Restaurants close, and often their owners move on to the next big thing. Some stay in the game. Others find something else outside the industry. For Paul Petronella, his next career step was already cooking when he was the chef and owner of Paulie’s and Camerata in Houston: a functional medicine practitioner.
Many were heartbroken towards the end of 2025 when Petronella announced he would be shuttering Paulie’s after a 27-year run at 1834 Westheimer Rd. The Italian-American restaurant had long been a Montrose favorite, but behind the scenes, its owner had borne the brunt of a significant decline in his overall health. That included low energy, unintended weight loss, and memory issues, among other symptoms.
“It was probably over a decade of slow decline,” Petronella told Chron. “It’s difficult to tell when it comes on slowly until it overflows and you start to put the puzzle pieces together.”…