Vargo's Restaurant

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2401 Fondren Rd
Houston, TX 77063

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(713) 782-3888
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Vargo's Restaurant - Houston, TX
Vargo's Restaurant - Houston, TX
Reviews
( 104 )
( 18 )
( 6 )
( 12 )
( 25 )

Best

location wonderful with wonderful scenery and a small lake with ducks and gazebo. wonderful site for weddings

Worst

My girl Friend and i had a dinner sept.25 ..Most want good ..as expected we signed the c/c voucher for the amount due $97.74 just to find when looking at the bank statement couple...

Cold food, management with attitude 2/21/2008

We had a party of 8. I wouldn't think that is too unusually large to handle, but it took over an hour for our food to arrive after we had ordered. When it came, it was cold. I guess it had spent much of the hour waiting to be picked up by our waiter. Every member of our party sent the food back to be warmed. We asked to see the manager to make sure he knew about the service we received, but we were told he was busy. I've never heard of that before. The atmosphere is nice, and the food was decent after it was warmed, but I would recommend avoiding this place. Pros: atmosphere Cons: service, managment's response to problems more
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Cold food, management with attitude 2/20/2008

We had a party of 8. I wouldn't think that is too unusually large to handle, but it took over an hour for our food to arrive after we had ordered. When it came, it was cold. I guess it had spent much of the hour waiting to be picked up by our waiter. Every member of our party sent the food back to be warmed. We asked to see the manager to make sure he knew about the service we received, but we were told he was busy. I've never heard of that before. The atmosphere is nice, and the food was decent after it was warmed, but I would recommend avoiding this place. Pros: atmosphere Cons: service, managment's response to problems more
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S...L...O...W 2/15/2008

Took 2 trips to the hostess station and 1/2 hour to get someone to our table to take our order and get water. The restaurant was not crazy-busy and other tables around us were being served diligently. Our drinks and appetizer arrived promptly and the appetizer was delicious. Then the service came to an abrupt halt and a 3rd visit to the hostess station was needed to get our salads served. The manager served the salads himself, was very cordial but did not offer any apologies. We had to flag down a bus boy to order more drinks (which he served). It got to the point that it was comical, did we smell bad? Was it because we had something in our teeth? So after 20 minutes after our salad was served we decided to walk out before our entree was served (which I really doubt). Pros: Great view, food Cons: Slower than slow service, apathetic staff more
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S...L...O...W 2/14/2008

Took 2 trips to the hostess station and 1/2 hour to get someone to our table to take our order and get water. The restaurant was not crazy-busy and other tables around us were being served diligently. Our drinks and appetizer arrived promptly and the appetizer was delicious. Then the service came to an abrupt halt and a 3rd visit to the hostess station was needed to get our salads served. The manager served the salads himself, was very cordial but did not offer any apologies. We had to flag down a bus boy to order more drinks (which he served). It got to the point that it was comical, did we smell bad? Was it because we had something in our teeth? So after 20 minutes after our salad was served we decided to walk out before our entree was served (which I really doubt). Pros: Great view, food Cons: Slower than slow service, apathetic staff more
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Barely edible food for an extravagant price. Don't go until it is overhauled. 11/30/2007

My family went there for Thanksgiving. The meal was $45 each. My son, who loves turkey and dressing, ate about two bites. The food tastes like warmed over TV dinners. Vargo's used to be a good place to go on special occasions. No more. The grounds are still beautiful, but the restaurant is run down and needs to be redone. Would not recommend that anyone go there to eat. They will be severely disappointed. Pros: Pretty view, landscaping Cons: Terrible food, extremely overpriced more
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Barely edible food for an extravagant price. Don't go until it is overhauled. 11/29/2007

My family went there for Thanksgiving. The meal was $45 each. My son, who loves turkey and dressing, ate about two bites. The food tastes like warmed over TV dinners. Vargo's used to be a good place to go on special occasions. No more. The grounds are still beautiful, but the restaurant is run down and needs to be redone. Would not recommend that anyone go there to eat. They will be severely disappointed. Pros: Pretty view, landscaping Cons: Terrible food, extremely overpriced more
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mid summer night DREAM 6/13/2007

Perfect. What more can I say about this classic and elegant restaurant? The service was attentive but unobtrusive. I brought a date hoping to impress her with a walk in the luminous garden that oversees beautiful peacocks strutting about and pure white swans gliding in the lake. The atmosphere, the landscape, a hint of romanticism in the air all came together for an incredible evening. Pros: Attentive Wait Staff! Great Location. Undeniable romance! more
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mid summer night DREAM 6/12/2007

Perfect. What more can I say about this classic and elegant restaurant? The service was attentive but unobtrusive. I brought a date hoping to impress her with a walk in the luminous garden that oversees beautiful peacocks strutting about and pure white swans gliding in the lake. The atmosphere, the landscape, a hint of romanticism in the air all came together for an incredible evening. My date had the seabass, while I had their filet mignon. Both were mind blowing. For any special occasion, this is the place to go! I think if the restaurant had specialty cocktails it could probably be even more attractive to me. Pros: Attentive Wait Staff! Great Location. Undeniable romance! more
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Vargo's used to be a restaurant... now.... 6/1/2007

I'm sure Vargo's packed them in during the 70s and 80s, and was THE place to be seen in Houston's west suburbs. But today, it's no longer a restaurant. It's a multi-million dollar real estate play on spacious and beautiful gronds where today they happen to serve a few hundred bucks worth of food each day. Pros: Location location location Cons: Rundown building and furniture, value-for-money more
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Vargo's used to be a restaurant... now.... 5/31/2007

I'm sure Vargo's packed them in during the 70s and 80s, and was THE place to be seen in Houston's west suburbs. But today, it's no longer a restaurant. It's a multi-million dollar real estate play on spacious and beautiful gronds where today they happen to serve a few hundred bucks worth of food each day. * * * * * in 2007, nothing about Vargo's says "We are striving for excellence here". The building and furniture are run down, the cutlery comes crusted with the food of diners past, the food and service are adequate (good, even), but the overal experience was average at best in a city that offers so much above-average dining. * * * * * Some day, a new investor will buy Vargo's and re-instill the excellence necessary to generate the revenue to justify their investment. The it will become the place to go again. That will probably be the next time I go back to Vargo's Pros: Location location location Cons: Rundown building and furniture, value-for-money more
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an oasis in the big city 5/26/2007

This place is unbelievable. The lake, gardens, and peacocks are beautiful. I have eaten lunch there several times, and the food is great, especially the encrusted salmon. Service is top notch, especially since a certain new waiter started working there who trained in french restaurants on the west coast. I have never had any bad experience there. more
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an oasis in the big city 5/25/2007

This place is unbelievable. The lake, gardens, and peacocks are beautiful. I have eaten lunch there several times, and the food is great, especially the encrusted salmon. Service is top notch, especially since a certain new waiter started working there who trained in french restaurants on the west coast. I have never had any bad experience there. more
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Beautiful gardens 11/17/2006

I was given a gift certificate for christmas but was told to wait unti lthe weather was warm so we could go to walk in the gardens. It was so romantic to walk through the trees and sit at the gazebo. The food was excellent. The night we went there happened to be a school prom dinner going on filling the one side of the dining room and a wedding in the ballroom. It was very busy so you might want to call to see if any big events are going on when you plan to go. Pros: Gardens Cons: Expensive more
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Beautiful gardens 11/16/2006

I was given a gift certificate for christmas but was told to wait unti lthe weather was warm so we could go to walk in the gardens. It was so romantic to walk through the trees and sit at the gazebo. The food was excellent. The night we went there happened to be a school prom dinner going on filling the one side of the dining room and a wedding in the ballroom. It was very busy so you might want to call to see if any big events are going on when you plan to go. Pros: Gardens Cons: Expensive more
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Poor Food 7/6/2006

My Girlfriend and I have been to Vargo's twice. Once for dinner and once for brunch. We do not plan to go back. The food is average at best. After our initial poor experience at dinner (average food at an inflated price) I thought I would give Vargo's one more chance so I decided to take my girlfriend there for brunch, walk through the gardens and propose. The walk through the gardens and proposal went without a hitch as for the brunch..... The highlight at brunch had to be the omlette the mygirlfriend (now fiancee) ordered. Apart from not tasting great, it also came with kraft cheese singles on it!! Quite remarkable for a so called quality restaurant! The staff were also not professional. One of the waiters started to clean one of the spare chairs at our table while we were eating. They also proceeded to stand near our table having conversations. Having read other reviews it sounds like this used to be a good restaurant years ago, but to be honest it is nothing special and is highly over rated. Pros: gardens, parking Cons: food, price, service more
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Poor Food 7/6/2006

My Girlfriend and I have been to Vargo's twice. Once for dinner and once for brunch. We do not plan to go back. The food is average at best. After our initial poor experience at dinner (average food at an inflated price) I thought I would give Vargo's one more chance so I decided to take my girlfriend there for brunch, walk through the gardens and propose. The walk through the gardens and proposal went without a hitch as for the brunch..... Pros: gardens, parking Cons: food, price, service more
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Lame food 6/26/2006

Food was not tasteful. Underclass for the restaurants view. Needs new wares. I hope they change the old materials they use soon. Pros: Nice View Cons: Food. Dining experience. Old place. more
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Lame food 6/26/2006

Food was not tasteful. Underclass for the restaurants view. Needs new wares. I hope they change the old materials they use soon. Pros: Nice View Cons: Food. Dining experience. Old place. more
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A romantic pick but not my favorite 3/20/2006

I went with a boyfriend for my farewell dinner on a rainy evening. It was disappointing that we didn't get to tour the beautiful gardens. We were immediately seated by a window. I enjoyed the ambience from the piano, but the decor of the restaurant itself is not one of the most romantic I've been in. The wine list was long, and the waitstaff was very attentive (at times, I felt a bit TOO attentive - the waiter constantly seemed to keep interrupting). I was disappointed in the rather bland seafood. Perhaps I picked the wrong dish, but I don't feel a restaurant of this caliber should have any dishes that are less than memorable. Go for the ambience, but don't expect to be blown away. Oh, and dress nicely! My date showed up in a t-shirt and jeans and was a bit of an embarassment (to me). ;) Pros: romantic gardens, attentive service, great wine list Cons: so-so cuisine more
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A romantic pick but not my favorite 3/20/2006

I went with a boyfriend for my farewell dinner on a rainy evening. It was disappointing that we didn't get to tour the beautiful gardens. We were immediately seated by a window. I enjoyed the ambience from the piano, but the decor of the restaurant itself is not one of the most romantic I've been in. The wine list was long, and the waitstaff was very attentive (at times, I felt a bit TOO attentive - the waiter constantly seemed to keep interrupting). I was disappointed in the rather bland seafood. Perhaps I picked the wrong dish, but I don't feel a restaurant of this caliber should have any dishes that are less than memorable. Go for the ambience, but don't expect to be blown away. Oh, and dress nicely! My date showed up in a t-shirt and jeans and was a bit of an embarassment (to me). ;) Pros: romantic gardens, attentive service, great wine list Cons: so-so cuisine more
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Menu for Vargo's Restaurant


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Come see why Vargo?s is THE premiere restaurant in Houston

Owner Message

  • A Houston landmark since 1965, Vargo's is famous for hosting memorable weddings, receptions, bridal showers and rehearsal dinners. Our romantic, awe-inspiring setting is enhanced by a private lake, acres of magnificent gardens, graceful swans and strolling peacocks. Luxurious private rooms capture panoramic vistas, and illuminated footpaths and suspended bridges lead to an exquisite gazebo. The fine working relationship we enjoy with the distinguished firms featured on this website is an added ingredient certain to complement your special event. Vargo's is renowned for its splendid presentation of fine cuisine, and reception menus may be custom designed. Our service is gracious and in harmony with the restaurant's unparalleled ambiance.

Editorial

  • In Short
    Founder Al Vargo finally sold this Memorial-area landmark in the '90s, but it continues to be the site of countless weddings, bar mitzvahs and private receptions of all stripes....

  • 12/6/2006 Provided by Citysearch
Additional information
  • Hours: Monday To Thursday From 11:00 AM To 02:30 PM Monday To Thursday From 05:00 PM To 10:00 PM Friday From 11:00 AM To 02:30 PM Friday From 05:00 PM To 11:00 PM Saturday From 05:00 PM To 11:00 PM Sunday From 11:00 AM To 02:30 PM
  • Payments: Master Card, Diner's Club, Discover, American Express, Visa
  • Neighborhoods: Woodlake/ Briar Meadow, Westside
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