John-Henry Perera

Houston

Food Editor at Chron

Food and Gulf Coast editor for @Chron | Ex-food reporter for @HoustonChron | Recovering audience producer | Husband and boy dad

Articles

Chips and salsa controversy grips longtime Houston Tex-Mex restaurant

1 week ago | chron.com | John-Henry Perera

Is it illegal to charge for chips and salsa? It's not, but given how strongly people feel about it, maybe it should be. Spanish Flowers in The Woodlands is finding itself front and center of Houston's latest food scandal—and its owners aren't thrilled about the situation at all.
Whataburger to open near new H-E-B in white-hot Houston suburb

1 week ago | chron.com | John-Henry Perera

An upcoming Whataburger in Katy will reportedly join a cluster of other restaurants near a recently opened H-E-B supermarket. According to a permit with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, and first reported by Covering Katy, the new Whataburger will be at 24710 Morton Ranch Rd. The build-out is estimated to cost around $2.5 million and should finish by Dec. 31, 2025. The restaurant will be around 3,300 square feet.
Houston donut shop didn't know 5-pound cinnamon roll was for astronaut

1 week ago | chron.com | John-Henry Perera

Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore have been stuck on the ISS since June. They are planned to return to Earth in 2025. Getty ImagesNatalie Chun and Sunita "Suni" Williams pose with a large cinnamon roll at Bonnie's Donuts in League City, Texas on April 9, 2025. Natalie Chun/Bonnie's Donuts/Courtesy to ChronNatalie Chun and her son love astronauts and space.
Popular Houston diner's big freeway moves were all about the vibes

2 weeks ago | chron.com | John-Henry Perera

For roughly 40 years, Niko Niko's was to Montrose as a gyro sandwich was to oven potatoes: visually distinct but naturally intertwined. Today, the Greek-American restaurant has found a firm footing outside Houston's Inner Loop along the city's major roadways.
What's up with anti-Mayor Whitmire cartoon at Houston restaurant?

2 weeks ago | chron.com | John-Henry Perera

It's not the biggest poster in the world, but it's hard to miss the modestly-sized placard hanging right at (sedan) eye level outside Katz's in Houston's Montrose neighborhood.
Is Preslee's planning a move at old beer bar in this Houston suburb?

2 weeks ago | chron.com | John-Henry Perera

A rumor on social media indicates Piper Hospitality, the group behind Preslee's and Piper's Cantina, is looking to open a new concept in Houston's Garden Oaks/Oak Forest neighborhood on the bones of the old Petrol Station. Dan Carson / Chron.comGreenlee's, a new concept by the folks at Preslee's and Piper Cantina, may be moving into the old Petrol Station in Houston's Garden Oaks/Oak Forest neighborhood. Or maybe it won't.
This Texas steakhouse imposter just became America’s largest casual dining chain

2 weeks ago | chron.com | John-Henry Perera

Lighted Texas Road House logo and sign above entrance to its restaurant. (Photo by: Don & Melinda Crawford/Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)Education Images/Education Images/Universal ImageEven if you're not paying attention to the news, you can probably see out your car window that Texas Roadhouse is a successful business. That said, you should still read the news because the steakhouse chain just toppled one of America's most eminent casual restaurants.
Trader Joe's rep confirms it is looking to expand in northwest Houston

3 weeks ago | chron.com | John-Henry Perera

A Trader Joe's representative confirmed the California grocery chain is looking to expand in Cypress, Texas. Noam Galai/Getty ImagesIt would appear that 2025 is turning up Trader Joe's—at least for Houston, anyway. The California grocery store chain confirmed to Chron that it is eyeing yet another location in one of the city's northern suburbs. According to a Trader Joe's representative, the grocery chain is looking at Cypress in northwest Harris County.
Tex-Mex burger, $25 chirashi are best things we ate in Houston

1 month ago | chron.com | John-Henry Perera

Old fashioned at the original Ninfa's on Navigation in Houston, Texas. Eddie Maisonet/ChronIt's one of those rare moments this week where I went to a few places in town, and didn't like a single thing I ate. I had a clumsily prepared breakfast consisting of flavorless scrambled eggs, freezer hash browns, and a few slices of crispy bacon that tasted kind of weird. I'm generally of the opinion that if I'm reaching for the salt and pepper, something terrible must have happened.
Houston's best eats include Rodeo fried rice, Australian ribeye

1 month ago | chron.com | John-Henry Perera

The Chron Food team's best eats during the second week of March 2025. ChronSpring is in full swing, and the doldrums have officially been shaken off. But not all of us are going out to restaurants at the moment. My wife and I welcomed the newest addition to our family a few weeks ago: a baby girl. We're over the moon, but newborns can be notoriously incompatible with dinner reservations and sit-down eating. Nonetheless, here's where the Chron Food (and Chron Sports!) team ate this week.