Some Houston Restaurants & Bars Temporarily Closed due to Omicron Spread & Testing
It seems like the Grinch is trying to steal Christmas — but hopefully thanks to prompt, preventative action by several restaurant and bar owners, he won’t drag our Holiday cheer up Mount Crumpit. Due to the spread of the omicron variant of COVID-19 — in the general population and in some cases among staff — multiple Houston restaurant and bar owners made the tough decision to temporarily close. Some places that closed over the weekend are already reopening, while others are remaining closed through the Christmas weekend.
Here are the places we know about so far. This list will be updated as more information comes in. To let us know about restaurants and bars that are temporarily closed, please email us.
Already Reopened
Angel Share, 924 Congress: The downtown bar that donates a portion of proceeds to charity closed briefly — just over the weekend — in order for employees to get tested. Fortunately, all tests came back negative so Angel Share is reopening for regular hours as of Monday, December 20.
Brasil, 2604 Dunlavy: The Montrose mainstay closed on Sunday, December 19 so staff could get tested. There must have been a lot of good news, because it’s already back to regular hours as of Monday, December 20.
Temporarily Closed
Boomtown Coffee, 242 West 19th in the Heights and 800 Capitol at the Understory food hall: At least for Monday, December 20, this local craft coffee shop is closed due to some employees being exposed to COVID-19. The temporary closing is to allow time for the staff to get tested.
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Dandelion Cafe, 5405 Bellaire: This spot for coffee, breakfast and lunch and late-afternoon fare was among the first to announce that it was temporarily closing. An email to its customer mailing list reported several staff members had tested positive for COVID. Dandelion Cafe will remain closed through Christmas weekend, and the current plan is to reopen on Monday, December 27.
Double Trouble Caffeine & Cocktails, 3622 Main: The midtown coffee shop and bar closed over the weekend so that its team could get tested. Hopefully, it will reopen for regular hours on Wednesday, December 22.
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Nobie’s, 2048 Colquitt: On Sunday, December 19, this Montrose eatery announced on Instagram that it was closing for the holiday week earlier than planned. Originally, Nobie’s planned to close December 24 through 27 for the Christmas holidays. It’s regularly closed on Mondays and Tuesdays, so it only lost a day of business.
Pearl Bar, 4216 Washington: No one wants to bring home an illness for the holidays, so the bar is doing its part by staying closed for now. The hope is that it will reopen soon after Christmas Day.
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Squable, 632 West 19th: The acclaimed restaurant founded by Justin Yu and Bobby Heugel, and featuring the talents of chef Mark Clayton, suffered some breakthrough cases among vaccinated staff. It’s currently closed and has not yet announced a reopening date.
Tiny Champions, 2617 McKinney: The sister restaurant of Nancy’s Hustle closed this past weekend due to staff members testing positive, but it was offerin a limited to-go menu. Co-owner Sean Jensen is planning on reopening on Tuesday, December 21. “We have not had any mores cases and are getting everyone to test before they return,” he said via email. He also said that Nancy’s Hustle was not affected and did not close.
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Underbelly Hospitality: All of chef Chris Shepherd’s restaurants closed over the past weekend and will remain so through Tuesday. These include One Fifth, Georgia James and Georgia James Tavern. As it is, UB Preserv is already set to close after a final day of service this Thursday, December 23. The Hay Merchant is getting an extension, as it was originally set to close on the same day. It will now remain open until Georgia James temporarily relocates to One Fifth mid-January. “The health of our staff is most important — we hope to have a plan for the rest of the week by tomorrow,” wrote a representative. All Underbelly Hospitality restaurants will also be closed from December 25 through 27 for the Christmas holiday weekend.
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