Hey friends! I am back at it again with a dinner review of Hotel Derek‘s Revolve Kitchen + Bar.  I had the pleasure of visiting this restaurant for the Houston Food Blogger Collective monthly dinner.  Here are my thoughts:

Location and Setup: Hotel Derek is one of Houston’s premiere boutique hotels located in the heart of the Galleria.  The front restaurant has had many lives as the hotel has tried to determine what fit best for their guests!  The current version is Revolve Kitchen + Bar which focuses on high end food in a relaxed setting.  The name Revolve comes from the revolutions the restaurant takes over the day.  First it serves as a large breakfast buffet with a Starbucks counter and by the evening it is transformed into a cool bar with pool tables where guests and locals hang out.

For our dinner, we were whisked away into the private back room.  As I walked in, I felt like I had entered a small wedding reception with charger plates, candles and beautiful linens.  I do not know if this is standard for private dinners at Revolve but I imagine if they can make it happen for us, they will make it happen for any guest! It was truly a beautiful setup and felt like a family dinner among my fellow food bloggers.

Food:  Hotel Derek and Revolve Restaurant treated us to an amazing three course dinner for our group. The first course was bruschetta with artichoke hearts, mushrooms, tomato con casse and brie cheese. For the entree we feasted on sea bass with spinach risotta, asparagus with a coconut cream sauce.  Finally for dessert, we had a mango pudding with graham cracker crust, fresh mango and pomegranate garnish.  I can genuinely say I liked every dish!

The starter course was a nice little tease and only increased my expectations of what was to come.  There were several elements to that dish, but the brie cheese is what stood out to me.  I just love cheese though!

The starter course.

For the entree, the risotto was incredibly creamy and I am a sucker for anything that includes spinach!  Although the menu claimed coconut was included, I did not taste it at all.   Other than just being pretty on the plate, the sea bass was seasoned very well and blended well with the risotto.

The sea bass!

I eyed the dessert course “mango pudding” and really did not know what to expect.  Texture wise, it had the consistency of a cheesecake and did not seem to have any additional flavor aspects other than the mango.  My favorite part was the graham cracker crunch which added a good flavor and texture balance to the mango pudding.

Mango pudding!

Drinks: We were offered house wine for dinner and then at the night we each were able to select a signature cocktail.  I went with the Splash Town. The bartender described it as the fruity girly drink which had ME written all over it.  It was light and refreshing.  All of the drinks were high level cocktails that you would find at any of the top local bars.

Overall: For travelers to Houston, hotel Derek is ensuring that you do not have to venture to far to have some great food and drinks.  Then for us locals, it is another good option for a nice dinner and a fabulous cocktail.