The 2024 Eater Houston Holiday Gift Guide

When searching for a heartfelt gift that evokes Houston during the holiday season, it doesn’t get much better than gifting something special from Space City’s unparalleled dining scene. Local chefs and restaurants have packaged their best recipes, barbecue spices, and treats to enhance the dining experience at home or wherever you are, giving home cooks more confidence and edge and food lovers, in general, a gift to savor. If you’re looking to fill your loved one’s pantry (and heart) with flavor, spice, or a little heat, this guide is for you. There are chocolates infused with hot sauce and booze, whiskey by Houston’s most famous celebrity, seasoning blends crafted by Michelin-recognized restaurants and Top Chef finalists, and more. Best of all, each item is available online, meaning you can shop and, often, ship with the click of a button. Happy gifting.

For more inspiration, check out Eater Houston’s 2023 guide and the ultimate Whataburger gift guide.

SirDavis American Whisky

SirDavis

Mason Poole and Julian Dakdouk

Here’s something for Beyhivers to sip on: Houston’s hometown hero Beyoncé launched her own whiskey earlier this year. Inspired by her great-grandfather Davis Hogue, who was a farmer and moonshiner in the South during Prohibition, SirDavis is composed of a bespoke mash bill that’s roughly half rye and half malted barley, with characteristics of Japanese and Scotch whiskies. For a signature Texas touch, it’s finished and blended in the Lone Star State and bottled in a sleek bottle stamped with a bronzed horse that can serve as a keepsake long after the bottle is finished. Order online and send it with a personalized note for free.

Condiments and spice rubs from By Kin

Luke Chang

Top Chef: Houston finalist Evelyn Garcia and her partner chef Henry Lu of Heights restaurant Jūn have built a reputation on their Kin condiments, which take any dish up a notch with Southeast Asian and Latin flavors. For chili crisp fans, Kin’s chili oil ($10), a blended composition of garlic and chili toasted in olive oil, is excellent to have in the kitchen arsenal, as is the Five-spice barbecue sauce ($14), which features warming spices like cinnamon and clove. Home cooks looking to experiment can try Kin’s variation of spice rubs, including a light and citrusy Thai rub, an all-purpose spice rub, and a smoky coffee rub made from Salvadorian coffee, warm spices, and guajillo chile (all $9). For a snack-ready item that pairs well with a cold beer, order the Thai-spiced peanuts, crispy red-skin peanuts that are mixed with garlic chips and kaffir lime leaf for a sweet, salty snack with a kick ($7). Ships locally.

Masala — the spices and the book — from Pondicheri

Acclaimed chef Anita Jaisinghani of Houston’s Pondicheri has compiled an online store brimming with spices and goodies that bring some of the best Indian flavors straight to your kitchen. Instead of picking just one thing, build a customized care package or a holiday gift box with items tailored to your loved one’s tastes. Tins of masalas, varying in flavors like chai, garam, coffee, barbecue, and curry can up any home cook’s game, while Pondicheri’s signature chili chocolate chip cookies, offered by the dozen, deliver warmth, spice, and sweetness your giftee won’t forget.

The India 1948 website also serves up cooking tips, with dozens of recipes that Jaisinghani has compiled over time for her fans. But if you think your person would prefer a keepsake or something more analog that they can hold in their hands, consider Jaisinghani’s cookbook, Masala. Nominated for a James Beard Award, this cookbook is a riveting, educational read that dives into the history of Indian cuisine and offers dozens of flavorful recipes inside. The book ships nationwide.

Lebanese olive oil from Craft Pita

Rebekah Flores

For the home cook in your life, there’s nothing quite like a quality bottle of olive oil. Rafael Nasr, the chef and founder of the fast-casual Lebanese restaurant Craft Pita, takes special pride in the store’s Lebanese extra-virgin olive oil ($22). Sourced from the mountains of El Koura in Lebanon and also cold-pressed and bottled in the country, the olive oil has been within Nasr’s family for three generations and offers a fresh, lightly peppery taste. Gift-seekers can also invest in Craft Pita’s seasonings and spices ($32), which include a za’atar blend, falafel and shawarma seasonings, and dressings like a sweet and tangy pomegranate vinaigrette ($12).

Maven Coffee Co.’s cold brew concentrate

MAVEN Coffee Company

For coffee lovers, this cold brew concentrate from one of Houston’s hottest coffee shops and cocktail lounges, Maven Coffee, is a surefire treat. Locally made, this 32-ounce bottled brew boasts notes of cherry, dark chocolate, and warm spices, which can aid in crafting lattes, holiday drinks, and quick coffees; punching up the flavor of baked goods; or attempting to recreate Maven’s signature carajillo. Even better: Giftees can find recipes for chocolate cake, pecan brownies, and cinnamon rolls that call for Maven’s cold brew concentrate on its Instagram page.

Boozy chocolates from Case Chocolates

Dylan McEwan

If tied between gifting a nice box of chocolates or a booze, there is a solution: Do both. Houston’s only chocolate and cocktails speakeasy, Case Chocolates, sells its spirit-filled chocolates by the box, including rare chocolates that encase sips of carajillo ($34), and variety boxes ($34 to $62) loaded with chocolates infused with bourbon, mezcal, tequila, and cognac. The Buffalo Trace Antique Collection ($100) is a true find for whiskey lovers. A custom-made cacao pod withholds six chocolates that are filled with some of the most exclusive and rare whiskeys, including Eagle Rare 17, William Larue Weller, George T Stagg, Thomas H Handy, Sazerac 18, and a bonus of Old Rip Van Winkle. Shipping and pickup at the stop are available.

Brisket rub, barbecue sauce, and pickles from Truth BBQ

Truth BBQ

Aid an amateur pitmaster with a line of barbecue sauces and spices from one of Texas’s Michelin-recommended barbecue joints. Snag the all-purpose brisket rub for the cook hoping to master the perfect flaky, flavorful bark ($15) and the Truth BBQ’s Trinity of sauces ($40), including its original, the Stay Gold Tangy Mustard, and the White Lightnin’s Alabama White Sauce, for a great companion for smoked brisket, ribs, or poultry. Make it a fun spread with Truth’s selection of pickled onions, dill pickles, and a traditional escabeche mix, which are available individually ($15) or in a set ($40).

Spicy chocolates and Bludorn hot sauce from Mostly Chocolates

Andrea Hernandez

Mostly Chocolate’s head chocolatier Dany Kamkhagi teamed up with restaurant Bludorn for one of the most fire collaborations of the year, literally. Treat your loved one to a box of this Houston sweet shop’s decadent spicy cinnamon roll chocolates, which are made with cream cheese and cinnamon ganache infused with Bludorn hot sauce and layered with a cookie crust. Gift-givers can also introduce chocolate fans to other types of sweets, including the viral crispy Knafeh bar ($25 each).

Banana Ketchup from Be More Pacific

Annie Mulligan

For the condiment connoisseur, this banana ketchup is a must. Heights’s Filipino restaurant Be More Pacific perfects the recipe with a combination of pureed banana, spices, vinegar, serrano pepper, and purple carrot extract for color, creating a tangy, sweet, and spicy sauce that complements nearly everything. The ketchup comes in original spicy and curry flavors. Buy an individual bottle for $8 or a three-pack for $24.

A wine subscription from Lees Den wine club

Lees Den

This Rice Village speakeasy’s wine director, Mark Sayre, powers this local monthly wine club subscription, which pairs three or six hand-selected bottles of wines from around the world with stories and tasting notes to bring more depth to the experience. Make it an entire dinner party by adding on seasonal homemade pasta and homemade bottled sauce from newly opened restaurant Milton’s, which can serve two ($30) or four people ($55). Subscribers receive additional perks, including 10 percent off wines from Lee’s Den wine shop, 15 percent off items in Local Foods Market in Rice Village, a complimentary “sip and snack” from Lee’s happy hour menu, and early access to monthly tasting and winemaker events. Monthly wine hauls are available for pickup at Local Foods’ wine shop or delivery inside the Beltway.

Chocolate advent calendar from Cacao and Cardamom

This holiday advent calendar guarantees a special sweet treat every day of December. Houston chocolatier Annie Rupani of Cacao and Cardamom offers chocolates inspired by cozy, nostalgic flavors such as peppermint mocha, banana walnut, Gingerbread Biscoff, cherry cordial, hot cocoa, fig and wine, cinnamon salted caramel, coquito, hazelnut praline, and rosemary pinenut. Recipients will also get to experience some one-of-a-kind flavors that Rupani and her team dreamed up specifically for this collection. Pre-order now for shipping on Tuesday, November 26.

Salsa gift set with cookbook from Sylvia’s Enchilada Kitchen

Sylvia’s Enchilada Kitchen

Houston’s iconic “Enchilada Queen” Sylvia Casares of Sylvia’s Enchilada Kitchen continues her quest to teach locals how to perfect enchiladas with her latest holiday gift set. Each bundle features a set of the chef’s sauces, including a chili gravy, salsa verde, and a red salsa; a hardbound copy of The Enchilada Queen Cookbook; and a decorative tea towel — all of which is conveniently nestled in a rectangular baking pan that’s meant for baking enchiladas. Available for pick-up at Sylvia’s Enchilada Kitchen locations. 6401 Woodway Drive, 77057; 1140 Eldridge Parkway, 77077.

A beach-ready tequila kit from Caracol

Paula Murphy

For a drinking experience that someone can easily take on the go — or, more specifically, to the beach, Hugo Ortega’s restaurant Caracol has already got the perfect set-up. This crowd-pleasing drink set is stocked with a custom Caracol cocktail, shaker, six shot glasses, three flavored salts, and a bottle of tequila, all packaged in a Caracol-branded cotton tote.

Gift cards from Buc-ee’s

Buc-ee’s

Stuff the Christmas stockings with gift cards to Buc-ee’s, which can go a long way. Texas’s favorite convenience store, pitstop, and gas station is brimming with fun gifts and swag donning the Bucky the Beaver mascot, plus seemingly endless amounts of snacks, drinks, and fuel for travelers making a pitstop. These gift cards, which are essentially Buc-ee’s cash, are especially handy for avid road-trippers, as well as friends and family who are hitting the road to visit you this holiday season. Score Buc-ee’s latest special deal while you can: Those who purchase a $100 gift card will get a $20 gift card for free.