scraps to scrumptious

A Taste of Argentina in Houston

The Original Marini’s Empanada House 

Everyone knows what empanadas are, folded bread with meat, cheese, vegetables, fruits, or sweets in the middle. Popular in Latin America, variants of empanadas exist in other countries: samosas in India, calzones in Italy, or meat pies in Ghana. Coming from a Chinese background, they reminded me of my mom’s very own Curry Chinese Pastries, which are absolutely delicious and easy to make, just using refrigerated pie crust dough and Japanese curry powder with vegetables and chicken. I remember glazing each one with egg yolk and using a fork to “seal the envelope”. So empanadas were not a huge surprise to me, but after hearing about my suitemates raving about this one place in Houston that takes roughly 30-40 minutes to drive there, I just had to see what the fuss was all about..

My three wishes came on a bright green plate: Las Pampas, the Humita, and the CHIO Surprise. Before I go on with the details of each empanada, something important needs to be discussed. If you ever pick up a fork and knife to “dissect” your empanadas, expect some dirty looks from your friends, other customers, and the owners. There is an adorable picture of a young chef showing you how to eat an empanada the proper way. Follow it, but be careful not to burn yourself! These empanadas are extremely hot. Restrain yourselves… 

Las Pampas (savory): Ground beef, onions, spices, avocado, and Italian mozzarella cheese. The beef and onions, combined with the avocado wasn’t heavy. But the flavor was a little lost with the overwhelming amount of cheese.

La Humita (savory): Corn, cream sauce, onions, mozzarella, provolone cheese, and spices. A traditional empanada in Argentina, the Humita is the shining star on the menu. Although heavily pumped with cheese, this emapanada’s corn and cream sauce combination was incredibly tasteful and delighting.

Chio Surprise (sweet): Diced banana, Ghiradelli chocolate chips and dulce de leche. The rule stays true. Anything with the word “Surprise” in it, is a risk, but a risk worth taking. The ingredients sounded wonderful, but all together, it was too overwhelming. The amount of chocolate and dulce de leche flooded out of my empanada, and was a constant struggle to maintain. However, the warmth of the empanada with the chocolate was delightful. Advice: Keep a cup of water on hand. 

Overall, I am impressed with this restaurant and can see it opening another branch by Rice. These affordable and large empanadas would easily satisfy the taste buds and busy schedules of college students. 

The Original Marini’s Empanada House 

Carillion Shopping Centre

10001 Westheimer Road 

Houston, TX 77042

713.266.2729

SPECIAL FEATURE: Guest Blogger - Enstin

Thanks for blogging Enstin for S2S! I miss Houston so much already! 

Sweet Paris Creperie & Cafe

This cute little crepe shop just opened in the Village in May 2012, taking over the narrow space that Patu used to occupy. Patu had been my favorite Thai place in the Village and I was sad to see it go, but I had hope for Sweet Paris to be the new go-to crepe place since Coco’s Crepes in midtown was a bit too far for satisfying crepe cravings.

Sweet Paris Creperie & Café clearly put a lot of thought into its ambiance, transforming Patu’s kitchy, hole-in-the wall feel to something completely different. Stepping into this pristine café is like stepping into a whimsical Paris, with sparkling glass chandeliers and plush seating. White brick walls and sky blue walls bring an airy feel and vintage-style photographs of classic Parisian scenes add to the experience. 

The “experience” I am talking about here is the crepe eating! Savory and sweet crepes are both offered, and there are several enticing options to choose from. With the exception of the classic Nutella and fruit combination, all the other crepes are intriguing (or am I just a crepe novice?). Some of the interesting dinner selections include Nordic (smoked salmon, fresh dill, sour cream, capers, scallions, and lemon) and turkey, grapes, and brie. For dessert, there are DDL (Argentine Dulce de Leche) crepes and Very Berry crème brulee, among others.  The first decision to make is whether to get a savory crepe, a dessert crepe, or both!

I finally decided on a dessert crepe, the DDL with strawberries and bananas, and my friends tried the Chicken Carbonera, Nutella with strawberries, and Sugar & Spice. Sweet Paris was generous with their crepe sizes, and I probably would not have been able to eat both dinner and dessert. The presentation of each variety was distinct and delightful. The dessert crepes we chose tasted as expected from their descriptions, delicious but not particularly exciting. There is nothing wrong with that either, since a tasty treat is always welcomed. Nutella is Nutella, no matter where you go. Chicken Carbonera was unusual as a crepe choice, but it definitely worked here. Flavorful and just the right texture.

Sweet Paris Creperie & Café lives up to its expectations of delivering a variety of freshly made crepes in an endearing atmosphere. The staff is exceptionally friendly and attentive, although this might be because it only recently opened. A highly anticipated addition to Rice Village, Sweet Paris joins the ranks of the other French establishments, contributing to what appears to be a golden era for French (or Americanized- French) cuisine here- we already have La Madeleine, Croissant Brioche, Café Rabelais, Le Peep, and Bistro des Amis! Sweet Paris should not have too much trouble with the competition though…there is always demand for a cute place for stopping after too much shopping.

Sweet Paris Creperie & Cafe

2420 Rice Blvd. 

Houston, TX 77005

713.360.6266

Enstin is a Houston-native and graduate from Rice University Class of 2011. She most recently traveled to Costa Rica, and blogged about her musings on her cute and intelligently written, Pigeons and Loquats. She will be traveling to China tomorrow and start medical school this summer. 

Just Beyond the Hedges, Rice Village: OH MY GOD. OH MY GOGI!

Say you are a Korean who misses her kimchi and has an affinity for Mexican food…OH MY GOGI! We have a solution for you!

OhMyGogi is a Mexican-Korean fusion food truck with an eye-catching logo and some smiley cooks! With tacos, fries, quesadillas, and burgers, it’s no surprise this food truck is gaining popularity in Houston. I ordered the chicken kimchi quesadillas ($5), and the kimchi bulgogi fries ($6)…OMGI! It was so delicious. It was like being back in Singapore again, where food has an extra punch of excitement. Surprisingly, the kimchi and the cheese are married from the best of two worlds: the creaminess of the cheese and the crunchiness of the kimchi. It is a match made in heaven.

Breakdown

Chicken Kimchi Quesadillas: What really amazed me was the kimchi and cheese pressed in the middle of the tortilla, and the light house special sauce with salsa roja on top. It was so elegantly crafted and paired nicely with a small slice of lemon. The tiny bit of cilantro was just enough to make the quesadilla both filling and refreshing.

OMG! Kimchi Bulgogi Fries: I have never eaten fries with a fork before, but when you go to OhMyGogi, it’s a must. Slaughtered on top: four different kinds of cheeses, spicy house sauce, sriracha sauce, with onion and cilantro… this is stole the spotlight of the night. It’s a deceiving dish because it could easily be overlooked as an ordinary basket of fries with some ketchup and cheese, but it’s secretly packed with explosive flavor. 

Overall, OMG! is a nice break from studying and a good way to excite your taste buds. If you think eating food at night makes you sleepy, OMG! is like drinking a Red Bull or getting a double-shot espresso drink. It creates a whole new level of late night snacking. You will just crave OhMyGogi. 

Check out their twitter for information about when they are open here. And as a heads up, if you are going for the food and not just to satisfy your after beer munchies, go on a weekday, so you don’t fight with the long lines on Friday and Saturday nights. 

Beyond the Hedges: HUGE CHUNKS OF TOFU!

Les Givral’s Sandwich and Cafe, Midtown, McGowen Station

One of the best parts about coming back to Houston is V-town. YES, Vietnamese restaurants in Houston are extremely exciting opportunities to get away from servery food and add some spice into your life. When I was in Singapore, I really thought I would be able to grab a bowl of pho whenever I was in the mood, but strangely, Vietnamese is not as popular. (I guess when you are competing with Thai, Malay, Indian, Japanese, and Chinese, there are already too many options.) One of my favorite places to grab dinner from on Saturdays is at Les Givral’s Sandwich and Cafe in Midtown. I’ll admit their beef pho is not as great as Pho Saigon, just down one shopping complex, but their Tofu Pho (~$5) is absolutely fantastic! 

With huge chunks of tofu, it is sure to make a tofu lover feel reunited with tofu from depressing breakup and happy to be back with V-town again. My fellow blogger, got the vermicelli because the pho uses beef broth, and it was like a nice salad with delicious fried tofu. The sauce is definitely key when eating this. Don’t ever forget it! 

Pluses of Les Givral’s are that it is accessible by rail and the food is almost always cheap. Sandwiches are about $2.5/$3, with a variety of flavors. Get out there and get some Vietnamese cuisine into your system!