Our server did her best with what she had. An open kitchen allowed us to see the issue. Kitchen staff had no sense of pick up time or service flow
Taylor
Having enjoyed Little Em's several times in the past, I'm sad to say that the restaurant and its new location are best avoided for dinner now. It was a beautiful Thursday night before a holiday weekend and other restaurants in Southtown were packed, but we arrived for our 9 o'clock reservation to a completely empty restaurant— like, not another guest in sight, floors being mopped, hostess nowhere to be found empty. The restaurant closes at 10 o'clock. We were seated outside on the patio, which is a nice area and much preferred to the now spartan interior. The new location lacks the charm of the original Little Em's across the street. Our server was professional, attentive, and kind, but was clearly rushing us from the moment we were seated. This is unnecessary given that Little Em's is pretty casual and one can very easily be in and out in an hour. I'm sure she was frustrated at a slow night and ready to go home, but it did make us feel like an imposition rather than welcome guests. In fact, other patrons arrived to have a drink at the bar at 9:25 and were turned away, so it was very clear that the staff was not in the mood to welcome any customers last night. The bright point is that the food was quite good and prepared as ordered. Both the burger and salmon were as tasty as we remembered from past visits. We live in the neighborhood and feel strongly about patronizing local establishments, so I would consider visiting again for lunch or happy hour on the patio. Unfortunately, the overall experience for dinner is lacking, though. This is sad to see because Little Em's was once a neighborhood gem that was full most evenings.
Travis
The service was incredibly slow (2 hours for an appetizer to come out). But why should the server bring food out quickly if there's an automatic 20% gratuity.
Susan
This was my second time dining there. I've only dined outdoors and loved it. Great atmosphere!
Lillia
Went for my 21st birthday and spent nearly $160 for two people, and they didn't even offer any birthday complimentary dessert. This is the third year i've come for a birthday and first time this has happened, you'd think a nice establishment that costs an arm and a leg would at least be able to put a candle in something? I'll be breaking the tradition next year and taking my buisiness somewhere else sadly, I didn't feel special or like a valued customer whatsoever.
Jenny
It was incredibly loud. We could not have a conversation at our own table. Took over an hour to receive food after we ordered. Food was decent, but would not go back.
Brianna Yoder
I came here for dinner a week or so ago. The wait was incredibly long despite the restuarant being almost empty, we had to wait almost an hour and a half for pur food, and when it arrived the portions were small and it was salty.
The drinks were excellent though.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 2
Service: 1
Brian Fredrick
Like many of the other reviews stated, there is nothing that would or should make this a Michelin recommended restaurant. First of all, our party of just 3 showed up to our reservation 5 minutes before our outside dining experience was to begin, of which about half the tables were empty, dirty, and looked as they had been for some time. Restaurant was about 25% capacity on a Friday night. That should have been the first sign not to go forward with the reservation. It ended up taking close to 15 minutes for 3 individuals to try to clear the outside tables. Did I mention we had a reservation for outside. Rather than just clearing one table, they cleaned all 3 before seating us. Once seated, the staff consistently walked passed our table for nearly 15min, never acknowledging our presence, asking to take a drink order, or even appetizers; so long so, that I walked around the corner to try to see if there was availability at another restaurant, unfortunately not. Even others that arrived after us appeared to have their orders taken well in advance of us. Unfortunately, we still proceeded with dinner and drinks. The oysters were good, but it is hard to screw up something that God made. As others have mentioned, some of the meals were served to us a whole 15 minutes later than others at the table, long enough for others to finish their meals completely.
As for the service, the waitress was nice but not attentive. As mentioned previously, the restaurant was at about 25% capacity; however, most of their staff appeared to be doing other activities that kept them from being attentive to their customers, like the 3 bartenders filling bottles and wiping down glasses that no one was using. Could have certainly used their labor in much more effective ways. Oh, and by the way, it was my daughters birthday, which was mentioned during in our reservation; no happy B-day, no desert, no nothing, and now, no return. This place is certainly a one and done for us. I would not recommend this place to anyone. The food was just a little better than average, portions small, and the cost high. There are certainly many options to choose from for the price range; we walked away feeling taken advantage of as opposed to enjoying a special evening out. Restaurants need to recognize who they are catering to, the customer. It is all about the customer. If not, I will take my money elsewhere; in this case, I recommend you do the same.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 3
Service: 1
Recommended dishes: Oyster Bar
Kim Clipp
This place is loud. The food was good but it is over priced for what you get and they charge for tea by the glass but don't tell you. Listen folks this is Texas. Tea is a staple and not to be messed with. The service is slow and you have to ask for what you need with your meal. Overall I would not recommend this as a good place to eat.
Vegetarian options: They had one vegetarian salad and one dinner offering.
Kid-friendliness: There is outdoor seating so the kids can run free.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 4
Service: 2
Recommended dishes: Burger and Fries
Cassie McCord
Overpriced offerings. Portions are the appropriate serving size the price is comparable to the larger servings you receive at other restaurants. Mind you we read the reviews that the prices here were off. We decided to try it anyways. The food was enjoyable but 100% agree with overpriced for the value. Presentation of the meal is lovely. If you are going to enjoy the company of others the acoustics horrific. Tea refills are $3 each. Service is slow.
I honestly wish I could give it a 5 but I left very disappointed. Went during happy hour we ordered two martinis which were tasty. A little small but it’s happy hour so whatever. My husband and I just wanted to share a plate as we weren’t very hungry. Ordered one lobster roll and the waiter offered to have it cut in half for us. The size of the roll was extremely tiny when it came out they cut it in half and my husband and I grabbed each half. I ate it in 3 bites :/ Watch your bill when you go to pay!! They charged us two rolls and a 20% gratuity, I let him know we only had one roll and he did remove the second roll charge but 20% gratuity is outrageous!!! Especially with all the hiccups. Don’t think we’ll be back and it’s a shame because it’s such a cute place with cool decor.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 2
Samuel Tamburelli
If you are considering going for restaurant week, don't. For a restaurant recognized by Michelin there were too many issues. First and foremost, our server seemed aggravated and would basically run up to our table (and other tables in the room) and bark "you ready?" To take orders. No effort to explain the menu and questions were met with shrugs and corrections.
Next, from the time we ordered to when we got our first course was 20 minutes. Not that bad, but that was for 3/5 members of our table. The other two had to wait another 15 minutes for theirs. 0 effort was made to make sure dishes went out at the same time. By the time 2 of our table got their appetizers we were long finished ours.
Finally, the food. Was it decent? Yes I would say so. Was it Michelin quality? Not even close. They do not deserve to be anywhere near a conversation of best restaurants in San Antonio. The fish and chips was soggy, the linguine and clams had 4 clams (yes, that is right, 4 small clams), and the portions were comically small for all the dishes. The lobster rolls specifically actually made my party laugh out loud when we saw them. Borderline criminally small amount of lobster, to the point you couldn't see it in the roll. Maybe the oysters are decent but at 3.95/ oyster we didn't ever bother finding out.
In short, I lost respect for Michelin for recommending this place. Avoid unless you want to be ripped off and underwhelmed. 1/5 is generous.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 2
Service: 1
Recommended dishes: Connecticut Lobster Roll, Fish and Chips
Kolache Kid
Went in today and wait was 30 min bc we did not have a reservation. I logged in and made one and was told we don’t have a table even though there were 9 waiters standing around and 2 tables seated. Once we sat tried to order oysters and th y said they were out with the exception of 2 kinds. Onion minonette was really bad. They only had a balsamic one which was way too salty. Took 30 min for 24 oysters. This place is not what it used to be.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
mistine mizerak
Love the vibe of this place. Very cute, in a great area. The tuna toast is amazing, loved the lychee martinis and the oysters were really fresh and tasty. Planned to have a full meal but the service was terrible, slow, and the waitress seemed to be overwhelmed. Asked for some cocktail sauce and crackers and never received. Was there an hour and the waitress still hadn’t offered to take the rest of our order so we paid and went elsewhere. We will go back to try again because everything else was so good and hoping the service was just and off night.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 1
Recommended dishes: Dressed Oyster, Yellow Fin Tuna Tartare
Mickey Michalski
I ordered the mussels and linguine and it was extremely salty. The oysters brine was so salty we had to drench it with hot sauce. We waited 2hrs to eat and still waiting on desert. Waitress was nice. The hostess was rude.
Our server did her best with what she had. An open kitchen allowed us to see the issue. Kitchen staff had no sense of pick up time or service flow
Having enjoyed Little Em's several times in the past, I'm sad to say that the restaurant and its new location are best avoided for dinner now. It was a beautiful Thursday night before a holiday weekend and other restaurants in Southtown were packed, but we arrived for our 9 o'clock reservation to a completely empty restaurant— like, not another guest in sight, floors being mopped, hostess nowhere to be found empty. The restaurant closes at 10 o'clock. We were seated outside on the patio, which is a nice area and much preferred to the now spartan interior. The new location lacks the charm of the original Little Em's across the street. Our server was professional, attentive, and kind, but was clearly rushing us from the moment we were seated. This is unnecessary given that Little Em's is pretty casual and one can very easily be in and out in an hour. I'm sure she was frustrated at a slow night and ready to go home, but it did make us feel like an imposition rather than welcome guests. In fact, other patrons arrived to have a drink at the bar at 9:25 and were turned away, so it was very clear that the staff was not in the mood to welcome any customers last night. The bright point is that the food was quite good and prepared as ordered. Both the burger and salmon were as tasty as we remembered from past visits. We live in the neighborhood and feel strongly about patronizing local establishments, so I would consider visiting again for lunch or happy hour on the patio. Unfortunately, the overall experience for dinner is lacking, though. This is sad to see because Little Em's was once a neighborhood gem that was full most evenings.
The service was incredibly slow (2 hours for an appetizer to come out). But why should the server bring food out quickly if there's an automatic 20% gratuity.
This was my second time dining there. I've only dined outdoors and loved it. Great atmosphere!
Went for my 21st birthday and spent nearly $160 for two people, and they didn't even offer any birthday complimentary dessert. This is the third year i've come for a birthday and first time this has happened, you'd think a nice establishment that costs an arm and a leg would at least be able to put a candle in something? I'll be breaking the tradition next year and taking my buisiness somewhere else sadly, I didn't feel special or like a valued customer whatsoever.
It was incredibly loud. We could not have a conversation at our own table. Took over an hour to receive food after we ordered. Food was decent, but would not go back.
I came here for dinner a week or so ago. The wait was incredibly long despite the restuarant being almost empty, we had to wait almost an hour and a half for pur food, and when it arrived the portions were small and it was salty.
The drinks were excellent though.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 2
Service: 1
Like many of the other reviews stated, there is nothing that would or should make this a Michelin recommended restaurant. First of all, our party of just 3 showed up to our reservation 5 minutes before our outside dining experience was to begin, of which about half the tables were empty, dirty, and looked as they had been for some time. Restaurant was about 25% capacity on a Friday night. That should have been the first sign not to go forward with the reservation. It ended up taking close to 15 minutes for 3 individuals to try to clear the outside tables. Did I mention we had a reservation for outside. Rather than just clearing one table, they cleaned all 3 before seating us. Once seated, the staff consistently walked passed our table for nearly 15min, never acknowledging our presence, asking to take a drink order, or even appetizers; so long so, that I walked around the corner to try to see if there was availability at another restaurant, unfortunately not. Even others that arrived after us appeared to have their orders taken well in advance of us. Unfortunately, we still proceeded with dinner and drinks. The oysters were good, but it is hard to screw up something that God made. As others have mentioned, some of the meals were served to us a whole 15 minutes later than others at the table, long enough for others to finish their meals completely.
As for the service, the waitress was nice but not attentive. As mentioned previously, the restaurant was at about 25% capacity; however, most of their staff appeared to be doing other activities that kept them from being attentive to their customers, like the 3 bartenders filling bottles and wiping down glasses that no one was using. Could have certainly used their labor in much more effective ways. Oh, and by the way, it was my daughters birthday, which was mentioned during in our reservation; no happy B-day, no desert, no nothing, and now, no return. This place is certainly a one and done for us. I would not recommend this place to anyone. The food was just a little better than average, portions small, and the cost high. There are certainly many options to choose from for the price range; we walked away feeling taken advantage of as opposed to enjoying a special evening out. Restaurants need to recognize who they are catering to, the customer. It is all about the customer. If not, I will take my money elsewhere; in this case, I recommend you do the same.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 3
Service: 1
Recommended dishes: Oyster Bar
This place is loud. The food was good but it is over priced for what you get and they charge for tea by the glass but don't tell you. Listen folks this is Texas. Tea is a staple and not to be messed with. The service is slow and you have to ask for what you need with your meal. Overall I would not recommend this as a good place to eat.
Vegetarian options: They had one vegetarian salad and one dinner offering.
Kid-friendliness: There is outdoor seating so the kids can run free.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 4
Service: 2
Recommended dishes: Burger and Fries
Overpriced offerings. Portions are the appropriate serving size the price is comparable to the larger servings you receive at other restaurants. Mind you we read the reviews that the prices here were off. We decided to try it anyways. The food was enjoyable but 100% agree with overpriced for the value. Presentation of the meal is lovely. If you are going to enjoy the company of others the acoustics horrific. Tea refills are $3 each. Service is slow.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 4
Service: 1
Restaurantji Recommends
I honestly wish I could give it a 5 but I left very disappointed. Went during happy hour we ordered two martinis which were tasty. A little small but it’s happy hour so whatever. My husband and I just wanted to share a plate as we weren’t very hungry. Ordered one lobster roll and the waiter offered to have it cut in half for us. The size of the roll was extremely tiny when it came out they cut it in half and my husband and I grabbed each half. I ate it in 3 bites :/ Watch your bill when you go to pay!! They charged us two rolls and a 20% gratuity, I let him know we only had one roll and he did remove the second roll charge but 20% gratuity is outrageous!!! Especially with all the hiccups. Don’t think we’ll be back and it’s a shame because it’s such a cute place with cool decor.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 2
If you are considering going for restaurant week, don't. For a restaurant recognized by Michelin there were too many issues. First and foremost, our server seemed aggravated and would basically run up to our table (and other tables in the room) and bark "you ready?" To take orders. No effort to explain the menu and questions were met with shrugs and corrections.
Next, from the time we ordered to when we got our first course was 20 minutes. Not that bad, but that was for 3/5 members of our table. The other two had to wait another 15 minutes for theirs. 0 effort was made to make sure dishes went out at the same time. By the time 2 of our table got their appetizers we were long finished ours.
Finally, the food. Was it decent? Yes I would say so. Was it Michelin quality? Not even close. They do not deserve to be anywhere near a conversation of best restaurants in San Antonio. The fish and chips was soggy, the linguine and clams had 4 clams (yes, that is right, 4 small clams), and the portions were comically small for all the dishes. The lobster rolls specifically actually made my party laugh out loud when we saw them. Borderline criminally small amount of lobster, to the point you couldn't see it in the roll. Maybe the oysters are decent but at 3.95/ oyster we didn't ever bother finding out.
In short, I lost respect for Michelin for recommending this place. Avoid unless you want to be ripped off and underwhelmed. 1/5 is generous.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 2
Service: 1
Recommended dishes: Connecticut Lobster Roll, Fish and Chips
Went in today and wait was 30 min bc we did not have a reservation. I logged in and made one and was told we don’t have a table even though there were 9 waiters standing around and 2 tables seated. Once we sat tried to order oysters and th y said they were out with the exception of 2 kinds. Onion minonette was really bad. They only had a balsamic one which was way too salty. Took 30 min for 24 oysters. This place is not what it used to be.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
Love the vibe of this place. Very cute, in a great area. The tuna toast is amazing, loved the lychee martinis and the oysters were really fresh and tasty. Planned to have a full meal but the service was terrible, slow, and the waitress seemed to be overwhelmed. Asked for some cocktail sauce and crackers and never received. Was there an hour and the waitress still hadn’t offered to take the rest of our order so we paid and went elsewhere. We will go back to try again because everything else was so good and hoping the service was just and off night.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 1
Recommended dishes: Dressed Oyster, Yellow Fin Tuna Tartare
I ordered the mussels and linguine and it was extremely salty. The oysters brine was so salty we had to drench it with hot sauce. We waited 2hrs to eat and still waiting on desert. Waitress was nice. The hostess was rude.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 1
Service: 2
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