The Guest House - Austin Reviews

Our DIL recommended this place, and we were concerned after reading varied reviews. Great food/menu! Music a bit loud, but okay. Great service as well. We would highly recommend this restaurant!

Went here on a date and it was an amazing pick. The bread was out of this world, and complementary as an app. We ordered the spicy rigatoni, chicken a la raj, and the mushroom pizza. All incredible picks! Their cocktails are all Alice in Wonderland themed, and so delicious! Loved the Bandersnatch.

This was the worst dining experience I have had in years. I had friends from out of town and was embarrassed we had this experience in Austin. Let me start by saying I worked in restaurants for the better part of a decade and understand things happen. This was my second time at Guest House. Both times we waited over 50 minutes from our reservation time to be sat. The first time we had a nice time once sat. This time this was not the case. The floor manager came over and made an excuse that the wait was so long because this was going to be one of the best dining experiences in Austin. The service was sterile and slow, the food was mediocre, the server even left the payment machine at the table while we were closing out. Austin has so many great restaurants please do not waste your time on this overhyped joyless dining experience.

What a treat! I feel like Austin is being inundated with over priced, over hyped restaurants catering to wealthy tourists or businesses and I was worried this was going to be just another one. I was wrong. This place exceeded all expectations. From the moment we walked in and Tahki at the front desk was kind enough to offer us a shorter time limit table even though we didn't have a reservation (spoiler alert, we were able to keep the table the full dinner allotment) to the edible terrarium for dessert, the whole experience was top notch. We splurged on a theatrical drink which was well worth the price for the amount it came with. Dry ice and gold glitter and the "drink me" tag detail for the Alice in Wonderland theme made it all worth it and it was delicious. The most beautiful vodka martini. The bread was so unique and light I could have just eaten that for dinner and been happy. My scallops were cooked to perfection and parsnips puree was heavenly. The burger was worth the price tag too, and I already mentioned the edible terrarium. The most amazing conglomeration of cake and mousse and fruit and sorbet and brownie and cotton candy oh my! And the service! No empty dish left stranded. No napkin left unfolded. The teamwork and pride was evident. Anyone who saw anything needing done did it gladly. It didn't matter what the task or which table. Tahki was so incredibly kind and welcoming checked on us after we were sat, was so eager to assist us. Our waiter Skyler was so helpful with the menu, again extremely welcoming. We felt like family. And already have plans to go back, this time with a reservation!

The food here is absolutely delicious!! The best bread I’ve ever had and I’m not even a big bread person. Loved the atmosphere too. A must when in Austin.

This spot was hands down one of the best experiences I've had at a restaurant in awhile. From the ambiance, to the food, to the amazing drinks, this place is the place to be. Their Pastry Espresso Martini is INSANE, it was made by house made croissant infused vodka, espresso liqueur,amaro, spiced demerara, vanilla cold foam. They pour their vodka over their house made croissants to give the drink a smooth and milky taste. I got to indulge on a lot of the food menu but heres a few I would highly recommend. Coastal Oysters and Steak Tartare to start, next their HEIRLOOM APPLE & ENDIVE, and lastly their Parmesan Truffle Crusted Filet and Wagyu French Onion Burger. Make sure to get the Mac-n-Cheese and the Parmesan Asparagus as your sides. If you havent had a chance to try The Guest House, I'd suggest you RUN because this place is it. Special thanks to Adam and the rest of The Guest House amazing crew!

If you want to put on your finest to make your TikTok videos with the leather clad servers, this is your place! The food is really great here. The brioche bread as a starter was fantastic and we followed it with a beet salad, which was very creative and delicious. For entrees we had salmon and the chicken and both were really good. Dessert was fine but I doubt I would order it again. As others mentioned, the music here is too loud. There wasn’t a DJ on the night we were there and it was still turned up to the point that it was hard to hear our server. I didn’t mind what they were playing but seriously, tone it down a bit. As for service, if your experience was like ours, be prepared to wait. Our server was training someone and I guess part of that training meant standing around talking and ignoring your customers. For the prices you pay here I expected much better. If I had to describe the place in one word it would be pretentious. There were people talking to their “followers” in the bathroom and in the restaurant. If that’s what you want, try this place. I doubt I will ever go again.

OK the restaurant is chic and beautiful. Appearances may be deceiving however. I ordered the chicken dish, and specifically asked the server if it had onions (I have an allergy). She said that it didn't so all good. However it arrived and it had a lot of red onion slices all over it. I picked them out carefully, and ate the overcooked, dry chicken breast. When I told the server that there were onions, she said, "Oh, I asked the chef and he said there weren't any." That irked me as it was clearly a lie - she told me it had no onions and never checked. Mistakes are OK, but don't lie, own up to them! Oh and insult to injury? They charged me $1 for AN ICE CUBE. $25 for a overly small pour of bourbon, and an upcharge for ice. Absolutely ridiculous. I would not go back and would not recommend it.

First time here, and not sure we’ll be back. First the pros: excellent service—albeit all the servers are scantily clad in black, if that’s your thing—like a classy Hooters. Their brioche bread service was outstanding. Might go back just for that. My date ordered a salmon dish that was also quite good. Beautiful restaurant. Ok, the cons: the rest of our meal, all recommended by our server, were flat out terrible. Their endive/apple salad was a giant mound of matchstick apples covered in tasteless crumbs and shredded cheese. Couldn’t find any endive at all. Then a chicken dish where the chicken was pounded paper thin, smothered in crumbs and deep fried until it was completely dry inside, covered in grease outside. Not even the interesting sauce could help this dish. But the food wasn’t the worst part. The beautiful vibe of this restaurant was completely destroyed by loud, pulsating DJ music—combination of rap and a weird synthetic percussion/bass thing, I’m sure the kids have a name for it. Clearly we weren’t their target demographic, but I’m guessing even kids expect a decent meal when they spend so much of their hard earned dollars on it. Disappointed because it’s proximity to the Long Center makes it a great pre show option, but I think we’ll be sticking with ATX Cocina and Nido.

We came as 2 couples in our 60’s and definitely felt underdressed.The vibe here supports short dresses and high heels on the women and a younger crowd. Saying that, the meal was delicious and the waitress outstanding. We sat in a little cove in the back.. thank goodness, because it is very enthusiastically loud in the restaurant. And would be hard to hear. Bread service is automatic with a type of croissant type, delicious choice. We had Parmesan crusted filet mignon, with a mushroom side and potato mash side. All were delicious. We were celebrating birthdays and a retirement and got a delicious dessert treat. Bottles of wine were pricey but well enjoyed. This was one of the best meals out we have had in a while. Even my husband, who hates going downtown to eat, agrees.

The food was very good. However, I cannot agree with the people that state this place has great ambience. I don’t believe they know what ambience means. The music here is oppressively loud, so loud in fact that I couldn’t even hear the waiter who was stood just 1 foot away. This means that all the people inside the restaurant have to yell at each other to make themselves heard. Sadly, that is not an environment that I desire to be in when they charge that level of prices. I would happily pay that price for that great food if they could only fix the problem with the unnecessary noise. A resident DJ is not required in such a place. I suggest that they just fire him immediately - either that or forget about serving food and just be a disco/nightclub. Whoever thought that the combination of fine dining and loud techno music was a good idea is in need of a solid program of reeducation. Oh, and the air conditioning doesn’t work well either.

This beautiful spot is just what Austin has been needing! The elegant yet lively ambience, incredible food, the attentiveness of the wait staff and all the yummy drinks make this place one of the best in the city. Can't wait to go back!!

The ambience and location of the restaurant are solid and the appetizers I think are worthwhile that if you are looking for a decent option in the center of Austin downtown, it is worth considering this place and the drinks looked great despite me not having any.

My experience at The Guest House in Austin was nothing short of phenomenal from start to finish. The moment we walked in, the warm ambiance set the tone for a memorable evening. The server staff was outstanding—attentive, knowledgeable, and genuinely friendly, making us feel right at home. The food was exceptional, showcasing fresh, high-quality ingredients. The oysters were incredibly fresh, bursting with flavor, and the lobster was equally impressive, perfectly tender and delicious. The steak was cooked to absolute perfection, juicy and flavorful, and the pork chop was equally well-executed, with just the right balance of seasoning and tenderness. The cocktails deserve a special mention—creative, well-balanced, and a perfect complement to the meal. Every detail, from the service to the presentation, was on point. The Guest House is a must-visit for anyone in Austin looking for an elevated dining experience. I would highly recommend it to anyone seeking fresh seafood, expertly cooked meats, and a welcoming atmosphere. Can’t wait to return!