Paulie's — Restaurant in Houston

Absolutely one of, if not the absolute best Italian restaurants in Houston.

We stopped in on a Tuesday night after seeing great reviews online for Paulie's. Upon arrival, there is a private parking lot behind the restaurant that was easy and convenient to park in.

When we walked inside the restaurant, we took note of the pleasant and inviting atmosphere. The restaurant is counter-service style and very convenient to order and find a table. The menu is wonderful with plenty of selections without being overwhelming.

We ordered vegetable soup, pesto pasta with chicken, spaghetti and meatballs, and Canestri and Broccoli (shells with oil/garlic/parmesean, and broccoli with chicken). We also ordered iced tea and ginger lemonade as well.

The ginger lemonade and iced tea was very good, fresh, and not too sweet. The vegetable soup was rustic, homemade, and had an amazing broth. The soup was full of thick cut veggies (carrots, celery, potatoes, red peppers, corn, and green beans). This was one of the absolute best veggie soups I've ever had, and $7 for a large bowl is a great value.

The spaghetti and meatballs was VERY good. The sauce is a homemade San Marzano tomato sauce. Very rich flavor without too much acidity. The meatballs were moist, tender, flavorful, and not overly spiced. The pasta was cooked perfectly.

The pesto was extremely fresh and bright with very clean and light flavors and a delicious olive oil base. The kalamata olives were a very nice touch, and the grilled chicken was cooked to perfectly. Nice crispy pan seared outside and so moist and tender inside. Again, the pasta was cooked perfectly.

The Canestri and Brocccoli (shells with olive oil/parmesean/garlic with broccoli and chicken) was absolutely out of this world. One of the best pasta dishes I've ever had in my life. Dripping with flavor without being too heavy. Again, the pasta and chicken were both cooked perfectly.

The meals came with garlic bread, which was very nice. Not overwhelming with garlic and cooked perfectly. Such a nice compliment to the meals.

We finished up with a mocha latte and some of their homemade Easter shortbread cookies. Excellent latte, with beautiful flavor and not too sweet. The shortbread Easter cookies were absolutely incredible. Mindblowingly good how buttery and tasty these are.

The price for dinner 3 people without alcohol was around $77 and another $12 for the coffee and cookies (all not counting tip).

Overall, this is truly a hidden gem of Houston. If you want REALLY good Italian food at a VERY good price, and in the greater Houston area, this is the #1 place...

I came across Paulie's about a month ago and I really enjoy the food I've been there seven times so far five out of the seven I ordered the chicken piccata and l always order a full size (but I ask for my pasta to be in a seperate container) which is the large and I share with my son who's one and I noticed that there's some inconsistency with the size of the side order of pasta that comes with it and tonight I felt I had to bring it up because it was a big difference from the other times it was the smallest portion so far and I spoke with a cashier at first, who agreed that it looked smaller than usual and he suggested that I speak with a manager and I did and he had a couple reasons that to him justified the portion and the inconsistencies the first was that regardless of ordering small or large the size of the pasta is the same which is cool I've never ordered the small plate but regardless according to him it's the chicken portion that is different in size so that doesn't change anything, the side of pasta is still inconsistent and different in portion size and it shouldn't be. I showed it to him and then he said that sometimes when they're busy you know things happen and maybe the cooks are rushing but that they measure out the portion I get it however tonight appeared to be the slowest night compared to the other times and I got my food the quickest about 15 to 20 minutes wait. my first night I waited an hour and 30 minutes with no issue I have no problem waiting or paying for what I want. I didn't say all this to him cause I didn't wanna go back and forth he felt he was justified he did give me a extra side of pasta which I will gladly pay for I don't want free food just some consistency and understanding I do understand things can't always be the same. However I'm puzzled because idk which portion size to expect in the future the second portion is soo much bigger and looks like the amount I got a couple of the other times.... I enjoy the food and desserts and the peach Bellini so I'll keep coming I hope this is a topic addressed in a group meeting maybe show the pictures. Thanks y'all I don't mean any harm food is great I'm sure my review will...

My first experience at Paulie's was a very pleasant one, great service and delicious food. Upon first entering the door, you're greeted by the friendly staff behind the counter & have an opportunity to select your menu items from the wall-sized menu. My colleague ordered fettuccine Alfredo with Roasted Salmon & a side Cesar salad with a lemonade. I also wanted fettuccine Alfredo, but since it was my first visit, I thought it would be better to order something different & my colleague and I could try each other's mean, to get a better idea of the variety of food. I decided on the Canestri & Broccoli, also with a side Cesar salad, also I ordered a Tea. The cups with ice were handed to us to use the self-service drink dispensers in the dining room. We were also given a pager to inform us of when the food was ready. After we poured our drinks and selected our table, the pager beeped & the salads were waiting for us to pick up. The side Cesar salads were delicious. After we (almost) inhaled them, we picked up the entrees. The Alfred sauce was delicious & the Roasted Salmon was probably the best Salmon I've ever had. The Canestri & Broccoli has an amazing texture & the Parmigiano sauce was good. If I had 1 critique, it would be to have the Roasted garlic, Roasted a little more to bring out the flavor a bit. But the meal was fantastic & my colleague and I both made mention of how we plan to...