Willie G's Seafood & Steaks — Restaurant in Galveston

10/5/2025: On a gorgeous day, my Aunt and I decided to drive to Galveston to have lunch. I threw out options like Gaido's and Grand Galvez. She was insistent on Willie G's. I have been to the one on in the Galleria many times. I used to work near that one, so it was a convenient lunch and happy hour spot for me and my coworkers. I was excited to try the Galveston location. We parked in the area near the entrance and noted the free 3 hour parking sign. Just bring a photo in of your license plate. That was a plus. We ended up walking in the back entrance by mistake. When we arrived at the hostess booth, both attendees were a little sour. No smile, no pleasantness. That always amazes me how it is so natural to be like that. I worked in the restaurant business at their age (or maybe younger) and I can never imagine not smiling and greeting the guests. Different world today for sure! We were seated in a nice booth. The table linens suggested a fine dining, so I was looking forward to it very much. Our waiter was super nice, but he was so soft spoken and had an accent, it was very hard to understand him. He brought fresh garlic bread to the table and gave us time to review the menu. We decided to split the wedge salad, bowl of lobster bisque. and an appetizer of shrimp Cabo. Our salad came out first. We told the waiter we wanted to split before it was brought to our table. It arrived on one plate and the waiter handed me an additional plate. He said he told me they do not do splits in the kitchen. Maybe he did tell us. I couldn't hear him. Regardless, I have never been told they do not so splits. I get it that it might seem to them as cheap to them. It's not that. Neither of us can eat a full seafood meal and we didn't want to drive back to Houston feeling tired after a heavy meal. The wedge was good. I've had better. The soup arrived next. This time we were waited on by a different guy. He brought the bowl to me not knowing we intended to split the soup. He too said they don't do splits in the kitchen, but he was very nice to take it to a tray on the side and split it for us. Imagine the mess if I were to do it! The bisque was good It has some large chunks of lobster in it with celery. It was smooth and creamy as bisque should be. Lastly, our shrimp Cabo arrived. It was served on a bed of onion straws and corn kernels. The bacon that wrapped the shrimp was crispy and the shrimp itself was very tasty. That item was easy to split since it arrived on a boat plate. There are four to an order. Easy to split between two people. When were were ready to leave, I gave my Landry's card information and asked the waiter about the parking situation. He said something about his manager, looked to the direction of his manager, wrote the plate number down, said something else, then walked away. He was terribly hard to understand, even in a quiet restaurant. When he came back with our check, I asked again about the parking and he made a gesture that it was taken care of and we were good. Overall, the hostess and waitstaff need to take some lesson from the second waiter who helped us. I wish we would have gotten him to serve out table. I could understand him, hear him, he was helpful, and get this... he smiled! I will probably not take the time to go back with the issues I experienced. I don't want to press the point about sharing if I dined there again. I share most of my meal because I don't care to eat as much as a regular meal contains. I don't think I should feel bad for that. The restaurant is by the docs on the water. They do offer outside seating. It's not the prettiest view, but it is a water view. A very large barge went by while we were there. Thankfully, exiting the parking area was easy. I would have been super upset if I had to go back in...

First time visitor, I planned my visit around a Birthday Cruise to Western Caribbean on Royal, so I decided to make reservations for one person to celebrate my birthday. In fact, after I booked the reservation online, selected a 3pm time slot, the next question asked, "what's the occasion"? I thought, how cool is that, Willie Gs is actually interested in my visit, so I indicated that I was celebrating which happened to be, my birthday. This morning when I arrived to Houston, took a Shuttle to Galveston, settled in my hotel and made my way over to Willie Gs for dinner. First impression is always the one that you remember and hope the rest of your visit makes up for other people being just plain "rude" I mean, the first step I took towards the restaurant door, a group of 5-6 people (who obviously had dined together), came plowing out the door, so I stepped aside. I wasn't expecting to hear what came next. One female stepped out of her group and said, " nope, I'm not letting you in" and then one of her friends, or relative says, "no, don't do that" I went ahead and said, "as hungry as i am, I will bull doze you on out of the way" hoping that would trigger laughter, and it did, thank God. I believe its a shame to witness a person of another race have the unmitigated gall to say something so rude to another human being and think it's ok. Well, it didn't stop me, and it never will bc I love people and will never change who my parents raised me to be and that is to treat people the way you want to be treated. Next, I walk In the restaurant and the receptionist was AWFUL :( I said "hi" and she literally gave me a look that let me know right then that she didn't want to assist me. I then said "I have a reservation for one person(1)" she asked again, "how many"? I then repeated the number then asked didn't they get my reservation I made online? She says, with a nasty, i couldn't care less facial expression :( NO! Then I said, if possible I'd like to sit on the patio She then grabbed a folder and began walking off toward the patio without saying a single word! I tried following her but hesitated because the isle was blocked by a waiter pouring wine. I made it to the patio and the hostess walked off without a "enjoy your meal, Your waiter will be here shortly," and so on. Stay Tuned for Part 2 because it gets good after this because of ONE kind soul. Stay tuned, I'll write the final review next! Ok, here's Part 2 After being treated strangely, my waiter by the name of ROBERT Y, was the most kind, professional, courteous and attentive person I met in Willie Gs this afternoon. Robert not only displayed knowledge of the menu, he never passed my table without asking if I needed anything else. I noticed the Red Fish was overcooked and so was the shrimp, crawfish and mushrooms. I thought for $31.00 the seafood lacked taste and presentation at best :(but here again), Robert suggested a little more lemon butter sauce and that elevated the Red Fish so that it was at least palatable, but sadly. the other toppings were.a "NO" for me, but in the end, the Key Lime Pie was a hit, along with the Stuffed Shells. In the end, my decision was to never dine...

Willie G's is one of those restaurants you pass every day on the island wondering if their food is worth the hype. I wasn't disappointed when I went there with my partner on Sunday earlier this week. I want to start by saying a very special thank you to our server that night, Esta, she was attentive, kind, and friendly the entire time. We asked her if she enjoyed her job and if they treat her well and she said they do, which means a lot to me when eating out. The night only went as smoothly as it did thanks to her and the amazing service she provided (we tipped of course). We reserved a table ahead of time for 7:30p, but it wasn't needed as the restaurant wasn't exactly packed that day, but still recommend that you do as I can tell it would fill up on more active tourist days. We were seated fast, got our orders taken (no substitutions or alterations), and the complimentary garlic bread was nothing short of perfection. For drinks, I had a "Call Me Old Fashioned", and my partner had a "Bahama Mama", both drinks were from the signature drinks menu, and in my lightweight opinion, I believe they were poured very generously for the price we paid. The food came out quickly and everything was amazing. Their salmon was cooked just right and the sauce that it was battered in was delicious, the same goes for the mushrooms that come with it as well as the veggies. I couldn't find anything to complain about except that I wish it came with more. My partner's crab-stuffed shrimp was also delicious and could see myself getting it in the future if I was in the mood for shrimp. All of the food presentations were very well thought out and added to the atmosphere of the restaurant. My partner got the Distinctive Dining Menu that comes with an appetizer and a dessert as part of the main meal and she very much enjoyed the salad she chose as well as the dessert she got in the end all for the reasonable price of $45. We will be coming back in the future and potentially making it a tradition to eat her before the start of each school semester as a tradition of good luck or something like that. It was really great and again a special thanks to Esta for making our night so enjoyable as well as the chefs for making such delicious food for a reasonable price given that it's a sort of high-end feeling restaurant. In the future, we'll probably order some wine to test them out a glass at a time, and I look forward to trying the fried catfish or one of their steaks. The only gripe I will say I have with this restaurants location is having to pay for close-by parking. I understand it's probably not their fault and most likely the city of Galveston's, but it is something you have to take into account when calculating the finances for your night out at Willie G's. It's only a minor nitpick and nothing I hold against the restaurant in...