TasteTwenty Chef Ope Amosu’s Houston Dining Guide
Ahead of his Taste America Houston event, the owner of ChòpnBlọk shares his favorite bites, from burgers to Beyoncé-approved chicken and waffles.
Photo: David Odiwams Wright
Fri, September 26, 2025
Editor’s Note: The James Beard Foundation’s Taste America® culinary series presented by Capital One brings together chefs, special guests, and diners from across the country to celebrate the local independent restaurants at the heart of our communities. The Taste America TasteTwenty cohort, comprised of 20 exceptional chefs and changemakers, will showcase their talents and represent their city’s independent restaurant community at walkaround tastings and dinners nationwide.
These chefs are not only creative dynamos in the kitchen, they're also avid diners, so we’re introducing a special city guide series where each TasteTwenty chef will share what they love about their city’s food scene.
Next up in our series is James Beard Award semifinalist® Ope Amosu, chef/owner of ChòpnBlọk, a modern West African–inspired and community-driven restaurant. Read on for his favorite Houston dishes, including Beyoncé-approved chicken and waffles, hidden gem empanadas, and the smash burgers he can't get enough of.
Bar seating at ChòpnBlọk. (Photo: Arturo Olmos)
What does it mean to be part of the JBF Taste America TasteTwenty cohort?
It’s a very humbling honor. Being able to have [the] James Beard [Foundation] see what we’re doing here in Houston, seeing the impact we’re making in the community on behalf of our culture—I'm just really grateful. ChòpnBlọk is very much a mission-driven concept so having these sorts of opportunities to allow for more awareness to be brought into our whole initiative is huge.
What do you love about the food scene in your city?
Houston is driven by the power of immigrant communities; it is the most diverse city in the country and with that, I say it’s also the most flavorful city in the country. It’s a community of open-mindedness—people from various backgrounds and different lived experiences interact on a day-to-day basis. The power of what it is to be a Houstonian comes from being able to build alongside those who do and don’t look like you.
Go-to spot to take visitors:
A nod to my good friends at Jūn, chef Evelyn Garcia and chef Henry Lu. The food is amazing, it’s very well executed, and it’s backed by amazing people. Chef Henry is of Chinese descent, chef Evelyn is of Salvadorian descent; somehow, it’s a mix of all of that plus Marfa [, Texas]. The flavors that come out are one-of-a-kind. I'm a dealer’s choice type of guy—the chef and team should always know better than me and I let them go after it. Their fried chicken won’t leave the menu anytime soon—it better not.
Must-try dish in your city:
I am on a four-day streak of eating Boo’s Burgers—it’s definitely going to be a not-so-hidden gem in the city soon. It’s chef Joseph Boudreaux’s classic play on a traditional smash burger—the Boo's O.G. is a burger that can compete with any burger in America.
The Golden Blọk Pairing combines jollof jambalaya, Motherland curry, house chicken, yaji-seasoned vegetables, and stewed plantains. (Photo: StuffBenEats)
Best special occasion restaurant:
Lately I’ve been going to Perseid, located in Hotel Saint Augustine. Perseid is part of Bludorn Hospitality group—not only is the food classic, very well-executed, [with] great flavors, but the service is above gold standard. What Cherif [Mbodji] and chef Aaron [Bludorn] are doing, not just at Perseid but all their concepts, is admirable.
Or if we can strike a seat at Augustine’s, located in the Hotel King David, we’ll also go have a meal there. Chef Dominick Lee is a storyteller first. Being able to dine and eat food that takes us back to his childhood memories in New Orleans, and what he’s really trying to do to tell the story of Creole cooking from a Creole perspective, allows you to feel one and the same with him.
What does an ideal night out in your city look like?
ChòpnBlọk has the best happy hour in town, so we would pregame slinging some of our Polo Club Suya (grilled beef skewers dusted with Yaji peanut pepper spice) and Golden Jollof tasters [mini versions of Smoky Jollof Jambalaya, Motherland Coconut Curry, Blok Chicken, Yaji Vegetables, and Stewed Plantains], washing that down with a Chòpman, our signature cocktail with African-infused Bayab gin.
Next, I would take you into east downtown to a hidden food trailer called Flor Y Miel by chef Flo [Polanco]. I really love all of her empanadas, especially the oxtail and the cheese, and her rasta pasta. We’ll then make a pitstop downtown at Off the Record, a listening bar, and hear a lot of cool beats; I’m a big hip hop and Afrobeats guy. If we have time for a nightcap, I’d swing back to the Hotel Saint Augustine and grab a final cocktail in their listening lounge.
What restaurant are you most looking forward to checking out?
Buboy is an upcoming Afro-Caribbean restaurant by the most recent Top Chef winner, Tristen Epps. Before he even got on Top Chef I had the opportunity to cook alongside him for a Juneteenth Jubilee dinner and immediately saw the talent that he is, and now America’s seen it on TV. I'm eager to see what he does with the actual restaurant once they open.
A spread of dishes from ChòpnBlọk. (Photo: StuffBenEats)
Restaurant dish you’d cry over if they took it off the menu:
There’s no way possible that Marcus Davis could ever take the chicken and waffles off of the menu at The Breakfast Klub. It’s a Houston institution at this point. You don’t have to ask me, ask Beyoncé—she’ll tell you. It's consistent, it’s not too salty, it’s bursting with flavor, and then the waffles have that soft, pillowy contrast to the fried chicken. It's the way that fried chicken and waffles should always be prepared.
Favorite food/drink specialty shop:
I’m going to answer this a little bit differently. The restaurant is called Famous Princess African Kitchen, and [chef Oluwaseyi Johnson] makes this specialty dish called abula. It is a play on a dried plantain–cassava fufu. It is dressed with gbegiri which is blended, stewed honey beans and black-eyed peas; cooked down jute leaves; and classic Nigerian red stew. That is a specialty meal for a lot of Nigerian celebrations, and it’s often sought after because it’s not easy to find a good rendition of that outside of Nigeria. But the abula that they serve at Famous Princess is just like we’re back at home.
Who is another chef you admire in your city (and why)?
Dawn Burrell is a powerhouse, super talented—one of the best cooks in the entire city and beyond. The way she has such a good dial-in on flavors and her investment into putting out the best food every time, all the way to the fact that this lady grates her own cheese that goes in her mac and cheese. She will make the bread from scratch that she’s putting into her bread pudding. Someone who really has that level of care about how she cooks is admirable.
And I’d be so remiss if I did not mention one of my beacons, chef Chris Shepherd. I think we all know the amazing impact he has had beyond the kitchen and beyond the city when it comes to helping support and push the culinary industry forward. They don’t really make ‘em like that.