Reviews for Haven, a seasonal kitchen

05/28/2012 - Alain Harvey
Southern favorites meet sustainability and sophistication at Haven. Outside the restaurant, owner and chef Randy Evans and his staff compost kitchen scraps and tend to a garden; inside, the restaurant serves its farm-to-table dishes in an eco-friendly setting with green touches like energy efficient lighting and recycled glass and paper products.

Taking deep and competitive pride in sourcing out the highest quality, fresh-from-the-earth product from local farmers and purveyors, Chef Randy Evans often drives out to the farms during the day to handpick his produce from the vine, soil or the back of a farmer’s pick up truck for that night’s meals. The goal: to create dishes for his guests that are at their seasonal peak, offering maximum flavor and freshness.
Upon arrival, we were given a choice of dining inside or out on the patio. The menu offered a great selection, from yogurt & granola to eggs, salad or sandwiches.
Haven’s menu is farm-to-table, and what Chef Evans calls New Texas Cuisine. At this green-certified restaurant the menu changes weekly, depending on what’s best in the fields that week. Everything is local, fresh and handmade. A chef’s garden, just outside the kitchen, is testament to the chef’s belief in the importance of utilizing only the freshest ingredients. The chef’s garden is a natural, sustainable garden, with no chemicals, incorporating cisterns to collect rainwater.

Everything on the menu is done well and creative. The food, along with the restaurant setting, is absolutely fabulous. In addition, this beautiful restaurant offers a Saturday brunch menu from 12 p.m. until 3 p.m. with a Farmers "After Market" in the parking lot from 1 p.m. until 3 p.m. The service is always attentive and dining outdoors a real treat on one of Houston’s rare pleasantly temperate days. Haven is definitely a restaurant worth a visit.