Jonathan's The Rub — Restaurant in Houston

Mother’s Day ☹️! We had reservations at 7:45 pm, by 7:47pm our vehicle was broken in to. I have a lot to say and i’m gonna try to make this as short as possible. First off, the restaurant has very few parking spots.. so we had to park in the back.. Not one sign up of any safety or car theft issues (this is important to remember) after seating, it took 15 mins to get a waitress, drinks ordered and the waitress disappeared. Finally a new waitress (very nice and cheerful) she definitely improved the service up to that point. Limited items but all in all.. the food was good and the portions were pretty big. After ordering dessert, I received the check and was told because it was a holiday that a mandatory 20% gratuity was added 🧐 I actually liked the waitress and would have tipped 25% but the mandatory part pissed me off. Paid and signed as we never saw the waitress again, we took a few pictures and walked out. Once we got to the side of the building we noticed workers near our vehicle and saw the glass on the floor. Before we got to the vehicle a mgr walked out (Joshua) and immediately said this has been happening. And that’s the most upsetting part… he began to show previous video of the SAME GUY in the same car that had done this before. Joshua was nice and sent me as much video as I asked so I could share with the police. Watching the video made things worse, the thief had been there almost 10 mins before we got there and had been looking in several vehicles before we pulled in and parked. That’s why he immediately broke in ours. It would have been helpful had there been a sign up or maybe even the hostess letting us know something. By the time we made the report and got home it was past midnight. For my wife it was a terrible Mother’s Day and a terrible experience. Joshua was nice and some what helpful, but definitely took zero responsibility (I understand some what) it would have been nice for them to reach back out to us and ask how we were doing or that they made some improvements, but we haven’t heard a word. It sucks that a nice dinner out for about $225.00 turn in to about $5,000 so far. The thief stole several items, along with a check book and has made checks out for over $2500.00 (then bank is working on this). The food is good, service could be better- PLEASE don’t park in the back or even on the side as another persons vehicle got broken into as...

This was my first time to dine at any of the Jonathan’s The Rub locations. Having heard good things for a long time, I was excited as this is close to my office and would be a great place to lunch.

But after today. I am not impressed. And I’m hesitant to return.

First of all, the service was simply slow, and wasn’t particularly observant. We were there for lunch - but defiantly on the end of the lunch rush and the restaurant wasn’t very busy overall.

On to the food.

My companion had the tortilla soup as a starter and while she said it had great flavor, it was very thick, more of the consistency of a stew.

For her entree she had the Asian Chicken Salad. While the chicken tenders were breaded with a sesame seed mixture, the mixed greens were simply mixed greens. Nothing else to make it “Asian”

I chose the prix fixe lunch menu and started mine with a Caesar salad. Again - the flavor was delicious - but the romaine was simply swimming in dressing and cheese. The croutons also had good flavor but were either stale or underbaked as they weren’t super crunchy.

For my entree, I had the shrimp and grits. Honestly, it was one of the most disappointing Shrimp and Grits I’ve ever had. First of all, the plate was served with a significant amount of juice/runny sauce on top of the grits, simply swimming in it. Which was strange - but I dig in anyway - and bam - the biggest salt bomb I’ve had in a long time. It was beyond salty. Had I not been on a business lunch, I probably would have sent the dish back.

And then the thing that really just sealed the deal as a negative experience -

Not only do they charge more for an Arnold Palmer ($5 - but whatever) they charge another $5 for a refill. And none of that is shared when you order or ask for a refill.

And truthfully, the refill was only requested after the server refilled my iced tea and topped off my guest’s drink with tea, thus disrupting the ratio of the drink. After she refilled the AP with tea, I requested that she bring some more lemonade to balance the drink again. Her simple response was that she would bring a fresh drink, which she did. And they charged again.

Sorry - $10 for two AP is absurd.

Lunch for two before tip was $69 (and I tipped $14 because I’m not a monster)

Just not an experience I’m looking to repeat...

I made a reservation on a Saturday for 2 when they had availability every 15 minutes. Because of traffic and closure of Navigation Blvd, we were 20 minutes late. Got to the restaurant and they claimed the reservation didn’t exist at all; I showed them my active OpenTable reservation on my phone and they agreed it was odd they didn’t have on their ), and 10 minutes later told us it would be 40 minutes to be seated. (mind you my friend opened up opentable that very moment and could book a reservation instantly for that very time/now). I showed them that my reservation was still active on OpenTable so why they couldn’t find it made no sense. 10minutes later while we are waiting they explained that after 15 minutes the reservation goes away. … a complete crock because again I opened up my open table and it still says my reservation was there so if opentable says I still have a valid reservation why don’t they think I have it? The fact of the matter is they were understaffed that day and could not take all the people; they had a huge blowout party on the patio and in the bar area (the place was loud as hell), they were overwhelmed. They should’ve just admitted that and instead lied about the fact that I didn’t have a reservation after 15 minutes because nowhere and I mean nowhere on their website or on opentable or on any emails does it say anything about a 15 minute limit window. And again I could’ve made another brand new reservation right then and there instantly on opentable for the very time I was there and they would’ve taken it. Anyway, we were told there would be a 45 minute wait so they’re just liars and full of excuses. I will absolutely be spreading the word to everyone I talk to to avoid a restaurant that has this level of disrespect. we walked across the street to Ninfa‘s (that was entirely packed out the door and yet knows how to run a restaurant) and waited only 10 minutes and enjoyed...