Using ingredients from both sides of the Texas and Mexico border, Levi Goode, owner of Goode Company Kitchen & Cantina, said the eatery is a tribute to his Mexican grandmother, Emma Longoria Goode, who often cooked for her family. “The Shenandoah location is home to the first location of Goode Company Kitchen & Cantina, and is our newest restaurant concept,” Goode said. “It is a stepped-up version of our taqueria in Houston. Both concepts are inspired by recipes from my grandmother. Goode Company Kitchen & Cantina is our tribute to her.” The restaurant in Shenandoah opened in early September and features several home-cooking inspired menu items, including homemade tortillas, jalapeno rellenos stuffed with house-made chorizos and parrilladas—mixed platters of wild game and vegetables topped with pico de gallo and queso fresca. “The parrillada is popular for families and small groups,” Goode said. “It [has] fajitas, jalapeno, cheese, smoked sausage, Texas quail, jumbo Gulf shrimp and pork carnitas. It has something for everyone.” Goode said the Tex-Mex restaurant also has a variety of seafood options that are popular among customers. “For seafood lovers, there’s Laguna Madre shrimp, redfish on the half shell, red snapper and campechana,” Goode said. “The [campechana] is our signature Mexican-style seafood cocktail that the Goode family introduced to Houston decades ago at our seafood restaurants.” Goode said to ensure consistency and quality at the restaurant, Goode Company Kitchen & Cantina also features an in-house butcher and bakery. “We’re handcrafting our food to our exact standards while using quality ingredients and our tried-and-true family recipes,” he said. “We designed the kitchen here so that customers can see their food cook to order over mesquite on our live-fire grills. You can also watch tortillas being rolled and cooked.” Goode said the restaurant’s food, location and amenities have so far been very successful in The Woodlands and Shenandoah communities. “For years, customers of our Houston locations asked us to open a restaurant in the area,” he said. “Now that we’re here, we’ve had an enthusiastic response to the location and concept. The kid-friendly patio, shared with our barbecue restaurant, has been a big hit. We appreciate all of the encouraging feedback.” Goode said that despite being home to numerous Tex-Mex and Mexican restaurants in the area, Goode Company Kitchen & Cantina stands out because of the quality of the food, service and atmosphere. “The food reflects my family’s culinary heritage and our traditional Texas lifestyle,” Goode said. “It brings together the rustic ranch cooking, fresh Gulf seafood and homespun Mexican dishes that are such an integral part of our personal history and memories.” When walking into the restaurant, customers can also see the unique pieces of decor that Goode said he has collected throughout the years. “My late father and I collected authentic Texana and Mexican pieces for decades, and you can see many of those items displayed throughout the restaurant,” he said. “The ornately-carved doors to the private dining room came directly from Mexico. Vintage serapes that accent the booths and the tables are fashioned from reclaimed wood. It’s a lively mixture of textures and places, past and present.” While Goode Company Kitchen & Cantina just opened last year, Goode said he has already heard requests from residents to open a seafood restaurant in the future. “For the moment, we’re focused on introducing even more neighbors to the two restaurants we have here and working to fine-tune our operations,” he said. “Even though our menu features seafood items, that hasn’t stopped folks from asking us to open one of our seafood restaurants in The Woodlands.”

8865 Six Pines Drive, Ste. 150, Shenandoah 281-826-5150 www.kitchenandcantina.com/woodlands Hours: Sun.-Thu. 11 a.m.-9 p.m., Fri.-Sat. 11 a.m.-10 p.m.