Mosquito bite: East End eatery and Hurricane Ike survivor Mosquito Café is buzzing again, as Buzz Blog reported this week.
Stephen Rennick, who with wife, Patricia, owns the popular island restaurant. Mosquito Cafe, 628 14th St., has returned with old favorites (Napa Salad and Chick Stack), new hours and a dinner menu that will include such fare as meatloaf, rack of lamb and mac and cheese, to name a few items.
Mosquito Cafe will serve lunch and dinner 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays; breakfast, lunch and dinner from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturdays; and breakfast all day and lunch from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sundays.
The restaurant is closed Mondays.
Crunchtime: Miss that Burrito Ultimo?
Happy readers are reporting the post-Ike return of the island’s Taco Cabana, 2729 61st St.
Ahoy Skipper’s: In the north county and beyond, restaurants swamped by Ike surge are reopening, while others still are trapped in insurance purgatory.
A reader reports that Skipper’s Cafe, 1026 Marina Bay Drive, is again serving up its famous breakfast and other dishes to boaters, anglers and other loyal followers.
“They are a local favorite for breakfast and serve great Greek food,” the reader e-mailed to say.
“I think all of us who live around here felt like we lost a community gathering spot after the storm and it is wonderful to see them open again.”
To The Point: Meanwhile, readers have been hungry for post-storm information about Seabrook’s restaurants and seafood markets in The Point (the area opposite Kemah Boardwalk) that got swamped by storm surge, including Tookie’s Restaurant and Pappadeaux.
First, there is hope that Tookie’s, 1202 Bayport Blvd., could be again serving up those famous burgers.
Owner James Spears could not be reached for comment.
But Kelly Templin, director of planning for Seabrook, spoke with Spears on Wednesday.
Spears is considering restoring the Seabrook institution, but everything hinges on insurance, Templin said.
Spears also has said he may consider selling the restaurant.
Pappadeaux plans? Meanwhile, officials with Houston-based Pappas Restaurants also have told Seabrook officials they plan to demolish the storm-damaged Pappadeaux at 309 Waterfront Drive and build a fresh restaurant, but haven’t offered a timeline, Templin said.
Part of the Pappadeaux building collapsed, Templin said.
Floating feast: Just after the storm, live crabs and shrimp and other product from the markets were floating in the surge, Templin said.
“The shore birds were immobile, they were so stuffed with shrimp they couldn’t move; it was kind of surreal,” he said.
But Rose’s Seafood Market, 501 11th St., is rebuilding and Golden Seafood, 511 Waterfront, is either open or soon to be, Templin said.
Aside from insurance, Seabrook restaurants, businesses and residents must contend with National Flood Insurance Program rules that might require them to rebuild at higher elevations, Templin said.
Stay tuned.
In the oven: According to a recording at Gio’s Flying Pizza and Pasta, 650 FM 517 in Dickinson, the eatery is opening today.
In the same shopping center, Kim’s Performing Arts Center is snapping up more space for a gymnastics studio.
Update II: The current owner of Trans-King Transmissions, 1019 53rd St., on the island, said a Houston company is in the process of buying the business and could reopen it.
But whether the new owners open it on the island or Houston hasn’t been decided.
When the business does reopen, however, employees will be able to answer customer questions.
Fashion flub: Fort Myers, Fla.-based women’s clothing retailer Chico’s confirms it will not reopen its downtown island store, 2215 The Strand.
Sales associates already have been notified.
The specialty retailer made a lot of shoppers happy when it opened about four years ago.
