Mahoney's — Restaurant in The Woodlands

I’ve waited to write this review because I think this place has great potential and I really want to like it. With so many great options in the Woodlands, particularly on the waterway, I fear Mahoney’s will soon go the way of every other bar/restaurant that has held this location unless they can find some way to stand out.

Some thoughts:

Drinks: The alcohol is a bit over priced for the pour, but I would say that about most places on the waterway with one notable exception - Gooses Acre (aka, the other Irish bar which happens to be down the street). The owners of Mahoneys may not like the comparison, but there’s a reason GA has been a waterway staple since the beginning - good food and drinks at a great price. Mahoneys cant compete with GA deals in the drink department. They also won’t get the high brow crowd, because If you want something fancy, they can’t compete with Refuge’s offerings.

Food: We had a bit of an issue with our appetizer - a prosciutto and peach dish. The peaches were extremely hard and when we mentioned this to our waitress, we were told that she had heard complaints from several tables that day. Apparently the peaches they used were not fully ripe enough. I’m not quite sure why she didn’t tell us this when we ordered the dish. She made an excuse about them only being open for a short while, but if she knew there was an issue with the dish, she should have steered us away from it. Instead of suggesting something else or giving us any heads up, we were left dissatisfied. I also ordered the bangers and mash. The jalapeño sausages were genuinely delicious - a standout of the night - but the mashed potatoes were runny. The peas were tasteless - I’m assuming they were heated from frozen.

Atmosphere: This was my 3rd time coming to Mahoney’s. The previous two times, the place was packed. The crowd was “older” than most other places on the waterway. That’s neither good or bad, but if you’re looking for a replacement for Crush, this isn’t it. This time, the place was a little dead, but it was Memorial Day so don’t hold that against them. I thought that this would be a good day to test out the kitchen since they weren’t swamped. There is always live music, which is great! That being said, most places on the waterway have live music. The waterway itself hosts free concerts during summer. They also have a patio, but it’s along busy waterway ave. If you’re really looking for a nice patio to hang out on, you’re probably better off down the street at either Gooses, Cyclone Anaya’s, or Nicks.

Service: on my previous visits, we saw a very stressed wait staff that was barely keeping up with the crowd. Understandable. As I mentioned above, today the restaurant was dead. Our waitress still couldn’t keep up. We were sitting for over 10 minutes before she showed up to get our drink order. Often throughout our dinner there were empty glasses on the table. I’ve waited table in the past - it’s tough and I’m sure some of this is them still working out the kinks. That being said, they’ve been open a few weeks already and we should be seeing progress. The bartenders do seem to be on point.

Overall I can only describe my feeling towards Mahoneys as “meh....” If I’m looking for amazing food, great drinks, or a fun atmosphere, there are places within walking distance who do it better. Everyone wants to try out a new place, so I expect them to have a great few months. After that, unless they find a way to stand out, I don’t expect this place to last long. I hope I’m wrong as I had very high hopes before it opened, and as I noted in the beginning of this review, I do think they have great potential. Their competition is tough and they need to “wow” their patrons. This just isn’t...

I like this this place. We came here 3 ish years ago, for lunch and the food and dining experience was great!

Unfortunately, we did not have the same experience tonite.

We stopped in just for drinks before a dinner date. It was 4:30 ish when we walked in. It was not busy. There were a handful of people, no more than 5.

When we sat down, Kyle, the bartender, looked at his fellow bartender and told him he needed to deal with us. We ordered just drinks and then Kyle stated, " If I had known they weren't eating, I would have handled them." I'm not sure what that meant.

Kyle glanced our way a few times as we drank our first round but never said anything or made any attempt to engage with us, which didn't bother me at the time.

We finished our first round and patiently waited to be acknowledged. My husband finished his drink first, and put the empty glass close to the well. I finished mine about 5 minutes later and waited until Kyle looked over, to place the empty glass next to my husband's. Kyle and I made eye contact, he saw the empty glasses and still made no attempt to assist us.

After 12 minutes, a woman walked over and asked how she could help. She served us our drinks and was lovely. I thanked her for helping us and we tried to enjoy this very odd situation.

My husband finished his next drink and once again, Kyle saw the empty glass and would not acknowledge us or help with another order.

After 6 minutes, Kyle actually acknowleded us and asked if we needed anything. My husband just asked to please close us out. Kyle tossed the check on the bar and went on his way.

We left a $1.97 tip. This is not who we are. We are 20%+ people. I am baffled at why Kyle refused to help us. Even now, we are sitting at a bar across the street, noticing 2 other people that also walked out of this establishment, and cannot wrap our heads around why this person, KYLE, who had never encountered us before, would refuse to serve us. What could we possibly have done for him to make the decision we deserved this treatment?

*Please note, we are a quiet couple, that were watching golf and conversing quietly. We were trying to enjoy an evening out.

Honestly, just go across the street to The Goose's Acre. They are super friendly and...

Great location next to the Woodlands Waterway! I was expecting a Chili’s or Applebee’s type restaurant. Nope. This is a pub/bar. Pleasantly surprised at the wonderful food selection for such a “get your drink on” atmosphere. Plenty of varied styles of seating, you seat yourself, so you get to pick your favorite…bar stools, regular table and chair, some 1/2 booths, long party tables, tall tables and tall chairs (which i love and chose). The street tacos are on point. I picked one shrimp, one fish (both blackened), one brisket! I mean come on!!! Awesome combination and they come with chips and house queso. Daughter had a BLAT, bacon lettuce avocado tomato, with sweet potato fries…thumbs up. Wife had the Southwest burger and fries, she reports it was so yummy, topped with some sort of crunchies. Kyle was very easy going and helpful. Like he enjoyed his work. Now if you ever read my reviews, i always include the bathroom. Men’s…bar bathroom…surprise! Single regular restroom. No long line of troughs or wall of stalls. Nice. Had an East of the pond flare to it. Tall wood framed panels for the walls. No stark white fluorescents to rip you out of the ambiance in the main floor. See pic. Somebody on site is definitely playing DJ. We got to walk my daughter down 80s pop lane. Yep all five of these songs are Michael Jackson, the next three are Cindy Lauper and these last 4 are the artist formerly known as Prince! Plus some other old favs. The volume almost doubled once we hit Raspberry Beret. Somebody’s a fan😉 We will definitely be back to try some of their specials, $10 chicken fried chicken…ok, now. That’s Wednesdays i think… Nice night, good time, recommend 👍🏻

No food pics this time, sorry. You can imagine taco, sandwich, burger. It...