On Monday, we asked our readers a very important but rarely-addressed question on this blog: What is Houston's most overrated restaurant? The commenters responded with full force, leaving 133 comments (at last count) covering territory from the most implausible chain restaurants -- can a chain really be overrated? -- to such sacred cows as Mark's and Catalan. One even took a dig at the long-closed Felix Mexican Restaurant, namely at its famous queso.
Commenters tended to define "overrated" with an algorithm that included ample amounts of hype, high prices and overly long wait times. If a restaurant's food (or service) failed to live up to these three factors, it was summarily excoriated with such descriptions as "Crave Cupcakes, what the @#!&%? How do you suck so hard at doing only one thing?"
In the end, though, ten restaurants topped the litany of "overrated" complaints -- and the restaurant at the top of the ignominious pile topped its runner-up by nearly 3 to 1. Dishonorable mention also goes to the top 11 through 20: Rainbow Lodge, RA Sushi, Star Pizza, Gravitas, Little Big's, Textile, Cyclone Anaya's, Max's Wine Dive, El Tiempo and Spanish Flower.
Without further ado, your Ten Most Overrated Restaurants.