The Room
Travis McShane opened Ostia in the Heights in 2018, a chef-driven Italian dining room dedicated to the proposition that the Heights neighbourhood needed a serious-Italian destination. The James Beard Foundation has shortlisted McShane for Best Chef Texas. The dining room is intentionally restrained, exposed brick, an open kitchen at the back, banquettes along the eastern wall.
Eater Houston has held Ostia on its top-Italian-restaurant rankings every year of operation.
The Food
The pasta programme is hand-rolled in the kitchen daily. The wood-fired pizza programme runs four rotating pies. The seasonal-rotating Italian secondi, the small-plates antipasti programme, and the chef's tasting at $75 handle the menu's wider draws.
Wine programme runs Italian-classic. Cocktails are aperitivi-led. Service is informed and warm.
Best Occasion Fit
First Date: The bar at Ostia is one of the Heights' most-reliable first-date seats. The pasta shares well, the wine programme is the conversation.
Birthday: Birthdays at Ostia are warm, pasta-led, neighbourhood-Italian affairs the room handles with seven years of practice.
Team Dinner: The back of the dining room handles tables of eight to twelve, and the kitchen will run a family-style Italian menu.
