If you happen to be downtown, it isn't a bad place to stop for lunch...if you are already downtown and safely parked somewhere. Many of the patrons I worked with (mostly seniors at the time) loved it; however, I found it to be historical to Houston, yet slightly over rated. read more

Red beans and rice, gumbo, étouffée , jambalaya ! They are all awesome. I have never gotten the daily special because I can't pass up on the Cajun classics. On nice days, sit upstairs on the balcony. read more

Had lunch hear the day I was leaving Houston by chance. Food was awesome. It was served cafeteria style and we found a seat on their balcony which overlooks a park across the street. read more

Busy lunch cafeteria is a real favorite. Veggie red beans and rice, three sides. Not fancy, just right.

After a tour of sculptures by David Adickes, the 911 Memorial in the park dedicated to the heroes on flight 93 and to all of the victims of that horrible attack, my group of seniors completed the days tour with lunch at Treebeards. A great finish to a wonderful day since the service was exceptional, so kind and thoughtful to us elderly visitors. The food was out of this world. Many of us are from N.O and agree it is authentic Cajun to the utmost. So delicious and the atmosphere in the restaurant as friendly as humanly possible. The prices for everything were super reasonable. A great place to eat. read more

Seriously some of the best food that you'll ever eat. Great portions and pricing. Have used them for catering, and they have an excellent setup. The red beans and rice with cheddar is one of my favorite things to eat! If you're needing some comfort food, go here now! Not sure it's healthy, but it's real food so don't feel too guilty. read more

Not my favorite at all..My friend recommended and the website menu looked amazing.. but walked in to cafeteria setting for lunch..with limited selection.. read more

Try the stuffed pork chops! They are fantastic!

Went for lunch today with my friend and boyfriend walking in thinking it's so packed so the food must be really good. This place doesn't even deserve a star. We could not understand what all the hype was about. This eatery was so bad that I signed up just to leave my review to warn others. We all ordered chicken fried chicken with mashed potatoes and dirty rice. I ordered a chicken tomato vegetable soup instead of the side of mashed potatoes. This was possibly the worst place I've eaten in my entire life. All of our chicken was dry and the breading was stale. This was at a busy lunch time so we were so shocked at the quality of food. Everything was extremely bland like the kitchen forgot to add salt. My soup was horrid and tasted like watered down tomatoes. The atmosphere was not pleasant and the decor was boring. Overpriced including the pay for parking for lunch. Definitely not worth the time or effort. Will not be going back!!! read more

I ordered beans and rice to go. Which is supposed to come together, but since I was going to eat it later, I asked to have it in separate containers. The charged me for the beans and rice (no rice) and then charged me for a side of rice. Completely ridiculous. Then when I get home, I notice the rice is undercooked with no seasoning what so ever. And the beans? Bad, as in soured and should have been thrown out and not served to customers. I have been in the industry for over 10 years, and I know that when beans start to get that froth around the rim of it's container it's time to throw them out. But nope, Treebeards decided that they would serve them to their customers instead. Very disappointing considering this place has been around since the 1970's. Shame on you Treebeards, you should know better. read more

Treebeards is a nice place to go to after jury duty. I was in the mood for Cajun food and used Yelp to find this place. It is a cafeteria style restaurant with a variety of options. The place has a nice atmosphere with plenty of seating. I was hoping that they had crawfish etouffe, but sadly they did not. I got the shrimp etouffe. It was pretty good, but not the best that I have had. It had lots of huge shrimp, and was definitely worth the price. I would go there again. read more

Eh. Southern cooking, but not at its best. Limited selection as well. Their fried okra is limp. It needs to be cooked longer, and with buttermilk under the coating. read more

Good ole southern cooking located right in the heart of downtown Houston. Great walking distance; about 10 minutes from the civil courthouse. I personally always look for good food everywhere I go and preferably a mom and pops sort of store. I'm not too keen on franchised eateries. The food was well seasoned and holds true to the southern flare. I really liked the food here, and will be bringing my better half to try other items on the menu . read more

Rookie plate, chicken gumbo and beans ...wow, I love this place. The staff is always nice and the food is great..

Chicken and sausage gumbo!!!! add jalepeno cornbread for that extra ummmmm!!! I have been eating here for over 10yrs and still can't get enough!!! WOW read more

First time visit Treebeards, food was delicious! Definitely, bringing my hubby back for lunch!

My husbands rice was cold but the fish was moist and delicious and I enjoyed the gumbo it was better than other local Cajun restaurants. I love gumbo family history Cajun cookers from Louisiana. Too loud to chat. read more

It's good, it's cheap, it's fast (but not fast-food), and it's close to my work. Those are all the requirements to make a place become a somewhat regular lunch spot for me. Thanks to Gretchen P. planning a Lunch UYE here last week, I finally came to try the infamous Treebeards. With this being a self-described Southern place (more like Cajun just not so spicy), I knew the dishes would be a little on the heavy side. Not wanting to pass out at my desk after lunch that day, I opted for just a cup of the shrimp etouffee, a fruit salad (berries, melon, pears, kiwi), and a piece of their famous jalapeno cornbread. For just under $8, I consider that to be pretty swell and reasonable. The etouffee was delicious and I could tell the shrimp was very fresh. I crumbled up some of my yummy jalapeno cornbread to soak up the liquid and give it a little *OOMPH*. As this is a cafeteria, the long line moves fast during lunch. There is ample seating too, with it being 2 levels inside and out. So, don't be turned off if you come by and it looks packed - you are sure to get your food quickly and find a place to sit and enjoy it. read more

Went here with a group from work today. OK, so I really don't like anything called "gumbo" anyway, but still. Why the raves? I just don't get it. read more

Worst restaurant. I came to Treebeards 1117 Travis st. at the Cloister when it first opened. An older heavy set black man wearing plain clothes not a uniform who works at the door of Treebeards wouldn't let me enter because he said I have to go to box lunch before I can go to the restaurant. He then changed his explanation. I called Treebeards they said none of his explanations were true. He threatened me with his broom when I went to enter the restaurant. read more

Treebeards has been one of Houston's favorite downtown lunch places for years and years. There's a good reason. The Cajun food is good (sometimes really good, sometimes kinda bland), the prices are reasonable and the lines move pretty quickly. What more do you want? read more

Great food, great customer service, but be aware - the chili (while delicious) is LOADED with beans! They have also changed their to-go containers and the portions seem much smaller than before. No bueno Treebeards! read more

Great food, staff is wonderful too. Their red beans and dirty rice are as good as it gets! Word of caution: this place is SO well liked there are usually lines around the block at lunchtime, best to go on days when you don't have to rush - or pick up your order at one of the locations that have the windows pickups available. read more

I've been to the Market Square location a few times, but I usually go to the Pennzoil location because it's closer to my job. But my co-workers have been raving on about the blackened catfish on Fridays. I was a little disappointed this past Friday though. The food was great as usual, especially the blackened catfish which was my first time trying. But the service wasn't great. I think we came in around 1:45 pm & there were a couple employees standing around talking to eachother not even acknowledging my co-workers & myself which was upsetting considering the few times I've come in we have always been greeted by the most kindest cashier Jaz. She's extremely friendly & very helpful. Which I might say is very refreshing, it's kind of rare these days to find such a enthusiastic person. She does it all. Walks you through the whole process (This place is cafeteria style), she will actually make your food & all. Then she gets you down to the end to pay & "up sells" the heck out of their desserts (I left with the chocolate cake which she recommended) & it was everything she had said it was going to be. Anyways finally a man came out & assisted us. He was very helpful. Although the food was great the lack of customer service made my visit unpleasing. I don't usually post reviews but I just had to let the management know about this. read more

I think they have the tastiest red beans/rice I've tasted. And their gumbo is not "liquiddy' like at so many other places. i could eat there every day. read more

We had our wedding reception here 1/7/17 and it was wonderful! The staff especially Edie and April were SOOO easy and great to work with. I was emailing with Edie back and forth for about 6 months before the wedding and she always responded quickly. She was always so professional and very kind. I worked with April more the few weeks before the wedding and she was also great and very professional. They made sure our reception was exactly what we wanted! THANK YOU VERY MUCH! We will never forget our special day and you all helped make it perfect :) read more

Carrot cake deserves 5 stars but I kept hearing every review go on and on about their gumbo. I have ate gumbo all over this area and BB's Cafe has the best gumbo hands down this cafe was not one I'll be back to but I will grab a carrot cake for afternoon coffee at the office! read more

This was my first visit. I had the meatloaf with dirty rice and red beans and rice. The food was good, we'll seasoned and the service was good as well. The only issue was my fork had dried food on it so I had to locate a clean one. Overall, pretty food experience. read more

I'm sorry, but the food here is bland and not very good. If you like it, then certainly go here, but don't believe is not authentic cajun/creole. I grew up in Louisiana and this place would not even last a year there. read more

There is Treebeards, and, then, there is everything else. This is the place I could eat lunch every day; in some weeks, I actually do. I love their gumbos--all of them. Their jerky chicken is the best I ever had. Their squash casserole is to die for. I having a hard time understanding why this place does not have a solid five star. read more

This is my all time Favorite Southern Soul Food restaurant downtown!!!. The restaurants at Market Square and the Cloister at the Church are wonderful. Take out locations are just as good also. Wonderful Cajun offerings of Gumbo, Etouffee, Red Beans and Rice. They also have a rotating menu and on certain days have: Meat Loaf, Catfish, or Chicken Fried Chicken, various Salads, vegetable soup, fresh greens, dirty rice, mashed potatoes, squash casserole. All of these are to die for!! The food is cooked up fresh each day and such good quality at a reasonable price. I have tried it all and have yet to get something I did not like. Oh and all the fresh French bread you want. The DESSERTS are Fabulous - Italian Cream Cake, Yellow Cake with Chocolate Icing, Pecan Pie...all incredibly good and they sell cakes to go [order a day or 2 ahead]. Try it - you will love it! read more

I'm a long time loyal customer of many many years. The food is wonderful and the staff is always pleasant. I love "pork chop" Wednesday!

This is one of those many restaurants that makes you feel lucky to live in Houston. Know what I'm sayin? I only know about this fantastic place because I had jury duty, and this is where the bailiff brought us to eat. Ever since then, I've been in love! On my days off I'm torn between Damicos or here for lunch, although I truly wish Treebeard's had an establishment open all day HINT HINT! What's a working girl to do, when she works 30 minutes away? I love the baked catfish with shrimp étouffée, chicken fried chicken, baked chicken, meatloaf, shrimp gumbo, corn custard, red beans and rice ( I like it with LOTS of green onion) , broccoli & carrots, among many other greatest hits! It is cafeteria style with a tray and all that good stuff! It is ALL good!!!!! Everyone is nice, it is a no nonsense place, fast, reasonably priced. Something at Pappadeux might be like 4 X the price for the same quality of food. This seems like more of a home style cooking than Pappas. read more