Zimm’s Little Deck

I ordered the Petite Lafitte & adult beverage of choice. Fluer di Lis… very nice. Here with my bestest girlfriend, Tameka Dixon, for afternoon girlfriend catch up time. Victor was our waiter, he was great!!! Quaint little spot, I’ll be back again. This review is a couple days late. I was actually here on this past Saturday, 7÷21÷12.

A superfluous update: I still like this place.
I had a ginger mojito (I can’t remember the name) that was fantastic. Perfect for the summer.
The lamb merguez sandwich is perfect late-​night food. I had to fight away friends trying to steal it.
Still haven’t tried petanque, but I am intrigued…

I came here for a «private» party and like the place. It’s like a grown up Pearl Bar. Chill with a nice outside area.
Positives:
+ Plenty of FREE parking. There’s a lot across the street, down the street, and on the street.
+ Picnic tables outside to mix and mingle. I like how there’s a trough in the middle for communal bottled beer sharing.
+ Pork nachos are good.
+ A handful of Texas beers on tap (e.g. Real Ale, Karbach) +Stella & Chimay.
Negative:
— Other bites weren’t very tasty. Like the crap dip thingies.
This place is owned by the same people who own La Colombe D’or so there is promise.

…my girlfriend and I went to the restaurant a month ago… it was hideous! we prepared to sit down… there was no ac… the tables looked like they hadn’t been wiped in forever, the menu’s were sticky and containg spills from various things…
Upon sitting down we had a server ask us what we wished to drink, and with upon recieving our order then using his bare hands removed the trash can through the restaurant! I was appalled at the thought of having him then serve our drink to us directly after such an act… I am saddened that this place has had to come to this but, honestly I wouldn’t have my worst enemy have to endure these horrific events… basically we left cash on the table, and left promptly…
They don’t have the servers they had before, the great chefs that would furiously work in the open kitchen or the wonderful bartenders… instead it has now become a wierd mixture of complete run down neglected workers and slumlike enviroments.
–stay faaar away…

Forward: Spent a Saturday afternoon on the porch for drinks and snacks. Waitress — 1^st day on the job.
Good:
Great location, lots of patio space with a huge yard if you’d like to picnic with their menu or bring your dogs (separate from the main eating area).
The strawberry mojito — only place in Houston I have had it served so well.
Mac and cheese — perfection in a ramkin.
Goat cheese cakes — they could use some herbs, but it was a great app
BBQ shrimp and polenta — amazing.
Prices are great.
Bad:
Our service was horrid, but it was our waitress’ first day — excusable.
They are mid wine list renovations… don’t plan to actually get anything you want to order — they promised to have it figured out in a week or two.

I have been here a couple of times. Both were pleasant. Food is good. Drinks are good (I really liked the Leah cocktail, but it is sweet!). Service is almost there — they haven’t quite gotten it down just yet. On my first visit, the service was great (Saturday afternoon). Second visit on a Friday evening was not as good, but not horrible.
Word to the wise: as with most places in Houston, do not leave items in your car in this parking lot. My car was broken into even though we were parked directly in the eye sight of people sitting outside on the patio and it was still daylight. I made the mistake of leaving a few things in my car and came out to a nice surprise when leaving. The restaurant staff did say they were sorry — so they are at least friendly people.
So enjoy, but be vigilant with your valuables!

We sat down and asked for a coke and a glass of water. Five minutes later the waiter comes back with a coke, but no water, claiming he forgot the water.
Okay, instead of water, we ask for a root beer. Five minutes later the waiter comes back and says he forgot the order again. We ask for root beer again, but another five minutes go by with nothing.
For context, it helps to know that this is a very small restaurant, and there were only two other parties seated at the time. Our waiter was either mentally disabled in some way or was snubbing us for reasons beyond us. Either way, we just left $ 2 for the coke and walked out.
This is a really charming location with an absolute lack of management.

The calamari here was listed as the best in Houston so I wanted to give it a try. I got it as an appetizer and it wasn’t horrible, but in no way was it close to the best I have ever tried. The rest of my experience here was bad. I ordered the grilled red fish, it took an excessively long time to arrive and I was really shocked that any restaurant would serve the filet that i was given. It was burnt to a crisp, I couldn’t taste the fish, all I could taste was the char from the grill. I took two bites and refused to touch it after that. The service here was one of the worst I have experienced in many years. The wait staff really seemed like they didn’t care that there were any costumers in the restaurant. Except for taking our order we were pretty much ignored by every employee there.

This place inspired me to write my third review. It is horrible. It is tiny and cramped and the service is lacking. Why would they grab your plate and take it away before you’re done without even asking if you were done with your plate? Price was really high and so I expected delicious food. But no. The food is mediocre. Like a hole in the wall kind of restaurant where you have zero expectations for good food.
The best part of the place was the roaring fire outside on a cold Houston night.
I came with my friends and family and was surprised by the roaring fire they had outside (and it’s been COLD in Houston), which was very pleasant.
Had calamari as an appetizer –it was rubbery and not so good at all. We ordered the rockefeller oyster which was eh. Shrimp po’boy was lacking in flavor (really salty though) and my husband ordered the fisherman’s platter and it was pathetic. We also ordered drinks that came out mediocre. And let me tell you, the presentation of everything was horrid.
All in all, I would never come back here and I definitely do NOT recommend this place. There are so many other places that have better food and better service ESPECIALLY for the price of the food here.

This place was… ok. My friend and I sat at the bar for happy hour, which had fair prices, and I had a $ 4 bowl of gumbo (hh price) while my friend had a po-​boy. Her po-​boy was fair, the gumbo was really tasty, but the staff was fairly aloof.
Were it not happy hour, I don’t think I would come back because the rest of the menu was a bit pricy for me. Kudos for them for having Louisiana fare, but maybe they could implement a warm Southern attitude as well.

Went there for drinks, bocce ball, and light appetizers one day. The drinks were good (plenty of good beer specials!), the bocce ball was fun (it’s dirt, for those who care or prefer grass), and my only gripe was the food. I got the mussel sample and mussels were out of season when I went, so I wasn’t expecting anything spectacular. The char broiled were ok, the rockefeller was my favorite, and the cheese (gruyère and parmesan if I recall correctly) tasted like they’d used stray cat puke as topping — and that’s being generous. The mussels were edible once the topping was scraped off. But those mussels were such a bad experience that I just could not rate this place well.
The service was mediocre. I think the server came out once to ask us if we needed anything; otherwise, we had to go inside to the bar to order. It’s not a huge deal, but I guess it might bother some people.
The other issue is that they do have a feral cat colony right next door, and some of the cats walk over to the patio to beg. Like any stray cat, they will get defensive and possibly scratch if you get too aggressive, so I could see that being a problem for people. But they didn’t bother us at all besides a little begging under our feet, and I like cats so I didn’t mind at all. For those who care, just be aware.

I was surprised how good this place was!
Stopped in Sat morning and it was empty. My friend and I spoke with Wayne (manager). He was really personable and helped us decide on some food and drinks. While we were waiting we had a couple beers from their selection of micro-​brews and Wayne whipped up some phenom bloody marys.
We split the pan roasted oysters and the escargots for appetizers. The escargot were good, but the oysters were killer! Like a Southern bacon-​y Rockefeller-​esque dish.
We also split two sandwiches, the Petite Lafitte and the lamb sausage, both served with home fried chips. The Lafitte was really good, but almost too rich, especially since I was dipping it in the pan roasted oyster sauce. The lamb was super delicious with Indian spices.
We worked off the sandwiches with a game petanque (French bocce). All while listening to the jams of Portishead.
Great food, friendly service, nice atmosphere, petanque court, … this place is a winner!

Zimm’s Little Deck serves up seafood, sandwiches and gumbo in an atmosphere reflecting New Orleans charm. With its French posters, flickering gas lights, bentwood chairs, outdoor fireplace and large outdoor pétanque court, Zimm’s Little Deck offers a friendly and casual vibe with down-​home dishes. The Zimmerman clan refers to this venue a fancy ice house, for my wife Penny and I, Zimm’s Little Deck is much more than that.
Based on popular Cajun cuisine from «po’ boys» to «rich boys,» Zimm’s Little Deck serves up seafood, sandwiches and gumbo. But what else would you expect from a «fancy» icehouse complete with a broad selection of craft beers and «cheap, decent or good» wines. Sit inside with a group, or alone at the bar. Zimm’s Little Deck adds fun to the food with a pétanque court in front of the establishment. The vaulted ceilings and crown moldings brought an «old world» ambiance to the building. Outdoor patio seating and wide French doors means you can watch the world go by, or enjoy the game of pétanque as it is played.
What is pétanque? It is similar in nature to Italian bocce or English lawn bowling where two teams compete against each other to roll a ball closest to the «goal» both through direct rolls and those that knock the ball of the opposing team away from their goal. Brothers Mark and Dan Zimmerman admit to learning to love this sport from a young age as they first learned how to play it while visiting family in France. Zimm’s Little Deck’s ambiance makes it a favorite venue for our French-​speaking group, le RDV Français, which meets there on a regular basis.
Chef Jeramie Robison draws on fresh Gulf seafood and his Louisiana roots (and some produce from his family farm) to create hearty gumbos, shrimp rémoulade and croque monsieur hushpuppies. But the stand-​outs here are the fried oyster and shrimp poor boys and their «rich boy» cousins like the Long Island quack: duck thigh confit with arugula and seasonal fruit preserves stuffed into a crunchy baguette. Specialty drinks include hurricanes and gin fizzes, but there’s a decent wine list and plenty of craft beers on the bar list as well.
Gulf Oysters on the half shell are cold and briny and carefully opened, their only drawback being the cost: $ 17 a dozen, guaranteed to produce sticker shock among Houstonians and making a dozen on the half shell a major splurge. While the Cajun restaurant’s small plates (items like Croque Monsieur balls and fried calamari) are great, the poor boys are wanting. But there’s no shortcoming here that couldn’t be fixed with relative ease.
Unique truly is the word to describe Zimm’s Little Deck, from dining and drinking to entertainment. You can choose from icehouse/​seafood bar to «home cooked» Cajun cuisine; visit with friends or dine alone there is something here for every taste and age.

Finally made my way to Zimm’s Little Deck and everything I had was pretty bomb. The calmari was well-​prepared and I liked the extra lemon they put in one of the dipping sauces. The croque monsieur balls were extra cheesy, and when is that ever a bad thing? I tried some of my friend’s fried green tomatoes (which I think I’ve had but one or two times in my life) and I was impressed such a simple dish could be so good. My petite lefite rich boy sandwich was good, and I especially liked how they stuffed the baguette with the meat making it much easier to eat. I’m definitely not a fan nor a hater of pickles, but the pickle served with my sandwich very well might be the best pickle I’ve had in my life (I’m no expert, though). And finally, the breat pudding = OFF… THE…CHAIN.
The only downside in my eyes is that I think the prices are a tad bit high for what you’re getting. I mean, my sandwich cost $ 15. Is a sandwich ever really worth $ 15? Nevertheless, I’m sure I’ll be back, and I would definitely recommend this place to anyone who doesn’t mind a slightly elevated price point for high-​quality, well-​prepared food.

Close to the house –Check
Open Patio – Check
Good Wine Selection – Check
Great food selection – Check
Cute Bartender with tattoos-​Check
My kind of place. Needed a new place to meet a friend with a patio, and a good glass of wine. I had passed by Zimm’s Little Deck, and decided to give it a shot. The crowd was a mix, and the patio was very pretty. Lots of open space, with small tables to enjoy good conversation. I sat at the bar, waited for my friend and immediately the bartender asked what I wanted. I took a look at the chalk board with the cheap, good, and great wine list, and he actually SUGGESTED the cheap white. This was a first I thought, usually bartenders/​waitresses suggest an expensive wine. He let me taste it beforehand, and it was quite tasty. I started chatting with the gentleman, who ended up being a chef at Central market. All in all the place was good, the service was awesome, and the crowd was good for people watching. The bartender also let us sample some infused cherries, and other tidbits. I will definately be back for some food, and to enjoy the patio again!

What potential! The set up is nice, the décor faux French is well placed. And it’s owned by the same family who own Zimm’s Martini and Wine Bar and La Colombe d’Or Hotel! Maybe I had to it hyped up in my mind, but I was disappointed in almost everything.
To start off, we sat at the bar. Immediately, they were out of two ingredients for one of their speciality drinks, the Fleur de lis. Of course, this is my choice. So I end up with a ‘good’ red wine. (They rate the wines by the glass as great, good, and cheap. It was a cutesy touch.) My boyfriend ordered a bourbon Manhattan and asked about bourbon selection. Of which they had one. Then the bartended looked up the recipe. Which was interesting, because Manhattans are pretty popular but we rolled with it. I recieved my wine in what appeared to be high ball, but I’m not going to complain about a lack of stem. His Manhattan was… okay. He’s not so much a complainer either, but he said it wasn’t worth the $ 10 for a cocktail.
For the appetizer, we ended up with Gulf Oysters because they were out of the crab claws and the East Coasters (and so the theme really begins to take hold). The oysters were small, but rather meaty.
We each ended up with po boy, one shrimp and one oyster. By far the highlight of this part was the home made chips. They’re crisp and lightly spicy, with a nice seasoning.
Throughout dinner, we notice the bartender looks up the recipe for almost every drink he made, unless he was pouring wine or opening a beer. He was completely inattentive to our party, but definitely kept his eyes and charms out for the coeds at the other end of the bar. My drink went unfilled and we had to get a set of silverware because we weren’t given enough.
It’s open, so you can see the chefs. We asked one his favorite thing to eat and we began a good conversation with him. He was by far my favorite person I made contact with here.
There was nothing to bring me back here. Except trying the croque hush puppies. Those looked amazingly gooey as I saw someone else enjoying them. Or maybe to try a different bartender. But I’d probably just go over to hit the other Zimm’s where I’ve never had a bad drink made or poured.

Meh.
Pros:
~Their ‘cheap’ wine was actually very, very good. They also have ‘Good’ and ‘Fancy’ wine options ($ 6, $ 9, and $ 12).
~The pickle that comes with the po boys — freaking awesome — very tasty!
~The Colorado Pilsner — something, something Yella — huge fan.
~Everybody elses appetizers looked great! I saw folks order the croque hush puppies and oysters rockefeller (one of my personal faves), so i’ll have to order that next time.
~Food: the cocktail sauce was pretty good, but I mean you can’t really eff up cocktail sauce.
Cons:
~Stray cats. I love animals, I just don’t want 3 to 4 stray cats running in and out of the restaurant while I’m dining. Even though they did make efforts to get them out — how about ya closethe doors? I mean, there’s an alley behind the restaurant and the parking lot has like 5 trashcans — there will be stray cats.
~Service: they could work on it.
~Food: um, i loooove seafood and i loooove cajun food. Please don’t mask the main ingredient with the thickest po boy bread one can find. I had the crawfish po boy and i had to drench it in Crystal’s hot sauce. It just wasn’t great — I barely ate the bread, i ended up eating the crawfish out of the sandwich. And don’t say ‘tomato’ is on the sandwich and then top the sandwich with a lone half cherry tomato. That made no sense to me. The homemade chips were good at first but then they just got crazy salty and I couldn’t even finish them.
I will be back — but I’m gonna go for appetizers and HH instead.

Zimm’s has a nice outdoor patio for those who enjoy basking (aka melting) in the Houston sun during the day. And at night, its a great place to relax and meet people for drinks. I love this about Zimm’s but the food?
I don’t love so much.
I’ve tried their calamari and their grilled chicken po boy and I actually wished I hadn’t. Dry, tough bread that felt like it was cutting my mouth? I can pass on that. The po boys come with a side of house made potato chips and mine arrived fried to a beautiful shade of dark brown. I love bread pudding but the one I ordered here turned out looking and tasting like a hot mess. It came on a little skillet with globs of icecream and chocolate sauce melting all over it. Sadly, it tasted mostly like chocolate sauce and icy (not creamy) vanilla icecream. After this fat bomb of a meal, I wish I had eaten at Bowl next door instead.
Next time, I’ll have whatever Jim L. was having!

Just went for the first time last night, and was very impresed with the food, service and atmosphere. Our party of 4 ordered the following, and everything was outstanding:
Appetizer:
Croque Monsieur Hushpuppies
Entrees:
Oyster Poboy, Rocky Balboa (Philly Cheesesteak) Richboy, Casablanca (Lamb) Richboy, and Lafitte (Fried Oysters and Beef Tenderloin) Richboy.
I’m excited to check this place out for Happy Hour in the future (I believe it is M-​Th from 4−7pm and feature among other things $ 2 PBR and $ 4 Gumbo).
I’m also excited to go back and try some of their other yummy-​looking appetizers and poor/​rich-​boy sandwiches.

My friends and I arrived around 8:30 on a Thursday night. To my surprise it was completely packed! So I figured this place has to be good. After our drink orders were put in, we ordered:
1) croque monsieur hush puppies. They were absolutely, melt in your mouth delicious. It pretty much was a ball of cheese with small pieces of smoked ham, rolled into a ball, covered in cornmeal, then deep fried. This was perfect as a bar snack.
2) Rich Boy: lamb with spicy aioli sauce and arugula. The meat was a little tough but still flavorful. Although I’m not a huge meat eater it was still yummy. The dish also came with their homemade potato chips and pickle. The pickle is something to talk about. It was really interesting tasting, it was almost like they put soda water into the mix along with fresh dill.
3) Ceviche. Very very delicious with high quality ingredients. I wanted to have the whole thing to myself.
The crowd was definitely older than my friends and I but enjoyable. I like this place, I’ll be back.