Backstreet Cafe Houston: Closed for Rebuild, Reopening 2026
Date Published
Backstreet Cafe is not currently open. The restaurant closed its original location at 1103 South Shepherd Drive at the start of 2025 and is being rebuilt a block down the street at 1201 South Shepherd Drive, with the owners targeting a reopening in summer 2026. Check before you go. Chef Hugo Ortega and his wife Tracy Vaught run it as part of the H-Town Restaurant Group, which also operates Hugo's and Xochi, both of which remain open while Backstreet is between buildings.
Why Backstreet Cafe Closed
The original restaurant occupied a house built in 1935 and converted when Backstreet opened in 1983. The owners cited crumbling foundations and constant repairs as the reason for leaving it. The replacement building at 1201 South Shepherd is planned at roughly 6,600 square feet across two floors, compared with about 4,500 square feet at the old address. The reopening was first slated for fall 2025, then moved to summer 2026.
A Quick Look at Backstreet Cafe
- Status: Closed since early 2025; rebuilding, targeted to reopen summer 2026
- Former address: 1103 South Shepherd Drive, Houston, TX 77019
- New address: 1201 South Shepherd Drive, Houston, TX 77019
- Cuisine: Seasonal American bistro
- Owners: Tracy Vaught and chef Hugo Ortega (H-Town Restaurant Group)
- Opened: 1983
The History
Tracy Vaught, a former geologist, opened Backstreet Cafe in 1983 with her uncle, Jack Blalock. It was her first restaurant. Hugo Ortega applied for a dishwashing job there, worked his way up through busboy and line cook, went through the culinary program at Houston Community College, and eventually became executive chef and an owner. Vaught and Ortega married in 1994. The two went on to build H-Town Restaurant Group, which also includes Hugo's, Xochi and URBE. Ortega won the James Beard Award for Best Chef: Southwest in 2017, and the pair were nominated for Outstanding Restaurateur at the 2026 James Beard Awards.
Backstreet Cafe is one of the foundational restaurants in the River Oaks neighborhood and an afternoon walk along Buffalo Bayou is still the natural pairing once it reopens. For a fuller picture of the area, see our guide to the best restaurants in River Oaks.
Visit Xochi Houston, Hugo Ortega's Oaxacan restaurant at the Marriott Marquis Downtown. See the menu, mezcal list, reservations, parking, hours, and dress code.
In the heart of Houston's vibrant Montrose neighborhood, Hugo's stands as a testament to the rich complexity of authentic Mexican cuisine. Housed in a meticulously restored 1925 Art Deco building, this restaurant has been delighting diners with regional Mexican flavors since 2002 under the masterful direction of Chef Hugo Ortega. The Chef's Journey James Beard […]