Etoile Cuisine et Bar

We’re convinced that Etoile Cuisine et Bar is truly one of Houston’s top restaurants, especially considering the price point. Last night, my wife and I dined there, enjoying – no, make that reveling in appetizers of seared foie gras for her and the perfect escargots a la Bourguignonne for me – the perfect blend of garlic and herbs to accompany escargots cooked exactly to the right degree of doneness. My wife raved about the presentation and taste of the foie gras, as well.
For entrees, she (the dedicated meateater) had a Sole Amandine (served with green beans and cauliflower florets), and I had a Halibut served atop a butternut squash purée, cippolini, shiitake mushrooms, and a lemongrass beurre blanc foam – absolutely unbelievable!
We split a Tarte Fine aux Pommes (pastry topped with baked apple slices ala mode). There was not a miss in the entire meal, and our server, Didier, was his usual self: entertaining and very helpful.
Make reservations well ahead of time, especially for weekends. Parking is either complimentary valet or open parking (hard to find, though).

My mom has always considered this place to be great for French food so we popped by on a weekday for lunch since we were in the neighborhood. I ordered the seafood risotto and while there was plenty of fresh seafood in it (huge plus), the entire dish was far too salty for my taste. Also there is just in general an overbearingly posh vibe to the place which made me feel like I needed to be a 70 year old woman having lunch with all of her girlfriends while wearing hats and gloves. While there are some perks to eating here, it’s just not my cup of tea.

Amazing French food — some of the best we have had in Houston. The only thing I would change is having more of a la Carte sides instead of set sides for each entrée. However — everything including desserts, wine and service was to die for!

I have been to this place twice and each item I have ordered has been excellent. Their fish is was perfectly cooked and so flavorful! My vegetarian date enjoyed the mushroom ravioli and risotto dish. Also, not to miss are the build your own apéritif cocktails. They have a lot of options to choose from — but I usually get champagne mixed with Kina which is perfect for a special occasion! Service was excellent and attentive. We ended up having a late dinner and were eating dessert past closing time, but the staff never made us feel rushed. Love this place!

Took my wife there for our 10 year anniversary dinner. i had a reservation (through opentable). Parking is a hassle near that area, so we used the provided valet. They greeted us immediately and we got seated. It was our first time there. Service is great. Casual atmosphere. We were hoping for a bit more romantic setup and a slightly crowded seating setup.
Food was great. I had the «Pavé de Saumon Rôti» — pan roasted salmon, green lentils, fried brussel sprouts, caramelized onions with balsamic. My wife had «Magret de Canard „à l’Orange“» — roasted duck breast, butternut squash mousseline, crispy potato cake, beech mushrooms. Both dishes were amazing. We highly recommend the roasted duck, it’s the best duck we have had. We got the «Millefeuille Framboise-​Pistache» — raspberry pistachio napoleon, raspberry sorbet dessert. Pretty good as well.
Apart from the seating setup and limited parking it was great.

Celebrated my friend’s birthday here with a group of ladies on Saturday evening. The ambiance is fabulous! The service is excellent. We sat at the bar while we waited for our table and the bartenders were great! They were so knowledgable, even giving us history on the French liquors and speciality drinks. Really neat!
Dinner was wonderful also. All of the servers were excellent. They took care of everything and were prompt. Will definitely come back! Great for date night, with friends or for business.

With a small reservation for 2, I didn’t expect to be seated in the corner where a drape separated us from the maitre d’. «Eh-​w!» Given it was my anniversary din, I decided it’d be best if I lowered my nares and
.UP. — especially because the restaurant was completely full. Although I will suggest getting rid of that table completely. My peripherals were distracted every time someone entered the restaurant. To make up for the awkward seating, the Coq au Vin was rich and delicate. The slow cooked dish was worth every minute the chefs put in to it. The braised chicken fell apart with a small tug of my fork — no knife needed. I found the french onion soup to be too salty for my taste. I understand that it can come off as a salty dish no matter what, but usually I can find a good balance.
The feel is «elegantly» rustic with white table cloths, a rustic wooden wall, and refined lighting (except the dark side where I was seated). I envied a large, round table towards the back that had their own chandelier. They seemed to be much happier than myself. I’ll definitely be back for a go at the ravioli with white truffle everyone raves about. Also, they have a brunch. Hopefully seating will be much better — because nobody, not even Baby, should be put in the corner.

This is my favorite restaurant hands down! Every time I’ve been here the service has been impeccable and the food has been exquisite. The ambiance is very elegant and they’re always packed so I would recommend making a reservation.
To begin, we got the escargot as usual and we also tried the foie gras polê — it was cooked to perfection definitely would recommend.
For our entrees I got the Coq Au Vin — cooked to perfection, incredibly tender and flavorful; — and my husband ordered the veal (¹⁰⁄₁₀ would recommend).
For dessert we had the crêpe Suzette and the raspberry pistachio Napoleon, both amazing. The sorbets that came with both desserts were amazing palate cleansers for the end of the meal.
We also had some absinthe while waiting for the desserts, they pour the water out of a absinthe fountain and it looked/​tasted amazing!

Holy hell; those mushroom raviolis were amazing. Duck a l’orange was spot on – they tossed me a piece of foie gras on it for good measure.
Escargot was great, but not the best in town.
Bread was warm and fresh.
Great wine list and service.
Possibly my new go to place.

Came here this past weekend and enjoyed it. Space was busy but not uncomfortable. Had a larger party and service was excellent. Definitely impressed by that.
As far as food, instead of ordering an entrée, I ended up ordering their 5 piece mushroom ravioli starter along w the lobster salad. 5 stars for the ravioli. It was extremely rich and extremely delicious. Filling was mousse-​like which I loved. The lobster salad, on the other hand, was different. Not bad but not something I would order again. Most disappointing part of the meal? Dessert. Our waiter recommend the profiteroles. So underwhelming. Didn’t enjoy the chocolate sauce and there was something off about the vanilla icecream. Cream puff was decent but this is not an easy dessert to eat. Definitely should have gone w the cheese sampler.
Enjoyable experience overall and I’ll be back more of their mushroom ravioli.

Beautiful place for special occasions. Was expecting the interior space a little bit bigger but I quite like the small cozy feel.
Came here with my girlfriends for a birthday celebration. We sat at the bar and had almost everything on the social hour menu. The food indeed was scrumptious, just enough for the 4 of us to share. Had a couple of drinks as well, I had the Hibiscus Press. Oh my, it was so good that I had to order another one: D
Definitely will be back!

Foie Gras was the main thing I actually came for. I made it on time for the happy hour but their were NO SEATS left at the bar! The hostess lady offered me the patio, but it was freezing outside, she must have thought it was summer or something. Our waiter was good up until the end because he started working at the bar.
–Foie Gras au Torchon — (⁵⁄₅) As usual, AMAZING. Pairs great with the dessert wine. I think this dish would be better with the toasted ciabatta instead of the toasted brioche. That’s what I’ll ask for next time.
–Tartare de Boeuf — (⁴⁄₅) Fresh and tender. It has a mustardy taste to it, those who don’t like mustard probably won’t like this. I usually don’t like mustard, but its pretty good still.
–Marinière w/​Truffle Fries — The truffle fries were amazing as well, super good with their garlic aioli. The Marinière is mussels with creamy white wine. The sauce was very good, but the mussels were too fishy for me. They were good sized, and very plump. My friend liked it a lot, but I just couldn’t. Maybe its just an acquired taste.
I’ll still be back again! Maybe it’ll be a better visit next time (:

I had to make a meeting at 7:00 PM and really needed a drink to get me through it. We were going to a restaurant close by, and I just wandered into Etoile when I saw the bar shelf. I was extremely under dressed for the type of restaurant (denim and a t shirt) but none of the staff showed me any less courtesy than the other patrons. When I walked in, the my first thought was «wow». This restaurant is absolutely gorgeous. It was a perfect mix between classic and modern styling. Nothing stuffy, and very comfortable.
When I sat down, I thought that the bar would be lacking from my previous experiences at restaurants like this. The stock of spirits is usually nothing special, with your standard scotch, gin, vodka, and bourbon selection and bottom tier mixers, apéritif’s, and liqueurs. I was delightfully proven wrong. The bartender working that night was very experienced and her technique showed. She was making two old fashioned’s served straight up (very strange) and I saw she was using real demerera sugar.
I asked for a perfect Manhattan (equal parts sweet and dry vermouth), and the ingredients that she used were all top notch. My personal favorite dry vermouth, Dolin, Cocchi sweet vermouth, old scout rye whiskey and a real maraschino cherry (not the neon red ones, but REAL candied maraschino cherries). It was, quite possibly the most «perfect» perfect Manhattan I’ve ever had. Just to top it off, she used a coupe glass instead of the modern martini glass.
The best things that come to you are when you are least expecting them. The only other bar I’ve been to that made a Manhattan that I liked was Canon in Seattle, which has the reputation of being one of the best bars in the world. If the drinks are this good, I can’t wait until I come back for the food.

I came here during restaurant weeks and was thoroughly impressed. Our waiter was extremely professional, patient, and knowledgeable. I started with the escargots, which were absolutely delicious. I ordered the duck for dinner, which was absolutely perfect; it was delicious, moist, and perfectly complimented by the veggies and demi-​glaze. (Can we please talk about how fantastic the potatoes are that come with this dish?! My mouth is watering right now.) I rounded it out with the pistachio napoleon, which was amazing. (My date got something chocolatey with a passionfruit ice cream, which was delicious, but mine was definitely better!) We realized that we were lingering a little too long, but the staff was extremely patient with us and didn’t try to rush us out even though we should have left already!
Overall, I had a great experience here and I would absolutely come back in a heartbeat.

Wow! What a spectacular dining experience. I will definitely be coming back because this place is a gem.
We made a reservation for Houston Restaurant Weeks and were seated promptly. Upon seating they changed my napkin from white to black and I was immediately impressed with their attention to detail. The appetizers, main course, and dessert were all cooked and presented to perfection. I had the Unusual Thyme cocktail and I highly recommend it to anyone who doesn’t like sweet drinks. This place is classy and reasonably priced for the quality of both the food and service.

I came here for brunch during Houston restaurant week. I made reservation and they quickly seated us. The interior is chic, modern and pretty. However, the space is kinda small and feels a little crammed. I do love that there are patio seatings :)
Food
Croissants with pears, angular & honey pepper (⁵⁄₅) — Simply delicious :)
Foie Gras (⁵⁄₅) — This was my first time and it tasted divinely smooth with a hint of chocolate.
Salmon egg Benedict (⁴⁄₅) — It’s flavorful & tasteful
Braised Rib Hash (³⁄₅) — I got a taste of it… and it was alright.
Vanilla floating island (³⁄₅) — I only liked the sauce and almonds. The actual dessert tasted like marshmallow. It’s an interesting taste… not bad but not good either.
The service was decent.
Overall, I enjoyed my experience and would come back for more.

This is now my favorite French restaurant in town!
I have so many great things to say about this place and will have to return to update my review. I will just leave you with photos for now.
Highly recommend the mushroom risotto, foie gras, mussels and the raviolis!
This place was also not overpriced and super attentive to our needs. The chef even made off the menu items that we requested.

Came here for Sunday brunch with a friend having high expectations & was extremely disappointed.
This is my second time at Etoile & will not be coming back. The first time the dinner service wasn’t memorable either, but I thought maybe I came on a bad day so I decided to give it a try one more time.
We ordered the mushroom ravioli, large portion of beef tartare, pâté, lemon sole, & duck leg confit.
We started off with the raviolis de champignon, it was absolutely delicious, soft, & buttery. A great appetizer, & start to a meal but the meal went completely downhill from there.
The large portion of the beef tartare came with crostini, & fries. Presentation was well executed. Beef tartare needed a little more flavor, but overall the dish was just okay but nothing to write home about. A little disappointed because I am a big fan of beef tartare.
Pâté came on wooden board in the shape of a pig, nice! Disappointed in my beef tartare I was hoping the pâté would be better but each dish after the ravioli just kept snowballing downhill. Pâté was bitter, & overly salty. The only thing I thought was great about the dish were the gherkins… which is sad.
The lemon sole looked charming but lacked any flavor. The fish was not fresh & was smothered in flavorless butter. The vegetables were overly greasy as well from the butter. The dish itself tasted like the chef boiled or steamed a filet of lemon sole, blanched some vegetables then decided to take a ladle of butter to dress the entire plate with butter.
Duck leg confit tasted like it was over brined. It seems like in most dishes at Etoile the chef was either too heavy handed with the salt or didn’t flavor it at all. We didn’t even bother finishing or boxing the lemon sole or duck leg confit.
Overall I was extremely disappointed, I really wanted to like this place I honestly did. I grew up with French relatives & this is definitely not authentic French food. Etoile seems to be overhyped, presentation wise the food looks beautiful but none of the dishes were executed correctly when it came to taste. I don’t think I’ll be coming back to Etoile. If you’re a french restaurant & your ravoili appetizer was the highlight of an entire meal, that’s sad.
How do you even mess up an entire duck leg? That duck lost a leg for no reason.
My two stars is based on service & ambiance, service at Etoile was exceptional everything else there is lacking.

I was craving for French this past weekend and was able to fix my craving. I came here on Friday night. It was a beautiful night to sit in the patio. I was able to enjoy my meal and somewhat ok conversation.
Since it was Friday, I had a champagne with my dinner. I had the Champagne with Chandon — it was nice and fruity then proceed with my meal. I had the Foie Gras Potete — seared duck liver with green apples and red bell pepper chutney for appetizer, Plat de Cotes de Boeuf Braises — basically it is braised beef short ribs with season vegetables as my entrée and for dessert was the Vanilla Panna Cotta. Yum!
The service was great! Everyone was very attentive. Great food, great service and ok company. Haha.

Etoile is an adorable little French restaurant with lovely décor and excellent service nestled in the lovely Uptown Park shopping complex.
I came here for HRW brunch last August, and I adored the velvety coq au vin and the delightful profiteroles.
I returned a few Saturdays ago for a girls’ brunch. Naturally, we were hoping to dine off the brunch menu, but there was a special prix fixe brunch menu going on at the time, and we were not in the mood for a full three-​course meal. The waiter was very patient as we pored over the lunch menu for a long time and gave some detailed recommendations. I ended up with the sausage Merguez sandwich, which was quite tasty: a hint of spiciness with a little bit of sweetness paired well with the savory lamb and the crusty bread. The fries that came along with it were simple, but very well made.
This is a fantastic choice for a leisurely, slightly upscale lunch.