(Picture above: Shamrock hotel in Houston, Texas, 1949, wikipedia, retrieved from http://www.houstondeco.org/1940s/shamrock.html, from architect’s advertisement)
Did you know that baked-potato toppings originated at a Houston restaurant? Do you know the name of the Houston restaurant where Frank Sinatra & Ava Gardner’s secret affair came out after they dined there? You don’t have to be a native Houstonian to try this quiz. Just click here to test your knowledge of the famous restaurants of old Houston and Galveston!
1. What downtown restaurant in Houston hosted Frank Sinatra and Ava Gardner for dinner, and was the site of a fight between Sinatra and a a photographer, which exposed Sinatra and Gardner’s secret affair to the media the next day?
A. The Rice Hotel restaurant.
B. Looks Depot Steakhouse.
C. Vincento’s Sorrentino Italian restaurant.
2. What Houston restaurant barred Howard Hughes from sitting in the main dining room and relegated him to the kitchen because he wasn’t wearing a suitable jacket?
A. Look’s Sirloin Inn.
B. Bud Bigelows.
C. Kaphan’s.
3. What was the first restaurant in the US to serve baked potatoes with toppings we know today, located around the Medical Center across from what was then called the Rice Institute?
A. Ye Olde College Inn.
B. Red Lion.
C. Christie’s Seafood.
4. Which popular Houston steakhouse featured a lobster tank just inside the front entrance?
A. Steak and Ale.
B. The Stables Steakhouse.
C. Jamail’s Steakhouse.
5. What famous restaurant featured peacocks roaming around its spacious outdoor area?
A. Brenner’s steakhouse.
B. Spoons.
C. Vargos Restaurant.
6. What was the fine dining restaurant on Richmond ave near Chimney rock with a piano bar that closed in 2002?
A. Armandos.
B. The Rivoli.
C. Madeline’s.
7. What burger joint had several locations, one on Bellaire Blvd. at Stella Link, where you could you get a 19 cent hamburger and a famous orange sauce?
A. Price’s.
B. Prince’s.
C. White Castle.
8. What exclusive BYOB nightclub featured gambling on the water?
A. The Cork Club.
B. The Balinese Room.
C. The Houston Club.
9. What restaurant was renowned for its prime rib and giving change in $2 bills (at a time when everyone paid in cash)?
A. Pier 21.
B. Trader Vic’s.
C. Red Lion.
ANSWERS
1. C. Vincento’s Sorrentino Italian restaurant was the eatery that hosted Frank Sintara when he came to town to headline at the Shamrock Hilton. He was dating Ava Gardner at the time, and they went for dinner at this restaurant as a guest of the mayor, Oscar Holcombe. The evening was capped off by a fight between Sinatra and a photographer, who published photos in the media the next day showing Sinatra and Gardner, exposing their secret affair.
2. B. The wife of the owner of Bud Bigelow’s barred Howard Hughes from sitting in the dining room because he was not wearing a jacket. She made him sit in the in kitchen with the staff, and he loved it. Thereafter, he came back weekly for the same experience.
3. A. Ye Olde College Inn across from what was then known as Rice Institute. According to Houston Chronicle food editor Ann Criswell, “Ye Olde College Inn was the first restaurant in the United States to serve baked potatoes with all the toppings. That was really something big.”
4. B. The Stables Steakhouse featured a lobster tank just inside the front entrance.
5. C. On the beautiful grounds of Vargo’s Restaurant, peacocks could be seen wandering around.
6. B. The Rivoli.
7. A. Price’s, not Prince’s, was a burger place that featured 19-cent hamburgers.
8. B. The Balinese Room in Galveston, overlooking the Gulf of Mexico, was a glamorous site for gambling and drinking.
9. C. The Red Lion, a British-themed restaurant, was renowned for its prime rib and giving change in $2 bills. The restaurant had an English Ford taxi and red call box out front.
What restaurants do you remember? Share memories in the comments below!
