Restaurants in Cypress

Thick branches of 140-year-old oak trees stretch above Live Oak Bar and Grill, shrouding its wooden outdoor patio in a gentle blanket of leafy shade. The patio stands behind the restaurant itself, a home built in 1876 that is still decorated with photos of its original occupants and recent shots of their poltergeists.

And while the building itself is steep in century old history, the grill's cooks prefer to use ingredients whose age doesn’t match Live Oak's historic surrounds. Instead, they source fresh, natural ingredients from local farms to create their homestyle versions of classic bar dishes, from half-pound burgers to fish tacos smothered with jalapeno ranch dressing. Feasts unfold amidst rounds of billiards, sports flashing on flat-screen TVs, and weekly karaoke, while outside, live musicians occasionally take to the stage to serenade diners.

A swanky ambiance defined by an elegant decor, including stained-oak mouldings and maroon drapes, complements the high-caliber steakhouse cuisine served at Post Oak Grill. The Houston bistro has been around for 23 years, so it just got out of college. The restaurant’s chef, Polo Becerra, pairs bold flavors in starters such as duck-confit crepes with blackberry sauce and melted gorgonzola. For a main course, he might grill Gulf Coast red snapper or cook a center-cut steak and augment its juiciness by adding a port-wine-and-fig reduction. Chef Becerra and his team can even bring their culinary services to homes and offices with their catering.

At a jade-green bar, servers pour a long list of international wines. Nearby, a pianist tickles the ivories during happy hour. On Thursday–Saturday evening, musicians perform classic songs or melodic readings of the newspaper fine-arts section.

Recalling the swirling skirts of tango dancers, Tango & Malbec’s dining room pulsates with red and black hues. Red cloths grace tables and can be removed easily in the event of impromptu bull stampedes, and a dark wooden floor hosts tango dancers on Saturday nights. In keeping with the sultry ambiance, the flicker of flames from the open kitchen’s grill casts the dining room in a warm glow. Over a wood-burning grill, chefs coax flavors from juicy slabs of grass-fed, free-range elk, buffalo, and beef. Once the succulent cuts have soaked up smoky aromas, chefs serve them with piquant chimichurri sauce or atop beds of homemade pastas.

Dubbed “a carnivorous extravaganza” by the Houston Chronicle, Angus Grill Brazilian Steakhouse serves all-you-can-eat feasts of skewered meat prepared in the churrasco tradition of southern Brazil. Servers run the piquant pageant, carving slabs of Angus beef at tables lined with crisp white linens instead of the stolen Little League rain tarps that some restaurants prefer. Filet mignons borrow crispy texture by donning strips of bacon, and top sirloin, the house specialty, flavors succulent juices with a hint of garlic. Treats such as fried bananas and papaya cream conclude meals on a sweet note.

The chef at White Oak Kitchen + Drinks—which opened in the Galleria Mall in April 2011—plucks fresh rosemary, oregano, mint, and basil from an herb garden he's cultivated on the roof, mixing them into a spread of contemporary dishes with international influences. He lightly breads calamari in panko breadcrumbs, adding a spicy sriracha aioli for some kick, and pan-sears mahi-mahi with grilled shrimp and a sweet red-bell-pepper coulis. Classic, southern-style crispy chicken gets extra flavor from Hungarian paprika and a creamy side of macaroni and cheese. For dessert, the s'mores bread pudding inspires stories of hard-won paranormal-investigation merit badges with toasted marshmallows and a graham-cracker crust drizzled with chocolate sauce. Staffers also serve up freshly baked pastries or farm-fresh eggs for breakfast.

The private dining area hosts up to 30 party guests in front of a 50-inch flat-screen HD television, and business-meeting presenters can place their laptops in a docking station to project a slideshow or a deadlocked game of solitaire. The restaurant's wood walls add texture and warmth to the ambience, as do the framed cross-sections of tree-trunk rings.

Those who say things aren't the way they were back in the good old days certainly haven't had a burger and fries from The Burger Shack. The welcoming spot echoes the low-key, homey feel of those iconic burger joints past. The walkup counter and pennant-strewn dining room act as a backdrop for a deliciously nostalgic menu of juicy Angus burgers and Blue Bell shakes. The cooks lovingly shape each third-pound grilled-to-order burger using beef that’s never seen a freezer or even received Valentines from a snowflake. Toppings for the juicy sizzlers can include Wisconsin cheddar, Hass avocados, or crispy bacon. The shack's staff members also hand make addictive sides such as curly fries and hand-dipped shakes.