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| The Marriott elevator |
Hotel restaurants tend to be hit and miss. They have a
captive audience, so to speak, and depending on the place, you may be
pleasantly surprised, or downright furious at what you get.
When you stay in a hotel, and either can't or don't want to travel outside the building to eat, you're stuck with what the hotel has to offer. Fortunately, for guests at the Houston Marriott Westchase on the west side of Houston, the Republic Restaurant is a great place to eat.
When you stay in a hotel, and either can't or don't want to travel outside the building to eat, you're stuck with what the hotel has to offer. Fortunately, for guests at the Houston Marriott Westchase on the west side of Houston, the Republic Restaurant is a great place to eat.
I recently stayed at the Republic for two days, and ate in the in-house restaurant for breakfast and lunch twice. The food is Southwestern themed, and I
enjoyed every meal. The restaurant is open all day and into the evening for
convenience. The setting is casual and comfortable, with large, padded chairs,
and the service was prompt regardless of the time of day.
Breakfast in a hotel restaurant can be a problem, unless you
arrive early enough to beat the business crowd. Both mornings, I was there
shortly after opening, at 6:30 am, and my food arrived quickly, as the bulk of
the breakfast crowd was apparently still sleeping.
The restaurant was busy for lunch on both days, but even so, there was no waiting for a table, and the service was reasonably quick and friendly considering the crowd. A bonus for the lunch menu is the chart presenting an approximate time frame for how long any particular lunch item is expected to take before it arrives at your table. This was especially helpful for me, as we had a limited time to eat before we were expected back at our meetings.
The restaurant was busy for lunch on both days, but even so, there was no waiting for a table, and the service was reasonably quick and friendly considering the crowd. A bonus for the lunch menu is the chart presenting an approximate time frame for how long any particular lunch item is expected to take before it arrives at your table. This was especially helpful for me, as we had a limited time to eat before we were expected back at our meetings.
It appeared to me that the hotel management was paying close
attention to quality control in the restaurant, as over the course of the two
days that I was there, I saw the hotel manager visit the restaurant several
times. Any employee is bound to pay more attention when he/she knows that the
boss is watching. I don't know if he visited often because he was looking to
fix a problem, or if he is simply a hands on guy who wants to make sure everything is running smoothly. Whatever the case, his restaurant passed my
test.
The Republic offers a full breakfast and lunch buffet, as
well as menu items. No matter what you choose, you will likely be happy with
your food.
Larry Manch is an author, teacher, guitar player, freelance writer, and columnist.
His books include: 'Twisted Logic: 50 Edgy Flash Fiction
Stories', 'The Toughest Hundred Dollars & Other
Rock & Roll Stories', 'A Sports Junkie', 'The Avery Appointment', 'Between the Fuzzy Parts'. His books are available in paperback and
e-book.
He also writes about
sports for Season Tickets, food and travel on Miles & Meals, and music/guitars on The
Backbeat.
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