First off, everyone was super friendly! From the hostess at the front who is very bubbly and accommodating to the waitress, who allowed me to take time to look over everything. She had excellent recommendations and a pretty good knowledge of the menu. She also checked back regularly. The restaurant has a fun lighthearted, upscale feel, with a beautiful outdoor area. Unfortunately, it was raining so I didn't get to explore, but the inside has huge windows which makes you feel like they bring the outside in. Started with a signature gin cocktail called The Gambler. They have a lot of fun sounding drinks. This one seemed like an interesting choice. It ended up being not as interesting as I had hoped, but not bad. If you are a vodka person, which I am, the selection is a little lacking, especially in local favorites, such as Dripping Springs or Good Night Loving. For a starter, I ordered the House Queso, because as you know in Texas, every restaurant is measured by their queso. This is gonna sound like an odd thing to say, as I do love authentic queso, but this is not that and I still liked it. If you like movie theater queso then you'll like this queso. It's not an insult and not in an "out of a can" sort of way, just simpler, no fuss melted cheese. I did enjoy it. It's just not what I would consider authentic queso (not that they even claimed that) but I would order it again. The chips were crisp, probably not made in house but have that homemade taste. The main course I wanted to try their chicken fingers. The pictures online looked like a homemade hand breading with homemade ranch or honey mustard. Another high bar for me is excellent french fries and chicken fingers. It might not be highbrow, but if you master those, your aces in my books. Because if you're gonna have a bar with great drinks, you're gonna need great finger foods. Another Texas staple...RANCH. Theirs is on point, as was the honey mustard. In fact, I can believe I'm going to say this, but the honey mustard was my favorite! The fries were fine. Hand cut but note crisp or beaded like I prefer. Fresh and hot but nothing to write home about. Now to the chicken finders...the picture online showed the perfect golden brown, mine were a little over cooked. Surprisingly not dry though. The breading was good but fell right off. The serving size was perfect and there is no doubt that these are made in house which is becoming hard to find as most places use frozen. I'd give them another chance. I would like the breading to be a little thicker and have a little more flavor and of course not be overcooked.
I wanted to finish with a specialty drink called a man-espresso but I'll save that for next time!
Everything was hot and fresh, and came out in a timely manner. Quite a few things on this menu I'd like to try, so I will definitely be back to check them out. At least half the appetizers sound like something I would want, like Fried Catfish Bites and Hand Breaded Mozzarella. If they add any kind of mushroom, I'd be there all the time! Plenty of excellent entree choices too. Asian Crunch Salad and the Honeysuckle Smash Burger are on my short list!
There was more than enough staff, and it seems like they've gotten any service issues under control. I do think what appeared to be two managers on the floor, that them checking in at the tables would be a good idea. The restaurant was very clean. I even saw several people sweeping cleaning up. Throughout my time there.
Overall an excellent experience! So glad I live close and can hopefully become a regular here. read more