Firewater Grille

Thought we would give Firewater a chance even after the poor reviews. Honestly I really wished we could get our money back. The staff did a great job and was very friendly. Other than that I really don’t have anything nice to say. We sat inside and it was loud and the room temp was very warm. The food was over done and dry. I ordered the Lemon Garlic Chicken and I couldn’t even finish half the first chicken breast due to how dry it was. It was tough and hard to even cut though with a knife. It was soo poorly cooked I had half the mind to walk back there and show them how you cook a chicken breast! My boyfriend order the chicken sandwich. He said it was okay, but tasted like something from Wendy’s… If we wanted poor quality fast food we would have gone to Wendy’s or Mc D’s. We also tried the French Onion soup and chips and salsa. Word to the wise. DON’T try it. I have never had such awful French Onion Soup in my life and trust me I have had some nasty ones! I really hope the owners read these reviews. I don’t see this place lasting to long unless they rework this menu and get some real cooks back there or drop their prices to about $ 5-​$ 6 a plate. Yes it was that bad…

Great food not so great service.

Groupon you led us to a great meal. On a Monday night, celebrating our wedding anniversary, we opted for a casual place, off the beaten path. The place has great ambiance, the water wall is theraphy at it’s best. We split the house salad with the bacon, onion vinegarette — delish!!! We segued to crab cakes — yummy!!! I had the chicken breast with the lemon creame sauce, including smashed potatoes and wilted spinach. My husband had the lamb chops, with bacon, smashed potatoes and asparagus. I love this place and will definately return!!!

The onion rings were awesome. Got a pint of Stella for 2.50 Sunday afternoon. All the other food was great as well.

The water wall was cool, everything else was not. The nachos were edible, the Mahi Mahi that the server recommended was a train wreck. The veggies and mashed potatoes tasted more like fish than the fish. We should have left when we saw that we were one of two tables in the restaurant, but we, like everyone else that seemed to be lured here, came because of a coupon deal.
Do yourself a favor and don’t ever come here for food! We left here with our stomaches feeling violated, as well as our wallets.

Surprised more people don’t come here! Good location, nice big patio, & good food!

This is a horrible restaurant with the worst kitchen.
We first went to Firewater a month or ao ago after my wife bought a coupon and we wanted to give the nearby restaurant a try. My wife has special dietary needs and we expect to have an issue here and there, but this was ridicualous. She ordered the buffalo chicken sandwich — plain — chicken, dry bun, and wing sauce. It came out with some creamy sauce all over it, so we sent it back, and thinking they could do better with a burger she asked for that — plain and dry — meat an dry bun, nothing else. It came out with cheese (which is an add on, so how’d that even happen in the first place). We send yet another dish back, only to be appalled by what happened next. The burger came back and we could tell the kitchen had just scraped off the cheese as it was still in crevices of the burger and still stuck to the bun. Are you kidding me? We left incrediby mad and disgusted.
We should have ended it there, but this last weekend we decided to try them one more time after coming back from out of town and needing something quick — bad service and another horrible kitchen experience happened again. My wife ordered the burger again — plain and dry, meat and bun only — and again it came out with cheese. We sent it back and again it came back with the cheese simply scraped off. Who does that? And who puts cinnamon sugar on sweet potato fries? Gross.
Needless to say we are finally done with this restaurant and will never return, and will be telling everyone we know about our experience as well.

My husband and I went here last night with our
gift certificate and can say with no uncertainty that we are VERY glad we didn’t pay full price!
When we arrived, the restaurant was nearly empty. We waited at the Hostess Station for about 10 minutes before we were able to get someone’s attention to seat us.
Our waiter came over as soon as we were seated, and he was nice, no personality and I could hardly hear him over the blaring music when he spoke, but nice nonetheless.
We started with the Maryland Crab Cakes. They are fried and placed atop a spicy sauce. They were ok, we didn’t taste crab, mainly filler.
For entrees we chose the Flat Iron Steak and the Wrapped Chicken. They both came with veggies, asparagus and smashed potatoes. The chicken was so over cooked it was nearly rubbery. The veggies didn’t have any seasoning. The asparagus was so overcooked it was wilting. The steak also didn’t have any seasonings on it, thankfully it was served with a mediocre brandy sauce.
I was sad. I had such high hopes for this restaurant and really wanted to like it. It is close to home and could be a great addition to my restaurant rotations, but it was not meant to be.
My advice is ditch the current recipes and hire someone who knows how to properly prepare delicious food and then try again.

This is possibly the worst experience I’ve ever had at a restaurant. The food was awful, and the service was even worse.
Things started when we were ignored for 5 minutes despite multiple attempts to flag down a waiter. When we finally got one, he didn’t bring the water I ordered.
Then when we decided what we wanted to eat, I couldn’t order what I wanted (from a new waiter because ours vanished) because apparently their online menu is wrong and I was told they no longer offered the Monte cristo. We then attempted to order something else, but the waiter literally turned his back to watch tv.
After we ordered our food, I then found out I got a free soft drink for checking in on Unilocal but didn’t see a waiter for another 10 minutes. They finally brought it and there was something wrong with it. It tasted like the syrup was off.
Then we waited another 30 minutes for our food. They told us they had to restart the grills because, despite the fact that their kitchen is open until 11, they had turned everything off. We got the food (from a third waiter) and mine was disgusting. I paid extra to get ground beef on my nachos but could see and taste none. It was a blob of stale chips, congealed cheese paste, gross beans and runny sour cream with awful looking lettuce. I didn’t finish them. My wife’s order was wrong but at least tasted ok.
Then we tried to ask for our check. I showed the waiter my phone so I could get the free drink, and he took my phone and walked away despite me asking where he was going. I got up to get my phone, and he had given my phone to someone else and then left it sitting on a counter. When I got the check, my wife’s side salad had been charged as a full salad.
I asked to speak to a manager, and apparently he couldn’t be bothered to talk to me.
I overpaid for incorrect orders that were awful while receiving absolutely rude service. I’m appalled by this restaurant and will never be back. I’ll also be telling my 4500 coworkers, 500 Facebook friends, dozens of twitter followers, neighbors and anyone else I meet to never go.

We stopped in to hear some friends of ours who were the band for the evening. Just had dessert — brownie and ice cream. The brownie came with raspberry sauce. All was very yummy.

Well if you make a reservation they will hold a table for you and that is nice.
The crab cakes were very tasty and I thought the slaw was a bit spicy althought Ben felt it was not. The Lamb chops were very tasty and the sauce gave them a bit of a zing. It also came with a fruity sauce that I did not enjoy. Ben had the pork loin that had no flavor at all.
James our waiter was very nice and kept things moving.
Also, altough the menu called out crème brûlée, the person who makes it was not there so no crème brûlée for us.
We came on a groupon and were glad we did not pay full price.

Sitting outside this evening to listen to a live band. Service was slow at first then settled into a good pace. Ordered a salad (stawberry pecan spinach) and hit wings. Loved the salad. Good balance of flavor. Wings were traditional buffalo wings. Decent size, crispy and an interesting dipping sauce. I liked it. Band is still warming up 25 minutes late and the mosquitoes are about to drive me away. Two groups near me had complaints about service. Today, I thought it was decent. Band sounds good. Neat patio setup for lounging and listening to live music.

Lots of Promise. Lacking in Execution.
Went there for dinner on a weeknight. Being only one of three tables, expected service, etc. to be top notch. Why they seated us at a table with crushed tortilla chips and an errant fork on the floor, I have no idea. Why they had a table in that condition with the wait staff not being busy is equally troubling…
Moving on…
For appetizers, tried the Chiles Wilde — excellent and the Onion Rings — good. For salads, the New Age Nicoise was quite good — tuna was not overpowered by added flavor, as sometimes happens when part of a salad.
For entrees, the ribeye was cooked well and seasoned well, but a bit on the fatty side — easily remedied. The Roasted Lamb Chops were almost inedible: fatty, slathered in this bacon and onion sauce which made it tough to distinguish the lamb flavor; the accompanying au gratin was excellent, but didn’t order it for that… Also tried the Mahi Mahi and this was a hit: cooked well and not overwhelmed by sauce, like the lamb.
For dessert, the smores were good, not quite as described, but good. The brownie sundae didn’t last long. I hadn’t had pineapple upside down cake in years and was anxious to try it. Sadly, it was dry, inedible and sent back.
A mixed bag. I think they have potential. What concerns me is that on a low-​volume evening, with little pressure, they stumbled.

I like the inside of the restaurant. The water wall is cool. The food was good but my only complain was the service. The service was really slow. There wasn’t a hostess to seat us just waitstaff staff. The tables around us weren’t bussed so it looked messy. I don’t know if I’ll go back. I tried Firewater Grille because of my Groupon.

I’ll give this restaurant a tentative 3.5−4.0; only because they made one mistake that I hope does not become common practice. Their Thanksgiving Sandwich was made with subpar quality turkey. When we asked the server if they had changed the recipe, she came back and informed us they had run out of turkey and had to use deli sliced turkey meat; which by the way, tasted more like ham. The manager came out to apologize and offered us another item from the menu. We ordered the Lemon Garlic Chicken; it was AWESOME… We also had the Hot Roast Cheddar Sandwich. This was one of the tastiest beef sandwiches I’ve had in a long time.
I give Firewater Grille kudos for their diverse, yet simple menu. I don’t like to be handed a novel for lunch nor dinner.

Had heard many great things about Firewater from friends so when they came out with a Groupon coupon it was time to give it a try.
Ambience-​5. Not too noisy and décor very tasteful.
Service-​5. Ask for Alec, very friendly, prompt, came by several times to make sure everything was all right, and happily shared his list of favorites with us.
Price-​5. Well you can’t go wrong with half price appetizers during happy hour (before 7). And salads, sandwiches, entrees were appropriately priced with nice variety.
Quality of food-4.5. Only because I prefer a higher ratio of onion to breading on my onion rings. The crab cakes and tuna were delightful and the chiles wilde were exceptional if you like ‘em spicy! The spinach/​strawberry salad and crème brûlée completed the tasting and we’ll definitely be back!
(No sign of long wait times on food preparation or food being brought out at other than ideal temperatures!)

This is the second time Groupon led me astray. Actually I wanted to check this place out before the Groupon came up so I guess reading someone else’s review led me astray but it’s all relative right?
First up the ambiance is right up my alley. All dark woods, but at the same time light and airy. So for aesthetics I’d give this place a 4.
Service would probably be a 3. Not the worst dining experience but I kind of felt like our server wasn’t all that attentive.
Food…ugh, the food. I started with a cup of the Chicken Tortilla Soup. I’ve made better Chicken Tortilla Soup than this place puts out. It was seriously like they opened a can of Campbell’s Chicken Soup, poured it in a bowl and tossed some Tortilla strips on top. I barely had any chicken and what little I had were diced so small you could barely taste it.
My entrée was the New Age Nicoise. I need to stop trying to get tuna dishes in San Antonio, well at least unless I’m going to a Japanese restaurant. The tuna was way overcooked and the flavors just weren’t there.
I think if it weren’t for my glass of wine the whole evening would have been a waste. We opted to skip dessert.
Definitely not a place I’d opt to go to again. I guess the saving grace is that we went on a Groupon.

Dear Firewater Grille,
I was a little put off by your bartender at first when she put her finger up and told me she’d «be with me in a minute» when I was simply asking if they had wifi… BUT everything quickly changed for the better. She served me an appletini that was one of the best in the city (and I’m very critical since it’s always the first drink that enters this temple when I go out for cocktails). Ok… one point for you Firewater. Let’s see what else ya got. When I walked in I’d told the hostess that 2 of my friends would be joining me in about 15 – 20 minutes and that I’d like a booth. She said that she would make sure one was available but I looked around and didn’t see many so I wasn’t very hopeful that a booth would still be available when I was ready to be seated. I saw a booth in the corner that was perfect but I didn’t ask for it since I still had a little while to go before the others arrived so I headed for the bar.
My friends arrived after about 20 minutes and I went straight back to the hostess to let her know I was ready to be seated and lo and behold, my booth was there with a reserved sign on it (nice touch…2 points for you). Although, it was not a packed house (which isn’t weird for a Thursday night) there were other people seated at tables that I’m sure would have preferred the booth so this was a good sign. Food was good, service was prompt. Not bad! I shall return…
Until next time…
Sincerely,
Chavah

Groupon sent us to this place. We – my wife and I – figured that even in the service was lax, the food was slow and sub-​par, we could’t loose.
«I mean,» I told her, «It’s $ 20 off, right?»
«Okay, honey,» she said.
The short of it? We lost. Every hostess and server we met were cheerful and friendly. But the first thing our server said was, «Fair warning. The food comes out a little slow, but it’s…» blah blah blah.
Here’s a clue. Whenever you get a lead-​out line like that, stand up and walk out unless you’re in the mood for exactly what you’ve been warned against and more. Because there will be more. The part the server was too uncomfortable to share with you.
Our beers came quickly enough. That’s a one-​step process, of course. Pour. But the appetizers — a sliders sampler — took 25 minutes to arrive and when it did, it was cold. Then it was another 25 minutes before the entrees arrived. My wife’s salmon was cooked at too high a heat, leaving the outside crisped and the inside raw. Her lemon was burnt to the point that it could have been mistaken for a foreign coin. My chicken cordon bleu was better, but not as hot has it should have been. Apparently, it had been the dish left waiting on the bus — my wife’s food.
The server did not check on us until 10 minutes after the food arrived. We needed salt. It didn’t arrive for another 5 minutes.
Are you seeing the pattern here? I think I’ve said all that needs to be said. The rest of the evening remained unchanged. Bottom line? Feeling lucky? GIve ‘er a shot.

Nestled way back in developing north San Antonio is Firewater Grille… and when I say nestled, I mean NESTLED. Not being familiar with this area of town, we passed Overlook Pkwy from 281, then had to backtrack to figure out where the heck we were.
Once my dinner date and I finally arrived in the set-​back, oak-​shaded shopping center where the restaurant is located, I was immediately entranced and drawn in by the giant color-​lit water tank in the middle of the room, filled with bubbles. So pretty, so very soothing… so many bubbles. I basically stared at it the entire time. Nice. Our waiter greeted us very quickly and was especially friendly and helpful, and had great menu knowledge to make lots of good suggestions. Ambiance, check.
I split a strawberry walnut spinach salad with my date before our main course. It is gigantic and definitely splittable as a first course. The strawberries were huge and fresh, and the dressing was light and not overwhelming, so you could actually taste the fresh ingredients instead of just, you know, salad dressing. Yum.
For dinner, I had a dish called Basil Pesto Shrimp, which was exactly that. All those things (with plenty of shrimp!) tossed in a big bowl with spaghettini and assorted grilled veggies was delicious. Again, it was a pretty big serving and I couldn’t finish the whole thing. Yay for leftovers the next day! Ah, simple pleasures…
My absolute FAVORITE part, though, was dessert. After much strained decision-​making as to whether or not we could eat more food (ok, it wasn’t THAT difficult to make the decision), we settled on the Campfire Smores.
«Smores?», you say? SMORES, I SAY!
On the plate is two huge scoops of smores gelato (made especially for Firewater Grille) between two halves of caramelized bananas. On the other end of the plate is 3 graham crackers with some sort of delicious toasted marshmallowy concoction piped on top. You assemble the smores yourself — that is, if you have the restraint to not just start eating it all immediately and individually. My advice? Give yourself some time. Assemble those smores like they’re a piece of art. Take a breath. They’re amazing.
The menu definitely has a lot of interesting items, and I’m excited to go back and try something else… I’m pretty sure I’m solidly committed to the Campfire Smores, though. Those will be my mainstay.