Us 3 girls went for an early dinner here last Saturday night. The service was horrible (more on that in a moment) but the food and wine more than made up for it. L had the trout special which was huge, seasoned impeccably and so flaky it melted in your mouth. P had the French Dip which is Houston's/Hillstone's signature sandwich. It didn't disappoint. However, both of my friends wished they had ordered my selection - the Hawaiian Ribeye. OMG- I was in steak heaven! Imagine a prime cut of boneless ribeye- rubbed in pineapple and "Hawaiian" spices - don't know what the spices were - all I can say it was one of the best steaks I have ever had in my entire life (and I have had many great steaks). The description initially was a little weird for me but the final product- food for the gods!
Back to the service. When we first arrived a very knowlegeable and cheerful waitress explained the menu and specials, took our appetizer and drink orders. She disappeared and several minutes later a male waiter appeared stating that his co-worker had covered for him until he arrived. He took our meal order and disappeared........ literally. About 30 minutes later a third waitress - who did not smile and had no personality, delivered our food but forgot our drinks. 10 minutes later she brought out my companions drinks but forgot mine. Seriously, it took another 10-15 minutes before I could find someone to flag down and ask what happened to my drink. A couple minutes later it arrived via the robot waitress without an apology or any word at all. Had it not been for the amazing chefs in the kitchen working their miracles I would have given this place one star.
I personally thanked the chef who prepared my steak - he was very humble and appreciative. I then explained about the service snafus to the manager who apologized .
I definitely will return to Hillstone if only for the amazing food. Hopefully - the service will be much improved.