Alonti Cafe & Catering

This review is about the breakfast service only.
I always had a great experience at the Alonti in Greenway so I expected the same. Boy was I wrong!
I have been here several times and each one has been horrible service. Upon arrival at the counter there is never anyone there to take my order. The man who works there is always off doing something. The other staff is doing prep work and they just avoid eye contact. If you wait long enough, you will see them roll their eyes at the old man, but they still don’t look at you. Once he returns to serve you it’s not in a polite or upbeat manner. It’s just «Can I help you?»
Yes, please give me some breakfast and the last 5 minutes of my day back. Also, if you could stop treating me like I’m inconveniencing you by asking for food, that would be great.
I have never left here in under 10 minutes because nobody wants to help anyone. Often a line will form behind me and no one comes to help, no one greets the people waiting.
The only nice person here works the register, and by then I’m so mad I don’t care anymore.
I’ll never be back — I gave you enough chances.

ok i give this place 2 stars over all
the food is good for lunch or breakfast
its very fast and convenient
most of the staff is great
and thats why i give it 2 stars, because all but one person is wonderful
the old grumpy A-​hole lady in the morning serving food, if youve been there then you know who im talking about. James browns sister
i hate having to deal with her
actually today just sealed the deal. me and our group wont be going back
shes rude and ridiculous. she actually ruins my morning when we have to deal with her
i catch myself praying that one of the younger girls hands me the food. yes its that bad
if i could fight a woman. id fight her. its not my fault her life sucks. if she hates her job so much, quit you POS!

I only get the breakfast tacos in the morning so my review is somewhat limited. Given the prices of other breakfast food in the tunnels they are about on par with other establishments. The staff is always nice to me and are quite generous in their servings on my breakfast tacos. I definitely enjoy starting off my mornings here and would recommend the breakfast tacos if you are in the area.

I go here for convenience. Hot lunches are similar to grocery stores hot meals. Sandwhich we are a little better. I mostly go here to create a spinach salad drenched in French dressing, bacon, eggs, and cheese. Salad bar is ok.

Convenience is pretty much the only reason why I stop by here. The food is mediocre and overpriced esp their sandwiches and paninis which are pre-​made. I’ve had heir pastas and while they are okay, there are definitely better options downtown. My company keeps catering from them which is a bummer but they have good pastries.

Ok, I had some chicken noodle soup today, and you know, CNS is pretty basic. Most places seem to open a can of Progresso. Alonti, however, made a really nice soup. It seems that they actually made their own soup. It was rich chicken goodness. Maybe I judged too harshly, Alonti. That soup is kick’n.

Soup is always good but is a bit pricey.

I’ve been in denial these past two months. Alonti’s Café was part of my lunch rotation because 1) it was right under my building and 2) for some reason, I believed it served decent food. But you know what? Not only is their product reminiscent of crappy High School cafeteria food, but I’ve overlooked just how down right atrocious their service is.
Out of the four times I’ve eaten at this place, I have ordered the French Club (grilled chicken, bacon, roasted red bell peppers, grilled onions, poblano mushrooms, provolone cheese, and mayo on ciabatta bread) three times and their a la carte once as well as their Italian Wedding Soup and Mexican Tortilla Soup.
Two out of the three times I’ve ordered the sandwich from their menu, the one server didn’t know how to make the sandwich, and another didn’t even know the French Club existed. Both times, they asked ME how it was made. I can understand one time, but two times? That’s more than just a fluke. Do the managers not train their workers or at least provide some reference sheet on how to make a sandwich from THEIR menu? Moreover, they didn’t even have the willingness to look it up for themselves from their menu on the wall; they relied on me, their customer that is paying them for the food and service, to look it up and relay the list of ingredients to them.
Today was the last straw. Their bowl of roasted red bell peppers was so burnt that it looked more like mushroom slices than red bell peppers. Even though they knew it was poorly cooked and tasted terrible, they still served it to their customers. The off-​putting charred, burnt taste overpowered the sandwich and I couldn’t force myself to finish it even if my life depended on it.

I’m kind of addicted to «The Monterey» sandwich here. It’s probably not the healthiest since it has quite a bit of mayonnaise, but the mayonnaise is deliciously spicy, and accompanies turkey, avocadoes, tomatoes & lettuce, along with monterey jack cheese on jalapeño-​texas toast (I might have been off on a few ingredients, but basically it’s good).
Alonti’s is my «go-​to» Houston lunch place b/​c a) it’s in the lobby of my client downtown, b) it’s in the basement of our office in the AIG building just outside town (no, I don’t work for AIG), and c) I’ve never been sick from it (like I have been from Ninfa’s).
Also, if you’re starving in the morning, they have decent breakfast — including hot breakfast options.
One negative — they still stock styrofoam cups. Really? Isn’t this 2008?!? I know it’s Houston, but c’mon. CFCs!!! Let’s have a little environmentalism here Houstonians.

You can’t really go wrong with Alonti for weekday sustenance while working for The Man. They offer your standard deli fare of soups, salads sandwiches, pasta and assorted sweets like pound cake and cookies, baked fresh and individually wrapped.
This location also offers a daily hot plate special, which on Thursdays I think is Fried Chicken, Green Beans and Macaroni and Cheese. Not the healthiest meal you’ll ever eat, but actually pretty good for a counter-​style operation in the Downtown Tunnels.
There are a few other hits on the menu. One is the Italian Wedding Soup, which is not like the traditional broth-​based meat and vegetable soup. Instead, it is a cream-​based chicken soup with fresh herbs and orzo pasta that is really quite delicious. Even in the summer, the pot will be cleaned out if you head down too late.
Another recent discovery on their menu is the Monterey Sandwich. It’s sliced chicken breast on jalapeño cheese bread with jalapeño mayo, lettuce, tomato and avocado. Between the cheese, mayo and avocado, you’ll pretty much get your fat allotment for the day, but it tastes so good. I had it three times in one week if that says anything, well if that says anything other than that I need to go to the gym.
The pasta dishes are only okay. This is probably because you’ll be confronted by giant bowls of bowtie or spiral pasta, and your dish basically gets the dunk in hot water before the sauce is added. It’s ok, but I suggest saving your carbs for something better.
The other thing I’d avoid are the paninis. They sound like a good idea, but when you come up to the sandwich station, they are already sitting out, grill marks and all. So when you order, they get re-​pressed and wrapped up. I tried one once. It tasted okay, but the whole concept of a panini was ruined and I couldn’t get over it. I mean, really, how hard it is to assemble and press to order?
Overall, Alonti is a decent place to keep on your rotating list of lunches downtown. Like any restaurant, it has hits and misses, but overall, if you order the right thing, you can get a decent meal for under $ 10.