Convenience Big Store: New restaurant brings Midtown vibe to the Bay Area

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Why creating a Bay Area fine dining experience was so important to this restaurateur

When you want a fancy night out, how far should you have to drive?

That's a question Rob Slate asked when he was deciding what kind of restaurant he was going to open in his hometown.

Slate is the executive chef of the soon-to-open Slate Table + Bar in League City and graduate of Clear Brook High School and noticed that people in the Bay Area tended to drive into Houston for date night or other special occasions.

He says he wants his restaurant to be about more than just great food; it should be an "experience."

As a chef, Slate said he likes to keep things interesting, and his menu is Italian-influenced with fusion-inspired instincts. As someone who loves his hometown, he wants his community to find that "Midtown vibe" they seek in Houston in their own neighborhood.

Learn more here about the experience Slate Table + Bar wants to give Bay Area residents.

Yvette Orozco, Suburban reporter producer

yvette.orozco@houstonchronicle.com

Need to Know

The Pasadena Convention Center will undergo a $50 million renovation project. The city is projecting a late 2025 completion.

Photo by: Pasadena Economic Development Corporation

Pasadena Convention Center will undergo $50M renovation.

The Pasadena Convention Center will break ground in February on a $50M renovation, the first since its opening in 1982.

The 63-acre sprawl of land known as Redfish Cove was recently acquired and now permanently protected by the Galveston Bay Foundation, a non-profit that works to preserve Galveston Bay's natural habitats and ecosystems.

Photo by: Galveston Bay Foundation

Galveston foundation acquires 63 acres for $1M conservation project.

The Galveston Bay Foundation will restore 63 acres of wetlands in a private property land conservation project.

United Launch Alliance's Vulcan rocket took its inaugural flight at 1:18 a.m. CST on Monday, Jan. 8, 2024, from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.

Photo by: United Launch Alliance

Vulcan rocket sends lunar lander and presidential hair into space.

A Vulcan rocket carrying DNA and hair samples from three U.S. presidents experienced challenges during its inaugural launch to orbit the sun.

Openings and Closings

Tropical Smoothie Cafe recently opened in Pasadena. The cafe serves healthy drinks and snacks, and customized smoothies.

Address: 7333 Fairmont Pkwy Suite 100, Pasadena.

Shout out

Congratulations to Alejandro Cantu of Sam Rayburn HS and Noah Farrag of Clear Lake HS for their game-changing plays in boys high school soccer.

The two were named in the Houston Chronicle's list of top Houston area performers from the past week.

Cantu, a sophomore, scored a goal in the Cowboys' 2-1 defeat of Benjamin Davis, and two goals in the Cowboys' 7-0 tournament win over Milby. Sam Rayburn is 4-0.

Farrag was key in Clear Lake's last Thursday's 6-1 defeat of Baytown Lee, and scored another goal in 3-1 win over Katy last Saturday. The Falcons are 2-1.

One last thing …

It's for real this time. Houston, we have a quarterback. Read Jerome Solomon's piece on how DeMeco Ryans and C.J. Stroud have brought a winning culture to Houston.