oxheart houston

I still so vividly recall our first night in Houston as a married couple, boxes stacked high in our tiny new space, complete with hardwood floors and the peeling paint we hardly noticed. At a mere 22 years old, it almost felt like we were playing house with blissful pride in these novel roles of husband and wife. I remember the first bottle of wine we shared there—first attempting to open it with a knife because we could not fathom digging through the jungle of boxes for our corkscrew—sitting on the floor because not a stick of furniture had yet been purchased. I often look back with appreciative sigh to that idyllic summer of nesting in this great big new city.

Now here we stand, 3 years later! HusBen and I celebrated our 3^rd wedding anniversary a few weeks ago at Oxheart. I could not write a dissertation on what I learned in these past 3 years of marriage, but I know a few things that characterize at least the way this marriage succeeds:

Put God, who funds all Love, first. If truly prioritized, the correct significance of each of the other areas of our life seems to fall in place accordingly.

Out serve your lover. Our marriage has very much been a pendulum, swinging back and forth between who is taking care of who at any given moment (or month). We only get so much free time in our busy lives so we have to take those opportunities to serve hard when we have the chance (because we always, always know we will need to lean on the other soon enough).

Do fun things with your spouse (or they will do them with someone else). This pretty much summarizes the YOLO attitude we have carried this year…and how grateful I am for the memories we have built! 

Oxheart Tasting Menu

layered beets with 'meyer' lemon blossom vinegar, quinoa, and almonds

raw brassicas leaves and pickled stems, goat’s whey, chrysanthemum, and herb oils

heirloom carrots cooked with exotic spices and coconut, avocado, corianders

biscuits. enough said.

'warsaw' grouper roasted over pecan wood, spring onion escabeche, three egg sauce, caviar

tartare of smoked beef leg, kombu aspic, lime, cucumber, basil, rau ram

cauliflower

'freedom ranger' chicken: poached white meat, braised dark meat, with summer squash, soured cream, and oregano

fennel mousse with white sesame nougatine and orange 

caramelized chocolate cake with cane syrup and green tomato jam