Let’s Be Honest, Hillstone Isn’t Great at Anything Except Consistency

Houston’s, Hillstone, R+D Kitchen, South Beverly Grill. Whatever you call it, it’s time we talk about it.

Behold, that ‘famous’ spinach dip (Photo courtesy of TripAdvisor/Hillstone’s)

Every city has its Hillstone stans. In Miami, they’re very loud and loyal, the ones who talk about the spinach-artichoke dip like it’s a spiritual experience and post the French Dip like it’s breaking news. I get it. Hillstone is dependable, it feels adult, and the martini actually comes cold.

But we’ve started treating consistency like it’s some kind of culinary virtue when, really, it should just be the baseline.

The Coral Gables location, which I grew up going to from time to time and was my first true exposure to the brand, has been packed since “Hot In Here” was a number one hit. It made sense then. Miami twenty years ago didn’t have much in the way of restaurants that were both reliable, nice enough for date night, and didn’t cost a small fortune. Hillstone filled that gap. But it’s been serving basically the same menu, in the same perfectly lit room, to the same crowd for two decades. At this point, the …