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Murray cod from Australia with brandade and sauce bearnaise at March restaurant

March restaurant in Montrose has an 11,000-bottle wine cellar.

March restaurant in Montrose offers top-shelf libations such as pear/lemon cocktail.

The accolades keep rolling in for March, one of Houston’s top fine-dining establishments, which landed among the 50 best new restaurants in the country, according to Bon Appétit.

Texas restaurants made a strong showing on the glossy food magazine’s unranked list debuting Thursday. Seven total nominees from the Lone Star State — including a taqueria in Garland and a San Antonio food truck — have a chance to land on the publication’s top 10 list slated to be announced Sept. 14.

“It’s pretty amazing and well-deserved by the whole team,” said Felipe Riccio, the lead chef and a partner at March, of the recognition. “It’s not why we do it, but it does get us excited.”

Since opening in March 2021, the Montrose restaurant has been featured as one of the country’s best new restaurants in publications including Esquire and Robb Report. Food & Wine recently featured March and its Mediterranean-inspired dishes on the cover of its September issue.

Goodnight Hospitality, which includes financial backing from partners Peter and Bailey McCarthy, is behind March and two other concepts, Rosie Cannonball and Montrose Cheese & Wine — all located in the same building. 

While March skews toward the white table-clothed style of dining with six- and nine-course tasting menus ranging from $185 to $245, other Texas restaurants included on Bon Appétit’s were more casual and less European-leaning.

Reese Bros Barbecue in San Antonio is a food truck where customers can order Texas-style barbecue paired with sides like street corn empanadas. La Onda in Fort Worth draws on Latin recipes with a seafood focus. Austin boasts two spots with Caribbean cooking at Canje and the counter-service restaurant Birdie’s. 

Smaller cities in Texas also received a nod: El Rincón del Maíz in Garland features an extensive menu of vegan tacos. The Nicolett in Lubbock serves so-called West Texas cuisine with dishes like elk tartare and yucca churros.

“We love the diversity of the restaurants [on the list],” said June Rodil, a partner at March and master sommelier. “Lubbock feels like 50 states away. It’s amazing that it’s included.”

This is the first year that Bon Appétit has returned to its more traditional format. In past years, the magazine would reveal a list of 50 best new restaurants before publicizing its buzzy “Hot 10” picks.

The publication had modified its annual feature anointing the country’s top restaurants the past two years. On top of the pandemic, the Condé Nast magazine imploded as allegations ranging from pay inequity and a toxic work culture led to former editor in chief Adam Rapoport stepping down and numerous staffers leaving.

Elazar Sontag, who joined Bon Appétit as its restaurant editor earlier this year, lead the project alongside his colleagues and contributors, who all dined out across America to come up with the list.

Part of the entry for March raved as much about the food as the design: “Our meal at March would have been a thrill even without a bite of food or sip of wine — every aspect of the second-floor space is lavishly designed and carefully considered, from the hand-painted vintage champagne buckets to the custom dining tables and linens.”

Riccio and Rodil said they received an email about the news two days ago.

“This is such a passion project for us,” said Rodil. “It means a lot to be recognized.”

The announcement arrived while March is currently on a break as the team fine tunes its new menu, which includes a six- or nine-course tasting menu. It reopens on Sept. 15, a day after Bon Appétit plans to announce its top 10 restaurants.

Disclosure: Bao Ong was on staff at Bon Appétit from 2016 to 2019.

Bao Ong is a restaurant columnist for the Houston Chronicle.

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