Charolais Opening Adds to The Woodlands’ Growing Dinner Scene

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Chef Austin Simmons returns with custom steak boards, familiar favorites, new dishes and a market connected to his Texas cattle program.

Wednesday, July 15, 2026 | 5:00 a.m.

THE WOODLANDS, Texas — The opening of Charolais by Chef Austin Simmons gives residents and visitors another reason to make The Woodlands their dinner destination.

Charolais began dinner service Tuesday, July 14, in Hughes Landing, marking Simmons’ return to a local restaurant kitchen after serving as executive chef at Tris.

The new restaurant combines several dishes familiar to longtime customers with a larger selection of beef cuts, multiple cooking methods and an adjacent butcher market.

For families, couples, business groups and visitors from across South Montgomery County and the surrounding region, Charolais adds another option for planning an evening in The Woodlands. Guests can have dinner, enjoy the Hughes Landing setting and purchase Chef & Rancher beef to prepare at home.

A Familiar Chef Returns

Simmons developed a following in The Woodlands during his time at Tris, which closed in early 2025. Since leaving the restaurant, he has focused on Chef & Rancher, his cattle business with Texas rancher Larry Ludeke, along with private events and meals for military members and first responders across the country.

Charolais brings Simmons back into a restaurant kitchen while connecting the dining room directly to the Chef & Rancher cattle program.

Several popular dishes from Tris are included on the opening menu, including kimchi crab, tuna sushi pizza and watermelon salad.

More Ways to Order Steak

The restaurant’s steak boards allow diners to try several cuts during one meal. The opening selection includes bavette, picanha, rib-eye, Denver steak, flat iron, strip filet and a large rib cut.

Charolais also gives the kitchen several ways to prepare the meat. Cuts may be cooked over an ember grill, on a flat top or in cast iron, depending on the steak and the result the kitchen is seeking.

The open kitchen allows guests to watch Simmons and his team prepare and assemble the steak boards.

New dishes include beef bacon with Texas goat cheese, hummus with braised tri-tip and a Thai-style lettuce wrap made with flank steak. The restaurant’s fryers use beef tallow, including for its french fries.

Options Beyond Beef

Although beef is central to the restaurant, the menu is not limited to steak.

Guests may also choose salmon, sea bass, fried chicken, a pork chop and shellfish dishes. Simmons has also refreshed the restaurant’s side dishes and reduced the use of refined sugar in several recipes.

The variety gives groups with different tastes more ways to share a meal at the same table.

A Place for Fall Celebrations

The opening comes before the start of fall homecoming season at schools across South Montgomery County.

Charolais gives student groups another option for a homecoming dinner before the dance. Groups planning a homecoming dinner should contact the restaurant early to ask about reservations, seating and private dining availability.

Homecoming night can also provide parents with an opportunity to plan their own evening out while students attend the dance. The restaurant’s dining room, lounge, bar and Hughes Landing location make it an option for parents looking for dinner together during homecoming activities.

Designed for Dinner and Gatherings

The 200-seat restaurant was designed by Houston-based Gin Design Group. The space includes a 25-seat bar, a 34-seat lounge, an 80-seat patio and two private dining rooms.

The private rooms can accommodate groups of up to 24 and 36 people, providing space for family celebrations, business dinners and community gatherings.

“It’s not over the top fancy. It’s just beautiful,” Simmons said. “Here, you’re blown away when you walk in the door.”

The bar opens with 12 original house cocktails and was designed to serve guests efficiently during busy dinner periods.

Take the Experience Home

C&R Market, located next to the restaurant, allows customers to purchase cuts from the Chef & Rancher program to prepare at home.

The market also carries products developed to use more of each animal, including bone broth and items made with beef tallow. Customers may watch some of the butchery process and have selected cuts prepared for purchase.

C&R Market is open Tuesday through Sunday. Charolais currently serves dinner Tuesday through Saturday, with no lunch or brunch service announced.

Another Reason to Visit The Woodlands

Charolais joins the restaurants, entertainment venues, hotels and waterfront spaces that bring people to The Woodlands for an evening out.

Its opening is also a homecoming for a chef whose work is already familiar to many local diners. For longtime customers, Charolais offers the return of several favorite dishes. For first-time guests, it offers a chance to explore different beef cuts, cooking methods and a restaurant connected directly to a Texas cattle program.

The result is more than another place to order a steak. It is another reason for residents and visitors from the surrounding area to gather for dinner in The Woodlands.

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