Houston's

Houston’s in Irvine is a fantastic spot for a high-quality meal. The French dip sandwich was a bit pricey, but absolutely worth it, the beef was incredibly tender and the bread had a perfect texture: soft on the inside with a satisfying crust. You can tell they care about every detail. The drinks were well-made and balanced, adding to the great experience. Parking is super convenient, which is rare and really appreciated in this area. Service was professional and welcoming.

What a great restaurant. The atmosphere is very comfortable. Service is friendly and welcoming. The food is fabulous! We tried the Smoked Artichoke, Ruby Trout, Baby Back Ribs and the chicken. All of the meals were excellent. The stand it's we're the ribs and the artichoke.... Wow!

I came here for the first time with my family for Father's Day and had a great experience. Our server, Ashley, was incredibly kind, attentive, and had such a welcoming smile - she really made the day feel special. Kudos to the chefs as well. You can tell they really know their craft. Everything tasted fantastic!

Overall fabulous experience. Love the dimly lit restaurant and decor, makes it feel intimate and cozy. Every dish was exceptional in taste, flavors and presentation. They have many sushi options and the unique stacked sushi was superb. One of the few places that serves a grilled artichoke. Servers were friendly and attentive.

Absolutely fantastic experience here at Houston’s. The cheese bread and deviled eggs appetizers were delicious and the perfect size. The rotisserie chicken and ribs were incredible as always. This is one of the few restaurants in Irvine I truly love. Their consistency, ambience and food quality with attention to detail is very hard to beat. I am a real stickler for great service but tonight they delivered above expectations. From refilling drinks promptly to serving food quickly to replacing martini glasses with new chilled glasses to keep your beverage cold. Definitely worth a healthy tip when the staff goes above and beyond. Highly recommend Houston’s.

Houston’s delivers consistent quality, service and ambience every time. There’s something about having your martini glass changed mid-drink for a freshly chilled one that makes you feel important 🍸😎 Everything I’ve tried is delicious, and I look forward to trying more of the menu. Great for date night, girls’ night, or any celebration!

My wife raved about this place and I can see why!! Amazing drinks and a wonderful menu! The french dip is huge. We shared it and I was still full. And the chilli! I could eat that every day!

I like this place, its nice for a casual lunch or dinner. All the offerings are just wonderfully executed. We liked the artichoke, filet mignon, and the salmon. The salads were executed well but we thought they had too much dressing on them. The servers are all very knowledgeable and kept our water glasses full.

Food is regular but comes with a higher price. Can keep the price, but the flavor needs to improve, I mean it was nothing extraordinary. Service, is good, but the dressing code made me remove my cap, what is really unnecessary for that kind of restaurant.

If you want phenomenal service, service to perfection go see server Angel. She will make you feel so welcome! If you want the Best fall off the bone ribs you'll ever have this is the place.....for sure! Thank you Angel for making our dinning experience out of this world. It's great to have amazing food, which Houston's always delivers. If you sit at one of Angel's tables you'll see exactly what I'm saying. Thank you Houston's, Irvine for Server Angel giving us exceptional food & exceptional service. We'll be back again & again!

Made a reservation for 3 people at 12:30pm on a Wednesday. Tried to come in earlier since we became a party of 2. When I called at 11:30 they said the wait for 2 was already an hour. So kept the reservation time. Sure enough when we got there they were packed! But, from the time they took our order to finishing up lunch, it was fast. Under an hour. The ribs were falling off the bone like they usually do. Super tender and tasty. The pressed sushi was fresh but I probably wouldn't order again as it wasn't my favorite. The slaw was too mayo-ish for my liking and the warm braised cabbage with goat cheese wasn't my favorite either. I know what NOT to order next time. It's great knowing that as a lunch spot, you can get in and out within an hour.

Good Food Good Service But HORRIBLE seating system Flew in from Vegas for son's graduation. Houston's won't take reservations for groups over 4. We were 5. Had to wait over an hour plus and then were seated at a table for 4. We were squashed for not an inexpensive meal! Watched host/hostess Seat parties of 3 & 4 at tables for 5 plus. Worked in the restaurant business for many years. Have never see such idiotic seating logic. Was told by mgr on the phone that when I couldn't make reservations we could wait at bar, but bar was set up for dining, not order drinks More stupidity!! Will never return. This restaurant should be 100% limited to parties of 4 and under!!!!

We came once again to celebrate for my birthday dinner. I always choose Houston's for my birthday meal!! I always get their Hawaiian ribeye. It's so juicy and flavored so well with pineapple juice and perfectly grilled. Hawaiian ribeye is the dinner to get!! My daughter just loves their babyback ribs. It's fall-off-the bone delicious, too. Our server was Sara C and she gave an exceptional service. She gave me a slice of keylime pie slice for my birthday. She made it extra special for me!! Thank you Sara C and Houston's team for a memorable meal!!

Impeccable service yesterday for a 1pm lunch. I was impressed to hear when the hostess greeted us, sat us, and immediately ask if she could get our drinks started for us! Never have I been asked so quickly before. Immediately afterwards Zach introduced himself as our waiter and took our order. Food came out in a good amount of time and it was very good. Artichoke appetizer was drizzled in oil with salt and pepper-great! Fork and knife ribs were on point! The Hawaiian rib eye was surprisingly different but very good, not too sweet. Roasted chicken was good but would have preferred a crunchy outer skin as opposed to a wet skin. Cheese bread was a nice addition to the ribs and steak. Overall it was a great experience. One thing to mention, it's very dark inside! I was kinda thrown off due to the hot beaming sun and then to the dark side. Be warned. Lastly, the parking lot has some large beautiful trees, but threw a lot of white "sprinkles" onto the car that stayed stuck on the hood and windshield all the way home. I was not happy with this at all.

So as an avid foodie and wine drinker I've got some very sad news happening with The Hillside Restaurant Group, including Houston's. Myself and a group Of friends dined there recently and enjoyed the food and the service. Some major disappointments including not being allowed to use our own stemware. This is the first I've ever heard of a restaurant not allowing a patron to bring and use their own stemware. I brought two very nice wines and their lobby glasses with a thick lip just didn't cut it. On top of this they are now charging $25 per bottle corkage. IMO, if a restaurant is going to charge $25 corkage they need to supply decent stemware. Not some crappy Libby glasses that do the wine no justice. I'm not sure what the line of thinking was here, but clearly someone made this decision that doesn't enjoy a fine glass of wine. The message is very clear here and I'll be dining at home with my wine instead of visiting Houston's. Pricing has gotten way out of control. Again, the food was excellent, but we won't be back any time soon. Also, Just a note, that we did purchase a cocktail before dining as well. They clearly don't need my business, as they seem to be doing just fine. On to the next....

I have been craving the crispy dings from honor bar since I use to live in SB. My boyfriend took me here on Easter and wow the quality was consistent and delicious, mouth watering. Service is always great and the ambiance is dark great for a rainy or gloomy day. I will be returning. One call out- Add the smoked fish dip to the app menu

Houston's is consistently good. I've never had a disappointing dining experience and I love that their menu focuses on quality over quantity. My favorite dishes here are the house smoked salmon appetizer, the French dip, and the Hawaiian ribeye! Honestly, everything on the menu is delicious and you simply can't go wrong. Service is always on point; combine that w/ an intimate, dark setting and delicious food - it's the perfect date night spot!! While it's not the most kid friendly restaurant (no kid's menu!), we have brought our (now) 9-year old son since he was a toddler and it's never been an issue (he is very well behaved, too). He actually likes that he can order his own entree from the adult menu! The crispy chicken sandwich w/ fries is his choice every time we come and they also have rice and beans, avocado sushi rolls, cheeseburger, etc. They have their own designated section of the parking lot now so parking is actually painless!!

My wife and I decided to head to Orange County for the day and planned our trip around lunch at Houston's. Like always, we both ordered the Prime Rib Dip. I have been here and ordered the same sandwich many times but this may have been the best one yet! The bread was warm and so fresh and the shaved prime rib was so tender and incredibly delicious. The service was also outstanding. They have definitely raised prices since our last visit but I don't mind paying a little more as long as the meal and service remain at the same high level.

Last night, Shay & I had a dinner date here. Our server was Carley, who was robotic and not personable. Our dishes were tasty, but she would reach over and just take our unfinished appetizer dish without asking of we were still eating. Yes, we were still going to finish the brussel sprouts. It was like we were an inconvenience to her. Food gets 5 stars. Carley gets 2 stars.

We love Houston's! We have been coming here since I was little. They have the best quality food! Their rib-eye is my favorite as they cook the meat perfectly (medium rare) which a lot of places don't do as my meat is usually too rare. The flavor of the rib-eye is so delicious- the meat melts in your mouth. Their bon choy is also fresh and they season it perfectly and add a little Parmesan on top. Their clam chowder is my favorite as well. I usually don't like clam chowder cause the clams are too chewy but at Houston's I can't even tell I'm eating clams. The flavor is creamy and they add bacon to it. Their service and ambiance is the best. This location is the best. Would recommend to everyone.

Went last week and so a bit late on review. Mariela was wonderful! We went for lunch and she was very attentive and friendly! The food on point and arrived quickly! We are regulars!

First-time customer. I am going to a contrarian and declare the Irvine Houston's food and service FABULOUS! Their signature ribs are simply divine (I've been wasting money at Lucille's all these years!) Sure they're pricey at $38 but worth every penny. The grilled artichoke was also excellent. No complaints with the waitstaff either -- attentive server, prompt water refills. I also like the ambience: the restaurant is very dark but each table is well-illuminated from above (like in the airplane seats.)

It was my first time here. I love the darker ambience of the place. The staff was super friendly and our waitress was super attentive. I did not order any steak. I only ordered the sushi and it was amazing! The Osaka pressed sushi and coconut shrimp roll were my favorite. I will be coming back especially since it's so close to my work!

Our new fav date night spot. Quality food and quality service. Their fries are sooooooo goooood. Imagine an upgraded version of in n out fries with more seasoning. Drool. My husband and I are excited to try every thing on their menu from now on. So far we've tried: spinach and artichoke dip (which comes with unlimited chips refills), the kale and rotisserie chicken salad, the barbecue variety, cheeseburger, and salmon. Yummy!

20+ year Hillstone fans can likely attest to the obvious changes that have occurred since the collection of restaurants made an appearance in southern California. Quality of food is still top notch, but quantity coupled with aggressive price hikes continue to plague the menu. Sure, Gazpacho nor the Rutherford ribeye haven't been on the menu for at least a decade. The couscous, Prime Rib, and seasonal favs like Braised cabbage with goat cheese and summer corn have all disappeared. The Thai Steak and Noodle salad has sadly been replaced. Don't ask for decaf or salad dressing on the side; they don't have it and can't do it. Portion sizes have reduced, while prices climb and sometimes service is questionable, but it was great that reservations can be arranged once again. I miss the Hillstone restaurants I was introduced to 2 decades ago. I also miss leftovers - I can't remember the last time we had leftovers here. Assuming this is a reflection of portion size, or we happened to be extremely hungry on every visit the last couple of years. For the most part, the universal servicing process is satisfactory, the one or two-offs can be pushed out of mind. The place is busy as ever, old timers recognize the difference, new comers think they've stumbled on a gem of a restaurant. We continue to patronize because the food is quite good, the frequency of visits however have dramatically reduced.

What a nice lunch today Food was very very good! I will post picture so you can decide yum Definitely taking family back!

I flew into SNA airport last week and was so excited to see Houston's close by. It was a no brainer to head there. We sat at the bar immediately since we didn't have reservations and the restaurant was full of life. The bartenders are just as if not more attentive and friendly as the wait staff. The restaurant is clean, dark for mood lighting and an overall pleasant atmosphere. I always tell foodie folks that Houston's makes the best French dip sandwich, hands down. It did not disappoint. The baked potato was a bit tiny, but I was there more for the sandwich. The crispy chicken sandwich was tasty as well. Always down for Houston's! It makes my tummy happy.

I did not plan to do an updated review, but the service was so great I had to; it is hard to get good customer service these days and it should be recognized when it happens. We came to Houston's to celebrate a birthday. Our reservations were made a month in advance; I called to see if I could bring a birthday cake and was told that their policy changed and no outside food was allowed, they were very kind and told me that dessert was available for a birthday there. Once we arrived it was busy as always there were walk ups that the hostess were trying to accommodate along with the people that made reservations. Our reservation was for 7PM. We had a couple drinks while we waited to be seated and eventually were seated about 7:19PM. Louis seated us and apologized for the wait. He was so kind we were just happy to be there and in good spirits. The food was so very delicious as always and Louis gave us a complimentary spinach & Artichoke dip. Our main course included the double-cut pork chop which was cooked to perfection and the roasted prime rib. After our food the dessert ice-cream with a candle was nicely please on our table for the birthday boy. Houston's is a 10 out of a 10.

Houston's in Scottsdale is my all-time favorite so when I was in Costa Mesa this week, I had to try the Houston's. It didn't disappoint! The one thing that had me at hello was the cheesy bread! Scottsdale Houston's doesn't have it and they need to bring it in! It was warm and the cheese was perfectly toasted and delicious. I had the Ding's Crispy Chicken sandwich for lunch and this one is a home run too. Tried to take a picture of it but couldn't get my fingers to let go of it for a second. I sat at the bar and Jody took great care of me! Thanks Jody! Go here and order the cheesy bread to start! You won't be disappointed!

Came here for a birthday dinner and this place did not disappoint! We ordered the Hawaiian rib eye which seems to be pretty popular here and also the half chicken plate. The rib eye was delicious! Great flavor! And steak was done perfectly! The chicken had great flavor and was moist as well not dry! Will definitely come back

The absolute best service I've ever had in my entire life. Our waiter Adam Shepard was resplendid and helped create such a memorable evening for my boys celebrating them getting straight A's tonight. What a wonderful barbecue ribs and steak we had, thank you, Adam and all the staff of Houston's for making this night such an incredible and excellent quality experience.

This used to be my go to spot however the food is not the same. I ordered a cheeseburger and it was mostly bread and lettuce with a thin layer of beef. My wife's steak was tiny but 2 years ago they were larger. Our drinks were also watered down. I love the vibe of this place but dont think I will be going back.

Not sure if this is the normal thing they do but my party of 3 was told it would be a wait of an hr and 15 minutes. As I'm looking around on a Saturday evening it was so many open tables at 4:15 pm. I Told the hostesses that was fine we'd wait and she then told me again just to let me know it's an hr and 15 wait. I was like okay you told me that already. Well well well to my surprised my phone was paged in 18 minutes that our table was ready. I really don't want to think they do that to certain people because of who they are but I felt like they did. Other than that whole lie of an hr 15 minute wait when we waited for 18 minutes everything else was great. Emma was our server, very professional and friendly and took care of us great. My party all ordered 3 house salads, the grill cheese appetizer, artichokes, spinach dip 2 orders of ribs and I opted for the burger. It was very good. We aren't sure if we would be back or not. Highly recommend you do an accurate wait time and not give way off times to be seated to deter people from waiting. That's truly terrible. My party really wanted to eat here so we were okay with waiting but to be told an hr and 15 minutes but to only wait 18 minutes . Wow, Do better!

Came here for dinner on Saturday. Wow!! What an amazing time :). The waitress, food, drinks and atmosphere was all on point. Spinach Dip 10/10, Beef Dip 10/10 (best my husband has ever had, and he is a bd connoisseur), Kale Salad 10/10, Veggie Burger 10/10. The only other time we had been to Houston's was their Pasadena location, over 20 years ago. We can't wait to come back!!

I was out and about in Irvine running some errands with the wife and we decided to drop-in to Houston's for an early dinner. The hostess was quick to accomodate us (we arrive just ahead of 5:00pm) and we were seated in a nice quiet booth. Our waitress, Bella, took our order for drinks and appetizers and we asked her for a few minutes before finalizing our entree order. Bella, was very attentive despite the shift change in-progress, but her hand-off to Tim, the on-coming waiter, was flawless. Tim did a nice job timing the order so that the entrees were delivered at the right temperature shortly after they cleared our appetizer. We had a couple of glasses of wine and shared the seasonal Grilled Artichoke as an appetizer. My wife ordered the Noodle Salad with Chicken and I had the Kale and Rotisserie Chicken Salad. Both salads were really fresh and very tasty, as was the Artichoke appetizer. I would have appreciated just a tad bit more light at the table as the restaurant is a little dark, especially for late afternoon / early evening time with the sunshining brightly outside. We had to utilize our cell phones to provide enough light to read through the menu. Nonetheless, the service was solid; the food was delivered fast, hot and in timely fashion; and the atmosphere was quiet and calm throughout the restaurant. I recommend the place for a quick bite if you find yourself in the neighborhood.

We used to eat here all the times, either with family or staff from the office, but haven't been back in a while. Came in tonight and were so disappointed. Menu is limited. For grilled chicken salad, I asked if they can put the dressing on the side, waiter said no since it's already all mixed in. So are they serving all premade salad instead of freshly made? So trying to pick the kale salad per his suggestion, as I can get the dressing on the side. However, I do not like rotisserie chicken. Asked if I can get salmon as protein instead. He said no. How about another salad, can I do salmon instead, as I just had chicken twice yesterday and chicken again at lunch today. He said no again. So disappointed as I have always been able to swap out the protein from the entree salad everywhere else, we decided not to order anything else other than our meal. I ended up ordering the regular salmon entree. So it came with this super rich mashed potatoes, which was not listed out on the menu. As we were waiting for the foods and eating, I was watching my YouTube (visual) show. The phone was laying flat in the inside corner of our table, behind the partition divider, so no one can see it other than myself and/or the bus boy & the waiter. The manager came to our table and told me I was not supposed to be on the cell phone since it's disturbing others. I couldn't believe it. It wasn't even loud. My husband, who sat right in front of me couldn't even hear a thing since the restaurant was super noisy and people are loud! I later asked the couple who sat next to us if they heard anything from my visual show, they said they couldn't hear a thing. And the few tables around us were talking loudly and laughing out loud non-stop! We ate quickly and left. Service wasn't great & the manager was rude, we decided to leave 15% tip only, which was much lower than what we would normally tip. The salmon was good, as well as the burger, so hence the 2-Star. Mashed potatoes was super rich and full of butter. No for me. We have dined at all other restaurants from the Hillstone Restaurant Group, Bandera, Gulfstream, R&D Fashion Island, Houston's Boca Raton (numerous times), etc. and had never been treated or seen anything like that. Needless to say, we will not return and will let our family, friends, coworkers know.

Always a good meal but you must make a reservation and don't be late. Their prime rib sandwich is off the chart! I don't even eat bread and eat this bad boy. Service is over the top. Great afternoon or date place To just feel like what 2024 eating out should feel like.

I'm hugely disappointed in Houstons. Prior to yesterday, I would have stood up to support this place. The food here is excellent. The atmosphere is unique and like you are on a ship, a yacht in the ocean. The service was horrible. Not the waiter, but yes, the hostess station. My suggestion, make some changes there and take control of your restaurant. Here is my story: It was my birthday yesterday, so we made reservations two weeks ago. We received a text yesterday confirming our dinner. Our reservation was for 7:30 p.m., so we arrived at 7:10 p.m. and I approached the hostess stand to check in. She found our reservation and agreed that she, the hostess, would text us when the table is ready. We waited in the car. 7:30 p.m. rolls by and no text. We waited until 7:40 and no text. I approached the young lady, and she says, "They are cleaning the table for us now." Okay, it's a little late but okay. 7:50 rolls by and nothing. It was like we were invisible. Does it take 20 minutes to clean a table? Houstons expects its patrons to wear nice clothes with no hats or tank tops. They expect us to not bring our kids to their restaurant or not make too much noise. How about us? Can we please ask for the hostess to tell us the truth? That the table they chose for us is delayed because the people have not left and you are behind? I was really disappointed that she did not apologize but instead, told us they were cleaning our table when they were not. After that, things did settle down and we had a nice meal. I do not recommend Houstons for birthdays. We noticed they served a piece of cheesecake to our neighbors with a candle on top for her birthday. How sweet! My wife was told that we would need to pay for our dessert, but Houstons will be so generous to give us a candle. Houstons has great food. Houstons has an incredible decor. Houstons has not so friendly service.

I want to start with saying we love going here for date night and today is Mother's Day and I called and I am deeply disappointed by the treatment I received over the phone at Houston's on Mother's Day. Despite calling in advance and explaining that we were a party of 6, including my husband and our 4 children, we were told that the restaurant could not accommodate us. This was incredibly upsetting, especially on a day meant to celebrate mothers and families. It's disheartening that a restaurant would turn away a family on any holiday or just any day . The guy that answered was certain that absolutely no parties over 5. I don't believe I'm the only mom with a family of 6 trying to dine at a restaurant.

Came for a dinner last night. 3 people. Server and all service was excellent and polite. Food and beverage were mediocre at best. What's happened to Houston's? Lemon drop martini was ok but did the glass size shrink? I saw another patron with a regular dirty martini in a larger looking glass? Regardless it was just ok. Hendricks and tonic was good but uncomplicated so I can't give a star for that. Food: Traditional salad with blue cheese was good but seemed like a very small portion and barely any bacon and the croutons were stale tasting. Rainbow roll was made with imitation krab!!! I wish I had known because I wouldn't have ordered it. Just saw a documentary on the making process and how toxic it is. Yuck! Cheeseburger has changed and was disgusting - raw white onions chopped up smashed into the cheese so you can barely remove them. Told our server but it was too late and just ate around it. Mustard heavily applied and so much shredded iceberg lettuce! The meat was poorly seasoned and flavorless. When was the last time the owners or corporate folks ate this? Fries are not good! What happened to baked potato or plain mashed potatoes? Hot fudge sundae presentation used to wow! Now it's two scoops with some cream and a gravy boat of chocolate sauce and a few nuts. I would be so excited to come here and last night I was excited to leave. You've got to stop changing the classics and return to the basics. I see from other reviews that I'm not alone in my experience. I've been eating here, Hillstone, Rutherford Grill etc for decades and this last visit really disappoints like I won't be back.

Off to a bad start when reservations were delayed by about 30 mins. It's like the Seinfeld episode - you know how to make a reservation but can't keep them. Anyway, food was fast to come out but missed the mark in many ways. Spinach dip was so bland needed salt. Steak was very rare when I ordered medium rare, baked potato was good. I did get another plate brought but it had a lot of fat and burnt. Drink was so strong with barely any citrus flavor. Desserts are not offered which is rare for a steak house. Aside from the food experience- the rules are not equally enforced. Some men were turned away for wearing shorts others were ok to wear caps. I did see plenty of 5 people parties which apparently is not allowed per the website. Select groups were allowed to bend the rules.

I've been to Houston's a million times as a child, but am only now just getting to review it as an adult. The spinach and artichoke dip was to die for, especially with the side of sour cream. I'm going to start incorporating that combination into my home cooked meals. The French dip was easily one of the best of its kind. The bread had a bite to the crust, while maintaining a soft and fluffy interior. The au jus/gravy was delicious and the serving of meat was more than generous.

Upscale (no shorts or flip flops, please), cozy and intimate for when you feel the need to treat yourself to a nice dining experience. I love Houston's! Dim, moody lighting, comfy booth seating or sit at the bar, gentle tunes playing in the background, excellent service, delicious food. Five stars plus! Funny story: my first time ever dining at Houston's was many years ago for a work lunch. I ordered the fall off the bone pork ribs. It was so delicious I ate the bone clean. My work friend was amazed and said "for such a little person you sure can eat a lot!" Lol! The ribs are still on their menu, but these days my main go to is the Thai Noodle Salad. The fresh ingredients of greens, noodles, mango, peanuts, basil, mint, avocado, and the dressing is amazing! Too bad they no longer serve it with that deliciously seasoned/marinated steak. Houston's, won't you please rethink this? We have eaten at Houston's in Irvine, Pasadena, and Austin. We always order that salad! Today I also shared the French dip sandwich with my sister. Au jus and horse radish on the side-so good! I also highly recommend their Apple Walnut Cobbler. Service that sets Houston's apart: half way done with our cocktails our server brings fresh new frosted glasses and pours our drinks into it! Then, clumsy me I knocked over my drink. A few minutes later, our server delivers a fresh new drink to me! I always say this after eating at Houston's: I wish we had one close to where we live!

Another favorite of mine!! I think Houston's has the best menu offering out of all the Hillstone restaurants. I love the vibe, the food and the service is always great. I love their sushi, soup, the grilled cheese bread is amazing!! $25 corkage fee if you want to bring your own wine. Plenty of parking and easy access right off the freeway.

The service manager (white shirt) had the audacity to come to my table after spending $300 + on dinner to tell me to get off my phone. I believe his name stars with the letter N. I highly recommend you train your staff to be more accommodating towards your paying customers instead of harassing them. This is not a Michelin star restaurant it's damn near bar food. Relax.

Great spot for lunch, lunch meetings or to start the weekend early. I always make a reservation, to avoid longer wait time. It does get quite crowded and busy. I love the ambience. Makes you forget it's a week day or you have to go back to work. Food is consistent. You get what you order. I have tried a number of items from their menu. This time we ordered the cheeseburger, ding's crispy chicken sandwich and pan-seared ahi tuna salad. The cheeseburger is flavorful. Ding's sandwich is really good. Not to mention their fries, which I always order their spicy mayo with. The ahi tuna salad is also great, fresh and light - just as expected. Will continue to go back. Any issues - they rectify immediately.

Have ZERO clue why this place has 4 stars. Maybe someone was hangry and had to wait too long to be seated. First of all, make reservations for this place!!! You'll be so happy you did. Trick number 2.....if you have a party more than 2 ppl, I would suggest getting there at 4:45 to put your name on the list and then bring some peanuts for the wait. Again MAKE RESERVATIONS! As for my dining experience.... I of course made reservations for Mother's Day dinner. We had to wait about 10 min for our table, and let me just say those 10 min were magical. We sat on a bench outside of the restaurant and out came a server. She offered cocktails by the fire pit! We ordered a couple of martinis and a glass of wine. Let me just say I was impressed. Before our drinks were made we were told our table was ready and that they would deliver our drinks to our table. Just as our server greeted us with menus and water our cocktails arrived seamlessly. Martinis in frosted glasses and my moms glass of red. We began our night with the grilled artichokes. They were perfectly cooked and served with a delicious sauce to dip with. They also provided a bowl for the already eaten leaves!! For dinner I ordered the salmon, my dad the French dip and of course for mom, the filet! My salmon was cooked medium rare just how I like it. If you have preferences for it to be cooked a little more just let your server know. The salmon was served with fluffy mashed potatoes and perfectly cooked broccoli. The French dip was served on a soft toasted bun with a heavy helping of medium prime rib. They served it with a side of horseradish cream and a very nice au jus that had depth and wonderful flavor ( not too salty) As for mom with her Filet, it was tender and delicious and didn't lack flavor. She enjoyed every bite! Excellent job Houston's. You blew my expectations out of the water! I'll be back soon!

We love Houston's at so many locations but this place has dramatically dropped in quality of meats and service. They "prefer" parties of two, aka don't want to accommodate parties of 4 or more. And they also stopped doing carry out. Whut?! No worries. There is a Ruth's Chris that is hoppin' right down the way.

Other than Vaca, this is the restaurant I've been to the most times in my whole life. And it's actually pretty close (neck n neck). This place is literally the best, I'd freak out if there wasn't a Houston's here in OC. The whole menu is great. Every single item. This is not only the best Houston's location I've ever been to by far, it's also the greatest Hillstone restaurant in OC / SoCal. Best overall menu and the serving staff / kitchen staff are insanely consistent. I could not say enough good things about this establishment. Give me five margaritas..I'ma put it in your buns!! I mean French Roll. Cus you have to get the French dip every time yo

My favorite restaurant!! The food is simple and clean, no fancy seasonings that I hate. Their sushi is great!! We go here for every celebration.

Wow. That was an awful experience. This location is the worst. Other Houston's offer a much better overall dining experience. The service was bad. The food came late and with attitude. Skip it!

We love Houston's. We have been to many different locations and recently visited the one in Irvine. Service was top-notch. We decided to go the very last minute so there were no reservations available and we walked in. The hostess told us the wait would be 30 mins but we got seated in 5. Food was great. The only think I am still upset about that they got rid of their baked potatoes on the menu. They also added quite a few "healthy" options and even a vegetarian entree. They also ran out of artichokes that night, it was a bummer but otherwise it was great.

The only reason I need to add a review for Houston's to all the ones they already have is maybe to assure people that it's still the same consistent, good food and service. My husband wanted to take me there for an early Mother's Day dinner on Friday. That's usually our staple of a date night (which is like once a year kid-free), but I was wondering if we should try something different. I started reading recent reviews and I was really surprised at all the poor ratings. A lot of people complained about the lack of grilled artichokes (they took it off the regular menu), and a lot of negativity about the bad service. Well, we ended up going just because we always get the same thing and it's rarely a bad meal (except for the two times they kept insisting my husband's strip steak was a rib eye - didn't look anything like one or taste like one). Hubs made reservations online and we showed up about 20 minutes before it. It's nice because now Houston's marks off their parking lot specifically for Houston's, because that parking lot in that plaza is a nightmare and is really a deterrent. I don't know how they're enforcing it, but it works because we had no problem finding a spot. Anyway, we saw two seats right at the bar and it used to be first come, first serve there, but the bartender told us to go check in at the hostess stand, so not sure what that meant, but we got seated there. Our bartender/server was a woman with long blonde hair and on our check it said "Ty H." but I'm not sure if that was her or not. Regardless, she was amazing and so nice. Sitting at the bar is for sure the win. We were eating by the time our real reservation would've been and the bartenders were all really attentive - our water glasses were never empty. I got the Hawaiian ribeye and he got the prime rib dip and both were delicious. They did have grilled artichoke that night, but we got the always-amazing spinach and artichoke dip instead and she even asked if we wanted more chips when we were getting low - yes, please! We were in and out in less than an hour, we were not rushed, but that was great for us. We saw the bartender address the regulars at the bar and she was so nice to everyone. We had a great time - thanks Houston's for staying great and for making parking easier!!

Absolutely amazing. My sister recommended this place to me to try their rib eye (The Hawaiian) because it is well priced and so good and it lived up to the hype! My partner got the salmon which was good, but said that we both need to get the Hawaiian next time because the steak is so good and it comes with fries. I asked for a ranch instead of ketchup and they told me they only had this garlic ranch like sauce and it was AMAZING. Both their sauces for fries were off the charts. Will 100% be back. The vibe is low key, quiet, and perfect. The service was great as well

Always a fan of Houston's. My visit started off great on Black Friday. Our hostess was so welcoming and friendly it added to our happy vibe. Being we had shopping to do we kept it light, but was definitely satisfied. Coconut shrimp sushi, spinach artichoke dip and chips, traditional salads with warm rotisserie chicken, and hamburger + fries! Oh and let's not forget the ice tea with simple syrup. Ambiance was very mellow and chill as it wasn't overly packed. See you soon Houston's!

Had dinner tonight! It was beyond amazing! Always great experience here. Our server was very attentive and kept filling up our water cups. Don't forget their amazing cocktails. I had different food because we wanted to share so we could have all bites of food we ordered. I recommend you to try here and you won't regret it. Better make reservations in advance because it's always packed and busy.

I wasn't feeling that great when I came here, so I definitely want to come back. I was here with a group of friends and everyone loved their food, and the drinks were delicious. Ambience is warm and comfortable.

No shoes, no shirt, no service? Lol. What about No TV, No Cell, No Artichoke, No Shrimp Cocktail, No Pleasantries, No Business? Lol This place consistently over-rotates on one thing or another all the time. And new managers come in like a house-on-fire yelling "You Cant Be On Your Cell" or "You Cant Have A Whole Lemon!" .... hehehehh (look, I don't care for their typical demographic doing everything on speaker or streaming grandkids baseball vids at volume, lol - but there is a good way and a bad way to deliver the msg) Everyone still likes this place almost purely because the service staff are ultra-professional and many are long-time acquaintances- outlasting the managerial element which transitions in and out (thank God). And out-of-touch Hillstone corporate still plays its Act-of-God hand occasionally with one inane and misguided directive after another. Lol. And they NEVER make any sense. Yet people keep coming. Ha! This place is an enigma. I'll probably stop by again in a week or so, myself! Hehehehh - How NOT to run a restaurant, unless you can get away with it?