Nancy's Hustle

Nancy's Hustle

2704 Polk St. 

Houston, TX 77003
346-571-7931

http://www.nancyshustle.com

Hours of Operation:
5:00pm - Midnight, Tuesday - Sunday

"I want to order everything" She exclaimed. Sharing experiences like this is always more enjoyable. Yes, I saw the menu too and indeed it could have been so. We decided to start with a few small plates and work our way down the menu. A few small plates, a couple of medium plates, one main large plate entree, etc. 

Started with the Nancy Cakes, Lamb Dumplings, and the Sourdough Bread with fermented butter doused with Chive Oil. 

Lamb Dumplings came out first. Over a bed of labneh, with spicy tomato vinaigrette and a lamb jus the dumplings were a feel good start. The thinly sliced garlic crisps over the top are a garlic lovers delight. 

Oh, the Nancy Cakes. "It's like you experience all the flavors separately but at the same time." She said. "Yes! The roe on the whipped butter. Again with the taking butter up a notch!"

There is something that sets cultured butter apart from the other butters. Butter enthusiasts will agree that a bit of chive oil put it over the top. My first thought, "Why haven't I done thing myself?". Well this is why we experience new things. These are the flavors that kick off the whole experience.  Fermented Butter is supposed to last a long while. Unfortunately it is so delicious it wont last that long once on the table.

Options continued to be plenty with the next round. Our server gave us her top two. "My favorites are the Lamb Tartare and the Duck Rillette." The Duck Garlic Sausage got my eye since garlic is just an amazing weakness of mine if incorporated properly. 

Never have I had Lamb Tartare before. Its probably the most tender melt in your mouth lamb I tasted in a while. The pairing of almonds and sesame seeds really gave it something a little extra. The fresh sesame bread was the edible vessel we needed. 

The Duck Garlic Sausage was my least favorite. Though I loved the braised boluga lentils and spicy sauerkraut I was not happy with the sausage compared to the rest of what we had so far. I really wanted the duck and garlic to be more apparent. 

Not all was lost. There was as duck entree. The Roasted Duck Breast L'Orange. Ducking great. roasted just right. the Gold Rice Grits surprised me. Perhaps I just don't eat Grits very often but I was happy with it. 

"You save room for dessert? What is your go to dessert?" as I was fishing for a reason to order something sweet. 

"Ice cream is my favorite." and I looked down and saw a Profiterole stuffed with Labneh Ice Cream. A tart yogurt turned ice cream.... with a blackberry sauce and pistachios which was crumbled and scattered about the plate. Tart, sweet, and savory. Yes, please. 

Billed as a modern bistro and wine bar Nancy's Hustle absolutely takes the dining experience up a couple of notches with a sprinkle of Mediterranean influence and alternative ingredients. Houston, this is a new American melting pot of cuisine.

- Eat HTX