Grooves of Houston Restaurant & Lounge

My first experience with Grooves was Ok. I came in for happy hour only to find the prices, didn?t make me happy. The ambience was very nice but that was it. I also came on another to have an ?upscale? outing with my family. In critique of this restaurant, I would label it CONFUSED. There is no way to create an upscale restaurant, if they keep this up. When my family and I came to eat, we expected to have a nice dinner, only to find tacked on fees for sitting in a booth, parking fees, and music that utterly ruined my appetite. At around nine or so, they turn the lights down and the music up. As I was eating my T-bone steak, I had to digest it to the sounds of (Buss that P**** Open) with crowds hovering over our space dancing and disturbing us. Drinks are usually 9$ and up, the food is overpriced for the amount you get, and the whole place seems to be in total chaos. The look seems to be very elegant, attracting an older crowd, but is truly a night club by night. I really hope Grooves gets its act together because the cliental its attracting is dwindling after their bad experiences at this Restaurant and Grill (Club). Pros: Nice Interior Decorating... Cons: Inflated Prices, low quality atmosphere, restaurant/club at the same time! more

11/14/2008-we were having a congratulations happy hour for a coworker who was promoted, We expected 15 - 20 coworkers. Tried calling the number listed several times for reservations-no answer 7 the last time-voice mail-full. we went anyway. we parked on street, the 2 parking lots were dirt paved & muddy, plus 10.00 to park. We were greeted by the hostess named (mia) who asked were we walk ins or did we have reservations, explained could not reach them, she stated, let me talk w/management to see if we could seat us, meanwhile she recommended we wait at the bar for the 2.00 you call it, when we went to the bar, the 2.00 you call it became 3.00. still not bad. We stood holding our drinks for 45 minutes, but no one was seated at the tables. Finally seated, we ordered appetizers, I ordered queso & spinach dip, good taste, both bowl half full and a hand full of chips for 10.00 & later charged an extra 1.00 for extra chips, my daughter decided to order her drink from the waiter(George-who was fine), but another co worker said he heard that the drink would be charged at full price- we call the waiter back and questioned him, who stated we had to understand, they had people who wanted to spend their money and yes the drinks were full price and to be seated where we were each person ,must order an entree or main meal, we were not told this, we were outdone and immediately got up to leave and go stand to order drinks and found out that happy hour was not from 4 - 8 but over at 7:00. very confusing, by that time all were ready to leave. Did not have a good time at all. Pros: Good drinks Cons: not for after work happy hour more

Rip off place:\r \r Valet Service -- they charged us $10 to park -- only had a 20 -- when I asked for my change, they commented they had not intended on giving any change unless specifically asked for it; once inside saw that valet parking was FREE before 10:30 for ladies (which were were - but they never mentioned). Also, at the end of the night when we did retrieve the car, a lady was complaining to them because they were trying to get another $8 to her car and she already paid $10 to have it originally parked!!!\r \r Restaurant -- when you ask for water they automatically bring you very expensive bottled water (nothing like padding the tab since they automatically add a 15% tip on everything -- of course, you have to read the small text on the menu to know that) -- the bill comes without a pen, etc. so you're just given a receipt that gets very wet on the table which has a line for you to add a tip (remember - they already added 15%) - but unless you noticed that, you're adding a tip on top of a total that was already beefed up 15%. If you do get tap water it is served in a plastic cup as are some of the drinks they bring ($9 drinks!!).\r \r Cover at door seems to change at their discretion -- bigger crowd -- let's charge more!!\r \r Music very very loud - unejoyably so.\r \r Food decent\r \r Service from staff - okay - could be better, our server was nice, but absent a good part of the night\r \r \r more

Whoever Grooves hires for their valet parking is GHASTLY. THEY WILL DAMAGE YOUR CAR and tell you it happened in the parking lot ...which they use for parking and are suppose moniter but if THEIR workers don't report it...YOU'RE OUT OF LUCK. His name is KENT and his contact is 713.294.2555. Save it as a contact and check car before you leave with a flash light. \r And Grooves is decent besides the long wait at the bars. \r Cons: Valet Parking more

Oh MY GOD!!!! Talk about a transformation!!!! I had my birthday party here at Grooves two months ago and was.......not so impressed! My friend dragged me there again last friday and to my surprise, I had a great time!!! i was greeted at the door by much friendlier hostesses, the food, which has always been pretty good, was great!! I think they have a new chef or something. The server we had was excellent, honest, hardworking...and he was FINE!!! all in all, this place is not the Grooves from a few months ago! you cant beat it....great food, great ambiance, great service, AWESOME entertainment....you gotta go!!! Pros: ambiance, trying really hard to win over customers, pretty people, food/entertainment Cons: location more

The setting is okay for trying to have an appearance for an elegant restaurant but not quite making that image to appear as if it is an upscale restaurant. The menu is very limited and too many fried foods. I might as well go to Joes Crab Shack and order the same thing and pay less. Our server, not sure where he was half the night but had to order our drinks at the bar. When the DJ started playing music, I might as well brought my 18 yr. old son and his friends so they could enjoy themselves. Trying to have an image of an upscale restauarant / club does not play ""booty music"" too much rap music. Not trying to drop it like it's hot. Definitely not for the mature crowd. Cons: customer service more

we came to Grooves on 8/13/08. my mother and i had a steak dinner. and some fries for my baby. Mary waited our table and she was very nice the food was great. the steaks was so good we will come back! hats off to the guy that cook our dinner. the veggies was great! everything was good! Pros: you guys are doing a great job! keep up the good work. Cons: everyone has something bad to say. but we had a great time. and the food is very good. more

NOW I OWN A FEW RESTAURANTS IN HOUSTON BUT WHEN I CAME TO GROOVES IT WAS A DAM CLUB! WHAT HAPPEN TO THE LIVE ENT. ME AND MY WIFE ORDER OUR FOOD. TOOK ONE BITE AND LEFT!! THE ROASTED CHICKEN WAS SO BAD. MY WIFE HAD A SEAFOOD PLATTER THE ONLY THING GOOD IN THE WHOLE RESTAURANT OR CLUB! WHAT EVER THEY ARE! SO I ENDED UP EATING HER FOOD. THE CATFISH WAS THE BEST I`VE TASTE. YOU GUYS ARE REALLY HURTING YOUR RESTAURANT. I CAN TELL WHO EVER RUNNING THE RESTAURANT DON`T KNOW WHAT THE HELL THEY`RE DOING. MY 5 YEAR OLD CAN DO A BETTER JOB! AND THEY SUPPOSED TO BE UNDER NEW MANAGEMENT! LOL! more

I came to grooves a few months ago me and some of my co workers at the time they had a pepper jack stuff chic. with a pasta and mushrooms, and a blacken chic. pasta. now this short guy started cooking our food and we were like oh my god! he can`t be cooking our food. so the food came out and we eat every last drop on our plates it was the best meal we had. we were all shock! now i`ve been to Grooves before and the food never was that good. so we came back to find some new peper jack stuff chic. with bacon. it was ok but we all was like the short guy`s food was better! so now all we get now is cafish!! the short guy with the grill i always there but never cook dinner. that`s sad! but everyone is gone who waited my table! that`s crazy. i guess they don`t realize good works when they have them!!! more

Gosh, not sure where to start so let me just tell you the basics. The price of the food is OK if you get a five star quality meal. I would have enjoyed Taco Bell better then this place. The service was slow and the food was totally unacceptable.\r \r STAY AWAY!!!!! more

I attended Grooves Saturday night and most Friday nights. The food was average as always. It was extremely salty. I hear they have some new chef. Corey waited on me and my friends. He was exceptional. He stayed on top of our drinks and was very polite. Very cute too!! A little young for me though! We partied all night until the music became ""drop it like its hot"" then we were too old so we left. I am 53 and I enjoyed the atmosphere but not the food (at all). I'm a diabetic and the next time i come I'll ask for no seasoning on my meal. I couldn't even eat all of my meal but I still had to pay $25 dollars a plate. I forgot who Corey said made our drinks but they were strong but good. \r \r PS. Drexler I feel you. Candice is an exceptional waitress. She waits on me and my husband all the time and we always are pleased with her service. Next time you enter (if you ever do), request Sunshine. She is a great waitress as well. She's also just as pretty as Candice. Candice was actually in Grooves on Saturday and she told me she was now working for a Law Firm downtown. So, I'm guessing she's not missing Grooves at all! Pros: Drinks, Corey, Atmosphere Cons: Salty Food more

I AM A REGULAR AT GROOVES. WELL I WAS A REGULAR. MY COMPANY COMES TWICE A MONTH ON WEDNESDAYS AND MY WIFE & I PLUS FRIENDS COME ON FRIDAYS. LAST NIGHT I CAME TO DISCOVER THAT MY REGULAR WAITRESS, THE BEST I HAVE HAD SINCE I HAVE BEEN A REGULAR AT GROOVES ,NO LONGER WORKED THERE. I THEN FOUND OUT THE REASON WHY FROM AN EMPLOYEE THERE. GROOVES HAVE MADE A BIG MISTAKE BY LETTING HER GO. IT DIDN'T MATTER WHAT DAY I CAME INTO GROOVES SHE ALWAYS WAS ON POINT WHEN SERVING US. IF I EVER CAME TO GROOVES AND SHE WASN'T THERE I WOULD LEAVE BECAUSE I COULD FIND SOMEBODY THAT TOPPED HER. I MADE A MISTAKE LAST NIGHT BY STAYING. ANDREA WAS MY WAITRESS AND SHE TOOK TO LONG COMING BACK, I BELIEVE SHE FORGOT WHAT WE ORDERED, SHE HAD AN ATTITUDE, AND THE LIST GOES ON. I'M A RELATIVE OF THE MAN THE OWNS THE BUILDING AND HE SHOULD EVICT GROOVES FROM IT. SERVICE LAST NIGHT WASN'T UP TO PAR AND THE FOOD WASN'T EITHER. MY COMPANY WILL NOW FIND ANOTHER SPOT TO SPEND MONEY. I READ SOME COMMENTS BELOW AND I SEE A LOT OF PEOPLE LIKE CANDACE AND KNOW SHE IS A GREAT WAITRESS. GROOVES HIRED SOME MAN THAT HAS BEEN DISRESPECTFUL AND I HOPE IT WAS WORTH LOSING YOUR BEST WAITRESS. AND JUST TAKE NOTE, IT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH HER BEAUTY, MY WIFE AND FEMALE CO-WORKERS CAN SAY THE SAME THING ABOUT HER. GROOVES CALL THEMSELVES AN UPSCALE ESTABLISHMENT BUT WHEN YOU SIT DOWN TO EAT HALF OF THE MENU ISN'T AVAILABLE. ONE GOOD THING ABOUT MY SHORT VISIT LAST NIGHT WAS RAY THE BARTENDER WAS ON POINT WITH THE DRINKS. Pros: RAY (BARTENDER) Cons: CANDACE NO LONGER WORKS FOR GROOVES, LIMITED MENU more

About 2 weeks ago my co-workers and I went to Grooves for their Wednesday night happy hour. We had so much fun. I was so glad to see the band was no longer the choice of entertainment. My server, Candace, was great. She worked the entire floor herself and did an excellent job delegating. She is not only gorgeous but she her sense of humor was great. She laughed and joked with us and made our visit even better. We ate off of the buffet (needed a lot of improvement). Although it was horrible, the drinks made up for it. This was my first time coming on a weekday and I have to say I will be back during the week. Pros: Drinks, Band was gone, Candace Cons: Buffet more

I had written a very positive review of Grooves on 5/28/08 (AMAZING NIGHT!!!). I can't say that I'll do it again. I convinced a friend to come in for drinks, asked for Candace, and found out that she was let go!!!!! WHAT THE HELL??? I was so upset. Andrea was our waitress, and.....lets just say that...she's not the most caring waitress. I made my way to the back bar, and got the second shocker of the night. The wonderful waitress that I wrote about in my past posting, Heather, NO LONGER WORKS THERE EITHER. Whats going on Grooves? People come back for outstanding service. Why get rid of it? Pros: Strong drinks, when I finally got them Cons: No Heather, No Candace, Slow Andrea more

I went to Grooves two weeks ago to celebrate my birthday with about 12 of my friends. I had so much fun. I was treated very well. I purchased a bottle and tons of food and Candace did a great job making sure I had everything I need from plates to napkins to more ranch. It was a friday night and very, very busy but she did a great job. She also bought me my last drink of the night to thank me for my business which was very sweet of her. After spending $300 in Grooves I felt like every penny was well spent. Pros: Candace, Wings, Smooth Groove (drink) more

I was celebrating my birthday at Grooves last Friday. While waiting for the rest of my friends to show up, my husband and I decided to sit at the bar for a cocktail frist. Our server, Amy, came over shortly and introduced herself. She made sure we knew the rules about splitting checks, 2 hour limit, and entree orders. It was nice to be informed about this before we sat down so I could make sure my party knew what to expect. When we sat down, I told her that I may have a few more people show up. I had asked for extra chairs, but she accomodated me with an extra table! She kept our drinks flowing, I never had to wait for another drink. All of our food came out on time, still hot, and correct. I had the DJones Snapper (something Amy recommended) and was very pleased. It was light and flavorful. My husband had the seafood sampler which had fish, shrimp, fries, and crabcake. Also, delicious. Overall, I enjoyed the whole experience. The place is beautiful. The entertainment was exciting. Our service was the best. Even though it was a busy and hectic Friday night, Amy made us seem like we were the only patrons there. I can't wait to plan my next party there! Pros: Amy, ambience, Food. Cons: I can't have a birthday every week! more

Everyone must have had a bad experience on 3/14/2008 .What the other customers failed to mention is that the wait for a table was over an hour and we still did not get a table. There were tables available and we still was put off. We finally realized if we did know anyone that was working there we were not going to get a table. We noticed people walking in and placing the their names on the list after ours once they saw someone that they knew that was working there ""boom"" they had a table. I could go on and on but, it was just that bad. We left around 9:00 pm and then had to encounter valet parking we wait 30 minutes for our car and we paid the$10.00. Suggestion find some other place to go. more

I visited Grooves on Friday, March 14th. It was not what I expected. I expected a lounge-type atmosphere with music that allowed for conversation and a nice meal. I had the crab cakes. Even though there were only 2 small ones that looked as though they were scooped with a melon ball tool, I ate only one because the taste of capers was over-whelming and they were dry, not flaky. To their credit, this was an appetizer item. But at $14.00, you just expect more. \r \r The atmosphere is like that of a club, inclusive of the hand-stamp as you leave and non-diners standing around the perimeter of the restaurant area staring at you as if you?re a caged animal during feeding time at the zoo. And then of course there is the club attire; the tight short dresses, weekend ?length weave and over-exposed breasts. As always, you have that group of women waiting for the next line-dance song to be played which this night was the Cupid Shuffle. Then they run through the tables to the small dance floor in front of the stage to do their ?club thing?. And as you leave, there is the ever popular handing out of brochures for the next big event. \r \r Once the check is paid, without regard as to whether or not you?ve finished your drinks, you are shooed away from your table to join the spectators standing around the perimeter of the restaurant. Needless to say, my party and I left. After waiting for my car at the valet station for 27 minutes, I received it covered in mud and muddy water and today, Monday, I am writing this review as I wait for my alignment to be re-adjusted. \r Pros: Diverse age group, centrally located, lots of material for your comedy routine. Cons: Not a very safe side of town, food not a good value for the atmosphere, music too loud to be enjoyed by diners. more

I was there on Friday 3/14/08 for a co-worker's party. We had a great time. The place is nicely decorated and catered to a professional crowd, which I loved. I was looking for a place to host my birthday party and I have decided to pick this place. The drinks were greats. Our waitress, Allison, was the best. We had a large party and she worked our entire group alone, while other staff stood around doing nothing. She even brought around two rounds of free shots. She may have brought more, I had to leave early to attend another event. I left her a nice tip. I am going to ask that she be my waitress for my party. I would suggest that you do the same. The food was good. I have had better and I have had worst. I am a picky eater, but Allison made sure my meal was cooked just the way I like it. \r One down fall is the parking....I got there at 5:30 and had to park on the street. They did offer Valet service later on, but it seemed like they parked the cars on a dirt and gravel section. They really need to get more parking. \r I did not experience the $10.00 cover charge issue because I got there early. I am not sure what time they start to charge. In all fairness... they should put this information on their WEB Page. \r Pros: Allison, Setting, Crowd Cons: Parking and $10.00 cover charge not advertised on their WEB Page more

I had been refered to Grooves by a close friend an heard about it from others so decided to stop in and see what the fuss was about. I stopped in on a Friday evening aroud 9. I was extremely impressed with the atmosphere, and the crowd was ""older"" which suited me just fine. The valet was $10, which my date and I decided no to pay for, however we did not have a hard time finding a parking spot. I wasn't at all surprised by the $10 cover charge, their drinks are well made, and bartenders were very attentive. There were even young ladies passing out free Bacardi and Coke for promotions. I LOVED the live music, though i wish the dance floor was a bit larger. I would definitly return with reservations for seating; otherwise there is standing room only which became a tad annoying when people are trying to make their way to the bar or servers are trying to get to their tables. I would recommend Groove for a nice birthday gathering, date, or just happy hour. Pros: Live music, ambience, drinks, adult social atmosphere Cons: small dancefloor, standing room without reservations more