Press

“There are other nods to Houston history and trivia: the restaurant Perseid, named for the meteor shower, nods to the city’s importance in space exploration; a cocktail, the Noble Night Heron, with white rum, rhum agricole, lemongrass, pineapple, and lime, is named after the city’s official bird.”

“It must have been nice to be a de Menil, the French-born, Houston-based art-collecting power couple of the mid-20th century. Chances are, you aren’t. But you can get pretty close at the new Hotel Saint Augustine, which opened in Montrose, Houston, in January.”

Local chef Aaron Bludorn helped bring this restaurant to life inside the long-awaited Hotel Saint Augustine. Perseid, named for a meteor shower that peaks in August, is a nod to Houston’s extensive history with space exploration. The menu that highlights the diverse influences within the city’s food and culture, along with various cocktails named for Houston’s history.

Located in the city in Montrose’s Museum District, the new-build property features 71 rooms and suites spread across five small buildings, which includes all-day restaurant Perseid, an intimate event space, a lobby lounge and listening room, and circular heated pool.

The unique design of this property was inspired by its neighbor: the Menil Drawing Institute. The museum’s modern look influenced the hotel’s circular courtyard pool and open-air walkways.

But with a neighbor like the Menil Collection, why hang art? Built by Dominique and John de Menil, the late Houston philanthropists who devoted their lives to transforming Houston into a modern art mecca, the Menil Collection offers Saint Augustine’s guests the chance to see works by Magritte, Miró, and Warhol just a brief walk from their hotel room.

Mention The Menil Collection to a member of the art cognoscenti almost anywhere in the world, and there’s a hushed reverence for its oeuvre and its forward-thinking founders Dominique and John de Menil. Now when sophisticated culturists pilgrimage to Houston to visit that storied Montrose museum, they can check into a hotel that’s nearly as chic.

John and Dominique de Menil brought their deep understanding for arts and culture to Houston when they settled here in the 1940s. The couple’s legacy lives on through the Menil Collection in Montrose and still inspires people every day, including the team at Bunkhouse Hotels, an Austin-based hospitality group.

The boutique hotel comprises 71 guestrooms and suites, an all-day lobby lounge, bar and listening room, an intimate event space, cloistered circular courtyard pool, and a Gulf Coast bistro helmed by James Beard semi-finalist, Aaron Bludorn.