Simposio

I bought a group coupon for Simposio and it was scheduled to expire at the end of March. I showed up at the restaurant to have a late lunch and I found it was permanently closed — as in out of business.

(This is a 4.5-er because it wasn’t 100%, but it was about 95% awesome). Mr J and I went here for our 6^th anniversary. As we drove down Westheimer I found myself thinking… okay, could restaurant locations in Houston get any more odd?! There’s no way a high-​end Italian restaurant is next to a Target, and behind a Verizon wireless store, is there? In the same plaza as a Chipotle and a Which Wich?
But oh yes, another marvel of Houston shopping maul randomness… Simposio is thankfully a lot more pleasant inside than outside– quiet, but peaceful with an inconspicuous live pianist and saxophone player. Frosted glass windows hide the strip maul hell.
They clearly move at a different pace in here too. When we were seated, rather than menus we were handed a wine list and a some amazing bruschetta. Oh my lord… the tomatoes and basil were so fresh, the crustini crunchy and perfect.
I let the waiter pick a pinot noir for me, and while he went for the most expensive glass, it really was quite good/​$ 12/​glass good? Not sure, with my blunt palette, but I sipped it happily.
The Tuscan bean soup was so delicious, and it arrived with more complementary bruschetta and the best, fresh made focaccia I’ve ever had.
My porchini (mushroom) ricotta ravioli (with a sage butter sauce) were amazing too– about 10 medium sized ravioli and plenty of sauce to be sopped up with the endless supply of fresh warm bread.
Somehow… somehow I managed to cram in some crème brûlée. I actually thought the vanilla bean and orange in it stood out perfectly, but J was less wowed by his.
Several minutes after desert plates had been cleared they seemed to want to let us sit and talk, but we were doing everything we could to signal that we were ready to leave. J suggested we start making out, I suggested I drum on the table while he beat-​boxed. We thought putting my dinner napkin on my head like a nun and sidling up to one of the neighboring tables might work too. I’m not exaggerating– we were getting creative because we didn’t receive the check for nearly 45 minutes after desert! I think that was a blip, or our hilarity at the ways we could get Simposio to hasten our departure was mistaken for our enjoying our conversation too much to risk their disturbing us.
Otherwise the service was quite attentive, just slower paced than my type-​A self is accustomed to.

Disclaimer: this was our anniversary celebration meal, and we went a bit more all out than we usually might, so there’s a lot to cover, here.
This is one of those classic Houston «why are you in a strip mall» restaurants. The good news is, as soon as you are through the big, heavy, wooden doors, you forget it is in a strip mall. The ambience is really charming. It is –not– that bizarre mix of contemporary chic and «old school class» that way too many places at this price point try to play (which in my opinion never works). They work the old school angle pretty across the board, and with the exception of managing to avoid the over-​wrought dark wood paneling, every booth seems like a private, corner table, I can barely see my food thing that so many old school places seem to slide into (a good thing to avoid), they pull off old school very well. They even have the classic, not wonderfully well rendered, pastoral mural on one wall — a vineyard scene at harvest, in this case. The one exception to the old school thing was the stemware, all of which was beyond enormous and strangely angular. But somehow, it worked.
We were seated, and presented with nothing but a wine list, at first. Well, and a small plate of crustini bruschetta which was expertly prepared. In spite of the celebratory nature of our evening, Liz wasn’t up for the commitment that choosing a bottle represented, so she opted for a glass, and I had a delightful Armagnac served in a truly unique stem (very long stem, very small bowl). Liz says that the Italian Pinot Noir that our waiter recommended was very good.
After our drinks arrived and we had sipped them, the waiter asked if we were ready to see menus, or not. This is a question I had never been asked before, and I have to say, had I been expecting, when I arrived, to not be rushed into decisions and ordering, I’d have been very happy with the change of pace. But it was a tiny bit confusing, given how unusual this is.
After a lot of indecisive himing and hawing on my part (because everything sounded marvelous), I decided to have a seafood entrée and skip the calamari appetizer (a personal favorite), and started with a soup, instead. Their Tuscan style cannellini bean soup is better than my own, which is saying something. It is one of those dishes that you wish you had more of, but at the same time, you’re trying not to fill up before the real show begins.
I have to confess that I didn’t read the description of the linguini fruita de mare before ordering it. So I was a bit taken aback when it arrived served in a spicy red sauce. I’m accustomed to this dish being a white wine sauce. That being said, this variant was well balanced, nothing was overpowered, the fresh rosemary somehow managed to infuse the whole dish without once encountering a single needle of it in my mouth. Baby octopus, scallops, shrimp, calamari rings and mussels.
We both followed up with their crème brûlée and fresh fruit. This is my only criticism for the whole evening. The sugar on top was not sufficiently caramelized or crunchy on my portion. That being said, the custard was wonderfully firm and the fruit was plump and fresh.
The armagnac (Larressingle VSOP) was not one with which I was familiar, but was that marvelous balance of oak, smoke, fruit and acid that makes fine brandies such a perfect spirit. If you’re only going to have one Armagnac on your list, this is a good one to have.
As an aside, these were neither the kind of typical neauvou portions that make you wish you could afford four courses, nor were they stereotypical red sauce joint portions that make you feel like you’re somehow taking home more left overs than you actually managed to eat. We both finished all three of our courses without effort, and we rarely order this way. We’re usually the kinds of penny pinchers who order a drink and an entrée, nothing more. So don’t go in expecting a pound of pasta, but don’t be afraid to order courses, you won’t be rolling home.
Again, similar to our experience at the beginning of the meal, they were clearly content to let us sit at the table and chat as long as we cared to when we were finished. This eventually became a bit comedic, with the two of us cracking jokes about to what level we would have to escalate our antics before they «cordially invited us to continue our evening somewhere else». On the one hand, it is nice to not be rushed, on the other, at some point, how do you know how to politely indicate you want your check?
A live saxophonist began around 7:30 from the bar area which made it the perfect volume for the dining room. Unfortunately, he went into that one jazz saxophone song that they all seem to inevitably do, and not do very well, just as we were leaving, and it is now the 10 pound ear worm that will prevent me from sleeping.
The staff were the perfect balance of attentive and discreet.
Aside from some cultural barriers that next time I’ll enjoy instead of fretting, a ¹⁰⁄₁₀.

I stopped here the other night simply because I wanted something to go with a good glass of red and figured a hearty Italian meal was the right choice. Boy did I pick the right place.
The restaurant itself is very attractive. Very elegant bar with a piano near by, and a nice dining room. The one thing that struck me was that while, yes, it was a school night, and yes, it was fairly early (I was there from 5 – 6) there was not another patron in the place.
The manager was the one who greeted me at the door and took care of me. I sat at the bar (like I do when I’m by myself) and ordered my standard Maker’s Manhattan (very dry). I forgot to say «up» so it wound up being served on the rocks. (That’s E-​Me for those of you scoring at home, or even if you’re alone). Either way, it was well made.
The special that night was ossobuco, which I love. This was served on a bed of cheesy risotto, and was out of this world amazing. When it came time for the wine, the manager simply asked if I wanted to try something. I appreciate a server who’s willing to make a suggestion and is confident enough in his skills to ask a patron to just trust them. The wine (and I wish I could remember what it was) was outstanding and a perfect match for the dinner.
It’s a bit on the spendier side ($ 38 for the ossobuco), but the food is worth it. I’d like to see how the atmosphere is on a busier night.

Strange experience. We had reservations at 7:00 PM. Upon entering the restaurant, we were very impressed with the ambiance, particularly that of the main dining room. To our dismay, we were led to the back room, where an Asian couple was also dining. This was close to the kitchen, cold, confined, and loud (echoes). We had the complimentary bruschetta and began to look forward to the night. What bothered me was when a third Asian party was led again to the back room. Now, there were three Asian parties in a back room maybe suited for four parties total.
Problem was rectified but with some fuss. A waiter (not our waiter) actually said no, despite the many available tables outside that were «all reserved.» I was pretty steamed at this point and we were moved. Plenty of the other tables that were «reserved» remained available throughout the night. Just strange.
Other than that, everything was pretty good. Our waiter was obviously inexperienced (constantly forgetting the specials, mixing up our orders) but in a charming apologetic way that made it apparent he was working hard. The food was great– calamari, veal chop, two fish specials, a pasta. This was for four light eaters and it was well-​portioned.
Certainly not the best Italian restaurant in Houston, but not bad if not for the issue at the very beginning of the night.

Absolutely excellent and authentic Italian, more than southern Italian meatballs and tomato sauce variations. We started off with two variations of calamari, one traditional and one highly spiced. I have high standards for calamari and this exceeded it. no rubbery fish here, crisp, light breading, hot and delicious. For entrees we had Chilean sea bass, Osso Bucco, a veal chop and beef tenderloin. When the waiter saw were were passing around and sharing he re-​appeared with extra small plates and forks — without being asked. Everything was to die for. We didn’t have any room for dessert but the menu looked really good. I think this would be a great place for a romantic dinner too.