Calliope's - Bellfort — Restaurant in Houston

I recently paid a visit to Calliope's at 7590 W Bellfort Blvd aiming to satisfy my craving for a genuine NOLA-style hot sausage poboy. Despite the homey vibe of the spot, I was slightly taken aback when it came time to order. With the understanding that a "small" usually implies a smaller portion at a smaller price, I opted for the small hot sausage poboy, expecting a fair deal.

The price, however, gave me a start. At $10.30 for a 7" poboy, the value question inevitably crept in, particularly in comparison to the regular 9" offering. A bit of market awareness tells me you can snag a small bucket of Patton's hot sausage patties – roughly 10 of them – for a mere $9.99, which benchmarks the expectation for what one might consider a reasonable price for sausage in bread.

When it came to assembly, I discovered to my disappointment that a single patty, bifurcated for the purpose, was the sum total of filling gracing my sandwich. This portion, while neatly prepared and tasty in its own right, left me pondering the economics of appetite versus expense. It's a challenging balance for any eatery, and on this occasion, I fear Calliope's scale may have tipped a little too much towards the latter.

Taste-wise, the poboy did inherit some redemption. The flavors were good, with the distinct zing of the hot sausage rousing the taste buds effectively. The quality of ingredients, though hampered by their scarcity within the confines of the bread, was evident, and a nod must be given to the kitchen for their food preparation standards.

Admittedly, it's tough to match the price to portion of homemade or store-bought alternatives, particularly when dealing with a dining establishment. Overhead counts for something, after all. Yet, as a customer, the eye judders inevitably to what seems like a mismatch – a divergence from an unspoken standard of sandwich economics.

In the crowded arena of Houston's diverse food scene, Calliope's finds itself at a crossroads between tradition and expectation. While their hot sausage poboy could be a delicious nod to NOLA goodness, the experience is somewhat marred by the price point and the meager serving.

For Calliope's, the potential for greatness is there, shadowed closely by the good. They stand three stars affirmed, but with ample room for growth – perhaps starting with a reconsideration of their value proposition.

For now, I'd recommend future customers temper their appetite or be willing to pay a little extra for a taste of Calliope's culinary culture, served up with a side of...

I have been to Calliopes numerous times and usually their food is always good. Today I’ve experienced the worst food and customer service from them, I came in with a large order for my family. They were very unhelpful with accomadating any substitutes we had on the order. They even told us there was a limit on how many garlic butter sauces they could provide us with. I noticed a change in staff this Friday afternoon, I’m not sure if they got rid of their old staff because of their new location that opened on Westheimer or because they let them go all together but the new staff were definitely not helpful. The manager who was in saw that we were having problems and we asked to speak with her she looked us up and down and just ignored her employee and the question being asked. We got our order and left, amongst making it home we noticed that the food was not up to par. The boudin balls were fried too long, they tasted like burnt old oil. The crawfish and shrimp po-bos they served us had little to no filling, they were mainly bread lettuce and tomatoe. We called to let them know we were dissatisfied with the po-bos and if we could come back and get a replacement sandwich or something to make up for the fact that the sandwich had little to no shrimp or crawfish. We went back to the store where they were once again difficult saying they couldn’t give us our money back or a replacement because a bite had been taken out of the sandwich LOL anyways all in all today’s experience was horrible and I will not be back or recommend them to anyone in...

Our family ordered a bunch of food and it was ready for pickup in a timely manner. Every item we asked for was correct and most were delish. my son and I each got the eleven inch roast beef Poboys with gravy, amazing, and huge, we'll get one and share it next time. One of us loved the fried shrimp plate, another enjoyed the fried shrimp Poboy, my wife shared one of the best bowls of crawfish and shrimp etouffes we've ever tasted, butter based.....definitely get this item. The onion rings were amazing, French fries we will skip next, just average. The boudin balls were just three stars. Ordering on line will work if you order less than 50 dollars. We ordered a small etouffee, bland, some boudin balls, a small fried chicken po boy and a cup of chicken and sausage gumbo, the gumbo had no sausage in it. Not up to our expectations. My wife picked up a to go bowl of crawfish etoufe and it was very tasty. WE'll be back for more goodies. We've dined in twice in the last few days and loved both meals. My wife got a half pound of boiled shrimp with mild garlic butter. I went with a small roast beef & gravy and a small 2 piece fried boudin balls....our second visit the following day involved us devouring a small bowl of mixed gumbo.....you can 3 different sizes.... and a bowl of crawfish etoufe and an amazing fried crawfish pie with remoulade sauce. Great food...