With a nod to the past and a vision for the future, restaurateur John Moore (owner of Palazzo’s Westchase and Palazzo’s Café) has opened the doors to Moderno Tacos + Tex Mex, a modern day cantina located at 10455 Briar Forest Drive at Beltway 8. Partnering with architect Issac Preminger, designer Melanie Bell of Pear Tree Concepts, and wife Stassa Moore, the team has created a casual urban space r
eminiscent of an upscale border town cantina. The restaurant features Mexican street tacos and fusion tacos along with old-school Tex-Mex. Moderno pays tribute to the border town cantinas and restaurants of years past, including the original El Restaurante Moderno a legendary cantina located in Piedras Negras, Coahuila, Mexico, just across the border from Eagle Pass, Texas. It was in existence 91 years before closing its doors in 2010. In its prime, the Mexican restaurant served generations of luminaries and film stars including John Wayne, who dined there regularly in 1960 while filming The Alamo. It is also where Nacho Anaya invented his “specialty” known as the nacho. Houston’s modern day Moderno features salvaged/repurposed wood walls, traditional Mexican encaustic tiles, distressed pine tables with festive splashes of turquoise and yellow. Bottle walls that repurpose wine and spirit vessels were created as textural and unique light reflecting room dividers. Lights strung through the center of the room evoke a casual hacienda patio. Oscar, a trophy Elk that is prominently displayed against the restaurant’s back wall, is named after Houstonian Oscar Wyatt, a family friend who owned the Colorado ranch where Oscar hails from. The restaurant operates counter service breakfast and lunch during weekdays, along with table service at dinner. On weekends, join us for brunch, lunch or dinner, when the restaurant operates as counter service from 8 am to 11 am, then turns to table service for the remainder of the day. On the beverage side of the menu, Moderno carries more than 50 tequila labels and specializes in fresh juice margaritas. Additionally, the restaurant serves craft beers, wine, sangria, micheladas and other cocktails, along with local coffee, tea, fresh lemonade and sodas. The restaurant is open daily for breakfast, lunch, dinner and weekend brunch. For more information visit www.motacos.com or follow Moderno Tacos + Tex Mex on Twitter at www.twitter.com/modernotexmex.
