Our Story
A family restaurant where every dish tells a story
How It All Began
Ron Brandani has never called himself a chef. "I can make whatever I have tasted before," he says with the quiet confidence of someone who has worked the line at Brennan's of Houston, the original Carrabba's on Kirby, and under the legendary Jean-Georges Vongerichten.
His wife Claire, a third-generation Houstonian, rounds out the operation with warmth, business acumen, and a family pumpkin spice cake recipe that people dream about between visits.
They opened Brandani's in March of 2015 in a small shopping center on FM 1092. They guarded every dime. They cooked the food they loved to eat at home. And Missouri City noticed.
Today, Brandani's is the number one rated restaurant in Missouri City on TripAdvisor, with a 4.8-star average across Google, Yelp, and TripAdvisor from over 991 reviews. The secret is not complicated: big flavors, honest cooking, and the feeling that you are eating at a friend's house.
Chef Ron Brandani
A Galveston native, Ron started in the restaurant industry at age 14 as a busboy. He trained under Danish Chef Tommy Broberg and went on to work at Brennan's of Houston, Pappas Bros. Restaurant Group, the original Carrabba's on Kirby, and with Jean-Georges Vongerichten, the Michelin-starred French chef who transformed New York dining.
His cooking philosophy is simple: "I like big flavors. I do not think you should have to season your food when you go out to eat." His style is food with an Italian heart, combining Italian influences with American comfort, French technique, and the best Texas ingredients he can source. He learned to make homemade red sauce from his father at age five.
Every week, Brandani's guests consume over 200 pounds of fresh fish, wild-caught from the Gulf. Ron is known for transforming Southern American and Italian classics with locally sourced Texan ingredients and French techniques.
The Paintings
Ron's mother was a painter whose original oil paintings line the walls of the restaurant. They add warmth, beauty, and a deeply personal touch to the dining experience.
One painting holds a special place in the story. Created long before Ron and Claire ever dreamed of opening a restaurant, it depicts a place called "Brandani's Restaurant." When they finally opened their doors in 2015, the painting found its true home on the wall of the very restaurant it had foretold.
It is the kind of detail you cannot make up, and the kind of story that makes Brandani's unlike any other restaurant in Texas.