Harvest Kitchen & Bakery — Restaurant in Katy

We were passing through Katy, Texas and drove past this quaint restaurant that looked inviting in a strip mall. It had several patio tables full of customers. The food on the plates looked really good. Honestly, most places in a strip mall aren’t particularly appealing on the outside but this was. Our 4 yr old son was wanting fast food & to play at MCD’s but the husband and I are trying to stay away from fast food. So we took him there and the restaurant was a few feet away, so I walked over.

My husband and I looked over the menu before I went and the pictures on the website did not disappoint. Although the prices were a little higher than we expected for this part of town. They ranged from $15-$20 an entree but included 2 sides. We were intrigued by the brisket French dip and the chicken avocado sandwich.

I was greeted by a sweet tween girl who I told that I was needing to make a to go order. She asked me to follow her to the to go counter. A Server came out and looked confused and asked her what I was needing, she told her I needed to make a to go order. She then told her the process for the future that she needed to make a ticket that says “to go” and listing any food allergies. The server then directed me to the service counter.

If I hadn’t been lead to it, getting to the counter was not very obvious. So the direction was very helpful but a little confusing too. I met the server at the service counter where the chef was working with the other register and cashier on something.

The menu was displayed from the ceiling with a chalk board. I asked the server their opinion, with what we were deciding between. She said the avocado chicken had a more mild flavor and the brisket French dip was way more bold flavors. I decided since we’d be in the car for several hours that I’d go with mild flavors. I asked if they had any flavored iced teas, she said they only had black tea sweet and unsweetened.

I ordered the harvest potatoes and the side salad with lemon vinaigrette and added a cup of morel mushroom soup and a chef Lori’s carrot cake. Then I asked where I should wait for the food, she said she’d show me the waiting area. As we walked to the back of the restaurant, she offered me some tea because they would be closing at 2pm and just would be discarding it anyway. She showed me where the waiting door room was, then said she’d bring me my food shortly.

made black unsweetened tea added lemon and also a packet of peach preserves it was sooo refreshing!

The waiting area was in a little nook by the restroom. They had some Church pews and pillows and some chairs nestled together for take out orders to wait. Decor was kind of overwhelming with a country chic meets kitchy & a plethora of artificial greenery cascading the walls and strung across ceiling. The vibe reminded me of a cafe/tea room you’d eat at a nice Antique Mall. All the tables were full of guests inside and out. Everyone seemed to be enjoying their food and conversations.

I made a phone call while I waited I was on the phone for about 10 min. Then after I was hanging up the server came w/ my food. It smelled soo good! I walked back to meet my family b4 we headed to our next destination. The aroma was very pleasant and I couldn’t wait till I was able to taste.

The morel mushrooms soup which is my favorite soup was what I picked to eat first. I’ve had a lot of mushroom soup over the course of my life & by far this was THE BEST I have ever tasted. It was a nice blend and balance of seasoning, white wine, cream & mushrooms. My husbands said you can tell the chef took great care in developing the flavor of this soup. It was absolutely amazing, & regret getting a cup instead of a bowl!

Next was the avocado chicken sandwich, OMG was sooo delicious. The chicken was flavorful & melted in your mouth. This is comfort food in a sandwich. Yum.

Next we ate the salad. The lemon vinaigrette dressing was very very tart. But the avocado & tomatoes helped balance the zestiness. But w/ just lettuce it was a little overpowering. Overall highly recommend...

Dear Houston natives and visitors,

If you are looking for the perfect brunch place this is FOR YOU! I have been to many breakfast places in the area and this has to be my all time favorite. I have been to Harvest kitchen four times and each time I am more than impressed. To start, getting on the waitlist is very easy and the hosts are very friendly, accommodating, and great at their jobs. They are busy but the wait time has never been over a hour. The host greets you once your table is ready and ask about any accommodations, dietary etc. and hands you a card to give to the register staff. You go into the restaurant and grab a menu that has items palatable for anyone and uniquely articulated. They have a case full of delicious baked goods that vary by season as well as a coffee bar with many different drinks. I love the dirty iced chai latte with caramel. In the fridges they have canned drinks, fresh squeezed juice, and other popular beverages. Their drink menu on their main menu has plenty of options as well. Once you get to the register the staff greets you (also very friendly) and takes your order and lets you know what table # you are. The restaurant is decorated beautifully seasonally with local products for sale around the shelves. There is a drink station for fountain drinks, tea etc. free refills if you get the drink station. Once you get seated the drinks take no longer than 2-3 minutes to get to the table and food has never taken longer than 10 minutes to arrive. Food is always the perfect temperature, and absolutely delicious. There’s some Hispanic fusion items that my Mexican spouse enjoys. From sweet to savory it is everything I could ever want from a good brunch. Pricing for the food is labeled as “overpriced” by some but it is portioned and served to fit the price. The ingredients are fresh, and high quality. Plate is decorated perfectly. Today we got the eggs Benedict, sweet potato cinnamon roll, the tacos, a coffee and iced tea. It was 70$ with a 15% tip included. which if you go to toasted yolk cafe you can get a very underwhelming breakfast it’ll be the same price. So come here for good food for good pricing. I suggest the cookie butter waffles, hot honey chicken eggs Benedict, and their hot chicken tacos. Their sides are amazing, the BEST cheesy grits, crunch potatoes, and arugula salad. THE SERVICE IS FAST. There is a policy for being at your table for an hour only, but the staff doesn’t pressure you and the service is fast enough you won’t be there for that long waiting for anything anyway. They accommodate with big parties, you can make a reservation, max you can stay is 1 1/2 hours for big parties unless you ask for additional time. They are very ACCOMMODATING. Ask and they assist. Now to my favorite part, since I always want to ask questions about the food and the restaurant. The chef/owner who is very friendly walks around the restaurant and greets customers. She is very personable and polite and will get you anything you need to the best of her ability. Today for us it was napkins lol. The restaurant and bathrooms are clean and stocked. Everything here is Perfect. I love it, and would suggest it to anyone looking for a great...

Disappointing Service, Non welcoming staff Overpriced Food

I’ve visited this restaurant twice—once in December 2024 and again in June 2025. The first visit was enjoyable, largely because I was with several friends celebrating after a bachelorette party. The decor is beautiful, and the food (I had the brisket tacos and Monte Cristo) was decent but overpriced, especially with a mandatory 15% gratuity. This wouldn’t be as frustrating if there was traditional table service were staff actually take your order and wait on you, but customers must seat themselves, get their own drinks, and order at the counter before finding their preassigned table with their name on it. Staff only deliver food and clear tables, so the tip policy is unjustified. And I understand the need for staff to be paid a decent living wage but that should be on the owner, not the customer. The tip is just that a tip, it is optional and should remain optional. And given that the service is minimal and not very friendly, the 15% gratitude is not deserved.

On my second visit, the experience declined. I ordered the peach French toast with sausage and scrambled eggs—the toast was overcooked, tough and burnt on the bottom. I offered to share some of the dish with my friend as it was a large portion. When my friend who was visiting for the first time mentioned this to the owner who came over to visit our table (as she normally does) she responded with visible attitude rather than concern. Her presence in the restaurant often feels intimidating and menacing towards both her employees and her guests. Although it is very evident that she has high standards, it could be presented in a more friendly and approachable manner. She has a history of publicly arguing with customers over poor reviews. If you check the 1, 2 and 3 star reviews on Google you will see this.

The wait time is also excessive. We waited over an hour with no proper waiting area and couldn't sit at the empty outdoor tables as most of the customers were not placed outside to eat but rather inside. Mind you we arrived at 12:00 p.m. well before closing. Although a QR code promises online waitlist access, it didn’t work, even after trying to join the day before and the morning of prior to arrival. Because I live an hour away from the restaurant I tried prior to coming to prevent having to wait. After finally getting a table, we nearly lost our spot because we didn’t check in fast enough after receiving a text that we needed to return shortly followed by another only 5 minutes later saying our we needed to re join the waitlist. Because there is no proper wait area we had to go across the street to other businesses to preoccupy our time during our hour long wait. With no proper waiting area and being informed by the hostess that we could go visit other establishments while we wait it is unacceptable to be only given a 5-minute window of return after receiving a notification text message that your table is ready.

This place may be worth trying once for the aesthetic, but between the poor customer service, long waits, and high prices, I wouldn’t...