Dubbed "a man of great taste" by his friends and family, Alberto Candelari was responsible for a sausage recipe that became a family tradition—one that even outsiders can enjoy at Candelari's Pizzeria on West Holcombe. The story goes that Alberto had just returned from a hunting trip and was experimenting with creating his own sausage in the back of the family's Houston liquor store. He struck gold with what would become widely known as Candelari's Italian sausage. But Alberto's Italian sausage was just the jumping-off point for a variety of other sausage recipes that, today, serve as the cornerstone for many pizzas and other dishes at his namesake eatery. Chefs still select the highest quality meats to stuff in each sausage, mixed with natural spices and often even a dash of liqueur.

You can sample the sausage in a grinder at lunch, on an "Autentica" thin-crust Neopolitan pizza (on a white or five-grain crust), or over linguini marinara. But Candelari's also creates dishes without sausage, such as veggie pizza, beef tenderloin (cooked over an open flame), and cedar-plank-roasted salmon. Enjoy any of the dishes with a bottle of Italian wine.

Candelari's Pizzeria
2617 W. Holcombe Boulevard
Houston, TX 77030
(713) 662-2825
www.candelaris.com
www.yelp.com/biz/candelaris-pizzeria-houston-2

CC-BY-2.0/Flickr/tenaciousme

Pancakes are a breakfast favorite for weekend mornings and other special occasions. The classic buttermilk pancake with butter and maple syrup is always a delicious treat, but there are a wide variety of other ways to make pancakes as well. Find some inspiration for your next pancake breakfast from these recipe websites.

All Recipes
The popular online recipe resource All Recipes offers a variety of unique, creative pancake recipes. Sunday Morning Lemon Poppyseed Pancakes are a delicious dish for a formal brunch with the family, while Chunky Monkey Pancakes with chocolate and bananas make a special treat for kids’ birthday breakfasts. If you want to improve your regular pancake recipe, All Recipes has a few tips and tricks for that as well.

Food Network
Learn to make fluffy, buttery pancakes from your favorite cooking show hosts! The Food Network’s website teaches you to make classics like potato pancakes, homemade “instant” pancake mix, and blueberry buttermilk pancakes, as well as more unique styles like the Tri-Berry Oven Pancakes or Oatmeal Cookie Pancakes. No matter your tastes, you can even search the Food Network website by ingredient to find the perfect pancakes for your family.

CC-BY-2.0/Flickr/The Culinary Geek

Indulge your inner choco-holic at The Chocolate Bar in Houston’s Montrose neighborhood. This sweet spot offers a wide variety of confections and treats including high-quality chocolates, cakes, cookies, ice cream, and more. Customers rave about the huge slices of cake, favorites include the chocolate Tres Leches and the Black Russian. If candy bars are more your style, don’t skip the Candylicious Junkyard cake made with several types of candy bars.

Unique ice cream flavors, like root beer float and toffee coffee, are generously scooped. On colder days sip on a mug of rich hot chocolate, or have it blended frozen for a summertime treat. There are plenty of high-top tables to enjoy your sweets. Customers find it great for date night, but it can be busy on weekends.

The Chocolate Bar
1835 W. Alabama Street
Houston, TX 77098
(713) 520-8599
http://theoriginalchocolatebar.com
http://www.yelp.com/biz/the-chocolate-bar-houston

CC-BY-SA-2.0/Flickr/avlxyz