Alora — Restaurant in Houston

Kau Ba is a Viet-Cajun restaurant in the heart of Houston's culturally diverse Montrose neighborhood. It was started in 2018 by celebrity chef, Nikki Tran. You can check her out further on Netflix's Street Food, Ugly Delicious, and Somebody Feed Phil. We came on a Sunday afternoon for brunch. The parking situation is a bit difficult, but you can find street parking nearby for free.

When we arrived, we saw an amazing outdoor patio where they allow dogs. As we walked inside, we saw there was a beautiful bar with indoor dining, and there was incredible Vietnamese artwork all over the walls. The floors were a cool black and white tile with an intricate design.

Right away, we ordered a few drinks:

+Koji Old Fashioned (brown butter Marker's Mark, shochu, banana, walnut, shoyu, and aromatic bitters) for $11 - I loved Old Fashioned cocktails, and this one was great. It's pretty boozy, and I was able to taste the subtle hints of flavors added like the banana which was different for me. - 5/5

+Vietnamese Iced Coffee for $3.75 - This came served over ice with no option to determine how much condensed milk to add. It's not too sweet, and it has a bit of a smoky flavor. I personally loved it as this is my style. If you like sweeter Vietnamese iced coffee, this may not be to your liking. - 5/5

As for food, we ordered:

+F.O.B. (boat load of baby soft-shell crab, viejun sauce, and cajun salt) for $12 - The soft-shell crab was amazing. They are perfectly fried and come with a tasty dipping sauce. They also provide a habanero hot sauce for extra spice if you're into that. If coming to Kau Ba for drinks, this is a perfect snack for munching on. - 5/5

+French Invasion (ribeye, fried egg, pate, and french bread) for $18 - The ribeye was so tender and flavorful. The pate was mixed heavily with butter and was great with the french bread. I would definitely order this again from their brunch menu. - 5/5

+Pork Belly (char sui pork belly and fried egg over rice) for $16 - The pork belly had a mouth-watering glaze over it. It was a bit sticky on the teeth, but the flavor was incredible. It was tender and a perfect combination with the fried egg and rice. - 5/5

Overall, I loved Kau Ba. Although pricey for Vietnamese food, it's quite unique and has delicious flavors. The quality of every item was top notch, so I felt it was worth it. I would highly recommend checking them out! I cannot wait to try more items...

Bad service and sub par expensive food.

I was very disappointed at this places. After hearing all the great things our experience was far from the near 5 stars this place has. Our over all experience is a soft 2 stars.

Service was maybe a half a star at best. We had booked our table on open table and showed up maybe 2-3 mins late. Prior to our reservation time we had received a text from the restaurant confirming our arrival which we confirmed. We then received a text that stating that our table was ready. We then go see the hosts regarding our table and were met with a response that “we don’t have any tables available and are busy than expected.” When I confronted them and stated I had a reservation and that they had confirmed my table with the “table ready” text the host proceeded to state that I could sit at the bar or outside but the table inside table I had reserved was not available - I then overheard him tell the other hosts that they made a mistake taking in and sitting a walk-in at the same time. We then waited 30 mins before they could find us a table. Clearly a poor run front of the house.

Once we sat it took another 10-12 mins before a server actually approached us to ask about drinks or food order. The server (she) was nice and did a good job explaining the menu and we then proceeded to order the Tamarind Shrimp and FOB/Soft Shell Crab (which the server claimed was the top appetizer at the place). The Crab was good and pretty much inedible - we couldn’t even finish it or attempt to. The shrimp was ok at best. Was bland and was dowsed in what felt like soy or hoisin sauce.

We then waited another 30-40 mins before we saw our server to place our order for the mains (we had to flag someone)- pho sizzle and smoked chicken sizzle. The food took a while to come and wasn’t worth the wait or the money. The chicken (bone in) was really dry and bland - it comes on a bed or onions and no sauce or anything (FYI). The pho sizzle, beef dish, is the same as the chicken sizzle and that too was ok.

For the drinks which were ordered with the apps were Pho Loma and Seventeenth North. The drinks tasted fine but felt like there was no alcohol in them abs also took like 20mins to arrive after ordering.

Overall I think you can avoid this experience by choosing another restaurant with better quality food and service but feel free to give it a try and perhaps you have a better experience than we did. One...

As a Vietnamese immigrant, i'm always a bit skeptical with fusion Vietnamese restaurants, partly because I was blessed with eating authentic food most of my life, and partly because most fusion viet food i tried I feel like chefs can get carried away with their attempt to create something different and forget to make it taste good for the Viet people.

But Kau Ba is a pleasant surprise. Chef Nikki Tran definitely hit the mark of both making something creative with the ingredients, but still preserving the taste profile that is uniquely Viet. It was truly a reflection of her mission of opening the restaurant - to bridge the culinary scene of Saigon and Houston, and add a twist of Cajun into the mix.

We took advantage of the happy hour and ordered a lot of small plates. The small plates to me is truly where the creativity and expertise of chef Nikki comes to shine - her use of Vietnamese staple ingredients but with a twist, the invention of westerner dishes using Asian ingredients to make it her own, and just the fun of trying something familiar but different. It was just a treat of flavor and texture eating her Kaubaccio - the thin slice of wagyu beef, cure just right enough with fish sauce and enhanced by toppings, is a Vietnamese version of carpaccio, our own gỏi bò. It was fat, crunchy, and melting in your mouth. I also enjoyed the sauce of the chilled shrimp, so simple in execution, but so intense in flavor and the unashamed amount of butter with fish sauce is fairly unique.

Have i talked about her cocktail list? The collaboration between chef Nikki and her barista Chris Morris is a beauty of mixology. You could tell he is serious about his craft by how much liquor and mixture he has on the shelf. And the pho loma cocktail I had, with the star anise garnish, the spice of cinnamon and pho flavor. My good God gives me strength to not turn alcoholic again against his tempting deliciousness. I'll definitely come back again to try more cocktail.

I could definitely see myself become a regular just come back frequently to sip on the cocktail while eating all the small plate. It's a perfect stylish nhậu place for Vietnamese out there that are into street food and beer.

The vibe of the restaurant is chill and hip. The wait staff is friendly and attentive. Kauba is seriously one of the top places I'd recommend for my friend if they ever want to try a more creative side...