Best Restaurants in Kingwood, TX: Kings Harbor, Brunch and Date Night

The best table in Kingwood comes with a lake view and a dress code that bans beach flip-flops after dark. That's Kings Harbor, the waterfront strip on West Lake Houston Parkway, and it's our pick for date night in the Livable Forest, as Kingwood has long been nicknamed. The rest of the action is on Kingwood Drive, up on Northpark Drive and along West Lake Houston Parkway: pizza with dough aged for days, mesquite-grilled Tex-Mex, hibachi, and a sports grill with brisket deviled eggs.

This is the shortlist we'd give a friend who just moved to Kingwood, or who's driving up from the city for a night by the lake. It's grouped by part of town, so you can pick a strip and stay put.

The quick list

• For a date night by the water: Zammitti's Italian Ristorante at Kings Harbor.
• For a dressed-up dinner: Chimichurri's South American Grill, also at Kings Harbor.
• For the kids (and a 1-pound burger): Sharky's Waterfront Grill.
• For Sunday breakfast: Skeeter's Mesquite Grill, with a breakfast buffet on Sunday mornings.
• For pizza night: RC's NYC Pizza & Pasta on Kingwood Drive.
• For game day: Three B's Grill.
• For a quick, cheap lunch: Taste of Greek or Torchy's Tacos.
• For hibachi theater: Nukumi Japanese Steak House on Northpark Drive.
• For a family Italian dinner: Italiano's on Northpark Drive.

How we chose

We looked for places that give you a reason to eat in Kingwood rather than drive into Houston: a view, a house specialty, a long local track record or a room that suits families. We favored independent and Houston-grown restaurants over national chains. Every restaurant here posted current hours, an address in Kingwood and a working menu or ordering page on its own official website when we checked in October 2026. We left out places whose sites had lapsed or that we couldn't confirm were still open.

Hours change, and several of these spots close one day a week, so treat every schedule below as "typically" and check the restaurant's site before you go.

Kings Harbor: dinner on the water

Kings Harbor is the closest thing Kingwood has to a dining district, a cluster of restaurants on the water at 1660 West Lake Houston Parkway. Come at golden hour and grab a patio table. Our Kingwood things-to-do guide covers the rest of the waterfront.

Zammitti's Italian Ristorante

Kings Harbor, 1660 W Lake Houston Pkwy, Suite 101 · Sicilian-leaning Italian · open daily

Zammitti's opened in Kingwood in 2011 and promises "dining experience on the lake with a Sicilian flare." Order a pasta, grab a glass of wine and ask for the patio if the weather's kind. The site also lists happy hour and live music, so check what's on before you book.

Insider tip: read the "Our Story" page before you go. It's a wildly tall tale about twin brothers, a basket and the Mediterranean, and it ends with the restaurant's own disclaimer that "some of the facts in this story are not facts at all." It's the best thing on any restaurant website in Kingwood.

Best for: date night, anniversaries, a long dinner with a water view.

Chimichurri's South American Grill

Kings Harbor, 1660 W Lake Houston Pkwy, Suite 104 · South American steak and seafood · closed Mondays

Chimichurri's is the Kingwood restaurant you dress up for, and it means it. Start with the empanadas Don Pedro, filled with your choice of protein, or the signature entrañas de res, a traditional Argentine steak with a mushroom cream sauce. The wine list has plenty of Argentine bottles, and there's a monthly wine dinner with paired courses. Dinner typically starts at 5 p.m. on weekends, with lunch Tuesday to Friday.

Know before you go: the dress code is real. No beach flip-flops or deck shoes at dinner, caps only at lunch, and no men's tank tops.

Best for: birthdays, client dinners and steak lovers.

Sharky's Waterfront Grill

Kings Harbor, 1660 W Lake Houston Pkwy · seafood, burgers and gumbo · open daily

Sharky's is the family half of Kings Harbor: a seafood-and-burger spot on the water with open and enclosed patios, a kids' menu and a Sunday brunch menu. Order the Shark Bites (bacon-wrapped shrimp stuffed with pepper jack) or the Whale Shark fried platter if you're sharing. The menu bills the Great White Shark Burger, a pound of beef stuffed with cheddar, as "not for wimps."

Best for: families, post-game dinners, out-of-town guests who want to see the lake.

Kingwood Drive and West Lake Houston Parkway

Skeeter's Mesquite Grill

4121 W Lake Houston Pkwy · burgers and Tex-Mex · open daily

Skeeter's has been grilling over mesquite in Houston since 1988, when the first one opened in West University. The Kingwood location gets the same smoky burgers, fajitas and tacos off a wood-burning grill, plus frozen margaritas. It says it's been hailed as the ultimate after-game spot for sports teams, and the room is built for it.

Insider tip: the Kingwood Skeeter's typically runs a breakfast buffet on Sundays starting at 9 a.m. It's the easiest family breakfast in town.

Best for: families, team dinners and Sunday breakfast. For more Tex-Mex, see our best Tex-Mex in Houston guide.

RC's NYC Pizza & Pasta

1202 Kingwood Dr, Suite A · New York-style pizza · closed Tuesdays

RC's dough is made in-house and aged 72 to 96 hours before it becomes a pie, which is the whole reason to come. Get the Meaty New Yorker or a plain pepperoni, add garlic knots made from the same dough, and try the pork wings if you want something different. Even the phone number joins in: 281-358-GOOD.

Good to know: kids don't sit in the bar area. The main dining room is for families, and the bar is kept for grown-ups who want a quiet night.

Best for: pizza night and takeout. The FAQ on its site settles the New York versus Chicago debate in four words: "New York, of course."

Three B's Grill

4590 Kingwood Dr · American bar and grill · open daily

Three B's has been the neighborhood sports grill on Kingwood Drive since 2010, with a full bar and plenty of big screens. The menu goes past standard bar food: fried brisket deviled eggs, chicken-and-waffle skewers, and wings in a dozen sauces and rubs. Happy hour typically runs in the afternoon; check the specials page for times.

Best for: watching the Astros or Texans with friends. Check the Daikin Park guide if you'd rather see the game live.

Taste of Greek

4526 Kingwood Dr · Greek, family-owned, halal

Taste of Greek is a small, family-owned spot on Kingwood Drive that bakes its food fresh and serves halal food. Eat in, call ahead for pickup, or order delivery through the big apps. Check its site for current hours before you go.

Best for: a fast weekday lunch or a halal dinner to take home.

Torchy's Tacos

4529 Kingwood Dr, Suite 180 · tacos and queso · open daily from breakfast

Yes, it's a Texas chain, but the Kingwood Torchy's earns its spot as the easy answer for a mixed group, and it opens early enough for breakfast tacos on weekends. Order the green chile queso and a Trailer Park taco: fried chicken, green chiles and poblano sauce. Say "trashy" and they'll swap the lettuce for queso.

Best for: a cheap, fast meal that keeps teenagers and grown-ups happy.

Northpark Drive

Italiano's

1414 Northpark Dr, Suite I · family-style Italian · open daily

Italiano's is a family-owned Houston-area chain, and its Kingwood location sits in the Centre at Northpark shopping center, about a mile off US-59. It's old-school in the best way: lasagna, manicotti, chicken parmigiana, shrimp scampi and hand-tossed pizza, with an open-air patio and free parking. Start with the homemade lasagna, the dish its own site singles out.

Best for: big families, team parties and a dependable weeknight dinner.

Nukumi Japanese Steak House

20045 Northpark Dr, Suite 400 · hibachi and sushi · open daily

Nukumi is dinner and a show: hibachi chefs cook at the grill in front of you, and there's a full sushi menu if you'd rather sit back. On weekdays it typically closes between lunch and dinner, so time your visit.

Best for: birthdays with kids and groups who want entertainment with dinner.

Save this: a Kingwood food day

1. Sunday 9 a.m.: breakfast buffet at Skeeter's on West Lake Houston Parkway.
2. Late morning: walk off brunch on Kingwood's greenbelt, more than 75 miles of hike and bike trails. Our Kingwood things-to-do guide has the trailheads.
3. Afternoon: a quick snack run to Torchy's for queso.
4. Golden hour: drinks on the patio at Kings Harbor.
5. Dinner: Zammitti's for pasta by the water, or Chimichurri's if you packed real shoes. Chimichurri's weekend service starts at dinner (and it closes Mondays, so this day works best as a Sunday).

Before you go: a quick checklist

• Check hours on the restaurant's own site the day you go. Chimichurri's is closed Mondays, RC's closes Tuesdays, and Nukumi typically breaks between lunch and dinner on weekdays.
• Dressing for Kings Harbor? Chimichurri's enforces a dress code at dinner. Leave the flip-flops and the ball cap in the car.
• Bringing kids? Sharky's has a kids' menu, and RC's seats families in the main dining room rather than the bar.
• Want a patio? Zammitti's, Sharky's and Italiano's all advertise outdoor seating.
• Going on a weekend night? Book Chimichurri's through the OpenTable link on its website, or join Sharky's online waitlist before you leave home.

More eating around Lake Houston

Thinking of moving here? Start with our Living in Kingwood guide and the Kingwood area page. Heading across the lake? Our Atascocita guide covers that side. For a bigger night out, see our date night restaurants in Houston and our editor's picks in the best restaurants in Houston guide. If you're heading north, our Woodlands restaurant guide picks up from there.

Last verified: October 2026.

Frequently asked questions

Where can you eat on the water in Kingwood?

Kings Harbor, at 1660 West Lake Houston Parkway, is home to Zammitti's Italian Ristorante, Chimichurri's South American Grill and Sharky's Waterfront Grill, all with views of the water.

What is a good date night restaurant in Kingwood?

Zammitti's at Kings Harbor, for pasta on a lake-view patio, or Chimichurri's for South American steak and wine. Chimichurri's has a dinner dress code and is closed Mondays.

Does Chimichurri's in Kingwood have a dress code?

Yes. Its posted code rules out beach flip-flops and deck shoes at dinner, allows caps only at lunch, and bans men's tank tops.

Where can you get Sunday brunch in Kingwood?

Skeeter's Mesquite Grill on West Lake Houston Parkway typically serves a breakfast buffet on Sundays from 9 a.m., and Sharky's Waterfront Grill has a Sunday brunch menu, typically 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

What are good family restaurants in Kingwood?

Sharky's Waterfront Grill has a kids' menu, Skeeter's Mesquite Grill is a classic after-game stop, and Italiano's on Northpark Drive does family-style Italian with a patio.