SUCH A GEM! This is the definition of fine dining and fantastic service. The happy hour prices are unreal and they don't compromise the quality of the food. If you go I recommend sitting in the bar area. There are chairs and the servers back there are amazing. Ask for Chris S. He works the bar and is a rockstar bartender and server. All round worth every single penny! read more

We went for our anniversary and it was ok. They are not allergy friendly and some things are made ahead of time, so they can not accommodate an allergy. Our waiter was wonderful and knew his menu and the 3 dishes off the whole menu that could be made to accommodate my allergy. When I got my food, it wasn't great. I had the ribeye, and the steak wasn't seasoned well, my potatoes were under cooked, and the roasted garlic was ice cod like it came out of the fridge and went straight onto my plate. The appetizer we had "The taste of the wild" was good though, and again, could be changed to accommodate my allergy. Overall a few good things, but for the price, was not worth it, and we won't be back because what I could eat wasn't great. read more

We went just before the rush hour crowd so it was quiet. We were the only ones there for about the first 45 mins. Friendly staff and our waiter was awesome! read more

Sunday Brunch. Outstanding food, service and ambiance. What a beautiful setting! The staff was extremely polite. So glad we tried this local gem for Houston Restaurant Week, we will definitely be back!! read more

Rainbow Lodge - Pan Seared Gulf Red Snapper (Brunch portion) - New American Near Me - Houston, Texas

This place seriously confused me, and I walked away scratching my head.... I remember coming here (different location) years ago, and being blown away. The locations is beautiful, very serene, with a HUGE back yard, and gorgeous area to sit outside and enjoy the outside. Really, I haven't seen anywhere like it in Houston. To be able to sit outside and enjoy a glass of wine, was heaven. The inside of the place however needs a SEVERE facelift. The booths, tablecloths, and linens, and decor was OLD. I mean my 90 year old grandmother wouldn't h We went there for Rest. Week, and rolled the dice, booking a last minute reservation. Valet parked, and were shown to a table outside fairly quickly. The waiter was on point, as we ordered a variety of dishes, in which none stood out. The gumbo was really bad, and bland, and shouldn't have even been called gumbo. The fish wasn't very memorable, and I forgot what my bf ordered (braised beef, I think) and both were subpar. I had the wine pairing which was great., and like I said the service started out stellar. When it was time for the check, thing went from bad to worse. We waited for about 15 minutes to get the check after asking for it. Then after giving the cc, we waited another 15 minutes, before, we went inside and had to LITERALLY chase down our waiter. We asked another waiter to find him to cash out, and they gave us some snotty remark that he had no idea where he was. The end. The bartender also was NO HELP. I asked him to track down the waiter and my cc, and he said he was busy. AWFUL. Basically from the people inside the place, it looked like a BUNCH of over 50's women and men that have been going there for DECADES to get drunk. There were several women in their 70's that clearly had one too many martinis. All in all, I was disappointed to spend over $100 for meh food, and service that was spotty. The only saving grace is the outdoor area, as it really was beautiful. read more

This review is strictly for their brunch (but given the experience, I doubt I'll ever set foot there for any meals). I went with a bunch of friends to this place, and while my friends rated the place more of a 3 star, being a vegetarian I am only willing to give this place a 2. I asked for an omelet with veggies and hubby opted to have the French toast. Both were utter disappointments. An omelet is not exactly the easiest thing to mess up, but mine was. When they took the order for my omelet, they asked me if I'd like to have the Lump Crab omelet--I informed the waiter that I was a vegetarian so I'd like to skip the crab. After about 20 minutes, my omelet comes out with crab. Wtf? I had it taken back, only for the waiter to inform me that even though I ordered a simple veggie omelet, I'll still be charged for the lump crab omelet. O_o This after they fuck up my order. My omelet was uneven with a weird texture, had very little veggies and it was bland. I had to put a ton of salt and pepper to make it somewhat more flavorful. I could've made a better omelet at home in less than 5 minutes. The french toast was very soggy and uncooked, which we promptly sent back as well. Another came out, only for it to be dark brown, almost to the point of being burnt! My hubby, being very hungry and not wanting to make anymore fuss, just ate it up grudgingly. The portions were small, especially given the prices. The ambience is nice, although the view can be interesting, seeing all the plastic/garbage piling up through the bayou by the beautiful wilderness outside. And we loved the 99 cents mimosas, but other than that--the brunch was a major disappointment. read more

This is one of my favorite restaurants especially during special events and the holidays. I've yet to try something I did not like, and the last time was a buffalo ribeye that was terrific. read more

Want to go to Aspen, Vail, or Beaver Creek for a quick dinner? Don't have a private jet or the time? Well...go to Rainbow Lodge instead! Located on the corner of Ella and TC Jester, Rainbow Lodge is housed in a hundred year old lodge. When you valet your car, you instantly start to feel the rustic charm of this place. Once inside, your surrounded by the beauty of post and beam construction, southwestern rugs and animal peering at you from almost every wall. Cool. I got excited about their specialties of Texas proteins, cheeses, and vegetables on the way to our table. The view of their gardens from our table, was lovely, as well. An undulating oasis of green inside the loop! We started our meal with the beet, arugula and Texas chevre salad with an apple cider reduction. Amazing. After devouring the perfectly peppery greens with divine yellow, white, and red beets, my mother and I were fighting over the reduction and beet puree with pieces of bread. Classy, I know! The couple we were with ordered the Trout tar tare and duck gumbo. They said both were wonderful. For our entrees, we had the elk tenderloin on red cabbage with potato croquettes and the bison tenderloin and short rib with mushroom tapenade, cabbage, and leeks. The proteins were amazing. Cooked correctly to medium rare, there was the perfect earthy taste that separates meats such as elk and bison from beef. The meat did not have a strong sauce smothering it, as some places do with/to gamey meats. The various vegetables were excellent, as well. My favorites were the potato croquettes, which had a light, crispy batter. Although the deserts looked amazing, we were all too full to indulge. The only reasons I'm not giving the Rainbow Lodge 5 stars are the loudness of the room and service. We had a rather loud high schooler at the table behind us, who loved to hear herself talk and a big group next to us. It was hard to hear and keep up with conversation at a table of four. The service, or our server I should say, was horrendous. When taking our order, he walked up and hovered. I said "Yes?" and he said, "What are you having?" Weird. He didn't cover the menu, suggest wine for our entrees, nothing. For $37 elk, I would like a little explanation or interaction. He also asked if we needed change on $120, for an $89.00 bill. When we said yes, he brought the change, divided into two piles...we assumed one pile was the suggested tip, the other what we could take home. Really? All in all, we had a great experience and the ambiance, despite the noise level was amazing. Truly an inner loop escape. They have a neat little bar, live music on Friday nights, Sunday brunch with $0.99 mimosas or champagne, and various wine tastings and events. You can sign up for email updates on their website. I'll be back very soon and would highly recommend Rainbow Lodge for a group dinner, special night out, or a place to show out-of-town guests how great Houston and Texas really are! read more

I've been there before with a decent outing so we decided to return again the food was mostly items that I don't eat . The restaurant based on hunting and Gamee items however my eve was ruined by the assistant manager . I believe is who he was he was talking to someone when I walked in I was a single diner and stopped and waited and returned to me and said can I help you like I was interfering with his conversation, I said '' a table please''. he then turned to me with attitude rolled his eyes and went back to talking to someone who turned he was interviewing a waitress , when I asked him after 10 minutes if I get a seat he said someone will be with you and then another man came out and stared at me and said can I help you roughly at abruptly A cook I believe. I said I'm here to have a dinner in which Case he finally let me over to a table I asked for the manager to come over he was not much better so the whole experience is rather gruff and rough. Food was ok. And I think I'll eat somewhere else I'm a television personality in the area new to Houston looking for a place to dine in my new neighborhood the heights , Tacky management. A shame read more

How do I rate the Rainbow Lodge? No idea, really. It sort of defies logic, sense, and reason. The atmosphere is unique, remarkable, and horrific. I mean, on the one hand you have the garden in back, which is kind of a zen-waterfall-forest inside an unsual little topgraphic basin. The interior is like a hunting lodge, but the room our group ate in was more of a Chamber of Animal Horrors, with loads and loads of stuffed furry creatures on the walls. I mean, I enjoy my carnivorous nature but it's a little too macabre for me. The menu is pretty fascinating, with a good mix of standard meat and fish fare, but what sets it apart is the more unusual assortment of game animals, such as venison and antelope. We had a lot of appetizers in the group, and I enjoyed the venison carpaccio, the quail, and a nice little scallop, and some pretty tasty sausage (also a game animal, if I recall). The salad was pretty good, and blessedly meat free. For the entree, I played it safe and went for a tenderloin, which was delicious and done to perfection. No one was brave enough to try the antelope, though! Too bad, I was dying for a nibble. Dessert was pretty over the top, I had a taste of a few things but was a little too stuffed to order. The croissant bread pudding was rich. Overall I'd say the food experience was worthy of 4-stars, but the creepy factor did it in for me. If you like that sort of thing, you'll love this place. I might try to sit on the balcony overlooking the zen garden instead next time. Definitely worth a visit! read more

We decided to eat brunch at the bar today and was blown away by our experience. The bartender, Chris took unbelievably good care of us as it was our first time. The food was delicious - Field Breakfast & Chicken Fried Venison, added Duck Gumbo per Chris's recommendation. Amazing! Already looking forward to next trip. Cheers! read more

A friend and i strolled in without a reservation, hoping to sit outside on a lovely weather day. The staff was very friendly and incredibly found us a place, fired up the outside heater and made sure we were comfortable. The food and drinks were great along with our entrees. Our server was friendly and always came back at just the right time. Thank you for being incredibly customer friendly - We enjoyed it and will most definitely be back! read more

This was hands down the worst service I've ever had in my life. As soon we told the waiter that we would not be ordering alcohol it was pretty much over. I've experienced the "Oh, you're not drinking? Well $@# you" attitude before, especially at nice places, but never to this degree. After we placed our order, we almost never saw our waiter again. It was so bad that a lady dining at a table outside had to get his attention because she saw my friend pointing at him with what was undoubtedly a very annoyed expression. When the waiter finally showed up to give us our check, my friend let him know that he was displeased that we were completely ignored. The waiter just shrugged and said "ok." Not "I'm sorry", nothing to indicate that he cared in the least. Basically he ruined what was supposed to be a special occasion and a restaurant that I used to enjoy. So the food? What's the point of describing it? It was good, but not what it should be for the price. If I'm paying $30+ for a entree, I should walk away thinking, "wow that was really good," or "that was one of the best ..... I've ever had." That was not the case and there are plenty of restaurants in this price range and lower where that would happen and has happened. And these other places won't treat someone like a second class citizen because they choose not to drink. read more

Great choice for Houston Restaurant Week! After tediously sifting through the extensive Houston Restaurant Week Restaurant listing, my fiancee and I decided to try out a supposed Houston classic. A place that supposedly has a very great history in city and has been known for its great view and magnificent food. In fact, Houston Press listed Rainbow Lodge as one of its top choices if you wanted great food with great ambiance. The online HRW menu looked great, so why not give it a try. Located on the bayou in the Heights, Rainbow Lodge has a very rustic and outdoorsy ambiance. If you are an avid hunter, you will really like all of the stuffed animals head on the wall. If you happen to be an active member of PETA however, I would probably stay far away from this place because you may have a panic attack when you walk in. The complementary valet parking makes you feel important, even if you wait till HRW every year to go eat an affordable fancy meal. The service is very attentive and the HRW menu offers a variety of choices from salads to gumbo to suckling pig. My Rainbow Lodge experience definitely lived up to all the hype. Upon recommendation from the waiter, I started off with the Smoked Duck Gumbo. Now my mother is from New Orleans, so I am always a little leery of other people's gumbo. But I must say that this gumbo was mighty tasty. The rue was a little lighter and creamy than I like but was still delicious. Also it was packed full of ingredients, the smoked duck and andouille sausage together added a smoked cajun flavor and the rice pilaf added some texture. The waiter said that this gumbo was a Rainbow Lodge staple for 20 years and I definitely see why that is. Next the Bourbon and Texas Peach Glazed Suckling Pig with Sweet Potato Bread Pudding was fantastic. For some reason fruit glazes on pork just seem to work well. The Suckling Pig was tender and smoked to perfection. The peach glaze and fresh peaches just go well with this dish, it add a nice sweet dimension to the smokey flavor of the meat. The sweet potato bread pudding is very unique. It tasted more like a sweet potato dressing than a pudding, but it still is quite tasty. Then to top it all off they put a piece of fried pork on top of the pudding that taste like a fried pork rind. And I love pork rinds!! Lastly, the dessert was absolutely heavenly. The Texas Peach Upside Down Cake is not really a cake per say, its more like a stuffed pastry. The crispy yet soft dough is filled with warm peach filling and is served with vanilla ice cream. As I said before: Heavenly! This was a great HRW dining experience. A very succulent meal and I must say that I left there 100% satisfied. read more

Went here for brunch, an older lady sat us down at table with 2 seats when we have 3 people and left. So we had to take another seat from another table that was not used next to us. We didn't get any menus, waited another 5 min for the server to come and asked for the menu, and 2 min later she comes back with the menu... it looks like servers give you the menu at this place because I saw them do that to the table near us also... making customers wait another 7 minutes for server to come to give you the menu. The water boy gave us water and bread right as you sit down. And of course we were missing a place setting also. So when the waitress came back I asked for another place setting, she only gave me napkin and utensils and left quickly. So I went to the empty table and took a plate and she saw me when she returned. And puts another plate in place of it. Then she speaks out load and say we took a chair from the empty table and slams it really hard down to the ground. It just ruin the whole dining experience. I guess she couldn't handle it and another guy came to wait on us. He was ok, it takes forever to get a hold of him to get our check. They come out once to get your order, then the kitchen staff serves you your meal SLOWLY.... Service = 0 stars (blond chick made it so unpleasant) and service was not there, very slow Parking = 0 stars, there is no self parking, you have to valet Atmostphere = 4 stars, nice outdoor area Duck Gumbo = 3 stars Summer Stone Fruit Salad = 2 stars Crab Cake = 4 stars, the only thing I liked Qual and Waffle = 2 stars, qual was ok, fried like a chicken, waffle was horrible and not edible Poached Egg with Trout Cake = 1 star, trout cake is just all batter Carnitas Tacos = 1 star, lost of meat, but chewy Bread Pudding = 4 stars, can't go wrong with bread pudding Thubarb Jar = 1 star, just didn't taste right Chocolate Truffle Cake = 2 star, ok read more

Just had one of the best, if not the best, date night dinners of my life. My husband and I were celebrating the first (late) Valentine's Day dinner as a married couple. We decided we would splurge on a restaurant with a tasting menu, and Rainbow Lodge fit our price point. All six courses were perfectly delicious, and most fit the 'lodge' theme well, like the buffalo, duck, and venison. Our server was very professional, describing every course in detail, and telling us about Rainbow Lodge's gardens (from which they get some of the fruits and veggies on their menu). The beverage guy was clearly into his job, telling a story for every pour of wine served to us. We loved that. Neither of us have a ton of wine knowledge, but he made it so easy to follow, talking about the biology, geography, and production of different wines. All in all, it was a perfect evening! read more

Go for the atmosphere. Go for the grounds. But don't go for the brunch. While they are excellent about keeping reservations, they are terrible about getting your order right. I mean why bother asking me how I'd like my eggs cooked if you are going to give them to me however they come out of the kitchen? And while serving coffee in a warm mug is acceptable, serving a mimosa in a warm glass is NOT. The menu is full of delicious sounding things - especially if you like some wild game with your brunch. Note that the brunch is not a buffet and that valet parking is required. Perhaps it was the particular day we were there, but I expect the service to be stellar at a place like this and that I should not have to ask 3 times to get one glass of iced tea. Not even the 99cent mimosas and bloody marys were enough to redeem the meal. (By the way, be prepared for a TON of horseradish in that bloody mary you order.) It will be a while before I go back. read more

Rainbow Lodge is perfect for a romantic celebration. It's intimate, especially with all the individual rooms and hidden nooks, overlooking the expansive backyard with a small creek. But the best part, the wild game will appease any carnivore. On the latest visit, Chili-Rubbed Antelope Backstrap was a treat. An antelope's backstrap is equivalent to a Beef Tenderloin in tender leanness. Besides hitting a perfect medium rare, the backstrap had just a touch of additional richness without a heavy game flavor similar to buffalo. To add a touch of homeyness, it's served with a cornmeal spoonbread which reminds me of my grandmother's. read more

The service was amazing, great food and beautiful views. Overall a great experience and perfect for Valentine's Day. read more

Rainbow Lodge - Caesar salad - New American Near Me - Houston, Texas

Take on a safari you say???? Why yes!!! Absolutely, at the rainbow lodge, that is where you will go. In every room that we have eaten there is something new to explore. And best yet is there safari menu which I have had three times. All wonderful. Five fun items with perfect wine pairings, I can't begin to tell you how great everything is but there is no point since every time I came, it was a different safari. During my last two trips, the chef came out between each pairing and described everything to us. Nothing more than perfect. I'm not going to suggest any of the items except rabbit boudin which was been consistent each time, perfectly delicious. All the game items I had were excellent to taste, unfortunately the safari I believe is discontinued , thus the four stars, sad that i cant have my load of wonderful wine with food pairings, but from my understanding, they are working on something similar, more like a chef special, FYI, please be open minded when you come here. The food is great but you have to be open to what you will get. read more

WOW! We had not been to Rainbow Lodge in WAY TOO LONG! This place is fantastic. We started at the bar for happy hour. 1/2 price glasses of wine, $5 martinis with top shelf liquor, and $3 beers. There are also some food choices for bar snacking. We had the mussels while we waited for the rest of our party. They were fresh and firm and the sauce was flavorful without being overly thick or buttery. We started dinner with the three meat sampler to share. It was a great way to sample smaller bites of some more exotic meats. They were all very nice. I had the chili rubbed antelope back strap for my meal. It was smack your mamma good! Cooked a perfect medium rare and seasoned to perfection. I basically licked the entire plate clean. My wife had the trout and said it was very good. Their wine list is extensive and we were able to find a personal favorite that really went well with the meal. Dessert was bread pudding shared by all. It was good and made a nice sweet bite at the end of the meal. We will be back. The bartender also told us about the burger Fridays. They take different meats and make some delicious sounding burger creations. He said they won the Houston Press burger brackets. Best burger in Houston? We will be back to judge that for ourselves! read more

I'm going to go with the consensus: RL deserves at least 3.5 stars, but based on my recent dining experience, I'm reluctant to go higher. Maybe I built it up too much because of my expectations of the chef...maybe I didn't order the right thing. Probably both are true. Rainbow Lodge took over the old Le Tour de Argent place because, according to our knowledgeable server, the owner of the old property wanted to give a restaurant to his son. He kicked out the RL guys in the hopes of stealing their business and renamed the old place "The Lodge." No similarity at all, right? Since then, it has folded. Now the old place is Landry's owned and called Brenner's on the Bayou. Yuck - Landry's! So on to the current Rainbow Lodge with a new chef and new surroundings. It's beautiful on the deck, and the restaurant couldn't be more rustic or romantic. The food, however, wasn't up to par for the price. Here's the rundown. White gazpacho: too sweet, although interesting, and the accompanying blue crab saved the dish from complete failure. Duck gumbo: decent depth of flavor, but this was not a gumbo - more like etoufee or stew - bummer. Fried quail: nice creamed corn and spinach garnish (very delicate), but quail didn't need the frying treatment. Shrimp skewers: nice addition of siracha - sweet/hot and good app. Fried oysters: yum. Tagliatelle carbonara: excellent. Bread pudding: very good, but not Brennan's (can't wait till they reopen). Bottom line: decent food, but I expected more. Based on the talent of the chef, there should have been more depth of flavor and creativity. Maybe we didn't order the right things, but I'm not spending $45 on an entree to find that out. read more

Why would you go to a fine dining restaurant and order a hamburger you ask? Because on Fridays, the chef at RL puts together a wild game burger that is second to none. Couple that with a few glasses of wine and good weather on the deck and you have created a great way to start the weekend. If you sit in the bar area, Henry will be more than glad to take good care of you. On this particular Friday, the burger (its hardly righteous to even call it that) was made of Buffalo and some sort of steak trimmings. Juicy, savory and seasoned perfectly. Toppings included the freshest lettuce, tomato, pickle and onion around. The bun is freshly baked and soft (might be slightly toasted inside). Tip: Chef recommends adding a fried egg on top Truly one of the best burger experiences I have had! read more

The scenery and food are absolutely lovely! This place is a hidden gem in which I am glad I had the opportunity to enjoy! I ordered the bison filet with asparagus which was phenomenal, also their duck and andouille gumbo was to die for. I will definitely be back and I have already made reservations for Mother's Day so my whole family can enjoy it! read more

It was the first 'romantic evening' date with the new girl. We were to go dancing after dinner and Rainbow Lodge was next-door to the dance studio. The place certainly got the theme right. It was very quiet but that might have been because we were only of 4 couples there at 6PM. Extensive wine menu, but I don't drink wine and she isn't that snooty. For dinner, I got the Bison 'pot roast' with mashed potatoes, carrot and celery sticks. It was extremely dry. Maybe that's bison? I had to cut the meat into tiny chunks so they could soak up the gravy before being palatable. Mashed potatoes looked like they were scooped with ice-cream scooper. She got the snapper and really enjoyed it. I had a bite of it and it was good. My rating of "Meh. I've experienced better." is exactly how I feel. Nothing "won me over" with this place. Doubt I'll come back. read more

HORRIBLE service, okay food!! We came here for Easter brunch this past Sunday. We were seated outside. After our first round of drinks, bread, and appetizers (crab cakes were delicious; gumbo was tasty, but more like a bisque than traditional gumbo), we noticed that the flies started coming out in full force and were landing on everything. We asked the waiter about it and he said they were "more aggressive than last year" and walked off. When he returned, we suggested that maybe if the dirty dishes and glasses were bussed off the table, the flies would back off a little. He said good idea and walked away... So...after about 10 minutes when he came back, we had gathered up all the dirty plates and dishes and again suggested that he bus them off the table, so finally he did. He then told us that if we would like any other dirty dishes bussed off the table, to "let him know". I was kind of taken aback by this since I don't think it's my job to tell the waiter when he needs to bus the table. If there are dirty glasses, take them away... Very elementary. Miraculously, the flies did go away; however, we opted to move inside when a table opened up. It was all downhill from here... We got our main course when we moved inside. I had the mixed grill of game, which was pretty good. My boyfriend and another at the table got the softshell crabs. They were both disappointed. I tasted them and thought they were bland. There were no salt and pepper shakers on the table if we even wanted to try to spice it up and the server never came back to ask how anything was. Another person at the table got the shrimp and grits and said the grits were crunchy, but the shrimp were tasty. Overall, the main courses were just okay. We finish our main courses and are waiting on the desserts we ordered in the beginning. Meanwhile, the table next to us is finishing up their starter dishes. We continue to wait and wait and wait... the table next to us gets their main dishes. We continue to wait and wait and wait... the table next to us finishes their main dishes and has them bussed off the table. Guess who is still waiting for their desserts? We ask another server, since we haven't seen ours in 30 minutes, and are told that the kitchen is short. Okay... at this point there are only about 3 tables left in the restaurant. Finally, at least 30 minutes later (after we were told the kitchen is short) we get our desserts. I got the bread pudding, it was delicious. All other desserts were sub-par. So then we wait and wait for the checks. We pay the bill and wait and wait for him to bring the cards back. All in all, this brunch took over 3 hours, which is way too long. We were all tired and ready to go and we still had to wait at least 15 minutes for him to finally bring our cards back. I really wanted to like this place b/c the atmosphere is really beautiful, but I cannot tolerate sloppy service when spending a good amount of money at a supposedly nice restaurant. They weren't even that busy, so I'm really not sure what the hold up in the service was, but it will be a while if and when we go back. read more

Rainbow Lodge just might be every vegetarian's worst nightmare, but this carnivore has no complaints. After finding out that this wasn't a gay bar ("seriously?!") but was, in fact, a nice sit-down dining establishment, I still wasn't convinced. Not until people started raving about this place did I actually become interested. I went on a Saturday night with a group of 6 friends. We made reservations, although the place wasn't crowded so I'm not sure how necessary it was. In fact, there were only 2 other parties seated in our dining area. Not too bad for a weekend! The interior is cozy and reminds me of our vacation rental houses in Colorado, or maybe a fancy hunting lodge (if that happened to be my kinda thing). And just in case you want to be reminded of what your food looked like before it died, there's no shortage of stuffed wildlife heads lining the walls (complete with judging eyes). The menu has a nice variety of safe choices for the not-so-adventurous mixed with more exotic game items. Although several dishes jumped out at me, I decided to go with one of their daily specials- the bison filet with a side of lentils mixed with assorted veggies. Our group also started with the mixed game and seafood appetizer, which was nice and not too filling. It was just enough to keep our stomachs from growling until the meal came out. I wasn't sure what to expect from the bison filet. I'm a huge fan of ground bison, and I know it's typically pretty lean, so I was anxious to try it. I wasn't disappointed with my decision. The filet was delicious and cooked perfectly. It was juicy, tender, and I loved every bite. I even got a chance to try some of my boyfriend's boar and venison (he ordered the mixed grill) and both were amazing. Nothing tasted gamy, it was all perfect. With exceptional food and service, Rainbow Lodge is definitely a winner. I'll be back for sure! read more

Things have gone DOWNHILL here! If this place were consistently good, they'd consistently have great, 5 star reviews. Beautiful interiors and exteriors, however, service is horrible and so was their food. Valet parking is horrible as well! Nothing seemed positive in this establishment and money was definitely wasted. If you're looking for a romantic, fine dining experience, beware... go elsewhere! read more

Thanks to the hunting lodge decor and the steep, sylvan terrain out back, you might wonder whether you've been mysteriously transported to Colorado from this little corner of Houston. The game on offer is as varied as the heads on the wall, and you can start with a "taste of the wild" on the appetizer menu, with an array of cuts like quail, bison, even nilgai. Despite the overture from our server, I was drawn to the crab cakes, and we started with the two cakes virtually falling apart with the large chunks of fresh jumbo lump crabmeat. The bits of bacon and mustard blend really put it over the top. For the main course, I couldn't pass up the duck breast once I saw it on the menu, even though there were many tempting options. The moist, dark meat was sweetened with an orange glaze, and resting on a bed of sweet potato polenta that was rich and probably full of butter, but I couldn't help but eat every morsel. The small mandarin slices tossed throughout really made a sweet counterpoint to the rest of the savory dish. The Rainbow Lodge made for an elegant repast, and not terribly expensive for a fancy dinner for two: appetizer, two entrees, and a bottle of wine for about $100. You can certainly further deplete your wallet if you wish though, with the likes of Lobster Thermidor on the menu. But the Rainbow Lodge has an attentive waitstaff and a nice atmosphere - especially if you get a table out on the back patio on a cool evening. read more

Save your money. The food was not good. Way over priced & sub par. Lobster Thermidor was made from frozen lobster. And the wild meats platter supposed to be cooked medium rare, was well done. The salads were excellent that's the only good thing I can say. Will not go back, will not recommend. I want to update my review because of the prompt attention my email was given by the management of rainbow lodge. They were courteous and apologetic and have offered to have us come back and let them make it right. Customer service is good. I hope to have a more positive review to share with you next visit. read more

Birthday dinner at Rainbow Lodge for a friend this weekend. The staff was so helpful in coordinating the surprise element of it which we greatly appreciated. The atmosphere is a lot less hunting-lodgey than I thought. It's actually pretty bright and airy with fewer mounted animal heads than expected. There were 7 of us so I was lucky to try many things on the menu. Starters 1) Wild game trio: I had never had some of these before but they were delicious 2) Gumbo: not really a gumbo as much as a soup, but really nice flavors and spice 3) Duck salad: a classic spinach, duck confit salad with a quail egg twist done very well 4) Caesar salad: eh, nothing to write home about but you don't really go here for the salad... Entrees 1) Texas duo: Had a bite of both. To be honest, I'm not sure which was which. Both excellent. 2) Mixed grill: the venison was very good but the quail was a bit too dainty and the lamb was a bit tough. I think the consensus was that the texas duo was better. 3) Bison special (my choice): very good. The meat was super tender. I gave very small bites away and mostly kept it for myself. 4) Crispy duck leg and seabass: I didn't try either but the people who ordered it seemed happy. We had 2 bottles of wine from their extensive list. There are a wide range of prices and definitely a good number at the lower end. Markup seemed inconsistent but if anything that was to our benefit. I saw a few pretty good bargains. Service was EXCELLENT. Our waiter was friendly and attentive, and even when it became apparent we were the last people in the restaurant, he never rushed us or made us feel like we were an inconvenience. Really excellent. I would go back anytime! read more

Took my 9 year old daughter for a mommy-daughter date. Would love the previous location. Had made advance reservations through open table, confirmed it too and it was an early evening 6 pm reservation. We reached there on time. Apparently there was a wedding taking place there at that time. The hostess took us to show us our table and gave us one with the worst seating in a cramped up corner asked her for a better seat she just wound T budge . The only one she could give us was one in the other far corner of the room one next to the patio door. That table had a setting for 4 , when my reservation was for 2. I was made to feel as if she's doing me a effing favor for giving me a seat and had the audacity to not entertain m request for a change of seat to any other room. I didn't want to spoil my evening with my daughter so I gave in. Bad taste in my mouth already. And then our server comes in she was good but there were so many people entering and exiting the door that she couldn't even complete a sentence without being excused . I eventually asked her if I can change a table rather than feel like I am sitting in someone's corridor and having dinner. She called the manager who apologized and moved us to a different room. Thankfully the table was better than the last. We had a new server serve us by the name Tony he was a pleasant man to interact with , the food was awesome to say the least. He even accommodated our request to get. Kid friendly dish that was not on the menu. Again he was the only server serving the room so was quite busy waiting on others . The place is beautiful, food is awesome, view is amazing but the service and the hostess skills lacks big time. The place is tastefully decorated has comfortable seating. Has a great selection of wines even ports. Rainbow lodge - you have everything going for you if you can work on your people skills. You guys are in hospitality industry those areas should be your strong points. Next time I will go to a place with better reviews I expect to be treated well and for the amount of money I spend and effort I hate to have someone spoil the memory for me. read more

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This is more of a 3.5 but I'm rounding up, since another reviewer felt similarly and rounded down. The food is incredible. I didn't have the red snapper experience described by another reviewer; I found everything very fresh and cooked exactly to my liking with a good range of flavors. The portions of the entrees were well sized, but the appetizers were a little skimpy. The price is the main reason I'm dinging it a star & a half. I've seen similar fare offered cheaper. Granted, it was incredible, but I feel that it could have been a bit cheaper. read more

HRW -- bless you. For my first stop on Restaurant week I hit up the lodge. Busy on a Friday night we waited almost half an hour to be seated. In the meantime we checked out the bar that had a ridiculous cover band playing some bad songs very poorly. The building is very lodge-y and had a nice feel to it. It was nice, but not stuffy. TO be real Neil, noone cares about that, onto the food. So I went with good ole F-stop (no not old, ole) cause she knows how to dine. Originally I was going to force her to order the gumbo so I could get the rabbit boudin balls, but after looking at the Grilled Peach with Texas Feta, I decided I needed to let her make her own decisions. They had the Gumbo on the regular menu so we ordered the other two and the Gumbo off the menu. PRAISE JESUS we did. The boudin balls left a lot to be desired. The Gumbo was fantastic. The grilled peach and feta kind of BLEW MY MIND! You know when you watch Iron Chef and they put together something that pisses you off cause you will never get to eat it? Well this was that thing. It was interesting, delicious and way out of left field. It had a watermelon vinaigrette and some greens on the plate and WOW. GET IT! On to the Entree. I had the Beef shoulder with short rib risotto. It was good, but thats about it. I could have done without the peas.. Fannizle got the Duck and she said she loved it. I also was apathetic to the whole thing but she was thrilled, and she knows what she is talking about. For dessert they were out of the panna cotta, but luckily for me I had my eye on the croissant bread pudding. HOLY CRAP! Hot and delicious and a scoop of Ice Cream. F doggy dogg got the sorbet trio and it really wasnt appealing at all. Especially when we could have had more bread pudding. To wrap this up, GRILLED PEACH, GUMBO and BREAD PUDDING. The regular menu also looked excellent and I will be back. I got a bottle of Malbec and whatever, just a run of the mill wine. Fun time though! Tonight we HRW at Oussies Table, I will let you know. read more

The rainbow is imaginary! What a mess. Stopped in on a recent Saturday evening for cocktails. One valet Parker on duty-had to wait. No problem. Headed to the bar...asked if we could sit outside- - No-those are reserved! Can we sit here by the bar- -No-private party! Let's sit at the bar- -No-those are taken! It was 6PM-there were 10 people in the whole place but the only open seating in the entire building was in the kitchen on top of the ice machine! Oops--no - those are also on hold for a party of 2 who just might come in later. So we left the 25 empty deck chairs, 6 empty bar tables, and 8 empty bar stools & went down the street. Oh yeah- when we asked the valet for our car he just pointed to it & said the keys are inside. There is no Rainbow here. Just a Pot of bullshit & lots of empty chairs... read more

You pay for the experience! The location is beautiful! The outside area almost makes you forget your in the middle of Houston! We spent $150 plus for start, meal, dessert and wine. There's a lot to look at and some great conversation starters. The meal is small portions but different and yummy! I would return for a special evening and sit outside! All the staff was very friendly! I over heard an concern with the table next to us and even if that customer being a little difficult the wait staff handled it professional and great. read more

Had dinner here with my husband for a date night and was very impressed! I loved the feel of the inside, it did not feel like we were in Houston! The food was so great! But in my opinion a bit overpriced. My only complaint would be it took an hour for us to get our meal after ordering due to the kitchen being backed up from a party. We will definitely be back! Delicious. read more

Just went here today for lunch with a co-worker. The decor was very interesting...really did feel like I was walking into a rustic wood lodge with deer heads hanging on the wall, a little fireplace in the waiting area to cozy up by, variety of rugs to cover the hard wood. Started with Taste of the Wild, a sampler of three meats different everyday depending on what they have. Today was a braised buffalo over an amazing bed of caramelized onion (I'd eat those onions just by itself; the buffalo was just as delicious), a duck sausage of some sort with pickled onions, and venison served on top of a rich and creamy spinach. Note, this is a sample platter...really for 2 people, each person would get a small piece of each. Very nice. Couldn't pass up the Braise Short Rib Grilled Cheese Sandwich and instead of the Housemade Chips, I got fries (personal preference...if it's going to be some cut of potato fried, fries it is!). It seemed to take a little bit longer than anticipated for the dishes to come out, but totally worth the wait! Very interesting cut of bread they use, not overly huge, just perfect for a lunch portion. This sandwich was AWESOME...melt-in-your-mouth short ribs, buttery but nicely toasted bread, with delightful cheese and greens in the middle. On top of good food, service was pleasant as well! read more

Ordered the red snapper and received some rotten fish that tasted nothing like red snapper is supposed to. The lamb was burnt black, and the buffalo steak was pretty awful. VERY disappointed with the food, esp. given the price and the awards prominently advertised on the restaurant's website. Also, the place is not as lovely as it appears on the website. It feels a bit old and musty rather than cozy and charming, not located in the nicest part of town. I think valet parking is mandatory, but not 100% sure of this. Not attentive with refilling water, bringing bread, cleaning crumbs, etc. but quick to offer desserts, alcohol, and take your food away while you're still eating. Also, it was my mom's birthday and they forgot to put a candle on her dessert like I'd asked. read more

Hidden in a questionable part of the heights area, I never would have noticed the place except my friend Kris was gushing about her lunch reservations there. I also knew nothing about the place when my boyfriend asked where I wanted to go for dinner the next night. I said I wanted to try Rainbow Lodge, and he was familiar with it but had also never been, so we decided to give it a try. When we first arrived and it was valet only, I started to be thankful I was wearing a decent sweater, because I hadn't realized we were going out to a nicer restaurant. It was an early dinner hour, and there weren't so many patrons but everyone was seated a comfortable distance apart, as opposed to cramming everyone into one dining room to keep it "easier" for the staff. That was extremely appreciated. Our waiter was great. He explained the specials before we ordered and as they arrived. He was there when we needed him, not hovering or interrupting our meal unnecessarily, and even laughed at a photo of our dog that looks like a gazelle they had taxidermied on the wall. My food, as well, was worth the hype. The ceasar salad had a balsamic glaze on top of the croutons, which was really unusual but quite tasty. The appetizer, a taste of the wild, was unique and satisfied my curiousity of the wild game options on the menu. For entrees, I ordered the filet, and my boyfriend ordered the other steak...ribeye? My filet was the best steak I have ever had, but his steak was just tough and bland. For dessert we split a deconstructed carrot cake. We hadn't realized it was going to come that way, from the menu, but it was an interesting surprise and actually quite decadent that way. I give the place 4 stars, I'm sure my boyfriend gives it fewer. Like anywhere, you just have to know how to order. read more