Mark's American Cuisine

02/28/2009 Posted by drtrumble

My wife and I just returned from our 17th anniversary at Mark's. It was everything I had expected and wanted for a quiet and romantic night with outstanding service and food. A few of the reviews had had poor service or food but Mark's ws at it's best for us. We were seated promptly in the 2nd floor as I had requested and the service was flawless. I appreciated the short delay time between when we were seated and when we received our menus: it made me feel that we were not being rushed. Two waiters seated us and served our water and bread. The specials were made known and gave 3 choices for appetizers and 5 entrees which where unique and intriguing. We chose the seafood trio and the lobster bisque (which had perfectly tender pieces of lobster). My wife had an excellent and spicey tuna and I had Kobe beef ribeye medium rare. The desserts were numerous and interesting; I had the coconut bread pudding and she had the warm chocolate cake. Both were al a mode. I now know why people pay high prices for Kobe beef. It was like no beef I have ever had. The setting on the second floor was quiet and intimate and the renovated church is beautiful. Our Desserts came with a candle and chocolate coins imprinted with"Happy Anniversary" on them. Who cares if they do this for all anniversaries...they did it for mine. Overall, excellent in all categories. The perfect place for those who can afford it. Don't worry about the few negative reviews. I'm glad I went.

Pros: Ambiance, service, food, style points

Cons: None

02/19/2009 Posted by Badger5678

Words can't begin to describe my experience at Mark's American. I took my girlfriend here for our first Valentine's Day. We got there a little early and the hostess politely informed us that we could wait at the bar if we liked. When we got to the bar, we received prompt service. I've been to places where you would have to wait 10 minutes for a bar tender to ask what you need. Not here. We ordered a couple of drinks and enjoying them immensely when the hostess informed us that our table was being set. She politely took our drinks from us and carried them to our table for us. When we sat down we were introduced to our very friendly waiter for the evening. He was very descriptive and informative in explaining the menu. I highly recommend the lobster bisque if they have it as an appetizer. I regret not ordering it (my girlfriend was smart enough to do so). That is not to say my appetizer wasn't good. It was delicious. Our main entree came and it was art on a plate with a colorful display. As we tasted the entree's our mouths watered for more. Dessert was absolutely to die for. The Creme Brulee was delicious as was the chocolate cake. Between our waiter tending to our every need to the Chef coming out and taking time out to talk with us, service was as good as the food. I definitely will be coming back here to see what else Chef Mark Cox has for our tantalizing taste buds. I'm sure he won't disappoint. He truly is an artist. With his plate as his canvas and his imaginative mind, the flavors that he creates are endless.

Pros: Great Service, Great Food

Cons: It is a bit pricey, but it's definitely worth it

02/11/2009 Posted by Meg2586

I went on a blind date here last year. I had never heard of it before as I am not a regular downtown gal. I had never been to a nicer place. I had an appetizer, the special of the night (VEAL), and dessert. All of it was exceptional. I would recommend vallet parking. Also, for me it was a little too noisey. But, the fabulous food makes up for this. Although I did not pay, this place is on the higher end. Be prepared to spend some money. It is an ideal place for a special occasion or anniversary.

Pros: fabulous food and desserts

Cons: loud

02/04/2009 Posted by bellehaven007

I thought this would be a nice place to take my wife. Wrong! The food came after a long time and was luke warm. Our sever looked like a college. Yes Mark has a good reputation but the people he hire are real fruit loops. Take for instant the general manager-David a real card ! We had reservation for 7 yet we were shown the chairs to wait so David seated all his friends. Sorry as a paying customer I refuse to be treat like this. There are many excellent restaurants in this town!

01/24/2009 Posted by wildangel042

I took my boyfriend there for his birthday last year and we were extremely disappointed!! We had a reservation and were seated soon after arriving and it all went downhill from there. We had to wait quite awhile for the waiter to greet us and he was so RUDE it almost ruined our whole night. The waiter was very clear that he did not want to wait on us and made odd comments when we placed our orders and almost sneered at me when I declined to order alcohol (my boyfriend ordered a glass of wine but I wasn't in the mood for a drink). We waited a very long time for al of the food that we ordered and at one point another waiter came over and refilled our glasses because our waiter kept walking by and ignoring us. My boyfriend and I are "young" I guess you could say, we are in our early 20's and I think that he assumed because we were young he wouldn't receive the tip like he would at the tables filled with older clients. The food when we did finally receive it was wonderful but the waiter really put a damper on the night. My boyfriend and I are stubborn and weren't going to let a crappy waiter ruin our night- we enjoyed the time spent together and made the night fun in our own way despite the awful rude waiter.

Pros: beautiful restaurant, good food, desserts were great

Cons: TERRIBLE WAITERS!!!!! go to Sullivans for real customer service!!!

01/12/2009 Posted by winston9332

Rude and disinterested staff; actually got ill from their seafood. Called the following day and they could care less that I was ill from their expensive food. I used to take clients here frequently, but would not take an enemy there any more! Overrated, overly expensive and overly likely you might end up in the ER from their dodgy seafood!!!

Pros: None

Cons: Rude staff, exorbinate prices, and poor quality

01/01/2009 Posted by 123food

Atmosphere is to stiff. Very expensive, to many good resteraunts in Houston to go back. Very small portiones. the dinner was good not great and certainly not worth the money!!

Pros: service was good

Cons: no value here

12/25/2008 Posted by jwinata

I went for a nice 27th Anniversary with my wife. Both of us enjoy the food, the place, the service. It is pricey, but well worth it. My wife ordered the veal in the menu, and I ordered fish from the winter special. Both are very delicious. The presentation, the taste, we felt like we were judges in Iron Chef competition, savoring the different flavors each entree provided. For the desserts, I ordered chocolate cake douzed in hazelnut and coconut mousse and my wife ordered chocolate mousse. They are sinfully rich and delicious.

Pros: good food and excellent service

Cons: pricey especially the desserts

11/21/2008 Posted by iheart2eat

If you want to be original, don't go here for your anniversary! This place was packed with other couples celebrating their anniversary on the same day as mine and my husband's. On another note, the food was great, and we had three servers tending to our needs. They were very nice and offered to take pictures in different areas of the restaurant for us. If you want to have a quiet evening, request a table on the second floor. The lower floor is much more crowded and is where the bar is located, thus a louder area. It is pretty expensive... expect slightly small portions, and to pay no less than $100/couple. The food has big flavor though.

Pros: Excellent service, and peaceful scenery

Cons: Prices are a bit high

09/26/2008 Posted by ShivaniS

This is one of my most favorite restaurants, and I have been to many highly rated restaurants all over the US and other countries. Ambiance is wonderful - old church building as many of you know, soft lighting, not too loud, not too quiet. Menu is always changing, so everytime you go there is something new to try. I always love the halibut (when available), but everything that I have tried is delicious. The service is always excellent and they even did a special dessert for my first wedding anniversary. Chef Mark really knows how to run a restaurant.

Pros: Service, Food, Ambience

Cons: Nothing