State of Grace

We had a very good group dinner here. We did have a short wait for our table but once we were seated the meal went well. We ordered a lot of good food and ate family style. Their wine is very well priced. I would recommend this restaurant for anyone looking for a great meal. Pricey but good

Absolutely amazing.
Great service, food, and ambiance.
My husband and I shared the crawfish hush puppies, queso, mint pasta with lamb ragu, halibut, and sticky toffee pudding. The hush puppies were the perfect salty/​sweet combo. The queso was a little greasy and salty. My cheese-​loving husband loved it, but personally I wouldn’t recommend it. The mint pasta perfectly complimented the lamb ragu. The halibut was cooked perfectly.
Wonderful service provided by Brian!

Lots of good stuff going on at State of Grace, but just a few too many missed opportunities for me to give it more than a three star review at this time. The oysters look extremely promising, so if I decide to come back for those, I may just bump it up a star.
What’s most frustrating about State of Grace is that for every good thing, there’s an equal and opposite negative to dampen it.
Ambiance: Truly beautiful. The interior channels New Orleans chic with a healthy dose of hipster flair (e.g., the dozens of antlered skulls on the walls). BUT, it is insanely loud in the dining area. I woke up this morning with a frog in my throat because I was basically shouting the whole time. The dining area was also a little crowded for my liking.
Service: Front desk was warm and friendly. Bartenders were quick. Our server was very nice and extremely well-​versed in the finer points of service and the menu. BUT the close quarters of the tables in the dining made it difficult for him to navigate easily. Also, be prepared for a LONG dissertation about the food. Without prompting, we got lengthy descriptions of nearly the entire menu. Seriously — nearly every dish was described in detail. Kudos to him for his knowledge and passion, but the whole affair could have used some editing. Maybe just highlight one dish from each category?
Drinks: Cool mixed drinks and some neat options by the bottle for wine (try the Tolaini Super Tuscan). BUT the wine list is fairly overpriced. I thought the days of blanket 2x to 3x retail markups at Houston restaurants was over, but State of Grace has proven me wrong. I like being able to go to a restaurant and find hidden gems, and I’m always hunting for a bargain. Good wines may be had here, but you’ll pay for them.
Food: This place serves new American cuisine — fun takes on old favorites. The appetizers were a massive hit. We had the crawfish hush puppies and the corn ravioli, and both are a must-​try. I might even go back just for those two things (I understand the pasta is made in house). BUT the entrees missed the mark. While folks at my table raved about the apps, no one had much to say about the mains. My duck was slightly overcooked and was missing the Sichuan peppercorn flair promised on the menu. My suggestion would be to order everything family style for the table, and have the dishes come out as they are ready. Everyone seemed to enjoy the sticky toffee pudding for dessert. Prices are somewhat high (entrees are in the high-​$ 20s to $ 30s)
So in all, I would say this is a solid effort, but I’m not dying to come back. There were too many «buts» in my mind to give this more than three stars. If the wine list were spruced up a bit, I could see myself returning.

Amazing brunch menu! Love love this place! I will definitely come back. We made reservations for 8 about three weeks in advance for a birthday brunch. Everything we ordered was delicious. All I heard during brunch was «it’s good… It’s good.» :) The grilled oysters was the bomb! Shrimp and grits was prob the best one I’ve ever had. The fruit salad was different but good! Hush puppies was yummy! We had many other plates. But can’t remember the names. It was our first time there and we all loved it! Our waiter was attentive and great! Thank you! I will be eating state of grace soon!

I’d been hearing about the happy hour oyster special at State of Grace for a while, so when my friend and I made reservations, we decided to include our significant others and make a night of it. Ironically, we never even ordered oysters because the rest of the menu was much more tempting.
As with any other hot new Houston restaurant, you gotta plan ahead and make your reservation here in advance. We tried (unsuccessfully) for a few weeks and just couldn’t get in. Finally we got smart and reserved a couple weeks ahead of time.
The inside is new and exhibits the same «vintage chic» restaurant vibe that all the young people are into these days. White granite counters with dark walls, brass fixtures, and gold accents– you know the look.
The menu itself is small but somehow overwhelming, as all the choices sounded amazing. I was under the impression this was a seafood joint, but they’ve really got a good mix of everything on here (even a section with just pasta). We ordered four appetizers for the table, which were all amazing– but small (as we were warned). The twice fried chicken was unbelievably crispy with the perfect amount of tang and spice. My favorite was the burrata toast which was deliciously creamy. I could have eaten this entire app myself!
For my entrée I ordered the halibut, which the waitress had really built up and although it ended up being very good, it didn’t blow me away. At least not as much as the appetizers did.
This is definitely a place I’d like to come back and revisit. I’m especially interested in trying one of the pasta dishes, as they all sounded incredible. Great experience overall!

So, I love oysters. If you can’t get reservations in the main dining room, you can walk in and sit at the oyster bar. The set-​up is odd at first. You can’t sit across from whoever you are dining with, you have to sit next to them. So if you don’t want to touch thighs, make a reservation in advance to get a real table.
The décor is clean and sleek. Oyster selection is great. Servers were a mixed bag. Some food came out within minutes of ordering, other food took so long I thought the server forgot to place my order. None of the dishes wowed me but we enjoyed our drinks and oysters.
We tried the recommended hush puppies, deviled crab, and crudo amongst other things. Everything needed to be kicked up. Jalepenos? Anything to give it a punch.
The best part was the ginger snap cookies on the way out!

My husband and I decided to give State of Grace a second chance and I am very glad we did. The food and drinks were amazing, everything we had was very tasty. We loved the ambiance and the service was on point.
Will definitely be coming back!
Tip: try the oysters, they are super super fresh.

I was extremely excited to come to State of Grace to celebrate my birthday but am sad to say that I was severely underwhelmed by the food and service. My boss took me here for lunch on May 16^th to celebrate my birthday. We made a reservation a month ago and were anxious to try the place that everyone was talking about.
Upon arrival, the hostess was not friendly and did not greet us and rather just pushed us to the side while our table was being prepared. We were led to our table (the décor in the interior of the restaurant is great!) and sat in a corner booth for 2. We then waited 15 minutes before someone brought us water and took our drink orders.
We asked our waitress for appetizer recommendations and she suggested the crawfish hushpuppies and the burrata. We selected the burrata. We then asked for entrée suggestions wanting our taste buds to be blown away and she suggested the soft shell crab sandwich out of the entrees we were interested in. We both ordered the sandwich.
Our sandwiches were brought out about 20 minutes later, by someone other than our waitress, and we never received our burrata. The waitress came over and apologized saying that she would take care of the burrata and it would be out shortly.
Another 10 minutes go by, the burrata finally comes out (we had both finished our sandwiches at this point). The burrata was fantastic and worth the wait but I was severely underwhelmed by the crab sandwich and wondered why I had waited a month to get into a restaurant with food that was just so so.
We then ordered dessert to celebrate my birthday and that was the saving grace of the entire meal. The sundae and tart were absolutely delicious, but once again our desserts were brought to us by someone other than our waitress. We then received the bill and after stating that the waitress would cover the burrata since she forgot to put it in on time, it still appeared on our bill.
Lunch had taken over 2 hours at this point with slow service and waiting for orders, that we just paid and left disappointed.

The service and décor were impeccable. We had the hush puppies, crab fingers, soft shell crab, snapper, and fried rice. Everything was tasty. The crab was a bit over-​sauced but still good. The fried rice had heavy cilantro and lime notes. It was good but unexpected!
We had the sticky toffee pudding for dessert, it was excellent! We will definitely return.

Good Spot for sure. The restaurant seems to have 2 setups. We got seated in the inner room which pretty much looked like a room in a scene from the godfather. Awesome!
I must say that service was fantastic. our server was helpful and attentive as well as the busser. Sadly, I do not recall their names, but kudos to them.
We had 2 rounds of oysters because we liked the selection we got the first time. The crawfish puppies were okay, however, the honey butter is a sure complement to the dish. We had fish for our main course which was good. Brusselsprouts were good as well. Only thing is that I did not realize the dish came with bacon :(. We worked around it.
Personally, I liked the toffee pudding. Very good.
We would surely return.

My favorite Houston restaurant! The dining room was completely full for dinner on a Thursday night, but lucky for us, there was room for two in the oyster bar. The interior has a vintage supper club feel to it, light and airy, it reminded me of N’awlins. Our waitress was super cool– knowledgeable, funny and laid back.
I highly recommend starting with the Twice Fried Hot Chicken (Korean-​style). Holy delicious! The Louisiana Strawberry Salad was much less wow-​ing, but a good mellow companion to the spicy, very flavorful chicken.
My entrée was the Cappelletti (English peas, scamorza and baby artichokes) and it was amazing! Rich and hearty and just the right portion size. My companion had the Risotto and he was equally satisfied.
We skipped dessert, but can attest that State of Grace has a fabulous selection of beer, wine & cocktails. Cheers!

We came by Sunday afternoon for brunch with friends. First thing to point out, is they are in fact open for brunch on Sundays. For some reason everything I looked up was telling me they didn’t open til 5pm. Just an FYI if you have the same trouble.
Sate of Grace is nestled in the corner of a strip mall directly across from Lamar High School on the edge of River Oaks. Although the space was once a laundromat, their build out did a great job of reflecting the upscale neighborhood. The interior is a sleek architectural build out. There’s a LARGE bar that practically spans the entire wall of the place made completely out of marble or granite (didn’t get a close look) Another notable decoration is vintage taxidermy, specifically spike deer, on just about every wall space. They did a great job of making the relatively new restaurant seem as if it had been in business there for many years.
Our server was friendly and attentive. Even more impressive, was the front of house manager. He eagle eyed a couple different moments and swooped in to help, making sure we were taken care of above and beyond.
Brunch menu was more affordable than my expectations, considering Unilocal has them listed at 3 dollar signs. There are a handful of smaller plate options that make for great table share appetizers ranging from $ 4 to $ 13. Entrée plates ranged from $ 14 for burgers and sandwiches, to $ 28 for the understandably higher priced lobster roll. We tasted a little of everything on the table, and aside from the lobster roll being drowned out by its sauce, everything was excellent. Butter Burger, was tasty, and… buttery. Egg sandwich stuffed with pork bellies did not disappoint. The big winner though were the crawfish hush puppies. They came served with a fantastic cane sugar butter and were quickly devoured.
I’ll have to come back sometime for the full dinner experience, but after my initial visit, State of Grace easily joins the list of solid brunch options in Houston.

Awesome historical architecture with a modern touch makes this a very cool hangout. I was surprised to see an architectural masterpiece inside this shopping center.
It reminded me a lot of the Tremont hotel in Galveston which you should check out if you haven’t already. It looks like they put a few million dollars into renovating this place and did a great job.
They have a huge bar that is basically a 40 foot long slab of granite accompanied with ridiculously comfortable chairs. There is an enormous window they added in the renovation so you have a view of a huge oak tree and the top of a nearby historical church. From the bar and dining room, you can’t tell you’re right off Westheimer.
The food is gulf coast food with their own twist.
Oysters were fantastic.
We had hush puppies as an appetizer. It was pretty surprising how delicious these were.
My meal was a home run. I had the «spaghetti.» It came with shrimp and octopus. I was not feeling adventurous and had them hold the octopus and load up extra shrimp. It was spicy, hearty and absolutely delicious. Dessert was a home run, too. You truly can’t beat the food.
I have to ding them on the cocktail, though. I seem to be doing this a lot recently at «modern» restaurants. It was $ 12 for what I ordered and was very small and meh for flavor. I wish they served hurricanes since its gulf coast food being served. After the disappointing cocktail I stuck to beer which was reasonably priced and served in an interesting, funky shaped glass.
Overall, this was a great dinner. We were there for 3.5 hours. Service was great.
TIP: Oysters can be had for a dollar each during happy hour.

Amazing décor and the ginger snap sandwich at the hostess table was the most impressive.
Came here with my friends for a birthday and was so excited to get my State of Grace experience. The place really did not disappoint.
We had the hush puppies, snapper cudo, short ribs, raw east coast oysters, scallop and grits, some type of seafood pasta. Omg… overall amazing. The only things that I didn’t care for was the texture of the grits. It was a little too runny for me, the cudo should have a nicer presentation but the taste more then made up for it, the dessert sundae was not memorable and the table was a bit small but otherwise amazing!
I would recommend trying it out. I would go again.
Great way to celebrate a birthday!!!

State of Grace was really hit or miss in a way that a restaurant this expensive cannot afford to be.
We went for a birthday and had a large group so I got to taste a large number of dishes.
Blue Crab Fingers — ⁴⁄₅ — This was a fun to eat dish that was quite unique. The chili sauce for dipping was excellent
Crawfish hushpuppies — ²⁄₅ — These tasted good in the same was that any fried, sweet batter covered in sugar will taste good. The flavor of crawfish was nowhere to be found, however. I’d skip it and just eat a doughnut.
Deviled Crab — ⁴⁄₅ — One of the favorite dishes at the table!
Twice Fried Hot Chicken — ⁴⁄₅ — If I had never had the K-​Pops at Chilantro, these would probably be ⁵⁄₅. You should definitely order them. It’s fried chicken in a sweet-​umami sauce and you really can’t go wrong with that.
Mint Pappardelle — ⁵⁄₅ — One of the best dishes on the table. It was well spiced and reminded of some beef noodles I’ve had a number of hole in the wall Chinese restaurants.
Beef Rib — ⁴⁄₅ — This thing was huge! It’s a good value for money and the malaysian roti was out of this world. The rib itself is no better than you would get at any decent BBQ joint, though.
Cheese Enchilada — ⁴⁄₅ — A solid enchilada
Brussels Sprouts — ⁵⁄₅ — Everyone seems to have their own version of this dish these days and they’re all solid. We’re pretty sure some disappeared when the waitstaff boxed up our food to-​go, though. I can’t blame them, I guess.
Risotto — ¹⁄₅ — The risotto was embarrassingly bad. It was not the right texture at all. I can empathize because I have messed this dish up before but for a $ 21 rice dish the least the kitchen can do is try it before they serve it.
Milk Rolls — ⁵⁄₅ — Another highlight of the meal
S’more Sundae — ⁵⁄₅ — Duh
There are definitely some good dishes here but nothing you can’t get elsewhere. What’s worse is that some dishes were simply not good. In a family that does nothing but talk about we ate, are eating, or will eat, the next day was spent in disbelief that they served the risotto.

I went here for brunch and I fell in love. Great service, beautiful atmosphere & delicious food! The inside has a classic 1920’s feel with a modern touch. I ordered the shrimp eggs benedict and I can’t complain one bit about it. They also have really delicious biscuits here. I’m excited to come back and try dinner/​lunch!

I’ve been here a few times — once for dinner and a handful for happy hour. Although dinner was delicious, it’s not as memorable as their hh. Their selling point is the $ 1 oysters and they’re GOOD. One time we got these oysters in from Connecticut that were amazing but I like how they change up their menu and offer oysters from wherever that given week to give you a chance to try different ones. I was surprised with the different toppings/​condiments for the oysters, which I’d highly recommend trying all — they even had one that’s like a Thai fish/​soy sauce blend that’ll want you going back for more. Plus, if they forget to give them to you, ask for the crackers. Great palette cleanser and oddly addicting.
For hh, you can sit at the long bar or in the round oyster bar nook area off to the right. Heads up that it’s only 3−6PM on weekdays and it’s definitely becoming popular!

One of the best newer spots in town!
Out of the all the newer spots, this one actually lives up to the hype.
If you can get any server, try to get JP: Juan Pedro! He’s the best.
I would recommend — go earlier, and enjoy the $ 1 oyster happy hour!
Then stay, relax, and dine on the following:
1. sticky smoky beef rib — worth every penny!
2. garganelli — great pasta choice
3. hushpuppies
4. pozole — be conservative with the jalapeño, it definitely has a kick.
I’ll be coming here again!

So happy we discovered this gem. We called to get a reservation and were able to get in right away. We showed up definitely underdressed. Be prepared to put on your Sunday best to fit in with the crowd here.
The décor was classy and modern. Perfect for Sunday brunch or even a nice date night. The bar is long and beautiful and there are plenty of light bites for happy hour. My only complaint on the design of the restaurant is the bathroom sink. It was very narrow and the faucet went almost past the bowl. Making it impossible to wash your hands without water spilling over.
We started off with the mimosas, and I always hate when your food gets there before your drink! That happened here. But the waiter apologized and it wasn’t too long before they arrived back with the mimosas.
All of the food is amazing! Since we had two growing boys at the table, I got to try several items. We got the ham biscuit, the beignets and the grilled oysters to start. The ham biscuit is everything you want in a perfect sandwich. Flaky croissant style biscuit with the thinly sliced ham (much like Capricola).
The oysters were my least favorite item. I think they had crawfish and some sort of buttery cream sauce. Too rich for my palate.
The beignets are tiny and more dense than what I expected. They were just ok in my books. Nothing tops café du monde.
We then split the lobster roll (whopping $ 28!) and the shrimp and grits. The lobster roll was small and had way too much celery salt on it. Which overpowered the dish. It came with «crabby» fries. Which I have no idea why they call them that considering they were just shoestring fries that were mediocre at best.
The shrimp and grits was pretty good. The buttered toast that came with it really completed the dish. I wish the shrimps weren’t chopped up and slightly blended in though. It made them hard to notice.
I’d like to come back here for a dinner and try the smores dessert! I will be back. So many great options to choose from.

Oyster room and bar seats accept walk ins.
We had an awesome dining experience because we could only snag an online reservation for 5 pm. The food came out really quickly and our waiter was able to be very attentive because there weren’t that many patrons. If we came back, I’d probably choose an off peak time again.
Our favorite (⁵⁄₅) dish of the night was the beef rib. Really fantastic experience — we enjoyed all of the components of the dish. The roti was warm and crispy. The meat fell off the bone and paired so well with the freshness of the herb salad + crispness of the radishes + tang of the pickles + kick of the raw peppers. We couldn’t stop eating the dish — my mouth was on fire lol.
We also enjoyed (⁴⁄₅)
Burrata — liked how the pistachio butter was sweet and salty. Paired well with their dense, buttery, crispy bread.
A-​okay (³⁄₅)
Shrimp toast — a little on the salty side.
Brussels sprouts — we caved. Pretty basic dish of vinaigrette + porky belly.
Really excited to come back and try the whole flounder and happy hour oysters.