Gonzales Bistro — Restaurant in Gonzales

This review is based on 15 visits over the course of two months.

The menu offers about a dozen appetizers and entrees for many palates. Plenty of protein and vegetarian options. Pork, prime steak, swordfish, tuna, chicken (of course), lamb, antelope steak, bison burger.

Food: Spicy Peruvian-style ceviche. Maine bay scallops (sweet, briny, and bite-sized) with diced sweet potatoes. The spice is noticeable. I give high marks for the two 4-oz USDA Prime filets. French green beans, perfect slices of decadent scalloped potatoes provide the bed for the filets. The demi-glace is so good, you'll be asking for more. Medium-rare, I sliced the filets with a butter knife.

Food: The ahi tuna sashimi was prepared with a sesame seed/honey vinaigrette, accompanied by wasabi and pickled ginger. Here, the chef serves a little over 1/3 pound of fresh, bright tuna in house-made vinaigrette. And the wasabi is genuine, not the fake-green-burns-your-nose-hair stuff.

Food: 14-ounce Akaushi 'prime' ribeye is a boneless cut, so you'll be getting all fourteen ounces in the form of melt-in-your-mouth beef and rendered fat. To complement the flavors, Chef drizzles the steak with a poblano Monterrey Jack cheese velouté. Medium-rare. It's cooked true to temperature. The entrée includes a generous portion of hand-cut French fries, seasoned perfectly.

Food: A half dozen Wellfleet oysters can be shared as an amuse among 2-3 or as a hearty appetizer for one person. The oysters hold up wonderfully on their journey to Gonzales. Wellfleet are medium-sized, nice meatiness, slight creaminess, strong brine. Eagerly accepts accoutrements.

Food: The flavor, the tender and slightly chewy texture, the impossible-to-ignore earthiness of the escargot. At Bistro, the snails are without shells, with garlic butter and Italian bread to accompany. Someone who enjoys escargot would be encouraged to order or would have to drive at least 60 miles to find any other restaurant even attempting to serve it. For the entree, a mahi-mahi filet. The flesh was semi-translucent and perfectly cooked to chef's temperature. Accompanied by a colorful medley of vegetables.

Food: Fried coconut shrimp. These were jumbo shrimp and could've been a small entree all by themselves. The texture combination of the hand-battered seafood along with the flavor of the pineapple-chipotle aioli dipping sauce is fantastic. Very shareable.

Food: The soup of the day was mushroom, and the dish certainly delivered on that. Although the base was creamy, the defining flavor profile was that of fresh forest mushrooms. Each spoonful had a slice or wedge or cap of a mushroom. For the entree, I chose an off-menu item: beef stroganoff. This is an elevated preparation with prime beef slices, al dente bowtie pasta, and mushrooms.

Food: The Caprese appetizer is an off-menu item and was the perfect starter. With a small bed of field greens, a fresh pouch of a burrata centerpiece, and a colorful variety of wedged tomato cultivars, the presentation was lovely. The flavor was balanced between the creaminess of the cheese and the light seasoning. Tomatoes were vine-fresh and firm to the bite. For the main course, the tournedos Rossini. Perfectly executed prime filet and delicious Madeira demi-glace sauce.

Food: Sunday brunch steak and eggs. Wagyu top sirloin and two eggs any way you want them. The steak is cooked to perfection with a nice spicy relish spooned over it. Rounding out the meal is a side of carbs: home fries. Shrimp & grits. Decadent. Wonderful, plump shrimp. There's about a half-dozen shrimp and another half-dozen slices of Andouille sausage. The sausage is straight out of a New Orleans recipe book. The low Country red eye pan sauce adds additional spice to the meal.

Food: Lamb entree prepared for me lollipop-style (aka scottadito), with a nice sear and medium-rare internal temp, each lollipop was a delight. Accompanied by potatoes Dauphinoise and garden veggies in a classic brandy-peppercorn sauce, the meal...

This place has GREAT food - really really good. Not to miss. My wife and I dined here early April 2024. We had a reservation and got seated fast. And immediately a waitress was ready to take our drink order. We asked for a couple of minutes to look over the cocktail list and and wine list. Within 4 minutes three other waitresses came by and asked for our order - so we really had no time to look at the drinks lists besides talking to the waitresses. Then 15 minutes passed by without any chance to waive down a waitress. But we finally got our drink order in. After a good 10 minutes more a waitress asked for our food order. We ordered the food and a bottle of wine. After another 7-8 minutes she returned and said the wine was sold out. So we picked another bottle - after another 3-4 minutes we were once again told that the wine was sold out - and that most wines on the list was sold out - but they had other wines….. so we ended up asking to have any bottle of red wine served before the dinner was served. They managed to get a wine for us just in time for the main course to be served. We ordered two glasses of port for the deserts….. but…. Yes, you guessed it - they were sold out…

The restaurant itself it fairly large, clean and well kept. But if you get seated along the wall you basically sit so low that your chin is on the table. I had to ask for two pillows to sit on in order to be comfortable. The decor is… strange… the name Gonzales Bistro and the fact that they claim to be serving French food tends to make you feel for a French Bistro design - or a design that emphasises the great history of Gonzales - or a mix…. But the restaurant is covered with large photos of American celebrities. And on top of that the windows have a totally different curtain style. So kind of a “weird” experience. But the food...

A wonderful dining experience all around. Food and service were excellent, and the fun, relaxed atmosphere somehow combined Texas/Global chic with a down-home vibe that was just what we needed after a long day. We had the good problem of wanting to try many of the starters and entrees, which isn't always the case. I've been to a number of fine dining places where nothing was calling me. (We'll just have to come back!) The split pea soup and hearts of palm salad were both delicious ways to begin. I love chicken fried steak and couldn't resist the Antelope version here. My wife had the gnocchi, which was phenomenal (I had some of hers.) Finished off the meal with the amazing "Euthanasia By Chocolate," though I want to try the creme brulee next time. Great wine choices and cocktail menu. And they made an excellent classic Martini for me. The hostess was great, and our server, Ron, was terrific. I would've given them five stars anyway, but what really impressed me was what happened after the meal. I lost the keys to where we were staying and went back to the restaurant long after they had closed. Chef Parind Vora happened to be outside and when I told him what had happened, he graciously let me in the restaurant, turned on the lights, and he and our server Ron helped me look for the keys. I'm sure they just wanted to go home after a long Saturday night, but they didn't hesitate to help. I finally found the keys elsewhere, but knowing they weren't at the restaurant helped tremendously. I'm so happy we discovered Bistro on this trip and look forward to returning. We're in San Antonio, and the food is definitely worth a trip. I'd give them more...