The Cordúa family is back, and in a big way.

This fall, David and father Michael Cordúa will open The Lymbar, a cocktail bar and restaurant, at The Ion, the Midtown structure set to anchor the neighborhood’s 16-acre innovation district.

The restaurant pays tribute to the family’s home on Lymbar Drive in Westbury. The Cordúas have been one of Houston’s first names in Latin American cuisine, creating concepts like Churrascos, Américas, Artista, and Amazón Grill over a 30-year run. The father and son left Cordúa Restaurants in 2018, and The Lymbar marks their first major move since departing.

“If Churrascos and Américas were our family story in Central America, The Lymbar is our first opportunity to tell our family story in Houston,” said David Cordúa in a press release. “We’re really excited to be a place where people meet, think, eat and drink in The Ion, and we look forward to being a part of the heartbeat of Houston’s new innovation district.”

The bar-forward Lymbar will have a craft cocktail program with barrel-aged spirits and an emphasis on Latin, South American, and Mediterranean flavors. David Cordúa’s food menu will balance his French cooking education (Le Cordon Bleu in Paris) with a more global feel. It’ll serve lunch, dinner, and drinks daily. Brunch and happy hour will come later.

Designed by Gin Braverman, who also lived on Lymbar Drive with the Cordúas, the restaurant joins an already exciting list of concepts opening at The Ion (4201 Main St.). They include Late August, the collaboration between Chris Williams of Lucille’s and Dawn Burrell, James Beard award semifinalist and current Top Chef contestant; STUFF’d Wings, a brick-and-mortar location of the popular Third Ward food truck; and a new location for fast-growing Common Bond Café.

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