Stopped for lunch on June 8th, service staff seated us quickly and waitstaff was very responsive. I had the pulled pork sliders , they are awesome and are garnished with fried pickles, side was fries and also came with choice of soup or salad. I had the chicken tortilla soup. Entire meal was very good.
(4)
Houston E.
This place went down hill, not just the food but also the service.. . If you want a mediocre drink prepare to wait. When you are done waiting prepare to wait again because there still won't be a drink in front of you. The food used to be good, what happened? If you close your eyes when you eat, you'll think you are eating a microwave dinner. If you want the check prepare to wait again.
(1)
Mark D.
If you want just a truly average dining experience, try Houlihan's. But who really wants that? Truth is the menu is nothing great and the service is very chain-like. The bar is overpriced; it's just a suburban chain restaurant with Chicago loop pricing. $9 cocktails? Puh-leeze. Houlihans can accommodate your large group. But like I said it's pretty average. I'm sure you can find better options. I know we will. Here is what got them the single star. And I know since then they tried to make amends. But their absolutely ignorant rude staff turned away a veteran and his service dog this past Memorial Day weekend. It was big news. Go look for "Houlihan's in Algonquin Turns Away Veteran With Service Dog Over Memorial Day Weekend" or "Manager fired after veteran, service dog turned away from restaurant" to find out more. I think that's terrible.
(1)
Paige W.
Somewhat of a typical chain restaurant but better than a Fridays or Chilis. We ordered the spinach dip and thought it better than a lot of others we've had in the area. I ordered the martini flight and found them to be creative and a great deal compared to the other drink choices ($9 for three mini martinis). My date had the nachos and had no complaints. I had the fish tacos and found the taste good, but the taco lacking much fish and just having a flattened piece that was more fried crispies than fish. It came with a house salad which was huge and I took home. We sat outside... Not the best idea. Loud cars racing down the entrance area took away from any calming atmosphere. Bathrooms were modern and very clean. Though the sinks a bit confusing as how to turn them on at first. Our waiter was young.. Just 18... But did a great job and was very attentive.
(3)
William W.
Would love a manager or owner to respond to this... I tried to take my son out for Lunch at the Houlihan's in Algonquin today, Memorial day weekend. When we walked through the door the hostess said that they do not allow Dogs in the restaurant. My Son replied that his dog was a service dog at which time the hostess went and got the manager. The manager also refused to let the dog in and asked what kind of service he provided. For clarification, my son is an army veteran. He served 9 years, did 3 tours in Iraq and one in Afghanistan. His dog is a service dog and by federal law is allowed into anywhere he goes. We left and went down the road a little ways to the Village Vintner who simply asked if my sons dog was a service dog and when we replied yes seated us right away. Just thought that everyone should know that the Houlihan's In Algonquin refused to serve an Army Veteran (he even had a t-shirt on that said he was a veteran) on Memorial Day Weekend. We will not be going there again.
(1)
Truth M.
I do read reviews on yelp. Yes this is a chain Eatery and the food is the same, but theres "Not a lot of good places" in this area to chose from sadly. I do want to say that where the Host hang out the floor should of been cleaned no reason for that, That's a easy clean up.I do want to say that are server was "Awesome" and everything came out at the right time. That is a big plus for me. He was friendly and spoke very well. So Thanks Houlihan's for having Great Men on your staff. I really enjoy it when staff is nice and that can smile. It makes a world of difference. Rock on!
(4)
Amber C.
Cheap drinks and starts bar fare. Easy to have a good time with their happy your specials.
(4)
Barb L.
We used to go every Tuesday after work, but the service has seriously declined in the past year. If you're not single guys/girls, forget it. Bartenders are only interested in flirting.The bar is always dead and the service is probably why. No desire to go there anymore...so many other great places to go!
(1)
Adam L.
Very good food. My steak was cooked perfectly, they asked twice BTW, and the mashed potatoes were excellent. Good service. My only issue was the amount of time between finishing our meal and getting our check, but that's a pet peeve of mine and it wasn't so terribly long to dock any points. Save room for the Serious Brownie Sunday. Seriously. I didn't want to eat it all but I did. Self loathing, guilt, and regret should always taste this good.
(5)
Kristen H.
So I come to this Houlihan's location pretty frequently and I usually get my favorites including Spicy Chicken Eggrolls, Baked Potato Soup, and Heartland Grilled Chicken Salad. Yum. I can always guarantee good quality food with no surprises. I have yet to find a better baked potato soup! Last Friday, however, was a disappointing experience. Normally I come during lunch hour or during the week when they have happy hour prices or promotional deals that I get via email. I received a promo on Friday morning for "Repeal Day" which was the 81st anniversary of the end of prohibition. It said "Enjoy $3.95 happy apps and $5 drink specials to honor the occasion". Done deal! Except the waitress had no idea about it and said the happy apps are only M-Th. Yes, that's exactly why it's a deal on a Friday. Asked to speak to a manager after showing her the email and she went to speak to them (instead of us) and said it was a marketing glitch that was supposed to go out on Thursday which didn't make sense because after googling it, Repeal Day was in fact Friday. Ugh I hate arguing/confrontation so we stayed. Normally not a huge deal but happy apps and drinks were the only reason we came. Maybe the marketing team needs some work because I take my coupons seriously! I know I will be back for my usual soup/salad combo but was very disappointed this time around.
(2)
Natalie D.
A group of four of us waited 5 minutes at the bar without a greeting, menu or service. Two girls came up after & got service immediately. The only person who working there who even acknowledged our presence was the host on our way out. Never coming in again & took our business elsewhere.
(1)
Karyn M.
Appetizers were great; had to send my steak back twice and still could not eat it. Don't think I will be back...
(2)
Julio O.
Just gross. The restaurant was very dirty. I had the chicken tortilla soup and the homestyle pot roast. The pot roast that I buy at Walmart tasted 110% better than the pot roast here. The chicken tortilla soup was just okay at best. The water was unfiltered and tasted like it just came out of the bathroom sink. Why go to this restaurant if I could cook better food at my house with the ingredients in food that I buy from Walmart for less money. I will never return to this restaurant again.
(1)
Dario R.
Got black mint in my mule. 2 hairs in my side ceaser salad, and a generic apology from the manager. Thanks Houlihans. You just lost me.
(1)
Stef M.
Good place. They really know how to make a steak. Thumbs up on the creative desserts and happy hour appetizers!
(4)
Eva R.
This is a GREAT place to eat. The shrooms ROCK and so does the staff. I have been eating at Houlihan's for 20 years and there is a reason they have been around for so long, they must be doing something right. For all the haters, you can not please everyone.
(5)
Mike Z.
The assistant manager (at least that's what she claimed to be because I asked for the manager and she said Im the only one here) there was so rude I couldn't eat my dinner. I was outside smoking and she came up to me and said I couldn't smoke outside the restaurant. I looked at her confused and said "really? I'm well over 15 feet from the door so what's the problem?" she proceeded to explain and I said forget it and put my smoke out and went back inside to eat my food. She then proceeds to follow me telling me how wrong I was to smoke outside the restaurant and gave me about 15 different reasons to not only quit smoking but why illinois law says I can't smoke IN PUBLIC lol. I laughed a bunch and tried to tell her to please just go away from my table as it was starting to get annoying listening to someone who knew absolutely nothing try to explain why she was right. I kept trying and trying very kindly to tell her it's ok just please let me enjoy my dinner. Then finally I raised my voice and said "MY FOOD IS GETTING COLD PLEASE LET ME EAT!" Which of course scared my 1 year old and in turn made me lose my appetite. So I sat there while my wife ate and me and my 1yo son being upset at this point didn't eat. When all was done the check came and I brought my sons plate and my plate over to the assistant manager and told her she had ruined my dinner due to her overwhelming urge to explain some law that didn't exist to me. In the end we didn't get even a $1 discount. I paid my bill and left never to return. This happened last year and I'm not sure this person is still there but any restaurant that allows an employee to berate a customer for 10 minutes isnt a great place to be. ACTUALLY I can't see how anyone could hire someone like that for this type of position and not see the type of person she is. Anyone who got this far congrats now for a review on the food according to my wife (because of course I could let eat) her exact words were "It was average at best" followed by a long drawn out *SIGHHHHHH* I hope this review helps.. My only request is get that manager out of there, if she was even a manger in the first place. Our waitress didn't even refill my drink one time as well lol.
(1)
Matt T.
Great and fast service. The waiter was at our table within a few minutes. The food and drinks were great. The waiter even offered us to go cups for our drinks. After we paid we were given 2 complimentary cookies that were delicious.
(5)
Whitney N.
I'm a huge fan of Houlihans! The only complaint I have for this restaurant is I would expect more vegetarian options. Nonetheless I had the BEST lunch here. I ordered the veggie burger sliders that came with the Tuscan white bean salad on the side. I was very impressed with both plates. The salad was plated so beautifully and tasted so delicious and fresh, I will definitely get it again! They veggie burgers were perfect as well! Some places make them too dry but I wouldn't have changed a thing.
(4)
Lori B.
My husband and I diner here about once a month and we love it. Their filet is fantastic, better than steakhouses in the area. Lettuce wraps and fish tacos are awesome. The side salad that comes with your meals is very good! We have never had a bad meal or bad service here.
(5)
Rich K.
Great atmosphere! Ordered the firecracker shrimp and the bbq chicken flatbread. Shrimp was excellent, flatbread fell flat, the chicken used appeared to be cubed and frozen.
(3)
Donna R.
I cannot believe it has taken me THIS long to review Houlihans... anywho, being from Schaumburg the hubby and I were quite sad when our location closed down and luckily LITH is not too far for us. Have been here MULTIPLE times and even hosted our Rehearsal dinner here -- that was the only time we were sort of let down, and it was a small thing, not terrible. They had no problem with us just ordering off the menu, we only had around 20 people and didn't want any sort of mini-wedding, we wanted something casual and fun before the big night. So we get there and we have two awkward tables by the front door, so we cannot sit with all of our guests -- it was kind of a bummer. I wish they would've made one big table in the middle of the dining room for us. But, nonetheless, the food was awesome and all of our drinks were 1/2 off due to it being a special on Thursday night. We spent half of what we thought we were going to. So back to the good stuff... I have never ordered one dish from this place that I wasn't totally wowed with... from their Atlantic Salmon, Chicken Asian Chop Chop Salad, Down Home Pot Roast, Stuffed Chicken Breast, and their famous Baked Potato Soup... everything is super delicious. You usually get a HUGE portion as well. The last time we frequented this establishment was for an impromptu late lunch with the hubby -- had a free entree coupon for his birthday and decided to redeem it. I ordered the Salmon BLT (a new one for me) and he went with this fave, the Chicken Parmesan. Then, find out their Pitcher Long Island Iced Teas are only $5.. we were totally happy. Both of our dishes were SUPER good and I was extremely surprised to see my Salmon BLT have a full portion of salmon, no skimping here. When we give her our coupon, we totally expected my dish to be the free one since it was cheaper... but no, she gave us the chicken dish off! We left insanely full and insanely happy :)
(4)
Jennifer E.
Good food, this was our first time here- had a very nice young lady named Lindsay. She gave us good advice on their martinis. Food came out pretty quick 2 small complaints -it took a while for her to come back and grab our plates, and the brownie we were served wasn't hot (not our servers fault).... And then again it took a while to grab my credit card. My guess was that it was a long day (labor day). Overall OK service (not amazing but OK)... We would go back for sure.
(4)
Theresa V.
I absolutely love this place. The food is excellent. By far the best stuffed mushrooms I have ever had! The nachos are really good too. Great place to have some drinks and killer appetizers! It's really clean and the staff is friendly!
(5)
amy j.
I really like Houlihans. It's a notch above the regular chain restaurant. They manage to stay current with tastes and trends while others get stagnant. The decor is beautiful, the servers are friendly and the food is great. Tonight we tried some of the choices from the small plates menu. It was a good way to try something but I'm not crazy about how they serve the dishes, as they are ready. So you might get one thing at a time or all at once or an appetizer after an entree.
(4)
Rhiannon K.
I love this Houlihan's. It has great music, it is nicely decorated and the atmosphere is chill. The staff is so friendly. If I am going to eat at a chain restaurant, this is where I end up. The tuna wontons, stuffed mushrooms, tuscan salad and stuffed chicken are outstanding. They have great drinks and half price bottles of wine on Tuesdays.
(5)
Michelle N.
Tonight I have had the worst restaurant experience of my entire life. My husband and I had a sitter and came in for a night out. The service was terrible our food came out wrong the server didn't know what they were doing and when we asked to speak to a manager a tall lady named Sam (i think) came over. She had an attitude from the start, she was rude to us and said since we ate all the food there wasn't much she could do besides give us a free dessert. Later when I went to the bathroom I saw that same manager sitting at a bar table gossiping with some guy maybe her boyfriend or friend but that's just speculation. She seemed to care less what was going on in the store but rather she wanted to gossip and flirt with some guy. I am so mad and not to mention the girl who served us ( long orangeish hair with a squeaky voice who we've seen working in the bar before) was beyond horrible! She never came around so we couldn't tell her what was wrong. We are very upset and my husband actually took pictures because that server was seen flirting with the same guy the manager was sitting at a table in the bar as well. This is ridiculous! We thought we'd give this place a try after all the bad rep with the vet and wow were we disappointed. We will NEVER be coming back and we are spreading the word of how terrible management and service is there. Such a shame. And if you want to see the picture evidence we would be more then happy to send it. Houlihans is awful.
(1)
Natalie K.
The only reason this is getting 2 stars is due to our awesome waiter. My husband and I went here for date night last week. I've never really had a bad experience at this place, but I was disappointed this time. As we entered, we were awkwardly stared at by a greasy guy who turned out to be a bus boy, a girl with long brunette braided hair and a blond girl. Not one of them said anything, in fact, two of them just turned back around and continued talking. I finally said, um 2 please. I debated just turning around and leaving..It was if we were some inconvenience to their night. This kind of service doesn't even happen at places like mcdonalds and shouldn't be accepted here. Lighter note..We were very happy with our waiter though. His energy was great and really made the meal enjoyable.
(2)
Melissa M.
Love the atmosphere here, not too formal but formal enough to have a quiet dinner out. Though there typically is nothing on the menu that jumps at me like 'Oh my goodness I HAVE to try that!' (asides from desserts, of course, but that comes with any horrible sweet tooth like mine), I have never once been disappointed in what I've ordered. Their mashed potatoes are possibly the best I have ever had, and I love the mini-martinis. The ginger mango and the apple are the best!
(4)
Nathan S.
Houlihans is amazing. Let me clarify. THIS Houlihans is amazing. I've been to two others (Chicago and Wisconsin Dells) and they were mediocre at best. For some reason this location seems to "get it". I go about once a year and each time I've been pleased and never been let down (at this location only). If you decide to try it out, please, please try their stuffed mushrooms and potato soup (you'll thank me later). But as I've stated numerous times ONLY go to the one in Algonquin. If not, we'll...
(4)
Rita B.
Visited this location on a Saturday afternoon with the family. Not too busy but a good amount of customers in and out. Only reason I'm giving it three stars is because it wasn't bad but it was just ok. Staff was alright. Nice enough. Atmosphere was modern, clean, and just mediocre. Food was good and not fantastic. Two of us had the stuffed chicken breast. Came with one steamed veggie of your choice and mashed potatoes. Other family member had a flatbread app and it too was plain. Again, nothing wrong with the food here but nothing exceptional to write about. The bathrooms were very clean. No complaints there. Koala care in the women's bathroom and I could have sworn I saw a sign for the men's bathroom (for having Koala care). If that's the case, kudos to this establishment. Bar area was empty but clean. Parking was plentiful but watch out for the massive pothole directly in front of the doors. Would probably come back here if in the area but I'm not going to go out of my way.
(3)
Sam H.
Nice atmosphere and service.... but the food was not good at all. Nachos were missing everything cheeses wasn't melted, chicken was watery and flavorless the nachos in the bottom of the plate were all soggy from the water from the chicken... Not very good. The lettuce wraps were the same.. Chicken very watery and extremely salty! Only came with 3 leafs of lettuce. The soup was watery and flavorless, and the entries seared salmon salad... No seasoning on the tuna, the salad was all wilted and also soggy... Just a very very poor performance by the kitchen.
(1)
Garfer B.
Good food, good service, good location. This is our fav place to come out to in LITH. It's not too noisy, the wait staff and bartenders are always friendly and we have never had any problems with anything we order. The drinks are good, too, and the price is reasonable.
(5)
Megan L.
I love the spicy chicken and avocado egg rolls here I get them every time. They have awesome pulled pork sliders with fried pickles on top sooo good. Always awesome service. Our waiter was great:)
(4)
Tanya S.
Requested to sit outside and waited 10 minutes for a server. After watching several servers walk past us and ignore our existence, my friend told a host we were waiting for a server still but would like an iced tea while she ran to the bathroom. By the time she came back a server who was working inside said she saw us just sitting and offered to take our order. She was very nice and very apologetic but it was mind blowing to me that after being ignored by so many servers, the host couldn't even grab an iced tea for us! Service from there forward was great, but being someone who works in the service industry I was surprised we didn't even get a side salad discounted after the very rocky start we had. Food was good, our server should get a job elsewhere, the rest of the establishment has a lot of customer service to work on!
(1)
Jennifer W.
Every time we go to this place (once a month or so) we leave happy. The service is great, the food is good and most importantly it's consistent you always know what your going to get. The reason I didn't give 5 stars is bc when I went yesterday my salad was exceptionally smaller than it usually is.
(4)
Michelle F.
I had the absolute pleasure of dining at this location tonight! Now let me start my review by saying that I have never been to a Houlihan's, but my dining companions have, and they said that the Schaumburg one is AWFUL. We had Stacy as our server, and boy was she amazing! If you can request to be in somebody's section, I would recommend her in a heartbeat! She was attentive, knowledgeable about the menu, fast, and there was NEVER a dry drink on the table! Also, the busboys were amazing as well--we weren't done with a plate for about 30 seconds before they were there to take it away (but never in a pushy fashion) I was with a group of four girls total, and we were seated in a corner booth. We all ordered three things off of their Small Bites menu varying from flatbreads, to macaroni and cheese, to salad, and some amazing soups! Everything came out hot and fresh. My friend had especially great things to say about the Potato Soup and the Goat Cheese and Artichoke Poppers. I personally enjoyed the BBQ Chicken Flatbread the most! They are highly recommended! After dinner when we were contemplating dessert, the General Manager stopped by our booth and we had nothing but rave reviews. He was a really nice guy and gave us his recommendations as well. I can really appreciate a manager that actually spends time with his customers! It wasn't a quick breeze-by where you can tell they're just looking for a "good" when asked how everything was going. So then we ordered our dessert. Between the four of us, we all got one, and split among all of us. The cinnamon sugar donuts that you dip into chocolate and white chocolate were AMAZING. The smores were phenomenal as well (melted chocolate on the bottom and melted marshmallow up on top that you stir together--how can you go wrong?!), and the Snicker's ice cream dome is not something to pass up either! Oh, and I thought this was a nice touch--one of my friends ordered coffee during dinner, and they also brought her a to-go cup on her way out just in case. That really surprised me that they would go out of their way like that! We each spent about $25 including tip, and took a TON of food home! I will be stopping back by again VERY soon! Great food, fantastic staff, awesome atmosphere.
(5)
Kelly O.
This new version of Houlihan's has a great modern ambience and great food....my only downer is that you get very inconsistent service. Yesterday our service started out GREAT and took a nosedive. My diet coke was never refilled. We waited forever for SALADS to be delivered. Our food was finished for at least 15 minutes (yes we timed it) before I had to finally go get up and find our server. Bummer. Great food. Randomly ok service.
(3)
Kris V.
This is our favorite place in town. Good food, good service, good drinks. The mac n cheese is amazing. The ribs are good too... meat falls off the bone. The wings are crispy... I prefer crispy wings over rubbery wings. The bar area is my favorite. has a lounge feel to it and it's not loud.
(5)
Kailey S.
Visiting family in Chicago so we were looking for something that California didn't have. This place was perfect. Although there is nothing that makes it special to chicago, it was a place that served good food and had a great atmosphere. Our party of 8 was sat right away and the first thing to catch my eye was the mealio dealio that came with a starter soup or salad, entree, and a dessert. The cost of the deal was less than the cost of the entree regularly. I think this is only something you can get on sunday or monday, but it is a great deal. I got the herb crusted chicken. The mashed potatoes were delicious and so was the asparagus. the chicken was a tab bit overdone on the outside, but still juicy on the inside. I would definitely get this again. I also got the pecan pie. That was extremely delicious. The waitress was super friendly, even when someone in our party wanted to change their order twice while we were waiting. Overall our entire party was happy.
(4)
Mary O.
I freaking love Houlihans. I miss it so much now that I live in LA. Whenever I can't decide to eat I'm always wishing there was a Houlihans. I like this particular Houlihans, I've been to the one by Woodfield and I went to one in Indiana once and this one is way better. Fun ambiance, attentive staff, the food always comes out looking and tasting great. I'm pretty sure the half priced pitchers have like 3% alcohol content, just sayin. Love all of there small plates and every time I visit home I get the wedge salad - delish! Plus they have amazing deals ever Wednesday! Sign up for the emails!
(5)
Brian V.
We go here fairly often for business lunch meetings. Staff is always friendly and attentive. Some restaurants can become annoyed at a group of 6-10 of us having a meeting for 2 hours but here we always feel welcome. Granted It's not as if this particular location is packed around lunch time but it keeps us coming back. All of the food is great. Appetizers, salads, entrees, I can't recall anyone having something they disliked. There's a reason we keep coming back. A bit pricy for some but you get what you pay for... When I take clients or business partners to lunch I'm looking for something much nicer than Chilies and Houlihans delivers.
(5)
Brittney N.
I'm definitely a regular here, especially in the summer. They have a great patio and awesome drink specials Monday thru Thursday. Half price flavored long Islands! I used to think they were too sugary, but one of the servers recommended ordering the pitcher in a 20 oz. Glass. It's awesome! I haven't tried too many of the foods on the menu because I found that I love the fish tacos with pineapple rice and have just stuck with that.
(5)
Franceline V.
My brother and I came here to watch a Bears game since our usual spot was packed. My first time here, on his recommendation and boy was I wowed! They had great drink specials and amazing appetizers. The bartender even gave us a free round because one of the draft beers we ordered was out. I'll definitely be back for more.
(5)
Whitney H.
We usually love hollihans! Very disappointed this time. We first sat down at the bar and Waited 5 minutes and then was finally greeted by the manager. He was very nice and friendly. We didn't know what we wanted so he gave us menus. Then we waited another 10 minuets until greeted By our bartender, male, early 20's, in shape, and said he was new to bar-tending. We got our drinks, he never checked if they were good the entire time we were there or to see if we wanted to order something. He was off doing side work. We were going to order food but it took about 20 minutes before the next shift bartender asked if we wanted anything. We asked for our check because we didn't want to stay any longer there. Then it was another 6 minutes before the manager took out payment. We never complain but this was horrible service! We ended up across the street at on the border. Please pay more attention to the costumers!!
(1)
Suzanne T.
I never thought I'd be writing a review about Houlihan's. I grew up eating at the Schg location. They had terrific salads and sandwiches and just about anything else. This location has the tastiest fish tacos in the burbs. I'm minutes away from options but will drive an HOUR to get to these fish tacos. Bravo, Houlihans-your legend lives on. In tacos.
(4)
Debbie A.
Love houlihans! Their half priced pitchers (mon-thurs) of Texas teas are awesome! They have a ton of small plates if u want to sample foods or you can just get one of their main meals. I love their chipotle nachos and fish tacos!
(5)
Michelle D.
Houlihan's is always a fun time, especially with larger groups. The staff has always been really friendly and attentive, and the ambiance is really pleasant. I've only been here for dinner, but this place seems like it would be nice for lunch as well. As far as their food goes, their stuffed chicken breast is mouth-watering & amazing...I couldn't stop thinking about how wonderful it tasted during the entire meal and then afterwards. The chicken tortilla soup is also super good...it definitely has a kick, but it's probably the best chicken tortilla soup I've ever had. Their food probably isn't super healthy, but it definitely tastes good. Another plus: their menu offers a wide variety of foods, so even the picky eaters in your group will leave satisfied :)
(4)
Lindsey H.
Since posting my review, the District Manager and General Manager have reached out to me. Both of them have been unbelievably kind, understanding, and generous. They have offered some over the top remedies to my situation and I am beyond satisfied with the service. Everyone makes mistakes, it's how you handle the mistakes, that matters. Thank you Houlihan's for proving to me that customer service still exists!! I will continue to dine and drink at Houlihan's!!!
(5)
Rachel M.
On Thursday, October 18, 2012, my sister and I went to the Houlihan's located on Randall Road in Algonquin for a quiet birthday celebratory lunch. The restaurant was sparsely populated on this rainy day and both my sister and I were looking to go to Algonquin Commons for a nice day of R&R and shopping. We have been to this location on numerous occasions and enjoy long lunches with drinks, appetizer, lunch, and desserts. Unfortunately, this is the very last time we will be back at this, or any other Houlihan's location. Our "waiter" came to the table and we ordered our flight of flirtini's to discover what drinks we'd be ordering later. While the flight of flirtini's was tasty, we had our choice narrowed down to "X-Rated Flirtini". We ordered spinach dip, parmesan frites, and chipotle chicken nachos. The appetizers were ok tasting, acceptable but nothing special. We generally find the food here to be a little bit better than TGI Friday's. Not by much though. We each throughout eating our appetizers (this is over the course of about two hours) ordered four flirtini's. Upon receiving the fourth flirtini from our waiter, and without signaling that we were ready for the bill, the waiter brought the check which included charges for fourteen (!?!?) flirtini's, in addition to the flights. Now, we are not competitors on some professional drinking circuit, but had we each consumed seven flirtini's, we would be completely inebriated to the point where we couldn't walk. We called our "waiter" over to the table to dispute the egregious charge on our bill. He said he would not fix it and he would get the manager. The "manager" (who was conspicuously dressed in a chef's outfit) came over and told us we drank all of the flirtini's charged and that we would have to pay for all of them, despite the fact that we were carrying out coherent conversation with him after we each drank seven flirtini's and a flight of flirtini's. When we told him we would pay for the eight drinks plus the flight that we ordered and not fourteen, the manager of the restaurant CALLED THE POLICE!!! The police showed up to the restaurant (four squad cars, apparently the City of Algonquin has nothing better to do at 2:00 in the afternoon on a Thursday) and mediated the situation. While the police were here, the bartender had the audacity to bring, not surprisingly, fourteen bottles of champagne and indicated that these bottles were used to make our drinks. Now, I am not an accountant, or a chemist, but if you have fourteen 375 ml bottles of champagne empty, obviously you would have made many many many more flirtini's and other associated beverages than the fourteen the restaurant was attempting to charge us for. After all was said and done, we appear to have been charged for what we ordered by the restaurant (Houlihan's refused to provide us with a final copy of the bill) and not the ridiculous fourteen flirtini's that they alleged. The fact that we had to go through this embarrassing situation whereby THE POLICE had to mediate this in an industry of hospitality is an abject failure by their incompetent staff in all service areas of Houlihan's. I will make it a point to never visit their restaurants, and to tell everyone I speak to about restaurants what to expect when visiting Houlihan's: being overcharged for drinks you don't order, having the police called on you, and an evening of terse discussion about the humiliation received at the hands of a hospitality business. You lost two faithful customers for life.
(1)
Cara G.
Love their food that is all cooked from scratch!! They are constantly coming up with new food and drinks. The waiters and waitresses are super nice and kid friendly. They have an awesome bar and patio dining. Definitely one of our go to restaurants.
(5)
Dawn M.
Had a great meal here the other night. Had not been back in some time (years) but the restaurant was remarkably clean - at least in the low light levels, it looked clean! :-) The class and stainless steel, the upholetery - everything was clean - which generally leads me to believe they have a good manager at this location. Decor was unchanged from our first visit - however, we were much happier with the food that arrived at our table this time - had a wonderful meal. I went with the Pot Roast - it was great. Towards the end, started thinking "uh-oh, salt", so that is my one criticism of the food - need less salt. (Salt eaters can always add it at the table.) We also had the seared tuna wonton appetizer (great!) and the chocolate cappuccino cake - found the cake icing too sweet/thick, wish we had ordered coffee to cut the sugar with. All in all, a good meal. For some reason my husband was mildly annoyed by the waitress - but she did a good job, though we did have to wait a little longer than expected to get our drinks, and she over-checked the table: "Is everything ok? Can I get you anything else?" - Uh, no, but you could let me have time to eat - if I want you, I'll flag you down. But - that's just me I think. Would I return: yes Would I recommend: yes
(4)
Maria M.
We ate outside, bugs everywhere...looked as tho they hadn't hosed down the concrete .. um, ever! Food was okay, service a bit shaky, drinks very weak..but overall okay. Wont go back tho.
(3)
Taylor M.
Even though this is a chain and i try to support local businesses Houlihans get a A+ rating from me. Ive had numerous meals here and Ive never been let down. Menu isn't very big but to me that means it is all very fresh. Food is good, Drinks are strong and the staff is pleasant.
(5)
Megan W.
Great place to stop in for a quick bite and a cheap drink. Sun-Thurs $4 HUGE Long Islands and cheap well drinks. The stuffed mushrooms are not our first choice for an appetizer, so these were a tastey surprise! Do not believe I have had anything that was not delish here!
(4)
Jake M.
Been here 3 times and have been let down all 3 times. Although the food has always been pleasant, the hostess/waitress staff have always failed to deliver any type of quality type of customer service. For instance, the last time I ate here was roughly around 7pm on a Wednesday. It wasn't a holiday and frankly wasn't even very busy. There were numerous tables open and no one waiting before us. So needless to say I was a little shocked that when our party of 4 arrived the hostess told us it would be about a 20-25 minute wait. When we were finally seated 20 minutes later, it took several minutes for drinks to be ordered and we were even short silverware when our main dishes arrived!
(2)
Dick B.
Had the brick cooked chicken. Tasted like gasoline and had a rubbery texture to it. This place is essentially TGI Fridays with fewer menu options and no endorsement from Guy Fieri. Also, they consider Blue Moon and Sam Adams to be craft/microbrew beer.
(1)
Denise J.
Ive heard so much about houlihan's that maybe my expectations were way to high, but I did not find the food to be that great. I came here last night for dinner after a little bit of shopping. The restaurant was empty so we got to pick were we sat and our waiter Corey came right over to us and took our drink order, I got a budlight lime and my boyfriend got a miller(it was on special). If I would have known the budlight lime was going to be $4.00 for a bottle I would not have ordered it and got the miller lite for $2.75!! We ordered the stuffed mushrooms for a starter.....I LOVE mushrooms so I was super excited to try thiers....they were almost 10 bucks for 7.....a little pricey. They came out and they were not at all what I expected. They came out in a deep fried ball that was filled with mushrooms and a cream cheese sauce.....I couldnt even taste the mushroom in them and I found them to be way to heavy. For dinner I ordered the grilled chicken sandwich with fries....I found the chicken to be dry and flavorless. The fries were really good though. My boyfriend got the chicken wrap...he said it taste like it came from his school cafeteria(so not good)...except it wasnt $2.50...it was almost $9.00. While we were eating both of our drinks were empty and we could not find our waiter anywhere in the restaurant, and finally the manager came and asked if we needed anything, we ordered two more drinks and a to-go container for the mushrooms. We did not see our waiter again until he brought the check to us.....Wow thank!! I will not be coming back to eat thier over priced blah food!!!
(2)
Kai R.
Pros: Awesome food, staff and environment. Bathrooms are very clean and it is a kid friendly place. My family drives 50 miles just to eat here. Cons: Just one, do all the TVs have to be on the same channels? Results: Go eat there!
(5)
Joy E.
Same as it ever was. Yo always get what you expect at Houlihans! I like their little dishes menu.
(4)
Danielle K.
This is an modern chic restaurant with pretty good food. My main complaints; sometimes they send out text updates too early and then you can't get the buy one get one free entree you went there for. On some of the more expensive dishes you don't get that much food. I go here with my boyfriend and also with friends for girls night. The waiters are always really nice and helpful although sometimes I wish they would check on us a little more often. The food is pretty tasty, they call it American cuisine, but it's kind of a pot luck of a bunch of cuisines. It's usually good, but sometimes they run out of certain dishes, which is annoying. They have awesome drinks, I recommend the three mini martinis. You can pick whichever three mini martinis you want for $8. Sign up for their text alerts and their email subscription you can get some pretty good deals for Wednesday, Thursdays and Holidays. Go it's one of my favorite places to eat in Algonquin!
(4)
Tony R.
This place is awesome!! I went there to eat four times and I will definitely be going there again soon. My favorite thing to get is the 72 Burger, this is one of the best burgers i've tried yet. service is decent, the menu isn't too expensive. Regular $10 meals. Houlihan's has a dimmed atmosphere, and a bar on the side.
(5)
Ryan H.
What a difference a year makes. After posting my stellar review almost 14 months ago, this Houlihan's has sure fallen from grace. What was once an exceptional place to go has morphed into nothing more than another disappointing dining experience in the sea of suburban restaurants. To start, they lost their good manager to another store. From that moment on, food quality, service and attention to detail slipped right away. One night, not long ago, it took the kitchen FOUR TRIES to get a medium rare steak to my table. The other night, my baked potato came out ice cold. Then we have the issue with the cocktails. In the past, you could always count on a "good" cocktail at Houlihans. Earlier this week, I ordered a Mojito (which is usually an excellent cocktail at Houlihans) and it arrived flat and flavorless. I queried the waitress. She laughed and said that they were all getting in trouble for overpouring cocktails so the were told by management to underpour from now on. For $7 for a rocks glass full of ice and a couple sips of beverage, there should be no underpouring anything. Suffice to say, when she came by offering additional cocktails, I declined. It's too bad, really. This was one of my favorite places to grab a quick bite to eat. Now when I think of Houlihan's, I just shake my head in dissapointment. If you are traveling the Randall Rd. corridor looking for some good eats, I now have to recommend taking a pass on the Algonquin Houlihan's. I gave them every opportunity. It truly has fallen to just another chain restaurant with crappy service, weak drinks and mediocre food.
(2)
Kristine B.
I rate it a two only because the food is so good. I have been eating at Houlihans for about 5 years now. I use to visit multiple times a week. Now maybe once every 4 months or so if I'm really craving the food. The food is the best in the area. The thing is it is good for dine in. Which dine in has become their down fall. The current management staff is not worried about pleasing the customer. They are worried about please in their staff. And their staff is awful! There are a few great girls I would ask for and I would leave if they are not working! To my recollection Lisa,Britney,Carine? Are some of the best staff out there. The new girls are just awful!!!! The new guys whatever at least the food is good. I had some skinny chick I've never seen in there named niña I think. GOD AWFUL. She even made my food bad just speaking! The hostess seem lost. I could seat my sel better. I guess my suggestion is go to the bar. The foo is just by worth missing!
(2)
Mark W.
Good place for lunch, staff always friendly , we have never had a bad appetizer there. Burgers are good, best salad is the Asian chicken.
(3)
Jennifer C.
This place is good. My hubby and I had the Nachos and Parmesan Frites with sauce trio (which we always get) and they were both great as usual. We had the Banana Cream Pie mini dessert which was also very good. Our server was good, the food unfortunately was rather slow coming out, but we had a good time and will be back when we are out shopping at Woodman's.
(4)
Tiffany P.
Love Houlihans, great environment and delicious food every time. The only thing i would recommend is changing your smoking area, it's not the nicest thing to walk in the door when someone is smoking right outside of it.
(5)
Marie B.
This Houlihan's has been a favorite of ours for YEARS! We've been very disappointed to watch the quality, presentation and portion bite the dust over the past six months. A couple of my personal favorites (sw grilled chicken wrap and fish tacos) have been wilted and appeared thrown together the last several times we've been in. My husband's salmon was very small and bland and the goat cheese bites were tiny and hard the last few trips as well. The quality and value have decreased so significantly that we wonder if there have been budget cuts?.. The atmosphere, coupons and service have remained fantastic. We have not drawn attention to our dissatisfaction because we love the staff and find it very uncomfortable to send back every meal b/c it doesn't meet previously established quality expectations or doesn't appear fresh. PLEASE fix your kitchen Houlihan's! We're not giving up just yet..
(2)
Brian S.
Nice as a lunch option, but always a bit slow for it. For dinner there are good basic meals with quite a few options on the menu. This place works well especially if you are dining with people with differing tastes. I like the Shrooms appetizer and a basic burger and they have decent drinks. Decent for a family.
(3)
Hugo B.
We had Ally as our server, the atmosphere is good and food, service is always good. Sign up for their emails to get their specials. I like this place
(4)
Luke S.
Typically easy to get a table ....service is always good.
(4)
Jacob J.
I dunno what I was doing way out here in the sticks, amongst the plethora of chain restaurants we decided on Houlihans for a few drinks and snacks, since it's always a stable idea. I remember that weekend it was negative degree weather and sat inside nearer to the bar in the back towards the kitchen. I remember choosing these seats thinking it'd be warmer here, it was freaking cold! Ate with our jackets on, the server also complained that it was cold inside. What to do? Even she agrees. Three guys, a bunch of cocktails and a few appetizers to share. The food was standard fare and very good. The drinks were terrible; we had top shelf vodka cocktails which were dampened with flat soda. I inquired with the server a few times if they could get soda from a different pump etc, she then took it up with management which knew about the problem, said that it'd been some days since having the problem. I wish they would've told us when we ordered, it would've changed our minds to having beers. I'm surprised that neither the waitress or management comp'd our drinks. We each had two, the whole while I thought about a similar situation at a bar in Chicago where the waitress comp'd our drinks and agreed that flat soda just ruins the drink. They comp'd one drink. Whoopie! Our waitress couldn't be any more daft, (don't mean to sound rude) just, I need you to be more customer service oriented and empathetic to my needs. Had she comp'd our drinks we would've tipped her the same amount of drink money in tips. We were charged $11/each for that top shelf flattened booze. Of the many Houlihan's locations, this one is a lot smaller and it's wheelchair accessible in the bar area. It can be seen from the road, but is hidden between a few other chain restaurants.
(2)
Danny C.
A very nice place. My and my girlfriend wanted a little change of pace, so we thought we'd go to Houlihans to see what it's like. I've never been before, but she was raving on about their Baked Potato Soup. The best thing about it is that it's not "overly" fancy. Pricing was good. If you are from around that area, as my girlfriend is, you would know that most of the restaurants are quite known to be a tad expensive, most likely because the area is known to be a little higher on the economic bracket (ex. Biaggi's, Bonefish Grill, etc.) All that aside, it was a very nice restaurant. Nice waitress, nice hostess. The only thing that kind of stunk was that our table and menus were dirty. if you want a nice meal at a nice place, I'd definitely recommend it.
(4)
Ashley M.
I love me some Houlihans. I find their entrees to be varied an ALWAYS tasty. I am a particularly huge fan of the Tuscan Bean Salad - light and delicious. The Spinach dip is DIVINE and is great for a group of friends. Their drink menus are fun too. I usually come here with a large group of people (this place is an amazing substitute for a loud, crowded bar) and the waitstaff is always accommodating. When we do sit at the bar, the bartenders are sweet and often stop to chat. The managers are usually wandering around to ask about your meal/drinks and they are RIDICULOUSLY nice and personable. I find everything to be reasonably priced, especially their BUCKET of Long Island Iced Teas. Long live Houlihans
(5)
Dean S.
I love the appetizers here...and the bathrooms are sweet...when they first opened I was shocked they were playing a mix of Electronica, trance, and avant garde music which I'm a big fan of...I even heard Apex Twin... I'm sure its back to dave mathews, and the kings of leon... I know this was Illinois prototype for the new Houlihans concept...which is a Tremendous improvement to Chain style I just wish the drinks and service were as fresh and dynamic as their food...
(3)
Asheley B.
I want to enjoy this place, I really really do. Maybe walking in with two kids just makes the host/waitress cringe. I love their drinks. But food is such a toss up lately. We had the same server the past two visits. Maybe 8 months apart. She was just not good. I dont need someone breathing down my neck, but a smile would be nice once and awhile, considering the prices aren't the reasons you keep on going back, i get the same thing. Stuffed chicken, and I cross my fingers that the chicken will be good. This past time it was cooked and seasoned pperfectly but the asparagus was just non edible. :( Husbands fajtas were warm, not that awesome sizzle where you get EVERYWHERE else. And the tortillas were very hard. Next time I am at Algonquin Commons I will look at the pretty building, with cool atmosphere, and the great salad. But for service, food and did I say service, I will go elsewhwere.
(2)
Jen B.
My friends and I do a "Girls night" every Sunday night. Seeing as most of us work at the same restaurant it became clear to us that we needed someplace to go after we got off work that would be open late. Since a few of us had AM jobs/shifts, we wanted something close to home. Houlihan's is just that, someplace close to home and open late enough that even after a closing Sunday night shift you could get a few hours of drinking and laughter in. The drinks, albeit pricey, are delicious. The service is iffy, but what do you expect at 11pm when the waitress/bartender just want to go home. I've only had an entree there once, and it was a bit iffy. The main courses are a bit too fancy for me, and too heavy to eat at 11pm. But the 5 dollar appetizers are always a crowd pleaser. Their Brucetta and shrooms' are to die for. The three bean dip is also tasty but our favorite is the wanton tuna wraps. The key lime martini is delicious as well, but we're always ordering the pitchers of long island iceteas. One of those bad boys will last you a good hour or two depending on how much talking and laughing you do. And the best part? They have almost every beer imaginable on tap, and drink specials nearly every night of the week. Also their deserts are delicious, they have "Free desert Tuesday!" which I find to be stunning. From Creme' brule to Snickers ice cream dome this place has everything you could want in a gourmet and delicious desert with out paying 10 bucks for it : )
(4)
Nancy E.
Love, love, love the new brunch menu! Creative and thoughtful- perfectly executed. It's served Sat. and Sun. 10-2pm. Here's some cut and paste of the menu descriptions and prices of foods I was able to try: homemade pop tart Choose raspberry or chocolate-hazelnut in our house-made pastry shells, served with fresh berries and a dollop of vanilla ice cream. $2.49 gruyere & wild mushroom Quiche Baby spinach, gruyere and swiss cheeses, fresh thyme, topped with melted leeks. Comes with marinated fresh fruit and spring salad with jicama, pears and lemon-olive oil. $8.95 Le maine (French) toast Griddled cinnamon battered French toast with orange cream cheese, seasonal berries and 100% pure Maine maple syrup. Served with rosemary potato griddle cakes and your choice of applewood smoked bacon or all-natural grilled chicken sausage. $10.95 **tried this as the children's French toast, but it was served exactly as described above without the meat for $4.95** a La carte SiDeS Slow Cooked Applewood Smoked Bacon $2.50 Grilled Chicken Sausage (all natural, antibiotic free) $2.50 The manager made it sound like the Algonquin Houlihan's is one of the pilot locations for the menu. Please go and try the brunch menu to help make it a success cuz I'll cry if it goes away. I am pregnant, so I couldn't indulge it the flight of mimosas that I soooo wanted :( Can't wait until I pop this baby out so I can try 'em. See you there Saturday morning!
(5)
A R.
Houlihan's is one of our favorite restaurants in the area. Great affordable food, good music and ambiance. The mini-entrees are a great option for eating out on a budget because they are delicious and sized right. I wish all restaurants had a "normal portion size" option. As far as the rest of the menu - so far I've tried most of it and haven't found something I didn't like. So explore because you can't go wrong.
(4)
Susan R.
Where do i start......bad service, horrible food, terrible management. Well we had made reservations for a party of 25 at 730pm and called 3 times to confirm it during a weeks time. We came here to celebrate a 21st birthday dinner before we go out on the town. We arrive at Houlihans to find out that they LOST our reservation. YUP, lost it. Now we had to wait an hour for them to seat us. Once seated we had to wait and wait for the server to deliver drinks to our table. I finally stopped him (30 min after we sat down) and said "could i order some food sometime today". With hesitation he takes our order. We NOW wait an hour for our meal to arrive. When the meal arrives it is after 10pm!!!!! Don't forget we arrived at 730. The food was horrible. Its sad when i can get a better meal at the Golden Corral across the street than i can at this place. Some of us ordered dessert BIG BIG mistake....that took about 30min to place ice cream on a plate. REALLY 30 min. SO now the time is about 11:30 we now have to wait for our bills to arrive and when they do of course there are mistakes on them which then have to be corrected. THEN they tried to charge me over 20% on gratuity which the manager corrected immediately..Needless to say we finally left our 730pm dinner at 12:15am. So our poor birthday girl didn't get go out and enjoy rest of the night she had planned. I will say the manager did comp some items BUT having one server for a group that size was totally ridiculous. NONE OF US WILL EVER GO BACK!!!!! If you don't mind spending an evening trying to hunt down your drinks and eating mediocre food then this is the place for you.
(1)
SANDRA D.
Updated 07/12 - reduced 5 star rating to 4, so obviously still a fan, but have noticed inconsistencies the last several times I have gone. Unfortunately, one of the best things on their menu (chicken fajitas) are no longer prepared the way they should be ... which is in a screaming hot skillet so the veggies soften and the marinade thickens and the flavors develop. I ordered them three times after my initial review at the beginning of 2012, and each & every time they had to go back because the marinade was watery and bland ... was told twice by the manager that it was due to the restaurant being crowded & the cook not ensuring the pan was hot enough ... and was told that I should specifically request extra marinade and a very hot pan. You shouldn't have to request that, but I was willing to; however, the next time I did specify that, and they came out the just as watery w/crunchy vegetables as the last times. Every time they had to go back to the kitchen, my companion was more than half way done eating. I have given up on ordering the fajitas there, which is a shame, because when made right, they are delectable. Thankfully there are lots of other tasty dishes on the menu from which to choose, so I continue to go back. Consistently friendly service. Original Review: Great service and great food every time I've been there (the sign of good management, IMHO). They have the best chicken fajitas I have EVER had ... they did not make them nearly as well at the Schaumburg location, so I will stick with this Algonquin location going forward. Very big, broad menu and quick for lunch, and the prices are reasonable. Consistently great iced tea, which is important to me. Their mini desserts are great for one person, or two to split and just have two bites each -- my favorite is the snickers ice cream dome. Love this place!
(4)
Carrie c.
Food is always reliably great! They have a great variety of items on the menu. Music is a great mix! The staff and servers are always friendly, but don't always "know" the menu. I can read the menu, but if I'm asking about a certain ingredient that isn't listed...I would hope that the servers could find out rather than just leaning over to try and read the menu and then say 'I don't know for sure'.
(4)
Holly S.
This is my favorite place to go with big groups when not going into the city. It's hard to find somewhere unique or fun in the suburbs since it's all chains, but since this is a conception store in the Houlihan's chain it's a bit different. The look of the place is great and I love the stencil wall art, and I love even more that they put the website for the artist in the menu for curious people. The shroom appetizer is our favorite, and every sandwich I've had there is really good. The drink flights are wonderful to taste different flavors and in the summer it's nice to sit outside with a few martini trios.
(4)
Jason H.
I've had drinks here a handful of times. I believe on Thursday nights they have half price appetizers after 10pm which is pretty awesome. The appetizers here are more of the gourmet fine dining variety than what a normal chain restaurant usually serves. I highly recommend the Tuna Wontons. DEE-LISH! Also their mini-creme brulee' is tast-ee.
(4)
Tim C.
I love this restaurant/bar. It is quiet enough to be able to speak with people instead of just nodding like you would at other places where the music is blaring. The setting is sofisticated and modern. The outside patio is perfect for a nice summer night to sit and drink with your friends, especially since the smoking ban was put into place. One of my favorite things to do in this area is to go here and smoke a cigar with some friends, give it a try. The one downside is the drinks are priced a bit high, but I think it is worth it.
(5)
Jenny C.
I love this place, they've really stepped it up in the past few years. Please do yourself a favor and go here now, order the Stuffed Mushrooms and the Tuscan White Bean Salad. You can thank me later!
(5)
Denise D.
Good service and great food! Kitchen is open late which is nice for the area. We love the chicken nachos!
(4)
Richard K.
I went there on weds night at 800ish. I ordered the French Dip, but was told they were out of au jus 10 mins later. The 'shrooms' appetizer was quality. The spinach dip was above average from what I was told too. I ordered a cheeseburger and they use a wheat bun which was a nice switch from the regular. 3 stars here due to the dessert (banna cream pie) wasant even a pie. I guess dont go there after 7?
(3)
Samuel E.
I had the singularly unique experience of being present for the first week that our (semi-) local Houlihan's was doing brunch. They have elevated this pseudo-meal to the highest point that can be attained. They offer a flight of 3 mimosa's with different fruit juices, all of which are fantastic. (um.. that's what an alcoholic buddy of mine told me, I would never be so crass as to drink before noon. ahem.) They have devised a scratch made version of a pop-tart that must be experienced to be believed. I had the "east cobb omlette" (give me a Cobb salad, hold the lettuce, and add whipped eggs, oh, and make the bleu cheese into a sauce) This was simply the best breakfast, I mean brunch, since I had alcohol, (no wait I mean my buddy), I have ever had. I went back two weeks later and had French toast. Also a best in class experience. Not to be under-rated are the mini-potato pancakes that come with almost everything. Also tops. As a side note, for those who notice such things, the coffee was exceptional.
Takes Reservations : Yes Delivery : No Take-out : Yes Accepts Credit Cards : Yes Good For : Lunch, Dinner Parking : Private Lot Bike Parking : Yes Wheelchair Accessible : No Good for Kids : Yes Good for Groups : Yes Attire : Casual Ambience : Casual Noise Level : Average Music : Background Good For Dancing : No Alcohol : Full Bar Happy Hour : Yes Best Nights : Thu, Fri, Sat Coat Check : No Smoking : No Outdoor Seating : Yes Wi-Fi : No Has TV : Yes Waiter Service : Yes Caters : No
Ted L.
Stopped for lunch on June 8th, service staff seated us quickly and waitstaff was very responsive. I had the pulled pork sliders , they are awesome and are garnished with fried pickles, side was fries and also came with choice of soup or salad. I had the chicken tortilla soup. Entire meal was very good.
(4)Houston E.
This place went down hill, not just the food but also the service.. . If you want a mediocre drink prepare to wait. When you are done waiting prepare to wait again because there still won't be a drink in front of you. The food used to be good, what happened? If you close your eyes when you eat, you'll think you are eating a microwave dinner. If you want the check prepare to wait again.
(1)Mark D.
If you want just a truly average dining experience, try Houlihan's. But who really wants that? Truth is the menu is nothing great and the service is very chain-like. The bar is overpriced; it's just a suburban chain restaurant with Chicago loop pricing. $9 cocktails? Puh-leeze. Houlihans can accommodate your large group. But like I said it's pretty average. I'm sure you can find better options. I know we will. Here is what got them the single star. And I know since then they tried to make amends. But their absolutely ignorant rude staff turned away a veteran and his service dog this past Memorial Day weekend. It was big news. Go look for "Houlihan's in Algonquin Turns Away Veteran With Service Dog Over Memorial Day Weekend" or "Manager fired after veteran, service dog turned away from restaurant" to find out more. I think that's terrible.
(1)Paige W.
Somewhat of a typical chain restaurant but better than a Fridays or Chilis. We ordered the spinach dip and thought it better than a lot of others we've had in the area. I ordered the martini flight and found them to be creative and a great deal compared to the other drink choices ($9 for three mini martinis). My date had the nachos and had no complaints. I had the fish tacos and found the taste good, but the taco lacking much fish and just having a flattened piece that was more fried crispies than fish. It came with a house salad which was huge and I took home. We sat outside... Not the best idea. Loud cars racing down the entrance area took away from any calming atmosphere. Bathrooms were modern and very clean. Though the sinks a bit confusing as how to turn them on at first. Our waiter was young.. Just 18... But did a great job and was very attentive.
(3)William W.
Would love a manager or owner to respond to this... I tried to take my son out for Lunch at the Houlihan's in Algonquin today, Memorial day weekend. When we walked through the door the hostess said that they do not allow Dogs in the restaurant. My Son replied that his dog was a service dog at which time the hostess went and got the manager. The manager also refused to let the dog in and asked what kind of service he provided. For clarification, my son is an army veteran. He served 9 years, did 3 tours in Iraq and one in Afghanistan. His dog is a service dog and by federal law is allowed into anywhere he goes. We left and went down the road a little ways to the Village Vintner who simply asked if my sons dog was a service dog and when we replied yes seated us right away. Just thought that everyone should know that the Houlihan's In Algonquin refused to serve an Army Veteran (he even had a t-shirt on that said he was a veteran) on Memorial Day Weekend. We will not be going there again.
(1)Truth M.
I do read reviews on yelp. Yes this is a chain Eatery and the food is the same, but theres "Not a lot of good places" in this area to chose from sadly. I do want to say that where the Host hang out the floor should of been cleaned no reason for that, That's a easy clean up.I do want to say that are server was "Awesome" and everything came out at the right time. That is a big plus for me. He was friendly and spoke very well. So Thanks Houlihan's for having Great Men on your staff. I really enjoy it when staff is nice and that can smile. It makes a world of difference. Rock on!
(4)Amber C.
Cheap drinks and starts bar fare. Easy to have a good time with their happy your specials.
(4)Barb L.
We used to go every Tuesday after work, but the service has seriously declined in the past year. If you're not single guys/girls, forget it. Bartenders are only interested in flirting.The bar is always dead and the service is probably why. No desire to go there anymore...so many other great places to go!
(1)Adam L.
Very good food. My steak was cooked perfectly, they asked twice BTW, and the mashed potatoes were excellent. Good service. My only issue was the amount of time between finishing our meal and getting our check, but that's a pet peeve of mine and it wasn't so terribly long to dock any points. Save room for the Serious Brownie Sunday. Seriously. I didn't want to eat it all but I did. Self loathing, guilt, and regret should always taste this good.
(5)Kristen H.
So I come to this Houlihan's location pretty frequently and I usually get my favorites including Spicy Chicken Eggrolls, Baked Potato Soup, and Heartland Grilled Chicken Salad. Yum. I can always guarantee good quality food with no surprises. I have yet to find a better baked potato soup! Last Friday, however, was a disappointing experience. Normally I come during lunch hour or during the week when they have happy hour prices or promotional deals that I get via email. I received a promo on Friday morning for "Repeal Day" which was the 81st anniversary of the end of prohibition. It said "Enjoy $3.95 happy apps and $5 drink specials to honor the occasion". Done deal! Except the waitress had no idea about it and said the happy apps are only M-Th. Yes, that's exactly why it's a deal on a Friday. Asked to speak to a manager after showing her the email and she went to speak to them (instead of us) and said it was a marketing glitch that was supposed to go out on Thursday which didn't make sense because after googling it, Repeal Day was in fact Friday. Ugh I hate arguing/confrontation so we stayed. Normally not a huge deal but happy apps and drinks were the only reason we came. Maybe the marketing team needs some work because I take my coupons seriously! I know I will be back for my usual soup/salad combo but was very disappointed this time around.
(2)Natalie D.
A group of four of us waited 5 minutes at the bar without a greeting, menu or service. Two girls came up after & got service immediately. The only person who working there who even acknowledged our presence was the host on our way out. Never coming in again & took our business elsewhere.
(1)Karyn M.
Appetizers were great; had to send my steak back twice and still could not eat it. Don't think I will be back...
(2)Julio O.
Just gross. The restaurant was very dirty. I had the chicken tortilla soup and the homestyle pot roast. The pot roast that I buy at Walmart tasted 110% better than the pot roast here. The chicken tortilla soup was just okay at best. The water was unfiltered and tasted like it just came out of the bathroom sink. Why go to this restaurant if I could cook better food at my house with the ingredients in food that I buy from Walmart for less money. I will never return to this restaurant again.
(1)Dario R.
Got black mint in my mule. 2 hairs in my side ceaser salad, and a generic apology from the manager. Thanks Houlihans. You just lost me.
(1)Stef M.
Good place. They really know how to make a steak. Thumbs up on the creative desserts and happy hour appetizers!
(4)Eva R.
This is a GREAT place to eat. The shrooms ROCK and so does the staff. I have been eating at Houlihan's for 20 years and there is a reason they have been around for so long, they must be doing something right. For all the haters, you can not please everyone.
(5)Mike Z.
The assistant manager (at least that's what she claimed to be because I asked for the manager and she said Im the only one here) there was so rude I couldn't eat my dinner. I was outside smoking and she came up to me and said I couldn't smoke outside the restaurant. I looked at her confused and said "really? I'm well over 15 feet from the door so what's the problem?" she proceeded to explain and I said forget it and put my smoke out and went back inside to eat my food. She then proceeds to follow me telling me how wrong I was to smoke outside the restaurant and gave me about 15 different reasons to not only quit smoking but why illinois law says I can't smoke IN PUBLIC lol. I laughed a bunch and tried to tell her to please just go away from my table as it was starting to get annoying listening to someone who knew absolutely nothing try to explain why she was right. I kept trying and trying very kindly to tell her it's ok just please let me enjoy my dinner. Then finally I raised my voice and said "MY FOOD IS GETTING COLD PLEASE LET ME EAT!" Which of course scared my 1 year old and in turn made me lose my appetite. So I sat there while my wife ate and me and my 1yo son being upset at this point didn't eat. When all was done the check came and I brought my sons plate and my plate over to the assistant manager and told her she had ruined my dinner due to her overwhelming urge to explain some law that didn't exist to me. In the end we didn't get even a $1 discount. I paid my bill and left never to return. This happened last year and I'm not sure this person is still there but any restaurant that allows an employee to berate a customer for 10 minutes isnt a great place to be. ACTUALLY I can't see how anyone could hire someone like that for this type of position and not see the type of person she is. Anyone who got this far congrats now for a review on the food according to my wife (because of course I could let eat) her exact words were "It was average at best" followed by a long drawn out *SIGHHHHHH* I hope this review helps.. My only request is get that manager out of there, if she was even a manger in the first place. Our waitress didn't even refill my drink one time as well lol.
(1)Matt T.
Great and fast service. The waiter was at our table within a few minutes. The food and drinks were great. The waiter even offered us to go cups for our drinks. After we paid we were given 2 complimentary cookies that were delicious.
(5)Whitney N.
I'm a huge fan of Houlihans! The only complaint I have for this restaurant is I would expect more vegetarian options. Nonetheless I had the BEST lunch here. I ordered the veggie burger sliders that came with the Tuscan white bean salad on the side. I was very impressed with both plates. The salad was plated so beautifully and tasted so delicious and fresh, I will definitely get it again! They veggie burgers were perfect as well! Some places make them too dry but I wouldn't have changed a thing.
(4)Lori B.
My husband and I diner here about once a month and we love it. Their filet is fantastic, better than steakhouses in the area. Lettuce wraps and fish tacos are awesome. The side salad that comes with your meals is very good! We have never had a bad meal or bad service here.
(5)Rich K.
Great atmosphere! Ordered the firecracker shrimp and the bbq chicken flatbread. Shrimp was excellent, flatbread fell flat, the chicken used appeared to be cubed and frozen.
(3)Donna R.
I cannot believe it has taken me THIS long to review Houlihans... anywho, being from Schaumburg the hubby and I were quite sad when our location closed down and luckily LITH is not too far for us. Have been here MULTIPLE times and even hosted our Rehearsal dinner here -- that was the only time we were sort of let down, and it was a small thing, not terrible. They had no problem with us just ordering off the menu, we only had around 20 people and didn't want any sort of mini-wedding, we wanted something casual and fun before the big night. So we get there and we have two awkward tables by the front door, so we cannot sit with all of our guests -- it was kind of a bummer. I wish they would've made one big table in the middle of the dining room for us. But, nonetheless, the food was awesome and all of our drinks were 1/2 off due to it being a special on Thursday night. We spent half of what we thought we were going to. So back to the good stuff... I have never ordered one dish from this place that I wasn't totally wowed with... from their Atlantic Salmon, Chicken Asian Chop Chop Salad, Down Home Pot Roast, Stuffed Chicken Breast, and their famous Baked Potato Soup... everything is super delicious. You usually get a HUGE portion as well. The last time we frequented this establishment was for an impromptu late lunch with the hubby -- had a free entree coupon for his birthday and decided to redeem it. I ordered the Salmon BLT (a new one for me) and he went with this fave, the Chicken Parmesan. Then, find out their Pitcher Long Island Iced Teas are only $5.. we were totally happy. Both of our dishes were SUPER good and I was extremely surprised to see my Salmon BLT have a full portion of salmon, no skimping here. When we give her our coupon, we totally expected my dish to be the free one since it was cheaper... but no, she gave us the chicken dish off! We left insanely full and insanely happy :)
(4)Jennifer E.
Good food, this was our first time here- had a very nice young lady named Lindsay. She gave us good advice on their martinis. Food came out pretty quick 2 small complaints -it took a while for her to come back and grab our plates, and the brownie we were served wasn't hot (not our servers fault).... And then again it took a while to grab my credit card. My guess was that it was a long day (labor day). Overall OK service (not amazing but OK)... We would go back for sure.
(4)Theresa V.
I absolutely love this place. The food is excellent. By far the best stuffed mushrooms I have ever had! The nachos are really good too. Great place to have some drinks and killer appetizers! It's really clean and the staff is friendly!
(5)amy j.
I really like Houlihans. It's a notch above the regular chain restaurant. They manage to stay current with tastes and trends while others get stagnant. The decor is beautiful, the servers are friendly and the food is great. Tonight we tried some of the choices from the small plates menu. It was a good way to try something but I'm not crazy about how they serve the dishes, as they are ready. So you might get one thing at a time or all at once or an appetizer after an entree.
(4)Rhiannon K.
I love this Houlihan's. It has great music, it is nicely decorated and the atmosphere is chill. The staff is so friendly. If I am going to eat at a chain restaurant, this is where I end up. The tuna wontons, stuffed mushrooms, tuscan salad and stuffed chicken are outstanding. They have great drinks and half price bottles of wine on Tuesdays.
(5)Michelle N.
Tonight I have had the worst restaurant experience of my entire life. My husband and I had a sitter and came in for a night out. The service was terrible our food came out wrong the server didn't know what they were doing and when we asked to speak to a manager a tall lady named Sam (i think) came over. She had an attitude from the start, she was rude to us and said since we ate all the food there wasn't much she could do besides give us a free dessert. Later when I went to the bathroom I saw that same manager sitting at a bar table gossiping with some guy maybe her boyfriend or friend but that's just speculation. She seemed to care less what was going on in the store but rather she wanted to gossip and flirt with some guy. I am so mad and not to mention the girl who served us ( long orangeish hair with a squeaky voice who we've seen working in the bar before) was beyond horrible! She never came around so we couldn't tell her what was wrong. We are very upset and my husband actually took pictures because that server was seen flirting with the same guy the manager was sitting at a table in the bar as well. This is ridiculous! We thought we'd give this place a try after all the bad rep with the vet and wow were we disappointed. We will NEVER be coming back and we are spreading the word of how terrible management and service is there. Such a shame. And if you want to see the picture evidence we would be more then happy to send it. Houlihans is awful.
(1)Natalie K.
The only reason this is getting 2 stars is due to our awesome waiter. My husband and I went here for date night last week. I've never really had a bad experience at this place, but I was disappointed this time. As we entered, we were awkwardly stared at by a greasy guy who turned out to be a bus boy, a girl with long brunette braided hair and a blond girl. Not one of them said anything, in fact, two of them just turned back around and continued talking. I finally said, um 2 please. I debated just turning around and leaving..It was if we were some inconvenience to their night. This kind of service doesn't even happen at places like mcdonalds and shouldn't be accepted here. Lighter note..We were very happy with our waiter though. His energy was great and really made the meal enjoyable.
(2)Melissa M.
Love the atmosphere here, not too formal but formal enough to have a quiet dinner out. Though there typically is nothing on the menu that jumps at me like 'Oh my goodness I HAVE to try that!' (asides from desserts, of course, but that comes with any horrible sweet tooth like mine), I have never once been disappointed in what I've ordered. Their mashed potatoes are possibly the best I have ever had, and I love the mini-martinis. The ginger mango and the apple are the best!
(4)Nathan S.
Houlihans is amazing. Let me clarify. THIS Houlihans is amazing. I've been to two others (Chicago and Wisconsin Dells) and they were mediocre at best. For some reason this location seems to "get it". I go about once a year and each time I've been pleased and never been let down (at this location only). If you decide to try it out, please, please try their stuffed mushrooms and potato soup (you'll thank me later). But as I've stated numerous times ONLY go to the one in Algonquin. If not, we'll...
(4)Rita B.
Visited this location on a Saturday afternoon with the family. Not too busy but a good amount of customers in and out. Only reason I'm giving it three stars is because it wasn't bad but it was just ok. Staff was alright. Nice enough. Atmosphere was modern, clean, and just mediocre. Food was good and not fantastic. Two of us had the stuffed chicken breast. Came with one steamed veggie of your choice and mashed potatoes. Other family member had a flatbread app and it too was plain. Again, nothing wrong with the food here but nothing exceptional to write about. The bathrooms were very clean. No complaints there. Koala care in the women's bathroom and I could have sworn I saw a sign for the men's bathroom (for having Koala care). If that's the case, kudos to this establishment. Bar area was empty but clean. Parking was plentiful but watch out for the massive pothole directly in front of the doors. Would probably come back here if in the area but I'm not going to go out of my way.
(3)Sam H.
Nice atmosphere and service.... but the food was not good at all. Nachos were missing everything cheeses wasn't melted, chicken was watery and flavorless the nachos in the bottom of the plate were all soggy from the water from the chicken... Not very good. The lettuce wraps were the same.. Chicken very watery and extremely salty! Only came with 3 leafs of lettuce. The soup was watery and flavorless, and the entries seared salmon salad... No seasoning on the tuna, the salad was all wilted and also soggy... Just a very very poor performance by the kitchen.
(1)Garfer B.
Good food, good service, good location. This is our fav place to come out to in LITH. It's not too noisy, the wait staff and bartenders are always friendly and we have never had any problems with anything we order. The drinks are good, too, and the price is reasonable.
(5)Megan L.
I love the spicy chicken and avocado egg rolls here I get them every time. They have awesome pulled pork sliders with fried pickles on top sooo good. Always awesome service. Our waiter was great:)
(4)Tanya S.
Requested to sit outside and waited 10 minutes for a server. After watching several servers walk past us and ignore our existence, my friend told a host we were waiting for a server still but would like an iced tea while she ran to the bathroom. By the time she came back a server who was working inside said she saw us just sitting and offered to take our order. She was very nice and very apologetic but it was mind blowing to me that after being ignored by so many servers, the host couldn't even grab an iced tea for us! Service from there forward was great, but being someone who works in the service industry I was surprised we didn't even get a side salad discounted after the very rocky start we had. Food was good, our server should get a job elsewhere, the rest of the establishment has a lot of customer service to work on!
(1)Jennifer W.
Every time we go to this place (once a month or so) we leave happy. The service is great, the food is good and most importantly it's consistent you always know what your going to get. The reason I didn't give 5 stars is bc when I went yesterday my salad was exceptionally smaller than it usually is.
(4)Michelle F.
I had the absolute pleasure of dining at this location tonight! Now let me start my review by saying that I have never been to a Houlihan's, but my dining companions have, and they said that the Schaumburg one is AWFUL. We had Stacy as our server, and boy was she amazing! If you can request to be in somebody's section, I would recommend her in a heartbeat! She was attentive, knowledgeable about the menu, fast, and there was NEVER a dry drink on the table! Also, the busboys were amazing as well--we weren't done with a plate for about 30 seconds before they were there to take it away (but never in a pushy fashion) I was with a group of four girls total, and we were seated in a corner booth. We all ordered three things off of their Small Bites menu varying from flatbreads, to macaroni and cheese, to salad, and some amazing soups! Everything came out hot and fresh. My friend had especially great things to say about the Potato Soup and the Goat Cheese and Artichoke Poppers. I personally enjoyed the BBQ Chicken Flatbread the most! They are highly recommended! After dinner when we were contemplating dessert, the General Manager stopped by our booth and we had nothing but rave reviews. He was a really nice guy and gave us his recommendations as well. I can really appreciate a manager that actually spends time with his customers! It wasn't a quick breeze-by where you can tell they're just looking for a "good" when asked how everything was going. So then we ordered our dessert. Between the four of us, we all got one, and split among all of us. The cinnamon sugar donuts that you dip into chocolate and white chocolate were AMAZING. The smores were phenomenal as well (melted chocolate on the bottom and melted marshmallow up on top that you stir together--how can you go wrong?!), and the Snicker's ice cream dome is not something to pass up either! Oh, and I thought this was a nice touch--one of my friends ordered coffee during dinner, and they also brought her a to-go cup on her way out just in case. That really surprised me that they would go out of their way like that! We each spent about $25 including tip, and took a TON of food home! I will be stopping back by again VERY soon! Great food, fantastic staff, awesome atmosphere.
(5)Kelly O.
This new version of Houlihan's has a great modern ambience and great food....my only downer is that you get very inconsistent service. Yesterday our service started out GREAT and took a nosedive. My diet coke was never refilled. We waited forever for SALADS to be delivered. Our food was finished for at least 15 minutes (yes we timed it) before I had to finally go get up and find our server. Bummer. Great food. Randomly ok service.
(3)Kris V.
This is our favorite place in town. Good food, good service, good drinks. The mac n cheese is amazing. The ribs are good too... meat falls off the bone. The wings are crispy... I prefer crispy wings over rubbery wings. The bar area is my favorite. has a lounge feel to it and it's not loud.
(5)Kailey S.
Visiting family in Chicago so we were looking for something that California didn't have. This place was perfect. Although there is nothing that makes it special to chicago, it was a place that served good food and had a great atmosphere. Our party of 8 was sat right away and the first thing to catch my eye was the mealio dealio that came with a starter soup or salad, entree, and a dessert. The cost of the deal was less than the cost of the entree regularly. I think this is only something you can get on sunday or monday, but it is a great deal. I got the herb crusted chicken. The mashed potatoes were delicious and so was the asparagus. the chicken was a tab bit overdone on the outside, but still juicy on the inside. I would definitely get this again. I also got the pecan pie. That was extremely delicious. The waitress was super friendly, even when someone in our party wanted to change their order twice while we were waiting. Overall our entire party was happy.
(4)Mary O.
I freaking love Houlihans. I miss it so much now that I live in LA. Whenever I can't decide to eat I'm always wishing there was a Houlihans. I like this particular Houlihans, I've been to the one by Woodfield and I went to one in Indiana once and this one is way better. Fun ambiance, attentive staff, the food always comes out looking and tasting great. I'm pretty sure the half priced pitchers have like 3% alcohol content, just sayin. Love all of there small plates and every time I visit home I get the wedge salad - delish! Plus they have amazing deals ever Wednesday! Sign up for the emails!
(5)Brian V.
We go here fairly often for business lunch meetings. Staff is always friendly and attentive. Some restaurants can become annoyed at a group of 6-10 of us having a meeting for 2 hours but here we always feel welcome. Granted It's not as if this particular location is packed around lunch time but it keeps us coming back. All of the food is great. Appetizers, salads, entrees, I can't recall anyone having something they disliked. There's a reason we keep coming back. A bit pricy for some but you get what you pay for... When I take clients or business partners to lunch I'm looking for something much nicer than Chilies and Houlihans delivers.
(5)Brittney N.
I'm definitely a regular here, especially in the summer. They have a great patio and awesome drink specials Monday thru Thursday. Half price flavored long Islands! I used to think they were too sugary, but one of the servers recommended ordering the pitcher in a 20 oz. Glass. It's awesome! I haven't tried too many of the foods on the menu because I found that I love the fish tacos with pineapple rice and have just stuck with that.
(5)Franceline V.
My brother and I came here to watch a Bears game since our usual spot was packed. My first time here, on his recommendation and boy was I wowed! They had great drink specials and amazing appetizers. The bartender even gave us a free round because one of the draft beers we ordered was out. I'll definitely be back for more.
(5)Whitney H.
We usually love hollihans! Very disappointed this time. We first sat down at the bar and Waited 5 minutes and then was finally greeted by the manager. He was very nice and friendly. We didn't know what we wanted so he gave us menus. Then we waited another 10 minuets until greeted By our bartender, male, early 20's, in shape, and said he was new to bar-tending. We got our drinks, he never checked if they were good the entire time we were there or to see if we wanted to order something. He was off doing side work. We were going to order food but it took about 20 minutes before the next shift bartender asked if we wanted anything. We asked for our check because we didn't want to stay any longer there. Then it was another 6 minutes before the manager took out payment. We never complain but this was horrible service! We ended up across the street at on the border. Please pay more attention to the costumers!!
(1)Suzanne T.
I never thought I'd be writing a review about Houlihan's. I grew up eating at the Schg location. They had terrific salads and sandwiches and just about anything else. This location has the tastiest fish tacos in the burbs. I'm minutes away from options but will drive an HOUR to get to these fish tacos. Bravo, Houlihans-your legend lives on. In tacos.
(4)Debbie A.
Love houlihans! Their half priced pitchers (mon-thurs) of Texas teas are awesome! They have a ton of small plates if u want to sample foods or you can just get one of their main meals. I love their chipotle nachos and fish tacos!
(5)Michelle D.
Houlihan's is always a fun time, especially with larger groups. The staff has always been really friendly and attentive, and the ambiance is really pleasant. I've only been here for dinner, but this place seems like it would be nice for lunch as well. As far as their food goes, their stuffed chicken breast is mouth-watering & amazing...I couldn't stop thinking about how wonderful it tasted during the entire meal and then afterwards. The chicken tortilla soup is also super good...it definitely has a kick, but it's probably the best chicken tortilla soup I've ever had. Their food probably isn't super healthy, but it definitely tastes good. Another plus: their menu offers a wide variety of foods, so even the picky eaters in your group will leave satisfied :)
(4)Lindsey H.
Since posting my review, the District Manager and General Manager have reached out to me. Both of them have been unbelievably kind, understanding, and generous. They have offered some over the top remedies to my situation and I am beyond satisfied with the service. Everyone makes mistakes, it's how you handle the mistakes, that matters. Thank you Houlihan's for proving to me that customer service still exists!! I will continue to dine and drink at Houlihan's!!!
(5)Rachel M.
On Thursday, October 18, 2012, my sister and I went to the Houlihan's located on Randall Road in Algonquin for a quiet birthday celebratory lunch. The restaurant was sparsely populated on this rainy day and both my sister and I were looking to go to Algonquin Commons for a nice day of R&R and shopping. We have been to this location on numerous occasions and enjoy long lunches with drinks, appetizer, lunch, and desserts. Unfortunately, this is the very last time we will be back at this, or any other Houlihan's location. Our "waiter" came to the table and we ordered our flight of flirtini's to discover what drinks we'd be ordering later. While the flight of flirtini's was tasty, we had our choice narrowed down to "X-Rated Flirtini". We ordered spinach dip, parmesan frites, and chipotle chicken nachos. The appetizers were ok tasting, acceptable but nothing special. We generally find the food here to be a little bit better than TGI Friday's. Not by much though. We each throughout eating our appetizers (this is over the course of about two hours) ordered four flirtini's. Upon receiving the fourth flirtini from our waiter, and without signaling that we were ready for the bill, the waiter brought the check which included charges for fourteen (!?!?) flirtini's, in addition to the flights. Now, we are not competitors on some professional drinking circuit, but had we each consumed seven flirtini's, we would be completely inebriated to the point where we couldn't walk. We called our "waiter" over to the table to dispute the egregious charge on our bill. He said he would not fix it and he would get the manager. The "manager" (who was conspicuously dressed in a chef's outfit) came over and told us we drank all of the flirtini's charged and that we would have to pay for all of them, despite the fact that we were carrying out coherent conversation with him after we each drank seven flirtini's and a flight of flirtini's. When we told him we would pay for the eight drinks plus the flight that we ordered and not fourteen, the manager of the restaurant CALLED THE POLICE!!! The police showed up to the restaurant (four squad cars, apparently the City of Algonquin has nothing better to do at 2:00 in the afternoon on a Thursday) and mediated the situation. While the police were here, the bartender had the audacity to bring, not surprisingly, fourteen bottles of champagne and indicated that these bottles were used to make our drinks. Now, I am not an accountant, or a chemist, but if you have fourteen 375 ml bottles of champagne empty, obviously you would have made many many many more flirtini's and other associated beverages than the fourteen the restaurant was attempting to charge us for. After all was said and done, we appear to have been charged for what we ordered by the restaurant (Houlihan's refused to provide us with a final copy of the bill) and not the ridiculous fourteen flirtini's that they alleged. The fact that we had to go through this embarrassing situation whereby THE POLICE had to mediate this in an industry of hospitality is an abject failure by their incompetent staff in all service areas of Houlihan's. I will make it a point to never visit their restaurants, and to tell everyone I speak to about restaurants what to expect when visiting Houlihan's: being overcharged for drinks you don't order, having the police called on you, and an evening of terse discussion about the humiliation received at the hands of a hospitality business. You lost two faithful customers for life.
(1)Cara G.
Love their food that is all cooked from scratch!! They are constantly coming up with new food and drinks. The waiters and waitresses are super nice and kid friendly. They have an awesome bar and patio dining. Definitely one of our go to restaurants.
(5)Dawn M.
Had a great meal here the other night. Had not been back in some time (years) but the restaurant was remarkably clean - at least in the low light levels, it looked clean! :-) The class and stainless steel, the upholetery - everything was clean - which generally leads me to believe they have a good manager at this location. Decor was unchanged from our first visit - however, we were much happier with the food that arrived at our table this time - had a wonderful meal. I went with the Pot Roast - it was great. Towards the end, started thinking "uh-oh, salt", so that is my one criticism of the food - need less salt. (Salt eaters can always add it at the table.) We also had the seared tuna wonton appetizer (great!) and the chocolate cappuccino cake - found the cake icing too sweet/thick, wish we had ordered coffee to cut the sugar with. All in all, a good meal. For some reason my husband was mildly annoyed by the waitress - but she did a good job, though we did have to wait a little longer than expected to get our drinks, and she over-checked the table: "Is everything ok? Can I get you anything else?" - Uh, no, but you could let me have time to eat - if I want you, I'll flag you down. But - that's just me I think. Would I return: yes Would I recommend: yes
(4)Maria M.
We ate outside, bugs everywhere...looked as tho they hadn't hosed down the concrete .. um, ever! Food was okay, service a bit shaky, drinks very weak..but overall okay. Wont go back tho.
(3)Taylor M.
Even though this is a chain and i try to support local businesses Houlihans get a A+ rating from me. Ive had numerous meals here and Ive never been let down. Menu isn't very big but to me that means it is all very fresh. Food is good, Drinks are strong and the staff is pleasant.
(5)Megan W.
Great place to stop in for a quick bite and a cheap drink. Sun-Thurs $4 HUGE Long Islands and cheap well drinks. The stuffed mushrooms are not our first choice for an appetizer, so these were a tastey surprise! Do not believe I have had anything that was not delish here!
(4)Jake M.
Been here 3 times and have been let down all 3 times. Although the food has always been pleasant, the hostess/waitress staff have always failed to deliver any type of quality type of customer service. For instance, the last time I ate here was roughly around 7pm on a Wednesday. It wasn't a holiday and frankly wasn't even very busy. There were numerous tables open and no one waiting before us. So needless to say I was a little shocked that when our party of 4 arrived the hostess told us it would be about a 20-25 minute wait. When we were finally seated 20 minutes later, it took several minutes for drinks to be ordered and we were even short silverware when our main dishes arrived!
(2)Dick B.
Had the brick cooked chicken. Tasted like gasoline and had a rubbery texture to it. This place is essentially TGI Fridays with fewer menu options and no endorsement from Guy Fieri. Also, they consider Blue Moon and Sam Adams to be craft/microbrew beer.
(1)Denise J.
Ive heard so much about houlihan's that maybe my expectations were way to high, but I did not find the food to be that great. I came here last night for dinner after a little bit of shopping. The restaurant was empty so we got to pick were we sat and our waiter Corey came right over to us and took our drink order, I got a budlight lime and my boyfriend got a miller(it was on special). If I would have known the budlight lime was going to be $4.00 for a bottle I would not have ordered it and got the miller lite for $2.75!! We ordered the stuffed mushrooms for a starter.....I LOVE mushrooms so I was super excited to try thiers....they were almost 10 bucks for 7.....a little pricey. They came out and they were not at all what I expected. They came out in a deep fried ball that was filled with mushrooms and a cream cheese sauce.....I couldnt even taste the mushroom in them and I found them to be way to heavy. For dinner I ordered the grilled chicken sandwich with fries....I found the chicken to be dry and flavorless. The fries were really good though. My boyfriend got the chicken wrap...he said it taste like it came from his school cafeteria(so not good)...except it wasnt $2.50...it was almost $9.00. While we were eating both of our drinks were empty and we could not find our waiter anywhere in the restaurant, and finally the manager came and asked if we needed anything, we ordered two more drinks and a to-go container for the mushrooms. We did not see our waiter again until he brought the check to us.....Wow thank!! I will not be coming back to eat thier over priced blah food!!!
(2)Kai R.
Pros: Awesome food, staff and environment. Bathrooms are very clean and it is a kid friendly place. My family drives 50 miles just to eat here. Cons: Just one, do all the TVs have to be on the same channels? Results: Go eat there!
(5)Joy E.
Same as it ever was. Yo always get what you expect at Houlihans! I like their little dishes menu.
(4)Danielle K.
This is an modern chic restaurant with pretty good food. My main complaints; sometimes they send out text updates too early and then you can't get the buy one get one free entree you went there for. On some of the more expensive dishes you don't get that much food. I go here with my boyfriend and also with friends for girls night. The waiters are always really nice and helpful although sometimes I wish they would check on us a little more often. The food is pretty tasty, they call it American cuisine, but it's kind of a pot luck of a bunch of cuisines. It's usually good, but sometimes they run out of certain dishes, which is annoying. They have awesome drinks, I recommend the three mini martinis. You can pick whichever three mini martinis you want for $8. Sign up for their text alerts and their email subscription you can get some pretty good deals for Wednesday, Thursdays and Holidays. Go it's one of my favorite places to eat in Algonquin!
(4)Tony R.
This place is awesome!! I went there to eat four times and I will definitely be going there again soon. My favorite thing to get is the 72 Burger, this is one of the best burgers i've tried yet. service is decent, the menu isn't too expensive. Regular $10 meals. Houlihan's has a dimmed atmosphere, and a bar on the side.
(5)Ryan H.
What a difference a year makes. After posting my stellar review almost 14 months ago, this Houlihan's has sure fallen from grace. What was once an exceptional place to go has morphed into nothing more than another disappointing dining experience in the sea of suburban restaurants. To start, they lost their good manager to another store. From that moment on, food quality, service and attention to detail slipped right away. One night, not long ago, it took the kitchen FOUR TRIES to get a medium rare steak to my table. The other night, my baked potato came out ice cold. Then we have the issue with the cocktails. In the past, you could always count on a "good" cocktail at Houlihans. Earlier this week, I ordered a Mojito (which is usually an excellent cocktail at Houlihans) and it arrived flat and flavorless. I queried the waitress. She laughed and said that they were all getting in trouble for overpouring cocktails so the were told by management to underpour from now on. For $7 for a rocks glass full of ice and a couple sips of beverage, there should be no underpouring anything. Suffice to say, when she came by offering additional cocktails, I declined. It's too bad, really. This was one of my favorite places to grab a quick bite to eat. Now when I think of Houlihan's, I just shake my head in dissapointment. If you are traveling the Randall Rd. corridor looking for some good eats, I now have to recommend taking a pass on the Algonquin Houlihan's. I gave them every opportunity. It truly has fallen to just another chain restaurant with crappy service, weak drinks and mediocre food.
(2)Kristine B.
I rate it a two only because the food is so good. I have been eating at Houlihans for about 5 years now. I use to visit multiple times a week. Now maybe once every 4 months or so if I'm really craving the food. The food is the best in the area. The thing is it is good for dine in. Which dine in has become their down fall. The current management staff is not worried about pleasing the customer. They are worried about please in their staff. And their staff is awful! There are a few great girls I would ask for and I would leave if they are not working! To my recollection Lisa,Britney,Carine? Are some of the best staff out there. The new girls are just awful!!!! The new guys whatever at least the food is good. I had some skinny chick I've never seen in there named niña I think. GOD AWFUL. She even made my food bad just speaking! The hostess seem lost. I could seat my sel better. I guess my suggestion is go to the bar. The foo is just by worth missing!
(2)Mark W.
Good place for lunch, staff always friendly , we have never had a bad appetizer there. Burgers are good, best salad is the Asian chicken.
(3)Jennifer C.
This place is good. My hubby and I had the Nachos and Parmesan Frites with sauce trio (which we always get) and they were both great as usual. We had the Banana Cream Pie mini dessert which was also very good. Our server was good, the food unfortunately was rather slow coming out, but we had a good time and will be back when we are out shopping at Woodman's.
(4)Tiffany P.
Love Houlihans, great environment and delicious food every time. The only thing i would recommend is changing your smoking area, it's not the nicest thing to walk in the door when someone is smoking right outside of it.
(5)Marie B.
This Houlihan's has been a favorite of ours for YEARS! We've been very disappointed to watch the quality, presentation and portion bite the dust over the past six months. A couple of my personal favorites (sw grilled chicken wrap and fish tacos) have been wilted and appeared thrown together the last several times we've been in. My husband's salmon was very small and bland and the goat cheese bites were tiny and hard the last few trips as well. The quality and value have decreased so significantly that we wonder if there have been budget cuts?.. The atmosphere, coupons and service have remained fantastic. We have not drawn attention to our dissatisfaction because we love the staff and find it very uncomfortable to send back every meal b/c it doesn't meet previously established quality expectations or doesn't appear fresh. PLEASE fix your kitchen Houlihan's! We're not giving up just yet..
(2)Brian S.
Nice as a lunch option, but always a bit slow for it. For dinner there are good basic meals with quite a few options on the menu. This place works well especially if you are dining with people with differing tastes. I like the Shrooms appetizer and a basic burger and they have decent drinks. Decent for a family.
(3)Hugo B.
We had Ally as our server, the atmosphere is good and food, service is always good. Sign up for their emails to get their specials. I like this place
(4)Luke S.
Typically easy to get a table ....service is always good.
(4)Jacob J.
I dunno what I was doing way out here in the sticks, amongst the plethora of chain restaurants we decided on Houlihans for a few drinks and snacks, since it's always a stable idea. I remember that weekend it was negative degree weather and sat inside nearer to the bar in the back towards the kitchen. I remember choosing these seats thinking it'd be warmer here, it was freaking cold! Ate with our jackets on, the server also complained that it was cold inside. What to do? Even she agrees. Three guys, a bunch of cocktails and a few appetizers to share. The food was standard fare and very good. The drinks were terrible; we had top shelf vodka cocktails which were dampened with flat soda. I inquired with the server a few times if they could get soda from a different pump etc, she then took it up with management which knew about the problem, said that it'd been some days since having the problem. I wish they would've told us when we ordered, it would've changed our minds to having beers. I'm surprised that neither the waitress or management comp'd our drinks. We each had two, the whole while I thought about a similar situation at a bar in Chicago where the waitress comp'd our drinks and agreed that flat soda just ruins the drink. They comp'd one drink. Whoopie! Our waitress couldn't be any more daft, (don't mean to sound rude) just, I need you to be more customer service oriented and empathetic to my needs. Had she comp'd our drinks we would've tipped her the same amount of drink money in tips. We were charged $11/each for that top shelf flattened booze. Of the many Houlihan's locations, this one is a lot smaller and it's wheelchair accessible in the bar area. It can be seen from the road, but is hidden between a few other chain restaurants.
(2)Danny C.
A very nice place. My and my girlfriend wanted a little change of pace, so we thought we'd go to Houlihans to see what it's like. I've never been before, but she was raving on about their Baked Potato Soup. The best thing about it is that it's not "overly" fancy. Pricing was good. If you are from around that area, as my girlfriend is, you would know that most of the restaurants are quite known to be a tad expensive, most likely because the area is known to be a little higher on the economic bracket (ex. Biaggi's, Bonefish Grill, etc.) All that aside, it was a very nice restaurant. Nice waitress, nice hostess. The only thing that kind of stunk was that our table and menus were dirty. if you want a nice meal at a nice place, I'd definitely recommend it.
(4)Ashley M.
I love me some Houlihans. I find their entrees to be varied an ALWAYS tasty. I am a particularly huge fan of the Tuscan Bean Salad - light and delicious. The Spinach dip is DIVINE and is great for a group of friends. Their drink menus are fun too. I usually come here with a large group of people (this place is an amazing substitute for a loud, crowded bar) and the waitstaff is always accommodating. When we do sit at the bar, the bartenders are sweet and often stop to chat. The managers are usually wandering around to ask about your meal/drinks and they are RIDICULOUSLY nice and personable. I find everything to be reasonably priced, especially their BUCKET of Long Island Iced Teas. Long live Houlihans
(5)Dean S.
I love the appetizers here...and the bathrooms are sweet...when they first opened I was shocked they were playing a mix of Electronica, trance, and avant garde music which I'm a big fan of...I even heard Apex Twin... I'm sure its back to dave mathews, and the kings of leon... I know this was Illinois prototype for the new Houlihans concept...which is a Tremendous improvement to Chain style I just wish the drinks and service were as fresh and dynamic as their food...
(3)Asheley B.
I want to enjoy this place, I really really do. Maybe walking in with two kids just makes the host/waitress cringe. I love their drinks. But food is such a toss up lately. We had the same server the past two visits. Maybe 8 months apart. She was just not good. I dont need someone breathing down my neck, but a smile would be nice once and awhile, considering the prices aren't the reasons you keep on going back, i get the same thing. Stuffed chicken, and I cross my fingers that the chicken will be good. This past time it was cooked and seasoned pperfectly but the asparagus was just non edible. :( Husbands fajtas were warm, not that awesome sizzle where you get EVERYWHERE else. And the tortillas were very hard. Next time I am at Algonquin Commons I will look at the pretty building, with cool atmosphere, and the great salad. But for service, food and did I say service, I will go elsewhwere.
(2)Jen B.
My friends and I do a "Girls night" every Sunday night. Seeing as most of us work at the same restaurant it became clear to us that we needed someplace to go after we got off work that would be open late. Since a few of us had AM jobs/shifts, we wanted something close to home. Houlihan's is just that, someplace close to home and open late enough that even after a closing Sunday night shift you could get a few hours of drinking and laughter in. The drinks, albeit pricey, are delicious. The service is iffy, but what do you expect at 11pm when the waitress/bartender just want to go home. I've only had an entree there once, and it was a bit iffy. The main courses are a bit too fancy for me, and too heavy to eat at 11pm. But the 5 dollar appetizers are always a crowd pleaser. Their Brucetta and shrooms' are to die for. The three bean dip is also tasty but our favorite is the wanton tuna wraps. The key lime martini is delicious as well, but we're always ordering the pitchers of long island iceteas. One of those bad boys will last you a good hour or two depending on how much talking and laughing you do. And the best part? They have almost every beer imaginable on tap, and drink specials nearly every night of the week. Also their deserts are delicious, they have "Free desert Tuesday!" which I find to be stunning. From Creme' brule to Snickers ice cream dome this place has everything you could want in a gourmet and delicious desert with out paying 10 bucks for it : )
(4)Nancy E.
Love, love, love the new brunch menu! Creative and thoughtful- perfectly executed. It's served Sat. and Sun. 10-2pm. Here's some cut and paste of the menu descriptions and prices of foods I was able to try: homemade pop tart Choose raspberry or chocolate-hazelnut in our house-made pastry shells, served with fresh berries and a dollop of vanilla ice cream. $2.49 gruyere & wild mushroom Quiche Baby spinach, gruyere and swiss cheeses, fresh thyme, topped with melted leeks. Comes with marinated fresh fruit and spring salad with jicama, pears and lemon-olive oil. $8.95 Le maine (French) toast Griddled cinnamon battered French toast with orange cream cheese, seasonal berries and 100% pure Maine maple syrup. Served with rosemary potato griddle cakes and your choice of applewood smoked bacon or all-natural grilled chicken sausage. $10.95 **tried this as the children's French toast, but it was served exactly as described above without the meat for $4.95** a La carte SiDeS Slow Cooked Applewood Smoked Bacon $2.50 Grilled Chicken Sausage (all natural, antibiotic free) $2.50 The manager made it sound like the Algonquin Houlihan's is one of the pilot locations for the menu. Please go and try the brunch menu to help make it a success cuz I'll cry if it goes away. I am pregnant, so I couldn't indulge it the flight of mimosas that I soooo wanted :( Can't wait until I pop this baby out so I can try 'em. See you there Saturday morning!
(5)A R.
Houlihan's is one of our favorite restaurants in the area. Great affordable food, good music and ambiance. The mini-entrees are a great option for eating out on a budget because they are delicious and sized right. I wish all restaurants had a "normal portion size" option. As far as the rest of the menu - so far I've tried most of it and haven't found something I didn't like. So explore because you can't go wrong.
(4)Susan R.
Where do i start......bad service, horrible food, terrible management. Well we had made reservations for a party of 25 at 730pm and called 3 times to confirm it during a weeks time. We came here to celebrate a 21st birthday dinner before we go out on the town. We arrive at Houlihans to find out that they LOST our reservation. YUP, lost it. Now we had to wait an hour for them to seat us. Once seated we had to wait and wait for the server to deliver drinks to our table. I finally stopped him (30 min after we sat down) and said "could i order some food sometime today". With hesitation he takes our order. We NOW wait an hour for our meal to arrive. When the meal arrives it is after 10pm!!!!! Don't forget we arrived at 730. The food was horrible. Its sad when i can get a better meal at the Golden Corral across the street than i can at this place. Some of us ordered dessert BIG BIG mistake....that took about 30min to place ice cream on a plate. REALLY 30 min. SO now the time is about 11:30 we now have to wait for our bills to arrive and when they do of course there are mistakes on them which then have to be corrected. THEN they tried to charge me over 20% on gratuity which the manager corrected immediately..Needless to say we finally left our 730pm dinner at 12:15am. So our poor birthday girl didn't get go out and enjoy rest of the night she had planned. I will say the manager did comp some items BUT having one server for a group that size was totally ridiculous. NONE OF US WILL EVER GO BACK!!!!! If you don't mind spending an evening trying to hunt down your drinks and eating mediocre food then this is the place for you.
(1)SANDRA D.
Updated 07/12 - reduced 5 star rating to 4, so obviously still a fan, but have noticed inconsistencies the last several times I have gone. Unfortunately, one of the best things on their menu (chicken fajitas) are no longer prepared the way they should be ... which is in a screaming hot skillet so the veggies soften and the marinade thickens and the flavors develop. I ordered them three times after my initial review at the beginning of 2012, and each & every time they had to go back because the marinade was watery and bland ... was told twice by the manager that it was due to the restaurant being crowded & the cook not ensuring the pan was hot enough ... and was told that I should specifically request extra marinade and a very hot pan. You shouldn't have to request that, but I was willing to; however, the next time I did specify that, and they came out the just as watery w/crunchy vegetables as the last times. Every time they had to go back to the kitchen, my companion was more than half way done eating. I have given up on ordering the fajitas there, which is a shame, because when made right, they are delectable. Thankfully there are lots of other tasty dishes on the menu from which to choose, so I continue to go back. Consistently friendly service. Original Review: Great service and great food every time I've been there (the sign of good management, IMHO). They have the best chicken fajitas I have EVER had ... they did not make them nearly as well at the Schaumburg location, so I will stick with this Algonquin location going forward. Very big, broad menu and quick for lunch, and the prices are reasonable. Consistently great iced tea, which is important to me. Their mini desserts are great for one person, or two to split and just have two bites each -- my favorite is the snickers ice cream dome. Love this place!
(4)Carrie c.
Food is always reliably great! They have a great variety of items on the menu. Music is a great mix! The staff and servers are always friendly, but don't always "know" the menu. I can read the menu, but if I'm asking about a certain ingredient that isn't listed...I would hope that the servers could find out rather than just leaning over to try and read the menu and then say 'I don't know for sure'.
(4)Holly S.
This is my favorite place to go with big groups when not going into the city. It's hard to find somewhere unique or fun in the suburbs since it's all chains, but since this is a conception store in the Houlihan's chain it's a bit different. The look of the place is great and I love the stencil wall art, and I love even more that they put the website for the artist in the menu for curious people. The shroom appetizer is our favorite, and every sandwich I've had there is really good. The drink flights are wonderful to taste different flavors and in the summer it's nice to sit outside with a few martini trios.
(4)Jason H.
I've had drinks here a handful of times. I believe on Thursday nights they have half price appetizers after 10pm which is pretty awesome. The appetizers here are more of the gourmet fine dining variety than what a normal chain restaurant usually serves. I highly recommend the Tuna Wontons. DEE-LISH! Also their mini-creme brulee' is tast-ee.
(4)Tim C.
I love this restaurant/bar. It is quiet enough to be able to speak with people instead of just nodding like you would at other places where the music is blaring. The setting is sofisticated and modern. The outside patio is perfect for a nice summer night to sit and drink with your friends, especially since the smoking ban was put into place. One of my favorite things to do in this area is to go here and smoke a cigar with some friends, give it a try. The one downside is the drinks are priced a bit high, but I think it is worth it.
(5)Jenny C.
I love this place, they've really stepped it up in the past few years. Please do yourself a favor and go here now, order the Stuffed Mushrooms and the Tuscan White Bean Salad. You can thank me later!
(5)Denise D.
Good service and great food! Kitchen is open late which is nice for the area. We love the chicken nachos!
(4)Richard K.
I went there on weds night at 800ish. I ordered the French Dip, but was told they were out of au jus 10 mins later. The 'shrooms' appetizer was quality. The spinach dip was above average from what I was told too. I ordered a cheeseburger and they use a wheat bun which was a nice switch from the regular. 3 stars here due to the dessert (banna cream pie) wasant even a pie. I guess dont go there after 7?
(3)Samuel E.
I had the singularly unique experience of being present for the first week that our (semi-) local Houlihan's was doing brunch. They have elevated this pseudo-meal to the highest point that can be attained. They offer a flight of 3 mimosa's with different fruit juices, all of which are fantastic. (um.. that's what an alcoholic buddy of mine told me, I would never be so crass as to drink before noon. ahem.) They have devised a scratch made version of a pop-tart that must be experienced to be believed. I had the "east cobb omlette" (give me a Cobb salad, hold the lettuce, and add whipped eggs, oh, and make the bleu cheese into a sauce) This was simply the best breakfast, I mean brunch, since I had alcohol, (no wait I mean my buddy), I have ever had. I went back two weeks later and had French toast. Also a best in class experience. Not to be under-rated are the mini-potato pancakes that come with almost everything. Also tops. As a side note, for those who notice such things, the coffee was exceptional.
(5)