Orleans Seafood Kitchen

 

As a play on the New Orleans's vibe, this restaurant is headed in the right direction. When you walk in, you grab a menu and step up to the counter to order. You're then given a buzzer and seat yourself. If you ordered a drink, they give you a ticket to take over to the bar, where a bartender mixes it up for you on the spot. Be sure to check their site for discounts, I signed up for the email loop and they sent me a coupon for $10 off when you spend $25. They also have discounts such as Sunday Family Day 20% off when you provide a bulletin from your place of worship, Tuesday is Senior Citizen Day 20% off, and Wednesday kids eat free

We started out with a Hurricane, which isn't one of the best I've had. It actually had a fruit punch slushie taste to it. Wouldn't order another one, I'd stick to something else.

The food on the other hand is a different story. I ordered the Orleans Combination (Crawfish or Shrimp Etouffee served with rice and choice of one item from the "Fried Seafood", served with Garlic Bread) $13.49. If you want it extra spicy they will give you a small container of dry spice you can add yourself. I thought it was fantastic the way it was, but I did add the spice to the ketchup for my fries.

D started off with a cup of Seafood Gumbo $4.49. The flavor was really nice and it wasn't watered down. It also didn't have those stupid super small cocktail shrimp in there, instead it was a nice size shrimp. We would order this again.

He opted for the Fresh Fish section of the menu selecting the Pecan Crusted Rainbow Trout served with Dirty Rice, Smothered Green Beans, Garlic Bread and Sauce of Your Choice $14.49. The lady taking our order suggested the Decatur sauce (shrimp and crabmeat in a brown butter sauce) and said that it was a popular pairing. The green beans where nothing to write home about and seemed to be just frozen reheated beans that could use a little salt. The fish on the other hand was really good and as my hubby says "the sauce makes the dish otherwise it wouldn't be as good".

The prices are right here and the flavor is good, we will be coming back here again for sure. Don't forget to check the site for discounts if you plan to stop in I got the coupon emailed the same day I signed up.

Fish City Grill

A great little find in Katy is Fish City Grill. They currently have 4 locations in Houston and while I have not been to any of the other ones the Katy location is a gem. When it comes to seafood it’s good or it’s bad there really isn’t any ehh. I constantly seem them advertising for charity events and they are really involved with the community even participating in the local rice festival.

We had been to this location a couple of times when they first opened and I’ve had my fingers crossed they stay in business because the food is good and the service is awesome. Everyone is so friendly that they welcome you right when you walk in. I like that their website gives you each locations menu with prices.

Be sure to check their black board on the wall for their daily specials. If you follow them on Twitter you can find out their specials. A neat deal they do is the first Tuesday of every month they highlight a local area charity which receives 15% of the entire days sales.

We opted for the fried green beans which comes with a chipotle dipping sauce for $5.99.

For lunch my mother-in-law and I split a bowl of Cream of Roasted Jalapeño Soup $5.99. I could have gone to town on this soup it’s rich and thick and packed full of flavor!

As an entrée we split the Honey Chipotle Shrimp Tacos (Three corn tortillas filled with honey chipotle shrimp, shredded carrots & celery. Drizzled with cool ranch dressing & topped with diced avocado.) $9.29. The waitress was great and divided up the plate so that’s why you see only 2 tacos instead of 3. We opted for the Apple Cider Slaw rather then the Rice Pilaf it comes with. I liked that the tacos where overflowing with shrimp and not just 3 to a taco.

You also get slices of French Bread with your meal. mmmm

This place is a gem! Their serving sizes are generous and their prices are very reasonable without compromising the quality. 

Reef

I watch a lot of cooking shows and was excited to see one of the contestants had a restaurant in Houston and knew I had to try it out. Chef Bryan Caswell from Next Iron Chef owns Reef and Stella Sola in Houston. I’ve heard fantastic things about Stella Sola and mixed reviews about Reef. We happened to be going down town for a charity event so we popped in Reef for an early dinner.

The restaurant had a nice look to it, very simple and clean. They where hosting a Christmas party in the wine room, but other then us there where 2 tables filled at 6:30pm. I got the feeling the dress code was business casual and that was fine with me. The only thing that bothered me was all the waiters hanging out at the pass. I know what’s where they need to pick up their food for the tables, but when there’s no one there they shouldn’t huddle there.

I really like that they had homemade sea salt rolls and jalapeno jelly at the table. The bread reminded me of a pretzel and the jelly had enough sweet to it to balance out the heat. I also never understand why they give you 3 rolls for 2 people. Yes things look better in odd amounts but come on I want my own roll!

As an appetizer we ordered the Crunchy Calamari, Charred Green Tomatoes, Cilantro Aioli, Pickled Pepper Condiment $9. The sauces where awesome I just wish we had more calamari for the amount of aioli we had.

As my entrée I ordered the Crispy Skin Snapper, Sweet and Sour Chard, Tomato Brown Butter &26. The snapper was bland, cooked well but very bland. I think the chard could have been cooked a hair longer. The thing that had all the flavor was the broth. Wow if only the fish could have taken on some of that flavor.

D ordered the Redfish on the Half-Shell, Fried Mac & Cheese $26. Let’s see what can I say about this dish….ummm well that’s a huge block of fried mac and cheese. His whole plate was bland and the fish stuck to the skin so bad it looked like he butchered the thing. The sauce on the fish was really good that was about it.

Overall maybe we had a bad night there, but I wouldn’t go back. I’ll be trying his other restaurant and pray it’s better.

McCormick & Schmick’s Seafood Restaurant (Town and Country Location)

It’s been a long time since we’ve eaten at McCormick and Schmick’s. They recently opened up a new location in Town and Country which is a lot closer to us then their other locations. D found a gift card on www.plasticjungle.com at a pretty good discount so we gave them a try. First off let me say that going out on a Friday night is risky due to the amount of people out. We had reservations at 6pm and still had issues with parking. I think if you plan ahead you could get a better parking spot then we did.

 

We started off our meal with a Fried Calamari $12.90 “Full Bowl” Roasted Tomato Sauce, Lemon Tabasco Aioli. I think it was a little overpriced, but the Tabasco Aioli was really nice.  (I’m sorry I forgot to take a picture)

 

They have specials on select bottles of wine at half price so of course we had to get a bottle.

 

As the main course I selected a Jalapeno Cornbread Stuffed Fish with Green Beans. I can’t find it on their menu anymore which is probably a good thing. It lacked flavor and the cornbread was dry. The only good thing was the fish wasn’t overcooked. The green beans where under done and had to cut.

 

The winner of the night was D’s choice which was a Chilean Sea Bass $32.90 with a Miso Broth, Udon Noodles and Stir Fry Vegetables. The price was a little much, but the flavor was AMAZING! Normally we each order something different and split them, but he had a hard time handing over his dish.

We finished up the evening with a seasonal Chocolate Crème Brulee $6.95. This was fantastic and I would order it again.  We also split a Pumpkin Cheesecake $7.95. The cheesecake was ehh ok but not worth ordering again. It seemed really heavy and the flavor was off. I did like the ginger snap crust that they used.

 

Overall the service was really good and I would recommend anyone who goes to try the bass you won’t by sorry.

Frank’s Chop House

I’ve always heard good things in regards to Frank’s Chop House so we decided to try it out after getting a discount via an online program. The feel walking in was business casual of course we where there for an early dinner and I’m sure it could be dressier later in the evening. They have different specials listed online so be sure to check their site before making a reservation. You could miss out on deals like half price wines on Sundays.

We started out with a bowl of the soup of the day $7 (French Onion) recommended by our waiter. I thought it was fantastic and could have eaten another bowl by myself.

Also starting us off was a Caesar Salad $7. It didn’t wow me, but it won’t disappoint if you are a fan of caesar salads.

The one thing we had to try was their pork chops. They are known for them and I had very high hopes. The 16 ounce Maple Brined Double-Bone Pork Chop $23 served with Sweet Corn Mashed Potatoes and Spinach is OMG out of this world good!! If no one was looking I would have licked the plate! I’m always scared of pork chops because they are easily overcooked. This chef knows what he’s doing. He was also pleased to hear that I raved about him to the waiter. (If you ever like your service or food make sure you tell people otherwise they’ll never know. )

D ordered the 16 ounce Ribeye Steak $37 with Potato Gratin, Roasted Garlic and Broccoli. (Sorry for the blurred picture he’s not as patient taking pictures as I am.) The Potato Gratin was fantastic, not too greasy and nice and creamy.

I think our waiter really enjoyed talking to us and getting all the feedback that they sent over a slice of house made cheesecake. I didn’t think I could eat anymore at this point so we each took a bite and took the rest home. The cheesecake was just as good as our meal.

Overall I would love to go back for another Pork Chop I have to say it’s the best I’ve ever had!

Ruby Tequela's

We tried out a new place with some friends that had been here before. Ruby Tequela's has several locations in Houston, Lubbock and Amarillo. Walking into the restaurant had a very open feel and lots of seating. The waitstaff is nice and there's plenty of them around so they don't have a lot of tables to work. We started off with a margarita. CARLOS SANTARITA - Sauza Tres Generaciones Plata, Patron Citrónge and Blue Curacao. They where tasty but not as strong as a regular one would be.

Since there was a group of us we where told the appetizer sampler was plenty of food. RUBY’S SAMPLER PLATTER $14.95 2 beef flautas, 2 chicken flautas, 2 chicken empanadas, taco meat nachos, cheese quesadillas and grilled fajita steak. Served with guacamole, sour cream, queso and creamy jalapeño dip. The creamy jalapeno dip is REALLY good! If anything you need to ask for this with your chips and salsa they don't charge extra for it, but you have to ask or they won't bring it.

The platter was plenty of food, but since D and I had never been there we also ordered the SUNSET FAJITA BURRITO $11.95 Grilled beef, chicken or combination fajita wrapped in a flour tortilla smothered in our queso inferno. Served with guacamole and sour cream. This was a disappointment and I wouldn't order it again. The burrito looks huge but there's maybe a 1/4 cup of tiny chopped fajita meat inside and nothing else.

Overall I would go back, but I'll stay away from the burrito. There's a coupon on their website so be sure to print that before you go.

Palma de Cera

We purchased a discounted gift certificate ($15 gift card for $7) from idine deals and chose the restaurant Palma de Cera. They specialize in Latin Cuisine yet offer a wide variety of food. The portions where large and their food is very tender and flavorful.

D ordered the Steak al Chimichurri $15.99 (Grilled steak with chimichurri seasoning. Served with rice, sweet plantains and salad.) Hands down one of the best chimichurri sauces I've ever had. The meat was so tender you could cut it with a fork.

I went with something different off their traditional Latin American dishes. The Sobrebarriga a la Criolla $13.99 (Strings of meat served with creole sauce, yucca, potatoes, rice, salad and sweet bananas.) It reminded me of a pot roast, the meat was very tender and the sauce was really good, I just wish the potatoes where cut in a little smaller sizes. Overall I would order this again.

If you go to their website you can print a coupon for 15% off your meal. Since we had a gift card the only issue we had was the restaurant said we couldn't use it unless we spent at least $25, which was listed no where on the restrictions or posted anywhere. We ended up ordering banana foster $4.95 for dessert since we where $3 short. I wouldn't order that again, online reviews say their flan is really good so if we go back I'll try that instead.