Navy Blue Reviews

Our group of 6 had a very nice meal in a very nice setting. The entire staff, from the valet parking team to the managers to the servers and waitstaff were all very attentive and helpful. This was a birthday celebration for my wife and the resturant did a great job of making the evening special. Be sure to call ahead and make a reservation. Attire is comfortable and we saw everything from denim with a nice shirt to sports coats, and in between. Sound level is ok and it was possible to have a nice conversation at our table despite the resturant being full.

On a recent family visit to Houston we visited Navy Blue- a new restaurant with a big waiting list for reservations! Well worth it- a little noisy and pricey but worth it! I opted for the mussel bisque and a small plate of homemade pasta with clams which was enough for me for dinner. The bisque could have used a few more mussels but it was rich and delicious. Having small plates is a great idea- wines were fairly priced and very nice

After our wonderful experiences at Bludorn and the hype surrounding Navy Blue, we were really curious about this new addition to the Rice Village dining scene. We waited for our table about 20 minutes and were taken to a hidden corner ("the Lounge") which is somewhat separate from the main dining area. Not very scenic, our table was surrounded by large metallic pipes and an open ceiling. More importantly, as we discovered, we were placed where we were largely forgotten. The cocktails were good, although not comparable to some of the "classics". The appetizers were delightful. We enjoyed a fresh and crisp Snapper crudo, A delicious Mahi Mahi dip, a Charred Octopus and an enjoyable Pau Hana. We chose a wonderful bottle of Albarino, which paired well with all our selections. Then, ..., we waited. And waited..., and waited for about an hour between our appetizers and our main dishes. Even then, the four main dishes came out piecemeal, one about every minutes. The Swordfish au poivre was arguably the best swordfish I'd had in recent months and the Branzino was perfectly prepared: moist, tender, flaky and tasty. The blackened Red Snapper was as good as a blackened Red Snapper will ever be and the spaghetti Vongole was good, as expected. So, in summary, the food was very good, but the service, abominable: discombobulated, uncoordinated, with nobody in charge, despite having 5-6 severs circling our table. If you asked for more water, it was someone else's tsk; if you asked for wine, it was again someone else who wasn't there and if you had a question about the food, it was someone else who could answer you, but later. The delay between appetizers and mains was unforgivable, but more importantly, the staff needs to be trained, and a new manager needs to come on board to pull the place together. Bludorn is wonderful, but this "step child has a ling way to go...

Very salty food the dishes were good but think ragin Cajun on Westimer us better no parking expect valet or regular paid parking

Oh how consistently bad across the board. The food was the biggest miss of the evening.. often bland (just add some salt!), very little flavor for all the thought that went into the ingredients, and not indicative of a restaurant of high pedigree or charging that much for a meal. Most of your dishes should have salty seals anyway but somehow even natural flavor was erased. The concept just seemed off.. it wasn’t southern seafood, it wasn’t east coat seafood, it wasn’t Italian.. nothing blended well. And their ‘spaghetti’ isn’t even spaghetti!! Come on guys.. you’re chefs that know what food is and what it should taste like! I laughed at other reviews left here.. overcooked & mushy fries, bad aioli, mussels in bisque, mussels in gumbo, fish often overcooked, sauces don’t match dishes and often unattractive.. so much of this is common ground with our experience months later telling me that no one cares to fix the problems in the house. The wait for the dishes was also way too long.. often over a half hour wait in between courses during a Monday service that was half full. They certainly had enough staff, just food not coming out with enough frequency. The few redeeming qualities.. the drinks were innovative and mostly tasty even if a few dollars expensive. The pasta, even though not as advertised, was cooked well. And that’s about it.. Pass on this restaurant. There are many more restaurants in the city that would offer a better meal (and experience) than Navy Blue.

As always, simply amazing. Service was fantastic, oysters are the best, just a cool place. Every dish we ordered was absolutely delicious! If you love seafood, you must try

Great ambiance, great food, and perfect service in the heart of Rice Village. Fresh seafood specialties with a very extensive wine and cocktail list.

Met some friends for an early sunday dinner. None of us had dined here before so we were very anxious to try as we are big fans of Bludorn. There were many high points and a few low points to our experience but overall we were very satisfied and will be back. High points: the boiled shrimp, the clams casino, the swordfish and the lobster ravioli. All over the top good. Low points: the gumbo which had a sweet and sour taste and had clams in it and whole okra that was indelible, the service which alternated between invasively attentive to total abandonment: we had our starters for five or more minutes before they brought our silverware…..even after we told the server. That part of the experience needs some work.

Concur with identity crisis: menu is an "eclectic" mash up of fancy chilled cocktail seafood, southern classics (gumbo), an aspirational trip to Italy for fine pasta as well as a comforting fried Chicken Milanese in case you're craving a home-sytle dish. Ne'er an eyelid is batted here, when linguine is served instead of "spaghetti" à la carte. Sad, luke-warm pasta, gloppy sauces, not to mention a pretentious server over-eager to push only the most costly items on a pricey menu, etc. Houstonians can rejoice that there's one fewer, clamoring to be seen here.

I really wanted to like this new restaurant. Navy Blue opened with a lot of fanfare near the end of 2022 and got very good reviews from local food critics. However, I found it very disappointing and expensive. Here are my observations: Pros: we were seated immediately and did not have to wait for our table; server was very polished and professional; atmosphere is spartan, but not too noisy; the biscuits served as appetizers were fresh and served warm out of the oven; caesar salad was different in that it was made from baby gem lettuce hearts and topped with "croutons" that were more like fried hushpuppies. Cons: wine list was ok, but on the expensive side; the clams in the clam chowder were not cooked in the broth, but cooked separately and added at the table, which meant they were dry and tough; likewise with big bacon chunks added at the table; the seafood gumbo was almost inedible--poorly prepared and overly rich roux which was spiced with what tasted like worcestershire sauce, and very little actual seafood, except for baby clams still in the shells. After these 3 items, we decided to leave rather than order anything else. The bill for these 3 items and a few glasses of wine was way too much considering the quality. To top it off, valet parking is $8.00 + tip.

Attractive restaurant design, and excellent service from start to finish - from the reception desk, to the servers, to the valet. While initial bar service was slow, the wine service was very attentive. The biscuits are top notch - served warm with a tasty herbed butter. The endive salad was nice, pairing bitter (greens) with sweet (pecans) with salt (cheese). The green curry mussels were flavorful, but it’s still amazing one can’t find a decent moulles au vin blanc in Houston. The crawfish risotto was way too rich & spicey, overpowering the crawfish, not a do-over for us. Still, overall a very pleasant outing. We’ll return soon.

I love Navy Blue, food and service are top notch Truly one of of the best restaurants in the city We live in the West U area and often dine there The lobster roll for lunch is so tasty. For dinner, their Cesar salad is hands down the best I have ever had

There’s a lot of great restaurants in Houston but this one is our favorite - I’m not a big fan of this word but the ‘vibe’ is awesome! It’s not an obvious choice but make sure you order the mushroom dish and thank me later. Fish quality is exceptional and I’m super picky! Also - the team is so nice, especially the hosts at the front desk; they said happy birthday when we arrived and when we left! We’ll be back with the kids!

This was incredibly disappointing. I say that being a fan of Bludorn and Aaron as well. Maybe that's the issue, that I came with extremely high expectations and the food was an absolute miss for me. The hospitality is decent and the staff are just as good as Bludorn, but the food was just odd and downright bad to me. It feels like they are trying to be a mix of northeastern seafood while also trying to tip their hat to southern seafood as well. Big mistake. The design is meh and overall the restaurant esthetic is if this place is having an identity crisis. Maybe hiring designers that predominantely do residential is the reason for that. We ordered several things and spent a hefty amount of money to give this place a fair shot. The baked clams just tasted awful quite honestly with this really bizarre sour taste to them. The french fries that we had were remarkably and simultaneously over cooked (over brown) And soggy at the same time paired with this this downright gross Cod flavored aioli. Why not make a remoulade instead? The crabcake is not made with jumbo lump crabmeat. I even showed our waiter what jumbo lump crabmeat actually looks like as he argued it was made with jumbo lump crabmeat. The crab in our crab cake was stringy like a cheap crab stick you get with a California roll. It tasted fine, but it is not what you expect to eat if you order a crab cake The real travesty? The gumbo! Who puts clams in a gumbo?!? not only that but the roux was way too thick, like an etouffee and it tasted sweet like a mole.. seriously WTF. I also had the snapper which was itself cooked perfectly. The problem is the menu says "blackened snapper". It is nowhere anything even remotely close to a traditional blackened preparation, basically just seasoned fish. Hell even Popeyes gets "blackened" right. The lobster ravioli was the only good thing that we had. The key lime pie did not taste like key limes whatsoever, It just tasted like lime pie. You can get good southern/Cajun/Creole seafood just about anywhere in the city. I would not look for it here. I would love to invite the chefs to my home and teach them how to make proper southern seafood because these New Yorkers that they imported in have absolutely no clue. I get it the whole Boulud crew is here riding the coat tails of their former boss's Michelin stars but one thing is clear, they don't know Southern seafood. They will piggyback and get customers who are fans of Bludorn for the name alone. I'm sure people will flock here for the hype but it's a total miss for those that know and love Southern seafood. I lived in Louisiana for many years to know good Southern seafood, you won't find it here. The real bonus? The unbridled sickness that I had for two whole days following this meal. I was violently ill within hours of having dinner. The only reason I am giving 2 stars instead of one is the service.

We celebrated a birthday at Navy Blue and the dining experience was fantastic. The staff was very attentive and offered help with our selections. The appetizers were great and had very nice presentation. Our main courses were cooked to perfection andctasted wonderful. Lastly, our dessert selection was just the final piece to a great dining experience.

Navy Blue is one of the best restaurants that opened in Houston in 2022. We went there twice - once during the opening week and once during Christmas time. Cocktails were solid - any of their martinis such as Nolets Gin with Lillet Rose martini was subtle yet memorable with a punch on your face. Murder points oysters were delicious either raw or baked with cheese. Crab cakes were legitimately filled with fresh crabs. Wild mushroom vol au vent had perfect crush. The only things we hated about Navy Blue was the fish dishes. First visit, we got swordfish that was dull and uninspiring. Second visit, we ordered the branzino that was unseasoned and sleepy. I would return to Navy Blue for cocktails, appetizers, and anything but the fish main courses.

Food and service was great! The biscuits are complementary and come out warm and delicious. I really enjoyed the salmon and the chocolate dessert. I would definitely go back and recommend to others.

Had a very nice dinner. Had the charred octopus and mahi dip to start…both excellent. The fish entrees were also great. Was a bit disappointed there wasn’t any shellfish in the menu. Dessert was just okay. It’s a bit pricey, but overall the food was excellent.

We wanted to love this restaurant! Houston needs a good seafood restaurant and it is within walking distance from our house. But it was a huge disappointment. Our waiter told us he would not rush us, but he had to take the entire order at same time. But that is exactly what happened. We had our first course (oysters) before my first drink was delivered. The next course came before we were finished with our oysters. I told another waiter that came to our table what the problem was. The original waiter eventually come back and apologized and said he would get our table cleared. Took forever for that to happen. After that the service got much better but the person that brought out my $85 dover sole took forever to filet it. You could tell she knew how to do it, but didn't have much experience. So when I got it served, it was good, but luke warm at best, and I got a mouthful of tiny bones. We do not mind spending money for a fabulous meal and experience. This meal was $420 for 2 of us and we've had better meals and service at a casual restaurant and I am trying to be nice!.

We saw this seafood centric restaurant was voted one of the best, if not the best, new restaurants in Texas. It certainly is the best new place in Houston. We had a wonderful Christmas Eve dinner there tonight. We sat at a smartly designed table in the bar area which was a tiny bit quieter. The main dining area is in plain view of the kitchen so if you like that concept, request it when reserving on the Resy app. The wines by the glass are somewhat limited but the selection are very good. And unlike some other establishments, the whites are properly chilled and expertly presented. After placing one’s order, an ethereal biscuit the size of a salad plate is served warm with butter. It is one of the best biscuits in town! If you love New England clam chowder, you are in luck. The Chef prepares a dreamy version baked underneath a light as air pastry. The server who brings it out, cuts off half the puffed top and inserts clams and bacon. Out of this world but quite a large portion. We also tried the fried oysters which were brought out with a creamy topping that was just right. No need for red sauce here. There are also other items on the menu besides seafood. My husband had the pork chop which was served with a cabbage that was prepared in a dark sauce that was perfect with the chop. He also sampled a specially prepared squash that was a gourmet treat. We were too full for dessert but suspect it probably is fantastic. And the service was incredible! Adeolena and Andres were well versed in hospitality. Both are exceptional at their profession. This place is a definite must if you enjoy fine dining in a lovely place with great service!