Kudos for Caracol
AWARDS & RECOGNITION
Caracol has earned national acclaim for its innovative Mexican coastal cuisine, exceptional hospitality, and award-winning leadership under Chef Hugo Ortega and restaurateur Tracy Vaught.
JAMES BEARD FOUNDATION HONORS
Hugo Ortega named Best Chef: Southwest at the James Beard Foundation Awards (2017).
Finalist for Best Chef: Southwest for six consecutive years (2012–2017).
Tracy Vaught named Outstanding Restaurateur Semi-Finalist at the James Beard Awards (2016).
Tracy Vaught recognized as a three-time James Beard Awards semifinalist.
LIFETIME & INDUSTRY RECOGNITION
Chef Hugo Ortega received the Craig Claiborne Lifetime Achievement Award from the Southern Foodways Alliance (2017).
Tracy Vaught honored at the Houston Business Journal Women Who Mean Business Awards (2017).
Named Restaurateur of the Year at the Houston Culinary Awards (2014).
TOP RESTAURANT RANKINGS
Included in Alison Cook's Top 100 Restaurants, Houston Chronicle (2017).
Ranked #5 in Houston's Top 100 Restaurants by Alison Cook, Houston Chronicle (2016).
Named Houston's #2 Best New Restaurant by Houstonia Magazine (2014).
Recognized as the Top New Restaurant in Texas by Texas Monthly (2014).
Led Houston Modern Luxury's list of the 10 Hottest Restaurants (2014).
Featured among Houston's 38 Essential Restaurants by Eater Houston.
NATIONAL & REGIONAL RECOGNITION
Recipient of the Wine Spectator Best of Award of Excellence (2015).
Recognized by Forbes Travel Guide as one of Houston's Top Latin American Restaurants.
Named among Southern Living's Best International Restaurants (2016).
Featured in Food Cities: Searching for America's Greatest Food Cities by The Washington Post.
Featured in Smithsonian Magazine's What Makes Houston the Next Great American City? (2013).
SIGNATURE DISHES & CULINARY HIGHLIGHTS
Included in Texas Monthly's 120 Tacos to Eat Before You Die.
Featured in CultureMap's 10 Houston Dishes to Eat Before You Die.
#12 Crab Soup featured in Houston Press's 100 Favorite Houston Dishes (2015).
#34 Chiles de Padrón Asados featured in Houston Press's 100 Favorite Dishes (2014).
ADDITIONAL RECOGNITION
Featured among Houston's Best Oyster Restaurants by CultureMap (2014).
Recognized in Where to Eat Right Now by Eater Houston (2014).
Included in Houston's Top Newcomers by Eater Houston (2013).
Named one of the 5 Best Happy Hours in Houston's Galleria area by Houston Press (2014).
Featured in Zagat's Five New Restaurants with Stunning Design (2014).
Included in Zagat Houston's 10 Hottest Restaurants (2014).
Featured by Daily Candy as one of Houston's top dining destinations (2014).
FEATURED BY
The Washington Post, Forbes Travel Guide, Southern Living, Smithsonian Magazine, Texas Monthly, Wine Spectator, Zagat, Eater Houston, Houston Chronicle, Houstonia Magazine, Houston Press, CultureMap, Daily Candy, and the James Beard Foundation.