LOCAL Houston | The City Guide JULY 2016 | Page 23

FOOD | ARTS | COMMUNITY | STYLE+LEISURE

One of Houston’s great dining pleasures and a Rice Village institution, the Spanish/Cuban restaurant has been going strong, operated by the same family since the ’80s (now onto the third generation, with daughter & sommelier Jessica running the wine program)!
This is not a common occurrence, dear readers! So grab a dark
wood booth along the wall or one of the many white-clothed
tables in the spacious (but very traditional) dining area and enjoy
some fantastic wine, the famous paellas and the extensive list of
tapas and wine. Go ahead, order a few tapas or start with a margarita before that bottle of wine – you deserve it. El Meson is a
comfortable place where you can enjoy a meal made with ingredients that speak for themselves, have a conversation where you
can actually hear the rest of your party, have a glass of wine with
the owners and mingle with new friends who have called El
Meson a second home for years. We can’t emphasize enough
how much of a treat it is to have a restaurant like this, especially in
our town where restaurants come and go quite quickly. Please, do
go and see for yourself.
So here we have the perfect summer pair, the WHITE SANGRIA
and CRABCAKE. Hot d@mn, that crab was so good. Excuse us.
So fresh, and perfectly cooked melt-in-your-mouth crab, slightly
crisp on the outside and dressed in sliced pineapple and mint chiffonade. It also has a nice kick from the ginger & grapefruit reduction which pretty much yells summer when it hits your mouth. So
does this impeccable sangria. Simple, with quality ingredients
(much like the entire menu at El Meson), you’ll notice the absence
of fruit pieces in this effervescent treat. El Meson makes it with the
excellent Spanish liqueur Licor 43, a crisp & dry white wine, some
orange juice and a splash of soda water for a nice added pop.
That Licor 43 drops more citrus and hints of vanilla into the delightfully refreshing (but not sweet) drink. This is just one of many perfect
pairs available to enjoy at El Meson. Here’s to another 35 years.

By Mike Cook
Photography by Sarah Miller

EL MESON | 2425 University Blvd. | Houston, TX 77005 | 713.522.9306
www.elmeson.com | Info@elmeson
Mon–Sat 11am–10pm, Sun 12–9pm
july 16 |

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