I was excited to hear the news that Mac Haik had opened an upscale new American restaurant in the Energy Corridor. My wife and I's anniversary was coming up so we booked a reservation to check out the new spot in order to celebrate.
Long before he became synonymous with car dealerships, Mac Haik was famous for his football career, first at Ole Miss, and then as wide receiver for the Houston Oilers. Much of the restaurant's design and decor reflects Mac's personal history. The moment you walk in and are greeted by the hostess, if you look up, you'll see a beautiful rendition of the Astrodome's famous domed ceiling hovering above you. When you walk through the hallways, they're lined with countless photographs and keepsakes from Mac's college and NFL football days. Even the restaurant's symbol, a magnolia, is a reference to his home state of Mississippi.
The dining area boasts lounge seating for drinks, a long wrap around bar top, open kitchen, and countless leather and copper wrapped booths for an intimate dining experience.
Long story short, it's a beautiful restaurant, that does an excellent job celebrating one of Houston's adopted sons.
Unfortunately, the service and even the food didn't match the wow factor of the buildout and decor...
The entire evening's service was just a mess. Our waitress greeted us and took our cocktail and appetizer orders, brought everything out to us, and then disappeared for what felt like 30 minutes. Our cocktails were empty, appetizers eaten, and we were ready to order more food, but we couldn't find a server to save us. The waitress eventually reemerged, took our entree orders, and we asked for the wine list so we could order a bottle with our dinner. She left to go get that wine list, and again disappeared on us. Our entrees arrived, but still no wine list, so we went back to craning our necks trying to wave down anyone to help us. We got the attention of another waiter, who then got our waitress and we got that wine order in to pair with our now not so hot meal.
Finally, after eating our entrees and enjoying the wine, my wife left for the bathroom and the waitress thought that was the best time to bring out our "Happy Anniversary" dessert, while she wasn't at the table... When we finished the dessert, the waitress swooped in with the bill and didn't ask if we wanted after dinner drinks, coffee, or joke about another dessert.
The whole interaction start to finish was just sloppy. It felt like the staff wasn't trained for fine dining whatsoever.
We started with the tuna tartare, and for mains, I had one of the specials which was grilled grouper, and my wife ordered the steak frites. All dishes were fine and executed correctly, but there wasn't really any standout bites. Everything was fairly meh. The menu overall plays it safe offering old standards and very little in the way of noteworthy or innovative dishes.
Beautiful restaurant, but not quite the touchdown we were rooting for. (couldn't help myself)
Don't throw the place out on one review from one visit though. Maybe they're much better suited for a business lunch, or happy hour before leaving the office for home. I work nearby, and if I find myself going again, I'll be sure to update my review. read more