Ruggles Grill

I’ve only eaten here for brunch so I can’t speak on the dinner. The entire experience is pleasant from parking to dining. I’ve been told the Mimosa used to be bottomless but that’s no longer the case. However, don’t let that spoil your meal. I opted for the Gulf Shrimp Omelet on our most recent visit. It comes with scallop potatoes and asparagus. Everything tastes fresh and is prepared well. Overall, the ambiance is upscale with a mixed crowd. The food is above average and what you would expect for around $ 20 per plate. My only comment is that the space is cozy. So if you are looking for something quaint and intimate, this is your spot. Somewhat kid friendly but I’d recommend that they be old enough not to require a high chair or booster seat. Valet parking is mandatory and costs $ 4 in case it’s your first visit. Enjoy.

One of the worst pricey meals we’ve ever had. While everything was edible, it was all low quality. Good riddance in my mind… though I wish they kept the cute old house and put in a decent restaurant in there… hopefully the new building will add something to westhiemer.

I took my team here for a company dinner, and we were blown away.
Despite having a group of 15, they were super accommodating in creating a table area for us where we could all sit together. This is no small feat at this restaurant because it’s basically an old house that was converted into a restaurant. So space is limited.
The service was also surprisingly fast given such a large group. I ordered the pork chops, and other than The Playground in Santa Ana, this was one of the best I’ve ever had. I also had a side of potatoes au gratin that could make my knees weak. Unreal.
But it wasn’t just me. Every single person at the table was raving about their meals and sharing tastes with each other. I can’t tell you how many times I heard «Oh my gosh, you have to try this!»
But here’s the real kicker… as good as the meals were, they were nothing compared to dessert. The selection is so huge I couldn’t even begin to describe them all. Just go to the website and check it out.
Again, being a big group we ordered an assortment and again everyone shared and raved. My personal favorite was the crunchy chocolate peanut butter pie. Even better than it sounds.
It’s certainly not a cheap meal, but not horrific either. Dinner, drinks, dessert, tax, & tip came out to about $ 45 per person.
If all you want is dessert, you can save some time and money by going to their café in Rice Village. But if you want a good meal in a quaint setting, this is your place. Just be sure to save room for dessert!

Had dinner last night for my birthday. Food was average to above average — The others at my tables seemed to enjoy theirs but my Steak Dianne was very tough and rather flavorless. For the prices charged I did expect better. One stand out was the Tomato Basil soup — but if a soup was the top stand out, that’s not a good sign.
The real issue is the service. We had ordered two Kettle One vodkas and we saw the bartender make it with Grey Goose — and no one mentioned the switch. Not that it’s a huge deal, they are both quality, but the server or bartender should at least mention that.
Second, our server had no knowledge of the wine mention and even made things up, rather and just owning up he didn’t know and get the actual bottle of wine for us to see. Very poor.
I would not return again — I even heard their staff is all new due to financial issues. I would be surprised to see them around another 6 months.

Even after reading about all of the issues this place has recently had my wife and I decided to give it a go since we had just recently bought a living social coupon. What a joke!!! We made a reservation for Saturday night and after valeting and being seated our waiter came up and promptly asked us if we planned on using any coupons. After we said that we had a living social coupon he basically said that they would not honor it because it was fraudulent — probably worse then anything is how the waiter handled it. Very indifferent and rude — as we got up to walk out they did not even try to keep our business. We were shocked.
There were so many better ways to handle this issue with living social rather then taking it out on first time customers. This place does not deserve to stay in business with customer service like that. My advice — don’t care how good their food is because it certainly cannot make up for such a horrible treatment of customers
Steer clear…

I went to Ruggles on Tuesday Dec 27^th with a group of 7. I had purchased a
gift certificate for $ 100 off with $ 200 purchase for Ruggles Grill. With the added 20% tip (added automatically on terms on gc), we spent $ 320 and meet all conditions of gift certificate. The waiter brought the manager over who proceeded to tell us the GC was not valid and had never been valid. He said restaurant had fraudulently put this coupon on their site and it was never authorized by Ruggles. He said the issue was discussed with
.
I think he was flat out lying and just did not want to honor certificate. I had purchased this GC several months before and printed it out that day. If it was fraudulent, you would have thought
would have notified me or not allow me access to print out. Also, Ruggles continues to offers GC on this website. I did contact
and they said this GC was valid.
While researching this, I found out that recently all the waiters at Ruggles walked out one night because they had not been paid.

After several minutes discussing this with manager, I insisted on speaking with owner. He went away and 5 minutes later brought back the check and said as a «courtesy» he applied the $ 100 discount. So we did get the discount, but as the host of this group, it was very embarrassing. I will not be returning nor ever visiting any restaurant owned by Bruce Molzan.

Fifteen years ago, this was my favorite restaurant anywhere. I loved the corn crab bisque, the snapper (with, crab avocado and cheese), the cheese ravioli with chicken breast, and the amazing peanut butter crunch dessert with Captain Crunch in the base.
When it was closed for an extended period, I waited anxiously for it to reopen. Unfortunately, every return trip has been a disappointment. I don’t blame then for wanting to make changes after so long, but it’s just not as good or as fun. Maybe I would find the green menu more appealing if I wasn’t comparing it to the past. I still find the atmosphere charming, but the service and food have gone down hill.
While menu changes are probably considered necessary by some, none of the new entrees I’ve tried are as good as the old offerings. I may have enjoyed the hemp crusted snapper, like other reviewers, if I didn’t compare to the much more flavorful snapper that was so popular before. But, if you miss the old menu, check out the Ruggles in the Saks inside the Galleria (called Grille 5115) which taste more like the old Ruggles (though in a stuffy atmosphere).

The waiters seem very stressed, rude, and curt. One of them seemed rushed and kept on repeating, «we’re very busy tonight» as if we were delaying them from their work. We had no prior reservations. Another one even brought another table’s appetizers to us when we were getting our check. Overall, it was not a very relaxed setting.
The food, especially the chicken was albeit tender and well cooked. The portions were very large and overpriced. I’d say unlike fine French food, the food they had was a bit on the salty and heavily flavored side. We had the calamari for appetizer and for entrees we had the ravioli and pan seared farm chicken.
Also, they only offer valet parking at $ 4 or you can self park across the street– on the street.

I used to love Ruggles. Their food is still good, but the service… the worst I have ever had. Ever. I understand they are having issues with their staff, but being left over 30 minutes to wait for the check after being ignored several times prior is just wrong. Even water was hard to get refilled. I would have had another cocktail, but no one ever asked if I wanted one. It was as if we were invisible and the manager was even worse when we tried to get his attention about our issues.

I love Ruggles Grill and can’t believe I haven’t written a review until now. The first time I went here I let Unilocal tell me what to order and I was not disappointed.
For an appetizer, we ordered the avocado jumbo lump crab tower. It was delicious, but on the other hand it was a little pricey for what they give you. I haven’t ordered it again but I’m glad I tried it.
For entrees, I love their potato hemp crusted sea bass. Perfectly cooked where the fish is really flaky and the potato crust is absolutely delicious! Also the first time we went, they had a grilled salmon pasta, which included house made spinach pasta. The grilled salmon was delicious and I really enjoyed the spinach pasta a lot! More than the ravioli that came with the sea bass. I’m a little disappointed that the last time we went it wasn’t on their menu. I hope they bring it back.
As for their dessert, I enjoyed the white chocolate bread pudding. I literally thought I had died and gone to heaven. We literally finished that entire dessert and didn’t look back. No calories regretted!

Though I know it’s a Houston standby and has risen from the ashes, Ruggles has never been my favorite. My husband really loved it, so we used to go there. Then Ike happened, and I’d basically forgotten about it. Our friends invited us to brunch there, and I thought, «why not?»
Well, the company was the best part of our meal by far. When we arrived, we told them we had a reservation. The host and hostesses said, «uh we’re the new guys» and then asked a young-​looking guy outside where we should sit. He curtly replied, with us in earshot, «I mean WHEREVER except that booth.» So then we’re led to a table that is literally in a doorway. Me: «No.» Then we walk to a room with some tables and are seated. The waiter makes a comment about how he won’t be our waiter now. OK. Five minutes later, we see our friends walk in, and they’re being led to that booth we couldn’t have. What? We used their name for the reservation! Sigh.
The menu reads like a brunch from heaven, but I wasn’t in love with my eggs benedict + crab. The eggs were pretty runny for EB, and I didn’t think the crab was worth it. The potatoes au gratin, however, were amazing, as were the mini muffins and strawberry spread we were presented upon arrival.
This could all have been overlooked if we didn’t have the weirdest (and sometimes downright rude) service. Our waiter was curt, stopped by every four minutes and was not happy that we declined dessert. Have you seen the size of your entrees? We’re full!

OK so here it goes. I hate that I had to give it three stars, cause the food it really good. I love to give at least 4 stars to places that make my taste buds sing, but on this review I’m going to start out with my negatives.
There is nothing I really can’t stand more than bad service, except when no one acknowledges that it’s happening! Came here for date night with my honey. I knew the place was going to be $$$, but hey if the food and service support it, then that’s fine. We were promptly nicely greeted and seated. Then we waited… and waited… and waited. The water guy even came by to refill our glasses. My man flagged down a waiter and asked if we could get some help. He said, «Sorry I’m not you waiter.». REALLY — is that what you say to a customer who is about to spend over 100.00 on dinner? My boyfriend just replied, «Well then tell our waiter we want … XYZ…» And off he went. Our waiter brought our drinks and never said a word. He didn’t even take our dinner order till we were half way through our appetizer. SOMEONE REALLY SHOULD KEEP AN EYE ON THEIR STAFF! Our service never got better either :(
But our food was fantastic. Compliments to the chef! I couldn’t get enough.
The AVOCADO JUMBO LUMP CRAB TOWER $ 14
With local citrus chili reduction, sweet habanero sauce, organic olive oil, corn crisps and Gundermann Farm sweet potato crisps was so fresh and just divine! We ate every last morsel.
The POTATO HEMP CRUSTED SEA BASS $ 33
With crab hemp ravioli, herb roasted tomato and grilled asparagus that my boyfriend ordered was also good! Very rich actually. His complaint was there was too much sauce and it got into everything and other components lost some of their unique taste.
I had The Special Snapper of the evening. Light, full of many flavors, and lots of supper yummy veggies with it.
My only regret on the food was that I was too full for dessert ;)
I hope the next time we make it back, our service will improve and I can bump up my star ratings for this place. If not, then it will have to be the last time I go. Can’t pay that much and have service like that!
Step it up Ruggles!

For our brunch date, my boyfriend surprised me by taking me to Ruggles Grill. This was the first time I’ve dined here so I was super excited!
So let’s talk about what’s a MUST: 1. strawberry butter and 2. au gratin potatoes.
Once you sit down, you get a basket of these warm, delicious cinnamon muffins with zucchini and raisins. You also get a freshly whipped strawberry butter that is AMAZING! It’s so good… you can literally eat it off your knife! (And I’m not going to lie, I was tempted to…).
I ordered off the brunch menu and tried the french toast. Actually, I was pretty torn between the waffles or the french toast, but what I picked was pretty good. So with this entrée you get two eggs (any style), 3 slices of bacon, a slice of watermelon and orange, au gratin potatoes, and 4 slices of french toast (oh and maple syrup). Let me tell you… you do not need the maple syrup at all! The french toast was very tasty and full of flavors! What was a plus… the strawberry butter slather over the french toast! (Yes, I was in love with the strawberry butter… not sure if my waist would say the same tho…).
The au gratin potatoes… omg… don’t even think about skipping that part! It’s creamy and rich… one bite makes you believe that what you’re eating CANNOT be healthy at all! But hey, it’s totally worth it. Trust me. Your taste buds and tummy will ‘thank you’ for putting that bite of potato heaven in your mouth.
My boyfriend ordered their buffalo wings, which were also tasty. It’s under the Appetizer menu and one order consists of 8 wings and lots of celery. The wings were fried to a crisp and even with the sauce over it, the wings were still crunchy and juicy.
Okay… I have to add this to my review: props for the chef! I ordered «over-​easy eggs» for my entrée and when it came out, it was over-​medium. Honestly, since it just sat down I had no idea they were over-​medium. The chef came out and brought me perfectly made over-​easy eggs! He apologized and told me the eggs on my plate were a bit over done and the eggs he brought out are just the way I ordered. I was super IMPRESSED! That is what I call «attention to detail!» I’ve never dined at a place where the chef was aware that something was under/​over cooked unless I say something, but WOWZER! Because of the attention to detail here… I’d have to say I found my new brunch place in Houston. I mean, the place was busy and packed… yet everything on my plate was perfect! That’s not only a good chef, but an awesome kitchen staff :)
One thing I wish I ordered: the tomato soup with pastry puff. Every other table, except ours, had one and it looked beautiful! :Sigh: okay, next time I’ll have that and their waffles.

I accidentally drove past this place because it was really close to the street and I was busy looking for a parking lot but only saw «VALET»
The design is very homey. Not extravagant looking at all, but mannn are the prices up there! Definitely not a go-​to place if you’re looking for casual dining (and you’re a college student). I actually came here on a
coupon so that helped a bit.
The host seemed a bit bitchy… something along the lines of «omg kids? are they sure they can handle this place.» but that’s fine, it was probably just his personality. He did offer to store our cake in the refrigerator so I’ll cut him some slack. It was generous of him.
My buffalo burger: super amazing. Maybe not 18 dollars amazing! But soosososo good and I did not regret it at all. Kinda greasy though. I wish we had actual napkins rather than the fancy cloth napkins because it wasn’t very absorbent for my greasy hands :/​
Boyfriend’s red pepper pasta dish: he loved how every bite was filled with shrimp. They were not cheap on that.
Friend’s ribeye with crab and some other things: it was the most expensive item on the menu. That’s literally why he ordered it. Was it good? Yes. Was it worth 40 bucks? No.
Our bill, with gratuity included because of our 20 off coupon, was 75 bucks. Not bad in my opinion. Especially when someone got the most expensive item on the menu! I’ll probably return one day, definitely with a coupon.
Overall impression? Food was good, but I don’t know if it’s worth the price.

I’ll admit– I was originally turned off by the high prices here. But we got ourselves a
certificate ($ 50 off for min $ 100 purchase) and off we went. Good thing we did, because I was definitely a fan when I left.
And don’t be turned off by the neon lights outside the restaurant. The inside is really romantic, and they play hit 90s songs (or at least they did when we went).
Started with the smoked chicken quesadillas. These were the BEST quesadillas I’ve ever had. The chicken was pretty much bbq pulled chicken that was so tender, the cheese was just the right amount of gooey-​ness, and the guac was fresh avocado. Didn’t care too much for the quinoa on top of the guac though. This came with 6 large pieces– definitely a meal in itself.
Then, we ordered the goat cheese salad that everyone raves about from all the Ruggles establishments. This was a huge salad with a block, yes, a block, of goat cheese covered in almonds. I’m not a big salad person, so this was good, but it didn’t make a devoted fan yet.
Finally, we shared an entrée order of the mixed sautee with chicken, quail, and shrimp in a «spicy honey vinaigrette.» First, the entrees here are huge, which explains the price. And the meat was so good and tender. The spicy honey vinaigrette came with cooked down cranberries, which reminded me of a thanksgiving sauce. And there were sides of potato au gratin, carrots, broccoli, sweet potato purée, and a corn mix, which was way too salty.
I will say that the presentation didn’t look so great, mainly because of all the things going on. It kind of reminded me of a cafeteria lunch plate with so many colors. And then, our friends’ pork chops (she said it was dry) and stuffed chicken breast came out looking the exact same. Except the meat was different. But at the end of the day, it doesn’t matter if the food’s good.

The best chicken quesadilla Ive ever eaten was eaten here.
Gooey, hot, delicious, greasy, a little spicy, and served with some quinoa in a little cup (which I mostly ignored because I was too busy stuffing face with quesadilla).
Even though it was an appetizer, it definitely did not come appetizer sized. This thing was HUGE. Thumbs up.
Chicken entrée was delicious as well. No complaints!

This place was dangerously close to a 3 star review. The service was iffy, they first sat us at a table that was too cramped for our party. After a bit of discussion they were willing to move us upstairs which turned out great. Unfortunately the service was pretty slow and I felt like they forgot about us at times leaving many unfilled water glasses.
The servings, as I suppose everything is in Texas were pretty big, the tuna appetizer, which the waiter remarked was «small» was pretty substantial. I went with the classic vegetable plate entrée which was solid although none of the veggies really stood out and I thought they could’ve managed to put more than one piece of brocolli on the platter. I was impressed that the steak special came that someone at our table ordered came topped with shrimp.
What really hit 4 stars to me though was the desserts. They bring the dessert platter to your table to let you peak at all the offerings, again, desserts are not shown to scale as the actual servings they bring out are much larger. I decided upon the white chocolate bread pudding after the waiter let us know it had won an award for best dessert from somewhere. I’d have to agree, I really enjoyed it. Whoever gave our that award knew what they were talking about.

I am at a 3.5…but i rounded up because of the crab tower appetizer
Went on a Saturday night for dinner… the place was packed. The hostess said that it would be a 20 — 30 minute wait… but it was only 5. sweet
The avocado lump crab tower… man. 4.5 stars… anything with avocado is delicious and i liked the crispy strips for a contrast in texture.
Entrees:
i got the buffalo burger… for some reason i’ve always wanted to try buffalo. it definitely is a leaner meat… the burger was pretty good. i liked the crispy cheese lattice that they stuck in the bun. sweet potato fries on the side
E got the pork chops. One thing that really impressed me was the size of the portions. His meal came with 2 huge chops and there was a whole separate plate for vegetable sides (what an assortment! baby carrots, broccoli, sweet potato mash, potatoes au gratin, tomatoes, corn) too bad the chops were dry… but one thing that surprised me E got his chops medium rare. i didn’t realize pork could be eaten any other way other than well done– but’s if it’s a high quality piece of meat… medium rare!
i had major food envy of the table next to us… the rib eye looked really amazing. maybe next time we’ll come back and share that… definitely more than enough for 2 people.

My husband and I went there last night for dinner. This Ruggers is the one is at Westheimer and Montrose. The decorations were interesting and unique and the restaurant had an interesting layout with different large rooms and seating arrangements and then even more seating upstairs. It seemed like it could definitely accommodate large groups of people and would suggest reservations for those ahead of time since it was pretty crowded when we were there. For ambience, overall relaxed setting but a little loud.
It’s been a while that I’ve been taken back by a menu with so many interesting, delicious-​sounding dishes that I had a very difficult time deciding… I just wanted to try it all! We got the Crispy Gulf Oyster Nachos and the Avocado Jumbo Lump Crab Tower, which I think complemented each other well, one was warm, crispy with a hint of spicy sauce while the other was light and refreshing with a sauce that had a hint of citrus and sweetness that tied all the ingredients in that tower together.
For main entrees I got the Peppercorn Crusted Tuna. It’s always a delightful treat to have tuna perfectly seared rare. The chef used basil in this diff, something I’ve never had with tuna before, and it tasted wonderful together. My husband got the hardy lamb rack that had more of a kick to it. I’m not quite sure if I’m a big fan of hemp in food, but it was interesting to try it. We both enjoyed our dishes and kept going with dessert too! First, my husband’s cappuccino came out with a chocolate-​covered spoon and a light and airy macaroon (yum!). He then got their famous white-​chocolate bread pudding, and I got the chocolate mousse with blueberries. My advice, share any dessert with someone else! They’re rich and filling so in hindsight we should’ve just gotten one, lol. It was hard for us to choose and they were both awesome.
Service was great. We were seated promptly; our waiter, Jean, was attentive; and the food came out nice and hot!
Will definitely go back again!

To sum it up– good food, loud ambience, horrible service.
We wentt for a late dinner and had to ask twice for them to turn down the music so we could hear each other over the booth. Our waiter was ok in the beginning. I had a really good lemon drop martini, ok, two :), and we split a delicious crab tower appetizer. I had the warm spinach salad, which was ok but too soggy and he had the corn chowder, which was good but unique. It would have been a 4 star experience except that the waiter seemed to forget we existed. He checked one the booth behind us, but then walked off. We had to wave for him to come over for refills and for the check. Meh.