Brennan’s of Houston, the 43-year-old Houston landmark ravaged by fire when Hurricane Ike swept through town, is open again for business. After an exhaustive 17-month renovation of the John Staub structure led by the Atlanta firm The Johnson Studio, this beloved Texas Creole restaurant has reopened under the direction of owner Alex Brennan-Martin and chef Danny Trace, an alum of the Commander’s Palace concept in Destin, Florida … Soon after Tootsies announced that it’s making the big move down the street to West Ave, confirmation of leases (that everyone has been chattering about) were officially released. Restaurants and bars opening later this year and next at West Ave include: Anita Jaisinghani’s urban Indian cafe, the wine bar Cru, seafood eatery Eddie V’s (born in Austin) and a yet-to-be-named new concept care of Ad West (run by brothers Jeff and Darren Van Delden, who created The Drake and Red Door) … Word is Niko Niko’s, one of our favorite Greek eateries, is cloning itself downtown in Market Square. Lured there by the Downtown Management District, owner Dimitri Fetokakis says the “mini” Niko Niko’s will be 375 square feet — about the size of his family’s original restaurant. Look for the eatery, complete with walk-up window, to open late this summer … After a two-year hiatus from the Houston dining scene, Philippe Schmit (former chef at the now-shuttered Bistro Moderne) has signed a lease at BLVD Place. His two-story Philippe Restaurant and Lounge, which will open in the fall, will feature a lounge on the first floor and a dining room on the second, with kitchens, outdoor terraces and bars on each level. Architect Shafik Rifaat is designing the space, with interiors by Lauren Rottet. The inventive French fare will hit a range of affordable price points to encourage regulars to make it their personal boîte. Schmit’s former colleague Ludovic Poirier has been named director of operations … Stefano Zullian, his wife Carla Susi and sister-in-law Silvana Susi have opened the chocolate shop Araya in River Oaks Shopping Center. Their artisan candies are sweetened with honey in lieu of sugar, with flavors such as pink salt, passion fruit, margarita and orange marzipan. They’re artfully packaged, too: Araya invites artists to contribute work to appear on limited-edition box covers … On the subject of sweets, pals Karee Gonzalez and Michelle McPherson have opened K&M Cake Ball Company. What’s a cake ball? The name really says it all, with flavors such as red velvet, carrot, devil’s food, peanut butter and strawberry coated in icing. Sold by the dozen at ucanhaveaball.com, they’re fun giftables … Calling all wine snobs: Nos Caves Vin is a new state-of-the-art, member-only wine-storage facility near Rice Village … Bruce Molzan’s original Montrose site of Ruggles Grill has reopened, offering old favorites and new dishes inspired by the wild success of their “green” concept, Ruggles Green (which, we should add will open its second location this spring in CityCentre).