Sophia

We love this place! We usually get there about 6.30, which means there’s an array of half-​priced appetizers available. I’m a veg, my friends are all carnivores, and all of us are happy at Sophia. I’m finishing Sophia’s leftover vegetable lasagne as I write this, and I believe it’s the best veg lasagne I’ve ever had. The pork chops and salmon are consistently rated very highly by our group.
This is a delightful, low-​key place with service that has personality, but isn’t obtrusive. The icing on the delicious cake is that it’s BYOB, we love bringing wines from our travels and enjoying them with Sophia’s delicious food. Thanks a million, we’ll be back and continue to recommend to friends.

I really enjoyed the venue but my chicken and pasta dish was not very good. However, the wife got a shrimp linguine dish which was pretty good. All in all, definitely worth a try if you are looking for a BYOB that you haven’t tried before but I would put it a step below Hollister Grill and Jonathan’s Rub and personally I prefer Collina’s and Pizaro’s Pizza. I would go again but not rush back.

This was a really neat little restaurant. I like places like this with a kind of minimalistic bohemian kind of décor so that was a plus.
The food was very good. Goat cheese spinach appetizer that really didn’t taste like goat cheese but was delicious nonetheless. Dinners were chicken fennel meatloaf and mashed potatoes (interesting and different the fennel gave it an Italian sausage taste) and the salmon which was perfectly done and tasty. Also had a side of blue cheese Mac n cheese which really didn’t taste like blue cheese but was delicious.
And another plus — byob. There is a 5 $ corkage fee, but that’s no big deal.
Try it!

This place is at least worth trying, don’t believe all the reviews, go and see for yourself. I’m glad i didn’t get turned of by the negative reviews and gave it a chance. We did come equipped with a
coupon, but i think the food is worth it at full price. They serve a nice plate of food, for a bit less $ than what would be charged at fine dining restaurant, and still manages to deliver on class.
I had the glazed salmon that could not have been cooked any better. It was like salmon butter, just a tiny bit rare pink in the middle, with tons of flavor. I’d love to go back for another round. We also shared the bread pudding for dessert, the last bite was fought over.
Another plus to mention is their ability to adjust to their patrons needs. My mom has a number of food allergies, and they were able to whip up a fresh batch of the dressing w/​out the ingredient she couldn’t have, and it still tasted great. This is a huge deal every time we go out to eat, and it’s nice to have a place that understands and can adjust.
Ya, the dining room could use some work, but go eat there enough and i’m sure they will invest in upgrades. I thought it was a cool little neighborhood type scene, everyone seemed rather happy when i was there…

There are a lot of mixed feelings about this place, but in my three visits, I have really liked the food and the atmosphere.
If you are on a date, it’s much easier to get service. If you go with a crowd of people, service might be a little tougher.
This place serves my favorite soup I’ve ever had at a restaurant… the spicy roasted garlic tomato soup. It’s perfect for one person in the smaller portion. It’s spicy, very intense garlic flavor and perfect with a couple pieces of bread for dipping. I’ve had the ribeye and the roasted chicken, and I would definitely get both again. You would think the chicken is fried with how crunchy the skin is and how moist the chicken on the inside is… but you would be wrong. They roast it. It’s crazy.
My favorite thing on the menu has to be the spinach goat cheese dip. It’s a huge bowl perfect for splitting between four people at most. I say four because once you get a bite, you might not stop.
It’s BYOB, and they totally get you on the corking charge. Just a heads up.

Sophia it is the only place I’ve been to where people looked sad while drinking champagne.

Sophia was simply mediocre all around — service to food. With so many great options in Houston, I don’t think I’ll be back anytime soon.
We started with the mussels, which were inedible. I was hesitant to try one because the aroma they were putting off was a bit pungent, in a fishy spoiled way. Luckily, they took them back without issue and apologized profusely. Other dishes ordered included a salad with gorgonzola and pears, white wine pizza, and a simple pasta dish with olive oil and garlic. None of it was particularly memorable.
The atmosphere wasn’t quite a steal for me either — it definitely feels reminiscent of a coffee bar.
Service was slow and inattentive, generally, although the mussel situation was rectified in short order.

I don’t even know where to begin… My best friend and I went expecting a casual dinner as other reviews had expressed. BUT the food was overpriced just for the sake of being expensive. Our meal was unspectacular. The butternut squash gnocchi was bland and very disappointing, especially for the small portion and lack of flavor. We also ordered the bruschetta, which was good but nothing special. The calamari was conceptualized poorly and for what minute sliver of an idea they had, was executed badly. The pizza was good, but it’s pretty hard to mess that up.
After being thoroughly let down by the meal (and not to mention lack of seating when we arrived), we received the bill and saw the $ 5 cork fee for each bottle we brought and were infuriated. The waitress attributed the charge to glasses that are broken daily by customers. However, she never refilled our glasses, opened only one of our bottles and hardly came outside to check on us. She was very funny and nice though.
The normal Montrose crowd was definitely not present here. We were surrounded by older people who expressed how great the food was. They obviously lacked taste buds and ate there to share a BYOB «hip» restaurant with others their age who had too much money for their own good because they don’t understand what quality is.

I went to Sophia with some friends last week. I love BYOB places so I was excited to try this place. I thought it had a really cute atmosphere– good for groups or even a nice date place.
The food was just mediocre though. We shared the spinach dip which I didn’t really care for. I also tried the Spaghetti, which was good but not something I would go back for.
All in all, I think I liked the ambiance more than the food… probably wouldn’t rush to go back, but glad I tried it.

For a relaxed, quiet and comfortable adult atmosphere with B+ food, I give SOPHIA 4 stars. 3 stars seems too low a rating for this BYOB neighborhood eatery with very friendly and knowledgeable staff.
My wife and I came to SOPHIA on a Saturday night with reservations. We were seated immediately and our wine was uncorked promptly.
We had the spinach spread appetizer and the white and red wine pizzas for dinner. The pizzas were hand-​made and very creative in flavor! Blue cheese and prosciutto on the white and sauteed red onions on the red. Yumm. We took home leftovers and enjoyed them again a day later.
P. S. We too came armed with a
coupon: (I paid $ 2 for a $ 25 gift card toward a $ 35 meal total.) The coupon was accepted and the value was well worth the price. In total, we spent $ 17 (including tip) on a $ 35 meal total. Cha’ ching.

I was very disappointed with my experience at Sophia and will not be returning. Being a foodie, I was determined to find a place where we could have some delicious homemade food.
I went on
and got a gift certificate. Upon arrival, it was not busy so we were seated immediately and the waiter took our drink order. It is a BYOB restaurant, so make sure you bring your own wine. I didn’t realize that, so I just ordered iced tea. I never got it and the waiter never mentioned it either. I did not remind him because he never came back to the table until the end of our meal!
I ordered the angel hair pasta with seafood. Our food was not delivered by our waiter but another lady. I was under the impression that the food would not be «spicy.» I really don’t like pepper that much, but my entrée was covered with it! It burned my mouth and I ended up sitting and waiting ten minutes for a water refill. Other than the hot ground pepper everywhere, the entrée was very bland. I ended up eating the seafood and avoiding the pasta and tomatoes, because I hate wasting seafood.
Finally, our waiter came over for the first time since we ordered our drinks (at the very end of the meal) to see how it was. I mentioned that mine was too peppery and he asked it I wanted the kitchen to send me a new plate. I told him no since we had another engagement to get to. I thought, It would have been nice if you had come to check on us sooner, like right after we took a few bites! I don’t know why he never brought my tea and didn’t come to «wait» on us until the end of the meal. I wondered if maybe the gift certificate had something to do with it? I don’t know… This experience was not enjoyable and caused me a lot of frustration. What a waste of time and money.

I also visited Sophia armed with a
certificate and a bottle of wine.
They just came out with a shrimp and grits appetizer. This was delicious. It came with 5 shrimp, 2 jalapeño grit cakes, cole slaw and a cherry sauce. The tastes of each separate ingredient was amazing and complemented each other very well. This was definitely a 4*. $ 10.
For our entrée, my friend ordered the ribeye ($ 20 for about 8 oz, so I think it’s a bit overpriced). The cut of meat was thin and definitely undercooked. He ordered medium rare, but it came out very rare. It lacked flavor. I ordered the seafood angel hair pasta. For $ 16, I would’ve expected more seafood (I got 2 mussels, 4 shrimp and a bunch of tiny calamari ringlets). My dish was also lacking in flavor.
Overall, it was a 2.5 star experience, but since it was BYOB (corking fee is $ 5) and we used the certificate, I am giving it 3 stars. Overall bill including tip was $ 40.
Also — the wait staff kept raving about the bleu cheese macaroni and cheese that came with the ribeye. It was good, but nothing spectacular.
The service was excellent though. Everyone was very friendly.

My friend and I came here for dinner on a weeknight, prepared with a
coupon and a bottle of wine! Like previous reviewers have mentioned, the parking lot could use some work, but hey, at least there’s a parking lot!
Since it was recommended by fellow Unilocalers, we ordered the spinach Texas goat cheese dip– my friend normally isn’t a fan of goat cheese but even she thought this was delicious! We ordered a bunch of appetizers and one entrée to share. The beet bruschetta was simple but pretty damn good. I love calamari and was delighted that their version wasn’t fried! The spicy sauteed calamari comes with this habanoer-​tomato broth that was very yummy! We also couldn’t resist trying the the mussels (apple smoked bacon, green apple, apple brandy sauce). The only entrée we tried was the cheese ravioli & lobster– I thought it was great! The food was so enjoyable, we were giddy (ok, maybe the wine contributed too)!
It wasn’t a particularly busy night but our service was great. Yes, the décor could probably be vamped up a little but I’ve never been one to care that much about décor.
I’m surprised the other reviews on this place aren’t higher but I’m glad I didn’t let that stop me from trying out the restaurant! It’s a little pricey, but it was a steal with the coupon. I’d love to go back– that happy hour special sounds great: $ 5 starters from 5−7pm everyday!

Great BYOB. Chill, relaxed atmosphere, where you can quietly chat for a couple hours. Service is slow, but what you need is prompt: water pours, orders, glasses for your bottle, etc.
The goat cheese appetizer is excellent, a decadent balance of spinach and cheese, and just a sniff of truffle. Mains are excellent to decent; lobster ravioli comes a little oversweet (maybe too much onion?), but the pork chop is right on key, tender, with the correct seasoning and char while still remaining juicy.
Prices are reasonable, 2 mains, an app, and a dessert for $ 50? I’ve had bills at Red Lobster come out to worse.

I think this place has a lot of potential. I really appreciate the appetizer happy hour and all, but it needs a lot of work. The goat cheese and spinach dip was way too salty and practically inedible.
The mussels were combined with an interesting and unexpected sauce. But overall, pretty unremarkable.

We stopped by Sophia after we unfortunately could not get a table at Just Dinner — Andrew (the proprietor) recommended the place. Parking isn’t good and the atmosphere is plain jane but the food was really good. I love the aspect of BYOB because so often I go out and spend a fortune just because of the alcohol markup, so it was nice to bring my own bottle and enjoy.
I had the pear and bleu cheese salad, the grilled salmon, which was excellent and the bleu cheese mac and cheese (yummy — I highly recommend trying) You must try the homemade chocolate pudding cake — it was the BOMB! I rarely eat chocolate cake but will definitely go back for this one. My cohorts tried the warm brie appetizer (that plate was literally wiped clean) and the apricot bread pudding (opt for the chocolate cake instead). We enjoyed the food and basically closed the place down so we’ll be back.

When I initially walked into Sophia’s, (old Café Artiste) I was thinking… OMG what have I gotten my self into. Very blah diner feel with limited (uninspiring) art on the wall, no table cloths… it just seemed a bit tired. You could smell the kitchen working over time…
The waitstaff was very attentive, laughed at our jokes and played along with our antics. It was very interesting being a BYOB place. The our waitperson was very quick to open the bottles of wine that we brought, but did not or would not pour them. Now I do not know if that is a rule for BYOB… but it was ok I guess… cause I was not sure what to expect…
The menu was very limited, but seemed to be very diverse enough that it was ok at how few choices there were available. We selected the mussels (fantastic dish) just needed more toasty bread to get all of the juice up… and the spinach/​goat cheese dip…(another great dish) I just wish it was not served in a Kroger hoggie roll… but flavor was fantastic…
For entrée we ordered the Salmon (it was a bit under cooked and had to be sent back… I got the stuffed pork chop (but had them add goat cheese into the stuffing) I was very impressed with the protein, but was not very impressed with the dry/​flavorless polenta which it was served with… Come On guys… there are tons of starches you can pair pork with…
Bathrooms were clean but nothing special…
Overall, we had a good experience… I will go back… but I wont be beating their doors down.
I am not sure how I feel about the BYOB thing… I guess old habits die hard…
This is a place that everyone should try at least once…

Wow, seriously? How are they still in business?
Great location, I wish they do more with the menu for lunch and dinner. Their Breakfast menu however is quite decent. We went there with bunch of Unilocalers few weeks back for our usual brunch. I got there pretty early, like half an hour before they open.
I grabbed myself a seat at the patio and waited. 5 minutes into opening a server and owner? Came up to me and asked whether I would like something to drink. I thought that was very nice.
Back to the review.
The décor is crying for some help. They should feature this restaurant in one of those extreme makeover shows. If I was the owner the first thing I would do is CHANGE the sign outside. The sign outside is tiny for this place and not attractive at all. The second thing I would change is, get rid of the patio furniture. The plastic tables and chairs take away the charm of the location this restaurant is at and makes it more like you are eating at some garage sale.
Moving forward .let me take you on a visual tour on what you will experience inside the restaurant. Few tables thrown here and there, large portion of the restaurant is just empty. Seriously, they should make some effort and work on the interior. The counter is straight out of the 1930’s. How about some lighting? Maybe some art on the huge walls?
The restroom was extremely dirty. I am a neat freak and I felt like taking a shower when I was done with this place.
As for the food, the waiter wasn’t attentive while taking orders. I ordered spinach and ended up with grits? I know I got an accent but I do not think spinach sounds anything like grits. Did not like the toast, the bread tasted stale.
There were only two other parties beside us, so the place was not busy at all. Yet our server was not on top of everything. Oh, before I forget to mention, I found a hair in my poached eggs, emmm Yummy!

I like the patio here. Not love, just… like. The interior isn’t unfortunate-​looking, either. Clean, a little sleek. The only problem is, it was silently empty when I went recently for a Sunday Brunch. The patio was lively, completely packed with people sitting around the numerous round tables. Inside, save for one table of about ten (who most likely couldn’t get a table outside), served as a fancy open walkway to the restrooms.
I’ve only ever been here one other time, when it was Café Artiste, and you can see the exoskeleton. It’s in a nice location. Hidden off of Richmond, a few blocks away from the Menil. A few more blocks away from either Rice Village or Montrose, for pre-​6pm Sunday shopping. I’m not certain how great the dinner menu is, but the brunch menu… sufficed. I got the asparagus omelet with grilled mushrooms and red onions and white cheddar. I think it was the oil or butter that masked the flavor. There was a sheen; blandly fatty. It also came with fresh fruit and roasted potatoes. Benjy’s and Empire Café have far superior omelets.
Now, don’t misunderstand me. The food IS mediocre, but if you want a low key brunch, without the throngs of psuedo-​indie-​punks of Empire or Brazil or ladies who brunch/​hungover cougs/​yuppies at Benjy’s, Sophia is a fine spot. You can spend three hours like we did, or forty-​five minutes like the table next to us, without feeling rushed or in a crunch for time. Afterwards, head over to The Menil and its galleries, bookshop, and park for a perfect example of how a lazy Sunday afternoon should be spent.
This is a wavering 2.5 star restaurant (depends on your mood and the weather). The thing that put it into 3 star territory for me was the awesome 80s pop/​new wave music. I’m not going to be in a bad mood if I get to listen to Siouxsie and the Banshees while eating brunch.

Sophia, I’m just not that into you.
I was never really a fan of Café Artiste, as I thought the prices were altogether too high for what was on the plate. Sophia appears to be continuing the tradition, but in addition gives off a plainly confusing vibe. The layout looks almost identical to Café Artiste; booths, tables and even the ubiquitous cooler are in the same places. So why am I paying $ 20 a plate when it looks almost exactly the same as the old student study hangout? After eating at Sophia, I’m really not sure myself.
The first thing that struck me about the restaurant was how desperately empty it was at dinnertime. For a long while, we were the only people dining, and when two parties, one right after the other, walked into Sophia, they took one look at the menu and walked right out. I’m guessing that «casual dining in the neighborhood», as Sophia purports to offer, is about half the price of what’s currently on tap.
After perusing the fussy-​sounding menu, I decided on the most simple-​sounding dish, the potato-​crusted snapper served with roasted new potatoes and green beans. As a complimentary appetizer, the waitress brought around a basket of different breads, including an olive oil dipping sauce served in what appeared to be a tealight candle holder. Thanks, Sophia, don’t hold back! The oil was sopped up halfway through the breadbasket. After that, the entrée came and was just okay. Definitely tasty, but knock $ 10 off the price and we’ll talk. My friend got a steak served with bleu cheese macaroni, which was pretty yummy, but not outrageously amazing.
Sophia’s identity seems ambiguous. The prices run about $ 15 – 20 per plate, yet the menus are printed on what looks like an inkjet printer, with the ink running. I took a business card, and upon further inspection the card was cut cockeyed. The music playing throughout the meal wouldn’t be out of place on Mix 96.5. It’s like Sophia is trying REALLY HARD to be upscale, but is cutting corners in the strangest places.
Two stars for the food, and none for the ambiance, because there isn’t any. I expected Gordon Ramsay to be haranguing the staff by the end of my meal, because I’m pretty sure Sophia qualifies as a candidate for Kitchen Nightmares. It probably won’t be around for the next season, however. This restaurant is a perfect example of why slapping higher prices on a menu doesn’t mean it’s automatically better. The completely bland décor and unexciting food choices make Sophia an entirely forgettable dining destination.