Laurier

The atmosphere was nice. However, the food left SO much to be desired. The bread will cut the inside of your mouth. The entrée I ordered was inedibly salty. They have a good selection of wine. but you can get that anywhere. The food was simply terrible. I wouldn’t go back.

Another excellent meal tonight after the movies. Wife had the rabbit and said it was the best in Houston. Succulent and tender with subtle baked Brussels and mushrooms and a perfect sauce. Laurier still has the absolute best crab cakes I have ever had, and I try to sample them everywhere I go. Take a container of super lump, divide it into 5 cakes, add minimal seasoning and some greens and a nice light sauce… Ahhhh.
No other restaurant crab cakes even come close because they try to make mega profit off of meager portions and mega filler. Service and ambiance was just right too.

While I now live in San Francisco which as everyone knows has the world’s best restaurants, I still rate Laurier at the top of my favorite restaurants. Everything is fresh and beautifully presented. I love to have a light salad and fresh fish and then ruin my healthy eating with the molten chocolate cake. It is worth it! Great atmosphere and service.

What a fabulous lunch!
I have driven by this place everyday on my way home from work and never thought to stop by. It is deceiving from the outside. The inside atmosphere is totally unexpected. It has a warehouse feel to it with white linens and interesting art on the walls. There is also a great patio area which I am excited to dine at… once the weather cools off of course!
I ordered the savory vegetable tart with eggplant/​artichoke/​goat cheese filling, roasted leek/​fennel, beets and carrots (yes, I had to go check the website to remember all of the ingredients!) — It was like nothing I’ve ever eaten before. The flavors were awesome. All of the vegetables were sliced nicely into bite size pieces and the crust of the tart melted in my mouth. It was so refreshing and delicious.
My dining companions were a little less adventurous with their choices and ordered the 4 cheese grilled sandwich with fries and the onion soup. They were extremely satisfied with their meals as well. The grilled cheese looked like a fabulous!
Our service was great as well.
I will definitely go here again and try something else on the menu, as it all sounded interesting.

FIRST OF ALL GARY is AN AMAZING CHEF! I have been enjoying the food and excellent wine list here for years! The atmosphere is splendid and I always walk away still thinking about my food! Then I got diagnosed with Celiac and can’t have any gluten at all! Gary always accomodates me and shows that he has a great grasp of the issues of cross contamination. He even offered to bake my chicken instead of grill it for me! I highly reccommend Laurier café! And you can enjoy it even if you have special needs!

4.5 stars. Excellent atmosphere, food, wine, etc. When I lived in Houston, my girlfriend and I would come here all the time and have dinner and champagne on the lovely patio. When I was visiting her in November, she took me back as a belated bday gift, and we had a blast despite the fact we were the only people in the place (something about a Texans game?)
But seriously, the waitstaff could not be more accommodating or professional, and not at all stuffy or pretentious. The owner is there often, and that woman knows how to work a room and ensure that everyone is enjoying their dining experience.
As for the food, everything is incredibly fresh and I kind of like that the menu doesn’t really change much, so I know I can get my favorites whenever I go back. A few standout items:
— Cheese plate — fabulous, though I always wind up asking for some more walnut bread to go with
— Savory Vegetable Tart — while this is an appetizer, it could easily fill in as an entrée
— Cioppino — tasty though I could use a little more shellfish
— Steak frites — so, so good and the steak is cooked perfectly — get it medium rare and dip the fries in the juices :)
I don’t really remember the desserts, but why mess with a good thing when everything else is so incredible!

My friend and I were all gussied up to go to the symphony, and we wanted to have a nice dinner. After some thinking, we decided on Laurier Café. I hadn’t been in a while, but I did recall the pleasant staff and this amazing bread pudding.
The restaurant is very clean and unpretentious. And, our waiter Hugo who has been working there for a while was very polite and knowledgeable about the menu. Upon Hugo’s recommendation, I decided on the red snapper. The fish was cooked well and the slightly crisp green beans were a good compliment. My friend ordered the steak frites which she insisted was just okay. For dessert, we tried the fruit tart and the bread pudding. This bread pudding is amazing. Just try it, you won’t be disappointed.
Overall, I was quite happy with my meal — nice ambiance, very attentive staff, and great food.

I work right across the street from Laurier and I’m ashamed to say that I don’t go there enough. I went in for lunch and was so shocked to walk into a little hip restaurant– especially next to Velvet Melvin and across from that weird invalid strip bar! It’s super modern inside and very clean (or so it seems. There’s a lot of white walls) with lots of art.
I’ve only been there once, and only had this dish once (and about two years ago) but I STILL think about the grilled cheese I had there. Weird, right? It was small and made with four cheeses– one of them being boursin cheese. Straight to my heart (and arteries) it made me a fan.

I came here with high expectations as a few «foodies» I stalk online seem to be very, very fond of the place. It is good, no doubt, and upon a second visit, I will likely bump this place up to four stars.
The place is pretty nice. Tries to be a little too hip but, as noted in some other reviews, the crowd is predominately 50+ which bodes strangely for college students such as myself.
Mixed reviews about the food. Our appetizers, the crab cake and French onion soup were really something. The crab cake was probably the best crab cake I’ve had in town and the French onion soup was a notch above your typical la Madeline soup. The entrees, however, were another story. We both ordered steak frites and both our steaks came out charred and leathery. I am no expert on steak frites but it was not good. Hard to cut with a knife. Dessert was profiteroles and they were not quite delicate enough for me, almost crude looking– like something you’d find at Kroger’s.
The appetizer and frites part of the steak frites was intriguing enough to warrant a second visit and upon a second visit, I may be able to make a better call on Laurier Café.