Kyle McClenagan/HPM
Doc’s Houston is located at 1201 Westheimer Rd. in Houston’s Montrose neighborhood. Photo taken Nov. 6, 2025.
A new jazz venue occupying the historic Tower Theatre building in Houston’s Montrose neighborhood is set to host a soft opening next Tuesday.
Doc’s Houston is the second jazz club venture undertaken by jazz pianist Brent “Doc” Watkins, who opened Jazz, TX in San Antonio nine years ago. The 11,000-square foot venue in Houston was designed by Card and Company Architects in San Antonio and is styled in the fashion of the “golden era of supper clubs.”
The Montrose jazz venue is the centerpiece of development company Radom Capital’s 1111 Westheimer renovation project. Watkins announced the plans to renovate a portion of the Tower Theatre into a jazz club in October 2024. The location had been vacant since the Acme Oyster Houston closed in December 2023.
Last year, Watkins told Houston Public Media that the Tower Theatre was chosen because of its rich musical history and its location in Montrose.
“We found out that in 1980, Ella Fitzgerald recorded a live album at Tower Theatre,” he said. “[It] just blew my mind because she’s one of my top three singers of all time and you know the Montrose neighborhood, everybody we talked to said, ‘You’ve got to go to Montrose because it’s just a hip neighborhood.’ … Sometimes it takes you a while to work towards a decision. That was not the case here.”
Provided/Matthew Casby
Chef Jose Avila, who previously worked at San Antonio’s five-star Hotel Emma, is in charge of the venue’s kitchen. The menu will feature foie gras, grilled octopus and short rib empanadas, alongside mains such as pork belly chicharron paella, coq au vin and carved-to-order Chateaubriand and more — including a cocktail and wine list.
The soft opening show will begin at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 11, featuring musical artists Natalie Broussard and Alex Navarro. Houston-based saxophonist Wood Witt will also be performing that same evening at 9:30 p.m. 
Provided/Matthew Casby
Other shows are scheduled for later next week, leading up to the grand opening at 7 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 15, featuring a performance by Watkins himself. Latin jazz artist Charly Siaba Quintet and pianist Jeremy Joseph will also be performing on opening night.
Following the grand opening, the venue plans to be be open from 5 p.m.-1 a.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays.