Montrose’s Newest Hotspot Debuts With Benjamin Berg Style — and a Crowd of Beautiful People

What: B.B. Lemon Montrose introduction

Where: 4319 Montrose Boulevard (the former home of Pax Americana)

PC Moment: Restaurateur extraordinaire Benjamin Berg welcomed a stylish clutch to his latest outpost with a food-filled, thirst-quenched bash that doubled as a benefit for Lawndale Art Center and a soft opening of the neighborhood restaurant and bar.

In a clever fund-raising pitch, guests who a made a $50 donation to Lawndale or who purchased a membership in the contemporary art center (ranging $50 to $350) received a special B.B. Lemon-branded coup glass with the choice of two specialty cocktails by beverage director Monique Cioffi-Hernandez.

Executive chef Emily Trusler rolled out miniature versions of  B.B. Lemon menu items that included bite-sized burgers, grilled cheese & tomato soup, bacon parmesan, cups of chili, blue crab beignets, lemon chicken wraps, mini lobster rolls and pigs in a blanket. For those who partied late enough, the food service changed with mini servings of pulled pork sliders, TX Wagyu hot dogs, mini root beer floats and brownie a la mode bites.

Flashdrive, a trio of string players accompanying a DJ, provided the dance tunes, while guests perused the live auction offering — a Lawndale Art Center evening garden party for up to 75 guests along with a private showing of its current exhibitions with bites and libations provided by B.B. Lemon. The auction and contributions meant that more than $10,000 were added to Lawndale coffers.

Stay tuned for Berg’s next big adventure — the reimagining/revitalization of Cafe Annie. Annie Cafe & Bar, under Berg Hospitality’s tutelage and with chef Robert Del Grande’s talents, is expected to reopen in the fall. It is currently closed for a complete facelift, new menus and a new lease on Houston’s rocky restaurant world.

PC Seen: Katherine and Mark Yzaguirre, Elizabeth and Zack Fertitta, Frani and David Denenburg, Karen and Kevin Henry, Jason Fertitta, Kara Smith, Jaylin Marcel, Debbie and Rudy Festari, Bill Baldwin, Stephanie and Brad Mitchell, Andino Reynal, Jack Rains, Whitney Sharman, Carly Shuttlesworth, Dr. John Share, Rich O’Toole, and Katherine Barthelme.