About Backstreet

Backstreet is more than a restaurant. It's a Houston tradition, a dining landmark and a home away from home for generations of Houstonians for more than four decades. It's a place to celebrate special occasions and everyday moments, gathered around a table with food and wine, friends and family. It's also the setting for the remarkable love story and American Dream journeys of our owners, Tracy Vaught and Hugo Ortega.

In January 2025, Tracy and Hugo closed Backstreet so the beloved house-turned-bistro, built in the 1930s, could make way for a new structure designed to carry the Backstreet story into its next 40 years and beyond. While the space is new, the Backstreet experience remains the same – cozy atmosphere, warm hospitality and honest food that has always been our signature.

Backstreet's menu is a reflection of its owners – a little Texas, a little Mexico and a whole lot of Houston. Chef Hugo Ortega's cooking reflects a lifetime in Houston and a deep connection to its culinary landscape. Shaped by Tracy's native Houston perspective and Hugo's more than four decades of cooking in the city, from his early training at Houston Community College to his lifelong career in Houston kitchens, the menu is rooted in American cooking through a distinctly Houston lens.

Seasonal and ingredient-driven, the menu follows the rhythms of the Gulf Coast and Texas produce while drawing inspiration from the many cultures that make Houston one of the most diverse food cities in the world. Southern, Asian, European and Mexican influences are woven together naturally. The result is food that feels both familiar and new – refined yet unpretentious, thoughtful yet deeply comforting. At its heart, it is personal cooking meant to be shared.

Our new, modern two-story space features St. Joe brick – a Houston stylemark famously used on the Rice University campus – on the exterior. Inside, a nature-inspired palette moves from sage and artichoke greens to sky blues, sandy beiges and taupe-gray, accented with cognac and black. The restaurant includes a main dining room, two bars, four private rooms featuring works by local artists, and a welcoming outdoor patio with fountain, a beloved Backstreet hallmark.

We've added a few modern conveniences, too, including an elevator, drive-up valet and bike racks for leisurely rides over for brunch, lunch or dinner. And, as always, our furry friends are welcome on the patio.

Everything old is new again. And after more than 40 years, we can't wait to welcome you home to Backstreet.

What began in 1983 as a casual neighborhood hangout with simple fare on a literal back street of Houston's River Oaks neighborhood has grown to become an award-winning top table in the city. Backstreet Cafe was opened by geologist-turned-restaurateur Tracy Vaught, who decided to forsake the plotting of America's geothermal energy fields for the potentially hot-and-cold restaurant field in Houston. The Houston native, educated at St. John's School and the University of Texas, opened her first restaurant with her uncle, Jack Blalock, on a leap of faith, and it was the beginning of her Backstreet story and the turning point of her career and life.

Hugo Ortega was raised in Mexico City and Puebla and learned his love of cooking from his mother and grandmother, a revered mole maker. At 17, he left Mexico for Houston and began his career in the hospitality industry – and his own Backstreet story – in 1987 as a dishwasher and busboy at the restaurant. Hugo worked his way to cooking on the line, graduated from Houston Community College's Culinary Arts program and became Backstreet's executive chef. Along the way, Tracy and Hugo fell in love and married, and his American Dream continued with the openings of Hugo's (2002), Caracol (2013), Xochi (2017), URBE (2021) and Zaranda (2025) under the umbrella of H Town Restaurant Group.

For more than 40 years, Houstonians have been creating their own Backstreet stories, sharing holidays and special occasions and making everyday memories at the restaurant. And they have become part of our Backstreet family. Along the way, many staff members' Backstreet stories have been written, too: Taj Walker started as a hostess at Backstreet and is now H Town Restaurant Group's Director of Human Resources and IT; Carlos Neri worked his way from waiter to manager to H Town Restaurant Group's Director of Operations; countless employees who had their first job at Backstreet can be found thriving across Houston, Texas and the country; and Tracy and Hugo's daughter, Sophia, has joined the family business to help ensure Backstreet's next 40 years and beyond.

After serving generations of Houstonians and visitors to the city for 41 years, our beloved old house was worse for the wear despite countless renovations, repairs and reinforcements over the decades. We closed the restaurant in January 2025 to build a new home for Backstreet so that the story can continue.