Rainbow Lodge in Houston

An Old Favorite
​
​Our family has fond memories of dining at Rainbow Lodge, years ago. So the day after Thanksgiving we returned.

We arrived before dusk and found the entrance already decorated for Christmas.

2001
​
​We remembered the festive decorations from 15 years ago, when my mom came for Christmas.  

But as you can see, the entrance was different then... with stairs.
​

In Back
​
Before it got dark we took a peek at the deck and the landscaped acre of land below. 

I remember in 2001, thinking it was odd to have such a woodsy setting in the middle of the city.  

The country setting with white lights, looked as lovely as I remembered.  Only this isn't what I remembered at all!  Evidently the restaurant moved to a new loaction 10 years ago!   

Cabin in the Woods
​
​Rainbow Lodge left the Buffalo Bayou setting in 2006 and moved to another wooded area, this time beside the White Oak Bayou.

 The restaurant was built around a log cabin that had been sitting on the land for about 100 years. 
​
Interior
​
​Once inside we could see how the newer parts of the building blended with the old log cabin. 

 There were 3 beautiful stone fireplaces and the original log walls.

​Dining Rooms
​
​This room with the 18- foot celing was once a living room.  

A stone fireplace covered one wall and the stairway, using Cypress knees was at the other end. 

Cozy Hallway
​

This is the cozy space we passed through to get to the bar.  ​

I'm not sure if the leaded glass windows were original, but it gave a dramatic peek into the cabin dining room.

​The Tied Fly Bar
​
​This 20-foot hand carved bar was moved from the old location. 15 years ago, the kids were young and we didn't spend any time checking out the glass covered piece of art, carved from a single tree.  

This time we stopped for a little live music and some martinis before our reservations. 

​Cheers
​
​The parents posed with glasses.  

We are too old for selfies, but not too old to ham it up.

Scott and Heidi
​
​Heidi and Scott are young enough to handle the close ups!  

We had a few toasts and laughed as we recalled our last time together at Rainbow Lodge.

Our Past Feast
​
​One of the few things we remember about our dining adventure 15 years ago, was how excited Scott was to try the Special of the Day. We were new to Texas and he was eager to take on the dish that included buffalo.  

That was also back when Don and I were new to the idea of our kids wanting anything besides chicken or burgers.  When the bill came, we were stunned to see our 6th grader had just ordered a 60-dollar meal.  

​Room of Windows
​
​The original cabin rooms were reserved for special parties, but the other dining spaces had great views of the trees and lights.  

I don't have a photo of our exact table from this visit, but we do have a few food photos.

The Day of Food Pics
​
15 years ago, people didn't snap so many food photos. I love discrete cell phones.

Heidi and Scott have grown to enjoy a wide range of foods, so they were excited about the wild game choices...and they did check prices! Heidi and Don went for the rainbow trout with lump crab and pecan brown butter.  Scott had the Wild Game Mixed Grill with elk loin, venison medallions, wild boar chop and Lockhart quail. And I went for beef tenderloin with fried oysters.

Our wonderful waiter, Jim, should have been exhausted after a huge serving day on Thanksgiving, the day before.  But he was in talkative spirits and seemed quite excited that we wanted to order a burger, as an extra plate.  We wanted to experience a sandwich using elk, venison & bison! We invited him to join us, but he declined.  All was wonderful and we left stuffed.

Heading Home
​
​We paused for a photo on the way out. 

A lot has changed since our last visit... besides the setting of the restaurant.  So wish my mom could have been with us, like the first time!
​