J W's Steakhouse — Local services in Carmine

Half of my family lives in Georgetown and the other half in Houston. We decided to meet here for a birthday and Valentine's celebration, since it's half way. We got there at 11 on a Saturday and we were hungry! Everyone ordered their food: pan seared catfish, fried seafood platter, chicken fried chicken, grilled shrimp, chicken tenders and corn dogs for the kids. I ordered a 5 oz filet, medium rare, which I figured was reasonable to ask for at a Steakhouse. Well, as the other tables started to fill up around us we noticed they also got their food faster than we did. We didn't think anything of it, as we were a large group, but it seemed questionable that no one stopped to check on us, maybe offer a refill. While we were waiting,the manager came by our table, didn't address us at all, but reached over my nephew and my mother with his big body and closed the blinds behind them because someone had complained about the sun in their eye. He closed them the wrong way, blinding us and not even excusing himself for the intrusion - this should've been a sign.

Then, the food arrives. The chicken fried chicken came out without gravy, the broccoli ordered with the kids meals was a sweet broccoli salad (not something kids like) and not steamed broccoli, they also forgot the order of fries I had asked for. All of the seafood meals came without tarter or cocktail sauce and the extra plates we asked for (because people were splitting their meals) we're forgotten. We ask for all the missing things and they bring them out, no big deal. I cut into my steak and it's well done. I wait for quite a while to get the attention of the waitress, then send my plate back. She orders a new one and by the time it arrives, everyone else is done with their food. I cut into my steak and it's cold in the center, not even appropriate temperature. I ask for the manager and when he comes, he says nothing - no apology, no offering of anything else, not even a "we can remove that from your bill" I have to ask for that. Look, this is a popular place so they obviously are doing something right, but the customer service needs improvement. I understand this was lunch on a Saturday but, if you call yourself a Steakhouse, cooking a filet shouldn't be a problem and receiving polite criticism shouldn't be taken so defensively. Man up, Mr. Manager and offer assurance, courtesy and respect to your customers - that...

The short version: Was charged dinner price at lunch, when brought to waitress' attention I was told it was my fault I didn't specify I wanted lunch (noon on Friday). A lady that claimed she was the owner then threw $20 at me.

Details: I walked in on a Friday as the "lunch whistle" was going off, so noon on the dot. I was looking at the lunch section on the back of the menu as I placed my order with my waitress. My mother ordered the same way. When the bill came, I thought it was high for lunch chicken tenders and hamburger steak, so I looked at the menu again and it showed different prices than I was charged.

When I brought the price difference to my waitress' attention I was told that I should have specified I wanted the lunch portion and since I didn't, I was given the dinner portion. I've never had to specify I wanted the lunch option during lunch while ordering from the lunch menu any where else. The waitress went on to say that she normally asks which portion but was busy so she forgot to ask me. She acted like it was my fault that I wasn't more clear that I wanted lunch. She then started telling the manager that I didn't tell her I wanted lunch and I "didn't want to pay for the dinner that I got" again acting like it was my fault.

There was about a $10 difference, so not really a big deal but how rude they both were and blaming me for "not ordering the lunch portion" was completely unnecessary. Then the waitress told me, well, your mom got 2 sides instead of 1 so she has to pay the dinner price. I was stunned by how they were acting. Then to make the matter even worse, the owner took $20 out of the register and literally threw it at me and asked if that would make me happy. I told her I wasn't owed $20 but that seemed to make her even more angry, like I had annoyed and offended her for having dared point out the price discrepancy.

Aside from the bill mess, the food was not very good. My mother only took one bite of the coleslaw and then declared it inedible. My hamburger steak was bland and no where near worth $16. The side salad I got was...

We were in town shopping at Paul Michael and wanted to eat before drive back to Austin, so we did a Yelp search and this place was highly rated. When we entered, I was a little unsure, but by the time we left, I understood why the ratings are so high. While it seemed empty when we arrived around 4:15, by the time we left, almost every seat was taken and I know it is not just because the food is really, really good, but the customer service from the hostess to the waitstaff is genuine and so friendly. Michelle was our waitress and she was fantastic and definitely deserved her 25% tip. She was very friendly, very attentive, offered great suggestions and was able to wait on several tables at once without being stressed and her smile never waivered. The food was so good, we took home leftovers! We had the fried pickles, surf and turf with grilled shrimp, the catfish platter, side salads, loaded baked potatoes, chicken fried chicken with brown gravy, chocolate meringue pie, Italian cream cake and the chocolate eruption cake. Everything was fried to order, hot and fresh, the steak was perfectly prepared medium rare and the salads were fresh. I highly recommend their house made bleu cheese dressing. The rolls that accompanied each dish was fresh, warm and had a light taste of honey butter, so no additional butter was needed. The desserts....wow! All three were amazing, but the Italian cream cake was one of the best I have ever had. We threw the leftovers in our air fryer the next day and savored each bite. I highly recommend JW and when we come back to do more shopping, we will definitely be coming back and I hope to see Michelle again and I hope they have...