(713) 787-9899

1936 Fountainview Dr (San Felipe Street)
Houston, TX 77057 29.7476 -95.4861

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Neighborhoods: Great Uptown, Westside

fatbutter.com

Hours:

Sun 5:30pm-10pm

Mon-Thu 11am-2pm, 5:30pm-9:30pm

Fri 11am-2pm, 5:30pm-10pm

Sat 5:30pm-10pm

Price:

$$

Last updated 12.02.11

Category:

Restaurants

Payment Methods:

American Express , Visa , Discover , MasterCard

Restaurant Special Features:

B.Y.O.B. , Outdoor Dining , Lunch Spot , Date Spot , Cheap Eats

General Info:

Open 7 Days

Cuisine:

Traditional American , Italian

What People Are Saying About La Vista

Featured Review

Contributor

Contributor

In Short – This charming restaurant welcomes diners with tantalizing smells and an inviting atmosphere. Expect frequent appearances by owner/Chef Greg Gordon who has prepared a menu full of comfort food and classic Italian dishes. Begin with house-made bread topped with figs, caramelized onions and pecans before sampling the warm spinach salad. Entrees include pastas and brick oven pizzas as well as grilled fish and meat including rack of lamb and pork chops. The restaurant charges a $7 corkage fee.

Editor's Tips

Good for Groups:
The restaurant's private dining room seats up to 20 guests and has rentable wine lockers, a sound system and plenty of Old World charm. The room can be rented for $200.
Look Good:
Forgot to bring a bottle? Not to worry, there's a liquor store next door. Wine is also now available for sale at the restaurant. Diners are welcome to bring their own for a $7 corkage fee.
Know Before You Go:
La Vista does not accept reservations, so expect a wait on the busy weekends.
ambiance
100.0% positive
  1. It has a great atmosphere and wonderful food.
  2. Good food, reasonably priced, BYOB (there's Rice Epicurean next door and a liquor store as well), casual, outdoor/indoor seating and a relaxed atmosphere.
  3. Well worth the wait for the great food and value and ambiance.
  4. On any night you may have to wait but it's so fun sitting around, chatting and drinking good wine (if that's your drink) and waiting for a seat.
dessert
50.0% positive
  1. We always get the crab cakes, which are delicious, but the best part of that dish is actually the corn salsa.
  2. had no room for dessert, which was disappointing as they all looked wonderful.
drinks
100.0% positive
  1. Great food and great wine
  2. La Vista has a cult following as one of the most wine friendly restaurants in town.
  3. Offering BYOB with modest corkage fee, it's a great place to gather with friends and enjoy your favorite wines.
  4. With the BYOB policy and the excellent food at very reasonable prices, we end up hosting our monthly wine dinner there.
  5. But what good is BYOB red wine if it's not washed down with a tasty bite of red meat?
  6. On any night you may have to wait but it's so fun sitting around, chatting and drinking good wine (if that's your drink) and waiting for a seat.
  7. It seems that no matter what age or status you are, you go there because you like to bring your own wine and eat awesome food!
  8. This is a must go place for wine lovers and lover of excellent food.
food quality
100.0% positive
  1. This is an Italian place, but the menu had lots of interesting twists on Italian food.
  2. Excellent food and it's byob!
  3. Great food and great service
  4. Consistantly good food but be prepared for a wait for it if you come after 7:00 P.M.
  5. Well worth the wait for the great food and value and ambiance.
  6. The food is wonderful and comes in such large portions it is easy to share.
  7. really love the menu and food here.
  8. But what good is BYOB red wine if it's not washed down with a tasty bite of red meat?
  9. It has a great atmosphere and wonderful food.
  10. So, I say skip the pasta, skip the pizza, order some meat, enjoy it with whatever vino is your pleasure, and wash it all down with great friendship and conversation.
  11. La Vista serves the most perfect bread, with olive oil to dip.
  12. Great food if you want to wait
  13. With the BYOB policy and the excellent food at very reasonable prices, we end up hosting our monthly wine dinner there.
  14. The bread and salad are great!
  15. we enjoyed our meal along with a great bottle of red.
  16. regularly ordered one of two dishes, either the Eggplant parmesan (the first time i tried this) which has a fabulous sauce, and is quite tasty, perfect if you're not looking for anything too heavy.
  17. This is a must go place for wine lovers and lover of excellent food.
  18. love their veggie pizza as well as the pork tenderloin entree.
  19. The food is delicious and the BYOB policy is right up our alley.
  20. The pizzas are also really good.
  21. Great food and great wine
  22. In a word, the food is fabulous.
  23. My dinnermate really enjoyed her salad (which I declined).
  24. One of my favorite dishes, which I order only occasionally, is the fettucine alfredo.
  25. It seems that no matter what age or status you are, you go there because you like to bring your own wine and eat awesome food!
  26. We went there for dinner last night and I had the ribs that were delicious and my wife had the Ribeye which was pretty good.
  27. simply great food
  28. My mussels were delicious and an A+!
  29. We both enjoyed the bread that was brought out - lightly dusted with cheese - perfect way to start a meal.
  30. This place has excellent food, great service, and menu with many choices.
  31. could dip my bread in that sauce until I'm full but I know the main dishes are great as well.
  32. We always get the crab cakes, which are delicious, but the best part of that dish is actually the corn salsa.
  33. Good food, reasonably priced, BYOB (there's Rice Epicurean next door and a liquor store as well), casual, outdoor/indoor seating and a relaxed atmosphere.
  34. The pastas and pizza are delicious and the main entrees, especially the tuna, are divine.
menu variety
100.0% positive
  1. really love the menu and food here.
  2. This is an Italian place, but the menu had lots of interesting twists on Italian food.
  3. This place has excellent food, great service, and menu with many choices.
overall
100.0% positive
  1. Offering BYOB with modest corkage fee, it's a great place to gather with friends and enjoy your favorite wines.
  2. am a little reluctant to write a review about this restaurant because I don't want the secret to be out that this is by far the best Italian restaurant in Houston.
service
100.0% positive
  1. Sometimes you almost feel like you're at a big dinner party the way people mingle in the restaurant!
  2. This place has excellent food, great service, and menu with many choices.
  3. Great food and great service
  4. Lately the wait staff hasn't been that impressive.
  5. And the service is outstanding!
  6. La Vista has a cult following as one of the most wine friendly restaurants in town.
  7. Family friendly; not dog friendly.
value
80.0% positive
  1. With the BYOB policy and the excellent food at very reasonable prices, we end up hosting our monthly wine dinner there.
  2. Well worth the wait for the great food and value and ambiance.
  3. Their entrees are expensive, bu they are huge.
  4. Presentation was beautiful and the portions quite large.
  5. The food is wonderful and comes in such large portions it is easy to share.
5 Star Rating: Highly Recommended

07/09/10

This Place is the Bomb

by Bolby at Citysearch

I live less than a mile from La Vista, but really never dined there. I found myself always heading to Carrabbas for Italian food, which is a great place. Never the less, we finally went, and I was blown away on the quality of the food and the price. We brought in our own bottle of red, and spite the tomato appetizer and the veal chop. It was out of the this world. The price was super reasonable!

  • Pros: Food, service and price
  • Cons: None
3 Star Rating: Average

06/06/10

okay....

by Mrshoov713 at Citysearch

its okay, little over rated now...

5 Star Rating: Highly Recommended

05/30/10

Great Italian - BYOB

by bkhan25 at Citysearch

Good food, reasonably priced, BYOB (there's Rice Epicurean next door and a liquor store as well), casual, outdoor/indoor seating and a relaxed atmosphere. We went there for dinner last night and I had the ribs that were delicious and my wife had the Ribeye which was pretty good.

  • Pros: Good food, byob, casual & reasonable $$
  • Cons: Didn't see any
4 Star Rating: Recommended

05/11/10

Huge Portions and BYOW

by AnaTHouston , Citysearch Contributor at Citysearch

Okay, when a group of us met there, I was dreading the patio which faces the parking lot. They had fans blowing, making a bunch of noise. The tables looked cheap and I was a bit grossed out.

I saw families with cases of wine. You can BYOW for $5 or order from a mini bar they just installed.

I had always heard great things about the food. Their entrees are expensive, bu they are huge. My mussels were delicious and an A+! The brownie a la mode was a A-. Everyone else ordered pork and fish...they loved it.

Family friendly; not dog friendly.

  • Pros: The food
  • Cons: The patio look horrible
5 Star Rating: Highly Recommended

03/21/10

Excellent food and it's byob!!

by Mai Pham , Citysearch Contributor at Citysearch

La Vista has a cult following as one of the most wine friendly restaurants in town. Offering BYOB with modest corkage fee, it's a great place to gather with friends and enjoy your favorite wines. On sunny days and weekends, the crowds come here in droves, forcing waiting patrons into the parking lot, where the restaurant sets up a seating area complete with plastic chairs and tables. Heck, most people break out their bottles in the parking lot, causing the general merriment to spike upward quickly. That's probably the best thing about La Vista - every time I've been there, everyone is happy and friendly. On one occasion, the table sitting next to us offered us what was left over of their pizza, and in exchange, we poured them a taste of one of our wines. Sometimes you almost feel like you're at a big dinner party the way people mingle in the restaurant!!

Now to the food. The bread here is to-die-for, so all you Atkins dieters, beware. When you sit down, you will be served with large slab of dense, slightly sweet, oh-so-tasty bread with sprinkling of parmesan and olive oil dip. It will be hard to pass up. Every time I go, I swear I down a whole loaf by the time the night's over. The mussels are a slam-dunk, with some of the BEST garlic butter broth I've tasted. I could dip my bread in that sauce until I'm full but I know the main dishes are great as well. Tonite, I had the beef tenderloin, executed to a perfect medium rare, so tender it melted in my mouth, and accompanied by lightly crisped chunky potatoes and a light apricot sauce. The meat dishes here are generally the star - whether it be the veal chop, pork chop, steak, or an off the menu short rib - you can't go wrong with meat for the main course. They have a good selection of pasta and pizzas as well. But what good is BYOB red wine if it's not washed down with a tasty bite of red meat? So, I say skip the pasta, skip the pizza, order some meat, enjoy it with whatever vino is your pleasure, and wash it all down with great friendship and conversation. La Vista is the bomb!

  • Pros: BYOB
  • Cons: long wait times/no reservations accepted

The Details on La Vista

Place Categories:

  • great food
  • great service
  • small place
  • favorite wine
  • really good veggie pizza
  • great bottle
  • really love menu
  • quite large presentation
  • divine main entrees
  • favorite main dishes
  • disappointing dessert
  • expensive entrees
  • friendly restaurants
  • enjoyed meal
  • great salad
  • favorite la vista
  • great friendship
  • really enjoyed dinnermate
  • interesting twists
  • love pork tenderloin entree
  • best garlic butter broth
  • great conversation
  • big dinner party
  • most perfect bread
  • that impressive wait staff