Houston Restaurant Closings to Know Right Now, December 2024

December marks the last of pizza and crudo restaurant Elro, EQ Heights coffee shop, Downtown’s Italian restaurant and live-music hub Sambuca, and Crú Food & Wine Bar

2024 is nearly over, but unfortunately, the closings are not. Many restaurants are still reporting that a changing landscape caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, rising costs, and a rough summer of scorching heat and weather disasters have been particularly tough on the industry. Here’s a rundown of some of December’s closings:

The list is by no means comprehensive. Have information on another closing? Send all tips to houston@eater.com

Elro

Montrose’s cozy pizza and crudo restaurant announced earlier this month that it’s closing on New Year’s Eve after a year and a half in business. Chef Terrance Gallivan, formerly of Pass & Provisions, told Eater Houston that a tough summer due to Hurricane Beryl and the derecho, followed by a wavering economy and slow days in the restaurant, led to his decision to close the restaurant. Gallivan has no set plans for 2025, but he hopes Elro, which will continue with its full menu and special through New Year’s Eve, will go out with a bang.

Cru Food & Wine Bar

Once nestled between new handroll restaurant Kira and modern Indian restaurant Pondicheri, Houston’s sole location of Crú Food & Wine Bar closed on December 18. Crú’s former managing partner, Annette Amaya, announced the closure on Instagram, stating that the wine bar, which first opened in May 2011, was offering wine for half-off on its last day. The Woodlands location of Crú “is still thriving,” she says.

EQ Heights

After a decade in business, this local coffee shop and community space announced on social media in mid-December that it would close its doors on December 29 after its building was transferred to new “occupants.” The EQ Heights team said there are no plans to relocate the coffee shop, but they are exploring other options. “The spirit of EQ Heights isn’t tied to a building—it’s in the friendships, the shared stories, the laughter, and the community we’ve built together,” they wrote, calling the closing a “hopeful pause.” “We will stay strong, together, as a community, and we look forward to reuniting in the future.” The EQ team says they’ll continue business as usual through the month, with a special Going Away Social held on the evening of Sunday, December 29 – its final day of business.

Sambuca

This iconic Downtown Italian restaurant that built a reputation for its live music closed on December 14 after 22 years in business. “The changing climate of our city, with rising homelessness and crime, coupled with the lingering impacts of COVID and the resulting empty office spaces, has created a perfect storm that we could not weather,” owner Kim Forsythe wrote on social media. “Though we fought with everything we had to keep our doors open, we’re choosing to close this chapter with gratitude, carrying countless memories over the past 22 years.” Forsythe reminisced about the bar’s “electric energy” during its SuperBowl parties and its many intimate musical performances.

“We want you to know that this decision does not define the legacy we’ve built or the impact we’ve had on our community,” she wrote. “Though our physical doors may be closing, the spirit of what we’ve created will live on through each and every one of us.”

Killer Noodle

Readers wrote in to Eater Houston weeks ago questioning whether this Los Angeles-based ramen shop’s outpost in the Heights was closed, and indeed, it is. Google has listed the location as “permanently closed” for weeks, and Chron.com reported that the noodle shop closed due to ongoing construction in the area. While its Instagram profile still exists, the website, which also represents its Los Angeles location, is inactive. Known for serving tantanmen, a spicy style of Japanese ramen similar to dan dan noodles in various heat levels, the ramen shop opened in the Heights in October 2022 with lots of excitement and fanfare, but apparently, not enough to keep it around. The founder also owns Tsujita Artisan Noodle, which has locations in Houston’s Westchase area and Los Angeles.

Mr. Wish

After five years of business, this Taiwanese fruit and bubble tea chain abruptly closed its Houston location in Bellaire on Saturday, November 30. The owners gave little explanation for the closing on their Instagram, where they made the announcement, but they said closing was a “difficult decision.”