Willie G's Seafood — Restaurant in Houston

Willie G's Seafood in Houston came highly recommended by the hotel staff, and after reading glowing reviews online, I decided to check it out for a quick lunch. Specializing in Gulf oysters, fresh seafood, prime steaks, and signature cocktails, Willie G's certainly had a lot to live up to.

Upon entering, I was immediately impressed by the fresh seafood on ice in the entryway--a display that truly set the stage for the meal to come. I also inquired about ordering from the display and was happy to know this was allowed. The interior was equally inviting, with light colors and high ceilings creating an upscale and modern coastal atmosphere. The ambiance was further enhanced by the stylish decor, which included a more formal dining area with tablecloths and a more casual bar area with wooden tables and chairs. Thought was put into carefully curating its space to offer a relaxing and enjoyable dining experience.

We were seated promptly and greeted by our attentive waiter, Angel, who offered us water and went over the chef's recommendations and specials. I had been craving pasta and planned to return for dinner, so I decided on the Bourbon Street Pasta for lunch. This dish featured blackened shrimp, crab, crawfish, andouille sausage, fettuccine, and a Cajun cream sauce. My friend opted for the Crispy Fish Sandwich with fries.

Our meals arrived quickly, piping hot with a simple presentation. The Bourbon Street Pasta was absolutely amazing--a true testament to Willie G's culinary expertise to elevate such a simple dish. The portion size was generous, and the dish was seasoned to perfection. The Cajun cream sauce was rich and flavorful, perfectly complementing the al dente fettuccine. The shrimp, crab, and sausage were all cooked and seasoned individually, resulting in a harmonious blend of flavors that danced on my palate. I opted to remove the crawfish, but the dish was still a standout.

My friend was equally impressed with his Crispy Fish Sandwich. The fish was perfectly fried, boasting a crispy exterior and a flaky, tender interior. The soft, lightly toasted bun added a delightful contrast in texture. And the french fries? Let's just say they were a 10 out of 10--crispy, flavorful, and not at all greasy.

Throughout our meal, Angel was attentive and provided excellent service. He was always available but never intrusive, ensuring that our dining experience was nothing short of exceptional.

Willie G's extensive menu offers a wide variety of seafood options. They also offer valet parking and accept reservations through Open Table or Landry's Inc. The restaurant's website highlights a business casual dress code, so be sure to leave your hats and athletic wear at home.

Although I didn't have the opportunity to return for dinner, I'm already planning my next visit to Willie G's. The Bourbon Street Pasta alone was enough to make me a fan, and I can't wait to explore more of their reasonable priced menu options. If you're looking for a memorable dining experience in Houston, Willie G's is worth checking out.

Order: Bourbon Street Pasta - $34 (blackened shrimp, crab, crawfish, andouille sausage, fettuccine, Cajun cream sauce. Daily Crispy Fish Sandwich with Fries - $18 (cole slaw, remoulade, lettuce, tomato, pickle)

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If I could give ZERO stars, I would!!! I went to the bank and pulled out $550 JUST to eat at this "nice" restaurant for a decent post workout meal/my monthly splurge. (Luckily so because I usually use Google pay, but my phone was dying.) Instead, I was treated as if I was some straggler coming in to get over on someone!!

I ordered a seafood tower amongst a few other things (steak, a couple sides, and drinks) to enjoy with my daughter. Unfortunately, the menu does not specify ANYWHERE that the tower is COLD! Nor did the waiter tell me it was cold when I asked him to specify if the oysters were raw or cooked. He should've told me that everything else would be cold when I asked him to have the oysters grilled because it doesn't say it on the menu. There was COLD LOBSTER, COLD CRAB, COLD MUSSELS, COLD SHRIMP, NO SAUCE, AND NO SEASONING! Since I saw that the waiters had obviously put in effort to make it aesthetically pleasing, I, in all honesty, tried my hardest to make it work.

My daughter and I each ate ONE oyster, and ONE of the cold crab legs, and I alone had ONE cold mussel, which was maybe about 5%-10% of this tower. That was what I was able to stomach without potentially regurgitating the rest of what I had. I got the the lobster tail and ended up spitting the bland, cold, rubbery lobster tail out into my napkin because I couldn't swallow it. I tried to salt and pepper the remaining half (of the half) of lobster tail I had, and it still didn't work for me, and I spit that out as well. My daughter said to me that it tasted like what a public restroom smells like. I'm sure they saw the chewed tail in the napkin. I just couldn't. I was completely turned off from anymore seafood.

The waiter came back and I let him know verbatim "I'm sooo sorry , I can't eat the tower. I tried to make it work since I saw all of the effort put in, but I had no idea that this would be cold. Is there a different resolve?" He went to "talk to the manager" and said he offered to warm the rubbery, beachwater-essenced food that was already on the icy tower, and put some blackened seasoning on it (except the oysters even though they got cold super fast because they put those GRILLED OYSTERS on ice, too). I was appalled at this suggestion, notating in my mind that this isn't some cheap $40 crab shack, and that they should be more professional and SANITARY in their approach to this. I let him know that I was unfortunately turned off from the tower. He said I still had to pay for it, which was absolutely ridiculous to me. I did say that I would pay for the crab legs that I had eaten, and that I was so sorry, seeing you guys' hard work, but I could not stomach the rest of it.

I asked him again to speak to the manager as I previously watched the manager go table to table checking on other guests, before I even complained. HE REFUSED TO COME SPEAK TO ME, and disappeared into the back somewhere at this time.

(Cont'd in photos because it gets worse. Too...

This was the cheapest bill we've gotten from a nice restaurant in a very long time. We arrived a little early to our reservation, so waiting to be seated was to be expected, especially the night before Mother's Day. We were seated in a comfortable booth that felt very private compared to many of the other restaurants that try to squeeze as many people in as they can, we appreciated that old-school dining environment. Someone dropped off menus another gave us water and then we were left alone. When our waiter finally arrived, he jumped right into wanting to take our food order... So I asked what they had for mocktails, and he disappeared again. When he came back he had our drinks and was ready to drop them off and run again, but we were long ready to place not only our starter order but also our main meal. Thankfully I was able to stop him from running off and got him to take our orders. Our food arrived fairly quickly, unfortunately, though it was put in all at once so we got our appetizer at the same moment that our main dish was ready. We by this time had finished our mocktails, no one, not once, ever offered to get us another beverage or see if we would like anything else. We poured our warm water into the mocktail glass of ice and ate our dinner, not once getting asked if we would like some more water. When we finished our meal I placed our plates at the end of the table, in hopes our waiter would stop by, a man dressed in a suit picked up our plates and asked if we were ready for our dinner now. I laughed sarcastically and told him that was our dinner, so he said he'd get the dessert menus for us. Now, had we been offered several glasses of water or even mocktails we would've been slightly full from the meal we ate, but we were both still very hungry, so when the waiter suggested that the crème brûlèe was big enough for us to share, that he didn't want us to have to pay extra... as if we can't afford it. I was a bit insulted but figured maybe he was right, maybe this is so big that we can share. He was wrong, we left there hungry. We would've ordered more, but sitting there for over 3 hours constantly waiting, it wouldn't be worth it. I ordered a cappuccino and told my husband to ask for the bill at the same time because otherwise, we wouldn't see our waiter again. It worked out perfectly, by the time I was done with my coffee, he was back with the bill.

The grilled branzino fish was OK, it lacked seasoning, and the broccolini was terrible, it was burnt and also lacked seasoning. The Bourbon Street oysters were delicious as was the Cajun swordfish and the...