Treebeards has been around for over forty years, how did the restaurant get it’s start?
Yes, Treebeards is 42 years old to be exact. The company was established in 1978 by Dan Tidwell and Jamie Mize. Dan had always wanted to open a restaurant and eventually opened a small salad and sandwich concept, the original Treebeards, between a peep show arcade and rowdy bar, on Preston & Travis in downtown. By 1980, Treebeards had outgrown the original location and the menu had evolved into a cafeteria-style Southern restaurant. Dan and Jamie were inspired to bring the flavors of Louisiana back to Houston after a trip to New Orleans and expanded the menu to include our signature dishes of red beans & rice, shrimp etouffee, gumbo and jambalaya. Today, there are four locations downtown in addition to our brand new Bunker Hill location.
What made your family decide to buy the restaurant? I started as a manager with Treebeards in 1990 soon after graduating from the Hilton College of Hotel Restaurant Management at the University of Houston. I fell in love with the restaurant and never left. I love the concept – high-quality, freshly-made Southern food served quickly at a reasonable price and in interesting spaces. I think it is what restaurants should be, great food and service in a very comfortable and relaxing atmosphere without the fuss. I had always hoped that Treebeards would be my restaurant someday. When the original owners decided to retire in 2010, my husband, Charles, and I offered to buy the company. We were, and are, eternally grateful for the opportunity to carry on such a great Houston institution.
You recently moved to Memorial – why did you choose Memorial? We had numerous requests over the years to locate a restaurant outside of downtown. Many people worked downtown and wanted a restaurant like ours for nights and weekends. Many used to work downtown and missed us! Some just had heard how good the food was but were not interested in driving downtown to find out. We received more requests for a Memorial location than any other area, but we live in Spring Valley, so there was certainly a greater opportunity for Memorial families to tell us what they thought. But when we did decide to expand, we could not think of a better place. Memorial offers a great opportunity to be open at night and on weekends and to have a great bar program! The whole Spring Branch area is exciting and only getting better!
Treebeards is known for its Southern Cooking, this may be like asking you to name a favorite child, but, what are a couple dishes you HAVE to try when dining there for the first time?
My all-time favorites are the classics: red beans and rice with sausage topped with Cheddar cheese and green onions, shrimp etouffee, and the chicken & sausage gumbo with jalapeno cornbread. But I absolutely love our baked catfish with etouffee topping over dirty rice, chicken-fried chicken with mashed potatoes and cream gravy, pan-grilled salmon with creole mustard sauce, pecan-crusted tilapia, and jerk chicken. On the lighter side, our salads are also extremely fresh and flavorful and delicious! If you go with a salad, you can splurge with a fresh slice of carrot cake with cream cheese icing or yellow cake with chocolate frosting!
Anything new we can expect in 2021 from Treebeards? We are hoping to relax a little and hopefully enjoy a maskless new year with lots of great food and drinks with our friends and neighbors in our beautifully designed restaurant. We plan to continuously improve the food and drink menu to reflect the tastes and desires of our new neighborhood.
