When I blew through the glass door at Tony’s on a gust of wind a few weeks ago, it was one of the coldest nights of the year. I grabbed a table in the bar next to the gas-powered fireplace, which made me feel warmer even though the flames danced behind glass. I was meeting a couple of friends who were in from LA, we had all had a long, stressful day, and I wanted nothing so much as a couple of hours’ coddling in the form of service, food and wine.

Squash filled pansoti with a a parmesan puff, at Tony's. Photo by Alison Cook

That’s exactly what we got: a calm island of luxury in a era where anti-luxury is the buzziest industry trend. The restaurant that for decades helped to define society and fine dining in Houston still sets a high standard of old-school, polished service. And the food under impossibly young-looking chef Grant Gordon was noticeably better (and more contemporary) than I found it on my last visit, a year and a half ago.

Then, I was disappointed by favorite dishes that emerged too salty (the delicate lasagnette capped by too much grated cheese) or too sweet (a fruit-laden, syrupy foie gras), and by service that overwhelmed rather than cosseting discreetly. The kitchen seemed less consistent than it had been under chef Olivier Ciesielski, whose collaboration with veteran restaurateur Tony Vallone always struck me as the best in Tony’s storied history.

The main dining room at Tony's(with Rauschenberg on upper right). Photo: Tony's

So I was delighted to find that Gordon and Vallone really seem to be clicking together. There’s a streamlined new menu that has only been in effect since the beginning of February, and it allows diners to cherrypick dishes from the tasting-menu as well as the a la carte side. I loved the precisely turned gnocchi perched on earthy squares of guinea-hen-and-foie-gras sausage, flavored with a red-wine reduction and an unexpected note of star anise. I even loved the rigorous modern plating of the dish, the gnocchi lined up in a perfect row like a line of fat-bellied soldiers.

Tony’s stuffed pastas have always been favorites of mine, and a new treatment of round, squash-filled pansotti in a much-reduced cream was all quiet elegance — and perfect with a glass of really fine Gavi. There were three pasta envelopes on the plate under a jaunty little parmesan puff, at a price of $14.

Gnocchi on guinea-hen-and-foie-gras sausage, Tony's. Photo: Tony's

Yes, that’s expensive. But Tony’s has never been about dining on a budget; it has always been a prime Houston stage for putting on the dog. That sense of studied luxury is part of the restaurant’s enduring appeal, right along with the doting service and the gleam of the Rauschenberg soaring above the dining room, or the startling, ropey limbs of Jesus Moroles’ towering Three Graces sculpture. (The table tucked near its base is, to my mind, the most desirable in the house.)

Risotto carbonara with pancetta and a soft-poached egg, at Tony's. Photo by Alison Cook

I found the risotto carbonara that evening simple and powerful: meticulously cooked Arborio rice sharpened with grated pecorino, laced with just enough pancetta and smoothed out with slow-poached egg. It was sophisticated and homey at once.

And a slab of grilled Gulf snapper had a pristine, satiny flake that defined the appeal if this fish for me. The new menu offers choose-your-own cooking methods and sauce or condiment options for the seafood section that startled me at first — as did a businesslike slate of steaks — but I loved the restraint of the olive-oil and blood orange treatment I settled on for my fish. It felt elemental and clean and genuinely Italian, a welcome development in a restaurant where, historically, opulence has been a governing principle.

A refreshingly light Pavlova dessert of meringue, fresh fruit and cream, at Tony's. Photo by Alison Cook

That’s why I’m curious to see where the Vallone/Gordon synthesis may take this iconic restaurant. Vallone, a famously demanding boss, is one of a vanishing breed of restaurateur who will always have a strong influence on the food — making him something of a rarity in this chef-driven era. He has said that Culinary Institute of America grad Gordon (a Memorial native who has trained at such respected restaurants as Cyrus in Healdsburg, Calif.) really impressed him during a cooking tryout and a general discussion of ingredients.

I can see why.

(Tony’s, 3755 Richmond Ave. 713-622-6778. Monday — Thursday 11 a.m. — 10 p.m.; Friday 11 a.m.— midnight; Saturday 6 p.m.— midnight.)