Cafe Rabelais

Our absolute favorite in Houston and we travel to eat. The overall experience is always excellent. Lovely French food, very friendly, accommodating staff, amazing wine selection. My only complaint would be their location - one wishes for a nice garden with twinkeling lights outside, but the restaurant is in a strip mall with outdoor tables right in the parking area. We still love it despite that. We’ve tried other fancier places and consistently come back here, it is like visiting family, that can cook well.

My wife and I celebrated my birthday at Cafe Rabelais on the recommendation of a friend. Everything we ate was outstanding, and everything we saw going to the other tables had us taking notes on what to try next. Wine connoisseurs will be thrilled with the options: the wine list looks like the phone book from a small town. But not to worry, the staff made suggestions based on preference. The menu is full of classical French dishes--I had the cassoulet, and the duck fell off the bone with no need for a knife. We're already planning our return, no need for a special occasion.

Wonderful place for brunch on the weekend! Their sandwiches and salads are always delicious. I liked the salad dressing a lot and my server was nice enough to sell me a bottle to take home. The hand-written menu and walls covered in either wine bottles or original artwork make this Rice Village cafe an appealing destination.

Service: We arrived 10 minutes before opening and were seated outside waiting. When they opened our service began. It wasn't until a table next to us received service that we realized our service was less than. We had slower service, we were not told about any of the specials, and we had fewer table checks from our server. The busser was on top of our water, though. We ended up ordering specials after we placed our order upon hearing about and may have ordered entirely differently. Food: escargot 3 star, beef bourguinon 4 star, mussels 5 star, carrot soup 5 star, salad de chevre chaud 4 star. Overall, it's good but not great. We love escargot, for it to get 3 stars is really saying something. Carrot soup is a special our server did not inform us about. Atmosphere: We sat outside, and it was pleasant, for houston. View of rice village parking is nothing to write home about. Overall, it's good but not great. 3.66 stars in actuality. I've had better versions of all but the carrot soup dish at other places. The service was disappointing.

Amazing food and atmosphere. Came in on a Wednesday night and it was fairly easy to get a table. We ordered the smoked salmon as an appetizer, it was really good. We split the grilled chicken sandwich which was great as well. Very fresh vegetables. They have lots of wine and a few beers. We will be back with more time to eat a proper dinner. Desert looked great as well.

Came here for the restaurant weeks menu. There were lots of options, but one surprising one. First though the wine selection is awesome. My wife had a white blend that was awesome. It was one of the less expensive ones (Chateaux La Rose du Pin). I had a red wine that was very good too, but that white blend was great. Made me wish I had chosen it. Like I said we had the Restaurant Weeks menu. But we perused the regular menu and the prices are not outrageous here. I saw several entrees that I have paid more for at other places. I definitely recommend a reservation as the restaurant is small.