Some friends and I went to Cafe Rabelais last night and were so disappointed I doubt any of us will ever return. First off I want to list the good qualities- the ambience is divine -although noisy- it's quite a romantic spot. The wait staff seems frazzled but that is too be expected when you go during peak business hours and are pretty attentive. The wine list is not only full but also very informative.
Now the bad news I ordered escargot to begin...it's a treat since many Houston restaurants don't serve it and it's a favorite of mine- the menu warned it took 20 minutes to prep yet much to our surprise 10 minutes later it was delivered to our table. The taste was displeasing - like chewing on sea water. Actually, there was not even a hint of any other flavor other than diluted sea water...yuck!
Moving on to our soup - potato- it was served slightly above luke warm temperature and tasted like butter...just butter. yuck #2!
Finally the entree - I ordered the chicken sandwich- it's supposed to be served with fries but my plate didnt have any and there wasn't even enough chicken to create a thin layer across the baguette it was served on. My friend ordered the tuna steak salad only to have the tuna sandwich delivered. When she corrected the waiter her sandwich (containing 4 large pieces of tuna) was replaced 10 minutes later with a handful of spring mix, a few black olives, and only 1 piece of tuna (the salad is more expensive than the sandwich, btw)- no dressing or anything. Yuck #3
In conclusion, although the ambience is very romantic the food leaves too much to be desired.
Pros: romantic, wine list
Cons: horrible food
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