Not Easy to Find, But Worth the Effort In February, we were in Houston for my wife to attend several meetings at the Texas Medical Center. We were staying at the Marriott, and decided to walk to dinner at Third Coast. Luckily, we started out...early, as our walking software, kept taking us into parking garages, dead ends and then an Emergency entrance at Children’s Hospital. Finally, we found 6550 Bertner Ave, and the John P McGovern Texas Medical Center Commons, but the search was not over yet. We saw Third Coast signs outside the building, and at each entrance. Once inside, however, no signs, that we could find. We ended up in a closed food court off of the lobby, and called. We were given instructions to turn around, enter a small hallway, and there we would find an elevator. That we did, and exited the elevator to the Third Coast signs, and entrance. Whew, we were on-time, and rather hungry from our walk. We were promptly seated, in a dining area, to the right of the bar. There were only a few groups of people in this very large restaurant, and it looked like they were having either very late business lunches, or very early business dinners. Third Coast is an interesting venue: it is comprised of about three large dining areas, which are only visually separated from each other, in that there are not walls, but the décor is different enough, that they do appear to be somewhat separate. Off of those large areas, there do appear to be private, or semi-private dining areas, as well. Then, there is a bar, with more seating + booths and a dozen TV sets hanging from the ceiling, and finally an outdoor dining area, but this patio was not open in February, and especially with the poor weather. It appeared to be very nice, and would be ideal for the Spring, or Autumn - though not this rainy Winter night. The interior is very attractive, but was a little less “formal,” than I had expected for a fine-dining restaurant. Well, Third Coast seems to be a bit of a chameleon, in that it serves different purposes: it is a breakfast and lunch restaurant for the entire Texas Medical Complex, and especially the John P McGovern Texas Medical Center building. It is an after work bar, and also a place for meetings, and then becomes a fine-dining restaurant in the evening. I saw mention of it being available for large groups, and can see how much of the open dining area could be reconfigured for those. looking around, I did see several 8-tops, plus one of the groups dining/meeting, looked to be a party of about 12. There is also a grand piano in one area, near a lovely, contemporary fireplace. The décor and interior architecture are beautiful, as is the lighting. An attractive and interesting place. I had the wine list in hand, along with the menus, and began doing my reading. We were at a large, comfortable 4-top, and as we were walking, my first order was the wines - besides, in looking around, I saw several wine storage displays in the walls. Yes, time for wine! I ordered the Ceritas “Peter Martin Ray Santa Cruz Mountains Chardonnay ‘14 to start. However, our server returned and apologized - they were out. OK, off to Plan B - the Failla Keefer Ranch Russian River Chardonnay ‘14. He had brought our some rather small-bowl glasses, when he was looking for the Ceritas, and I asked for larger bowls, for the big Chard. He had those on the table very quickly. The stemware was very nice. We did an eclectic blend of shared dishes for dinner: Jumbo Lump Crab w/ avocado, Fiji apple, tomato and ginger orange vinaigrette - Quite good, with succulent crab meat, and some interesting flavors and textures. Rice Flour-crusted Calamari w/ chili lime aioli - Excellent, and the calamari were both flavorful and tender. Crab Cake w/ jumbo lump crab, corn, spinach, shiitake mushrooms and lemon butter - OK, we were getting our USDA Daily Minimum Allowance of crab, but we now live in Arizona, having moved from the Gulf Coast, so we can be excused. Besides, we were sharing, remember. Redfish, which was pan-seared, and rubbed with guajillo w/ coconut & cilantro rice, roasted corn, black bean, mango & avocado salsa and jalapeño cream - This Main Course was also shared, and was adequate for two, with our split Appetizers, and then the added Mashed Kennebec Potatoes, which were nicely done. Reading over the menu descriptions, I was a bit worried that Chef John Buchanan was just throwing ingredients together, as most dishes had quite a few, and some which seemed incongruous. However, they all worked from a textural, as well as a flavor standpoint - nicely done! We added a few wines from the B-T-G selections: Baileyana “Firepeak Vineyard” Edna Valley Pinot Noir ‘17 Jax Vineyards Y3 Taureau Napa blend (Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah) ‘16 Now, the wine list is not that long, nor that deep. Yes, there are a few of “the usual suspects,” but more are quite interesting wines, and not commonly seen. I was impressed with our older Chardonnay, but it seemed to have been beautifully stored. The B-T-G list was as interesting, as was the B-T-B list. Someone really cares about the wines, and it showed. Our service was very good, though the pacing could have been just a bit better. Yes, we were doing several Appetizers, but they were coming a bit too quickly - as though we were a party of four, with each person ordering a separate dish. However, during the entire night, that was my only quibble, and a minor one at that. I also think that the small dining crowd might have thrown the kitchen off a bit - it had begun to rain hard, and the weather outside was just not nice, at all. I think that after the two business tables cleared, there were only two other couples, in the large room. We found the noise level to be virtually non-existent, but remember, there were few diners for dinner, beyond the two groups, and they were conducting business. The lighting is very good - and attractive. The table spacing was excellent, and we could easily have had private conversations, even if the room had been filled. Now, getting back to our hotel, just a few blocks away, turned into another adventure, but that is another story. It had turned out to be a miserable night, weather-wise, but I am so glad that we dined at Third Coast. As my wife meets at the Texas Medical Center fairly often, we will return. Actually, when we exited the building, and looked back, she recognized that she had attended two meetings there, on a previous trip, but had not noticed Third Coast - well worth seeking out.More
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