I've been here multiple times in the past just because it was very close to home, and after the last visit, we were decided we weren't coming back.
Fast forward two years, and my son wants to visit for his birthday dinner because he had fond memories of their burger he always got there in the past, so we were basically 'forced' to go.
Since we last visited, due to Harvey, they endured flooding and we half expected to walk in after remodeling and see some much needed changes inside. Nope. Same old place. But I imagine that is what the locals wanted as most their business seems to be from very close by.
Service in the past was hit and miss-sometimes the server was awesome and engaging, next visit you'd think she had a death in the family. This visit was that, all in one visit-a real 'good cop/bad cop' scenario. The girl seating us literally, literally didn't say one word to us. She didn't smile-didn't say anything. Just motioned for us to sit 'there', layed our menus out and walked off.
Thinking we'd made a big mistake, birthday dinner or not, the waitress we got to serve us was tremendous! She really made up for the stoic personality of the hostess. She was very nice, engaging and checked on us repeatedly.
Food was brought exactly as we'd ordered it. The cheese sticks did seem like they might be from Sam's, just freshly fried, but the other appetizers like the egg rolls were great.
As others have mentioned here, you don't get a salad on a plate with ranch mixed in with attention to detail in how it was all put together like at most other restaurants. You get a saucer, with minimal basic items, and a small capped cup of ranch. Again, I think if you go there expecting more like at more conventional restaurants, they help you understand real quick-'that ain't us'. Very basic and simple.
All the food we ordered was exactly what we ordered and it was hot. My son, again, loved the hamburger. My wife and daughter's food was fine as was mine.
The one thing that got all of us was there seemed to be no air conditioning. The humidity inside made the tables feel sticky and gave just an overall stifling atmosphere. One female patron sat in her booth fanning herself. When asked, the waitress didn't so much confirm or deny it-just admitted that it felt hot. My wife, who is very cold-natured and gets cold if you breathe on her, was actually hot and sweating.
The parking lot is very small for the volume of cars there most times. I'm sure a lot of business is not going there for lack of parking alone. If the small lot is all they have, one idea would be to two-story the restaurant to handle more patrons but the parking situation would need to be visited even then.
Overall, not the worst place you can go to, but if another larger establishment were to open very nearby, with all the recent subdivision activity locally, I'm not sure Manvel Seafood, in both size and service, is ready for prime time and might not survive the...
Read moreIt's been a while since we've been here, but some neighbors have been speaking highly of them, so we decided to get reacquainted. I called in an order for pickup and made my way to the restaurant. They do have an option to do curbside pickup if you like, just call when you arrive. I decided to go inside and pickup our order so I can see if the inside was any different. I don't have the greatest memory, so I'm not sure if they changed anything or not. Either way, it is cozy inside. My order was ready when I arrived and the gentleman who took my order on the phone got me taken care of. He was very polite and courteous. Although he received a call while I was signing my receipt, he still took the time to thank me once more as I was departing. I headed home so that we could enjoy our food. Here is a list of what we ordered: The 5 catfish fillets fried platter with fries hushpuppies, and a salad w/Italian dressing 1 stuffed crab and 6 shrimps combo platter with fries, hush puppies, and a salad w/blue cheese dressing Cajun chicken alfredo pasta w/garlic bread Items 1 & 2 had an option of cole slaw or a salad. Everything was well prepared and delicious. I no longer eat seafood, so the pasta was mine. I wanted something different, so I chose the cajun version instead of the traditional alfredo. It had a nice little kick to it, but it wasn't overpowering. My wife and mother-in-law had the the two platters and couldn't stop raving about the fish. The other items were good, but the catfish stole the show. We were very pleased about our decision to get some food from Manvel Seafood & Grill. We will definitely not let as much time pass before our next visit. It is worth mentioning that they have a wide variety of menu items to choose from. It took us at least 30 minutes to finalize our selections. They have some of everything. If your family members have different food preferences, you can probably fulfill all of them right here. They have seafood, steak, Chinese food, salads, Po'boys, burgers, gumbo, pasta, appetizers, kid's menu, daily specials, lunch specials, and a few more items. The prices are reasonable as well. It is definitely worth checking out if you haven't been there and worth going back if you've already been. On a side note, I didn't see desserts on the online menu, but there was a cake on the counter when I went inside to pickup my order. I'm not sure if they sell...
Read moreMy husband, granddaughter and I eat at Manvel Seafood quite a bit, our bill is always $40+ then we tip well. We decided to treat my daughter and her family out to eat Monday 4/25/2016, we had a party of 10. First problem was waitress took appetizer order at the same time as food order, therefore we had food and appetizers coming out at same time. Next problem the ranch dressing and the cocktail sauce were rancid. My 2 year old ate quite a bit of dressing before we realized it was bad. He started throwing up at the table so we asked for a towel to clean it up. The bus boy brought the towel we thanked him and he said it's my job to clean, we told him it was nasty and thanked him anyway so he rolled his eyes and as he walked off expressed loudly and rudly that we were not suppose to be cleaning. Next problem the waitress could not keep up with drink refills or clearing dishes away as they were emptied. Also I ordered fish and shrimp and my fish was not done so I didn't eat it. At the end of our meal my husband went and paid the tab (well over $100) plus a substantial tip. and let the waitress know of all the above problems. Well my grandson threw up and had diarrhea that night and the following 2 days. Dad missed work one day mom the next. Mom took him to the doctor who confirmed it was food poisoning. I then called the restaurant to speak to the manager, I could hear in the background "just tell her I'm not here" when the person returned to the phone and told me that I politely said I overheard the comment and would appreciate a call when the manager felt she could talk to me. I have yet to receive a return call. Needless to say, noone in my family will be eating there ever again. The only decent person in the restaurant is a very polite young man that waits tables. I feel bad for him because I have witnessed his coworkers treat him very badly. Hopefully he will find a job in the future that...
Read more