Hours
Mon–Tue 11:00am–9:00pm
Wed–Thu 11:00am–10:00pm
Fri–Sat 11:00am–11:00pm
Sun 9:30am–9:00pm
Credit cards Visa, MC, AmEx
Reservations Accepted
Montrose
1308 Montrose Blvd.
Houston, TX
(713) 807-8996
It’s hard to find Houstonized Tex-Mex better—anywhere, anytime—than it is at this romantic vision of Colonial Mexico, adorned with giant photos of Guanajuato and cozy little booths conducive to cabeza-a-cabeza intimacy. 1308’s asking prices are sky high, but quality ingredients, great flavors, and consistency justify them. On the menu, spruced-up traditional Mexican fare like carnitas and mole verde take a back seat to giant, sizzling parrilladas: high-grade proteins in the hands of people who know what they are doing. At this Tex-Mex temple, brother of the similar El Tiempo (and with a virtually identical menu), nachos and quesadillas start above $10, six “amantes shrimp” command $30.49, and parrilladas for four are priced up to a brazen $249. Still, that feeds six Undercover Chefs, and the kitchen delivers a lot in return.
With a more upmarket vibe than El Tiempo, 1308 draws pretty people and fashion trendsters from all walks of life. Above all, they are rewarded by the delicious grilled quail. Houston is just about the only city that routinely quails up the Tex-Mex parrillada, and it pays dividends; with all due respect to the renowned chefs of Houston, we believe that the two best places for these little birds in the city are Mexican: 1308 and Doneraki. Here, they’re spicily rubbed, treated with eminent care, and cooked to a beautiful medium-rare.
Other parrillada winners include spicy, falling-off-the-bone baby back ribs and full-bodied jalapeño sausage. One supposed luxury that seems out of place, though, is the beef tenderloin fajitas. Houston’s love affair with the tenderloin and its tenderness is strange; no fat means no flavor. No flavor means lame fajitas.
Even the most classic of the Tex-Mex crowd-pleasers—cheese enchiladas with chili gravy, for instance—are right on the money here. Chiles rellenos are a great choice, with a peculiar, slightly sweet batter that works well, its funnel-cake aspect playing well off the spice, and its ground-beef filling displaying a judicious ratio of fat to meat. Beer is cold and consistent, while the great margaritas, especially after 7pm (when the price goes up two dollars), will drive up the steep bill further—but also, perhaps, help you forget about it.
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