The bar and restaurant group behind Bisou and Kiss has claimed a prime, Galleria-area location for its latest project. Post Oak Lodge, a new concept from the Clé Group, will open this March in the former Yia Yia Mary’s space at San Felipe and the West Loop.
Clé Group partner Zack Truesdell tells CultureMap that Post Oak Lodge will be designed to cater to Galleria-area office workers by day and sports fans on nights and weekends. While the group is known for the lively atmosphere at its restaurants and nightclubs like Clé and Spire, Post Oak Lodge will be a more conventional restaurant with a casual environment.
Truesdell describes the menu as occupying the same American bar and grill space that restaurants like Houston’s (now Hillstone) and Mia’s Table do. Expect staples like burgers, a club sandwich, salads, and more.
“We’ll have a good steak, a good salmon dish,” Truesdell says. “We’ll have six to eight items in a healthy realm. We know at a fast casual place like that, people want healthy-minded options.”
As Truesdell notes, the restaurant will be fast casual during lunch service. Diners will order at a counter, but a server will assist with refills. It’s a more efficient model that will also help customers manage their spending by not being committed to a full, 20 percent tip.
“With Yia Yia Mary’s, we were very familiar with the customers from talking to the people who worked in the buildings. They were very lunch-driven and happy hour,” he says. “Our focus is going to be on perfecting the good service and quick turnaround for lunch, really being able to accommodate all the offices around us.”
At night and on weekends, Post Oak Lodge will have more of a sports bar feel with full service. The space won’t have TVs at every table, but it will have enough large HDTVs for fans to follow their favorite teams.
“On the weekends and at night, it will be a great place to watch games,” Truesdell says. “Kind of like how Moxie’s is by default a sports bar, but it’s not really a sports bar. That’ the realm we’ll be in.”
As for the name, Truesdell explains the partners chose “lodge” due to the space’s design. They’ll keep the limestone columns, exposed wood beams, and fireplaces from Yia Yia Mary’s.
With the process of obtaining the necessary licenses and permits already underway, Truesdell is confident that Post Oak Lodge will open in March — just in time for Houstonians to root for the Coogs all the way to the Final Four.
CultureMap Houston
