spice blend za’atar). Its shareable menu draws inspiration from Tel Aviv markets and Texas ingredients, and the kitchen employs a wood-fired grill to cook a variety of seasonal dishes.

Plates run from $12-$38 and include campfire kohlrabi, halloumi with date molasses and dukkah, falafel, beef and lamb kofta, and chicken shawarma with carraway cabbage and green tahini. The wine list is sourced from across the Mediterranean, with bottles from Turkey, Lebanon, and Greece.

Blind Goat – Houston

The Blind Goat is the modern Vietnamese concept from James Beard Award semifinalist and “MasterChef” winner Christine Ha, who’s also behind Houston’s Xin Chào restaurant. The restaurant originally opened in 2019 in a downtown Houston food hall, but in March, the Blind Goat decamped for a bigger space in Spring Branch that’s inspired by Vietnam’s open-air markets and street stalls.

Blind Goat – executive chef Christine Ha

The menu features starters like a deconstructed bánh mì board, pho-spiced bone marrow and egg rolls, with larger plates including a whole roasted turmeric fish, goat curry, and brisket fried rice. The bar serves classic cocktails like a Japanese whisky highball, Negroni, and daiquiri.

Riserva Bar + Tapas – Oklahoma City

Riserva opened in early March from the team behind Provisions Concepts, whose projects include Broadway 10, Culprits, and Bandee’s Barbecue. Leading the kitchen is executive chef James Fox, whose concept Vecina in Phoenix was named a James Beard finalist for Best New Restaurant.

Riserva Bar + Tapas – chef adds the finishing touch to a salad

Riserva serves a global shared plates menu ($13-$40) broken into sections like mezze, salads, and land and sea. Dishes include short rib hummus, patatas bravas, ground lamb flatbread, turmeric chicken kebab, and mussels with Spanish chorizo. The drinks menu includes equally diverse options, with a large selection of signature and classic cocktails, plus beers and ciders, wines, and several zero-proof options.

Humble Baron – Shelbyville, Tenn.

Humble Baron opened March 23 with the notable distinction of having a 518-foot bar, the longest in the world. The restaurant, bar, and live music venue debuted at Nearest Green Distillery, home of Uncle Nearest Premium Whiskey, and the bar wraps through the space, with bartenders working behind 17 stations.

Humble Baron – Nashville hot shrimp and grits

James Beard nominee chef G. Garvin, of LowCountry Restaurants in Atlanta, runs the kitchen. His menu features Southern dishes like Nashville hot shrimp and grits, and snow crab claws sautéed in brown butter and sage. To create the cocktail program, Humble Baron enlisted Gin & Luck, the hospitality group behind New York City’s. Death & Co., and the menu spotlights Black-owned spirits brands.