For some reason, the parent company has decided to rename the restaurant Hillstone. Go figure. Hillstone/Houston's menu might be described as minimalistic. There are no appetizers to speak of, except for a couple of items under a category labeled this and that, which also includes side items. I did try the Chicago style spinach and artichoke dip, your basic dip served with tortilla chips. Although it is not listed on the menu, an appetizer portion of the barbecued ribs entree is also available. This included a half-slab of tender ribs with a slightly sweet barbecue sauce served on top of a mound of fries.

Most entrees include a salad, and the salads were huge. The basic salad featured a large plate of fresh, crisp greens topped with chopped eggs, grated cheese and big bits of crumbled bacon. The mustard honey house dressing was wonderful.

I also sampled a salad of seared tuna and field greens, which could easily serve as an entree. The sushi-grade tuna was seared on the outside and raw inside. The bite-size cubes were placed alongside a pile of exotic greens, which also included fresh avocado, drizzled with a cilantro-ginger vinaigrette.

The best of the entrees was the prime rib, which is one of Houstons signature dishes. The aged meat was well-seasoned and slow roasted to a wonderful medium-rare. To call it tender wouldnt do it justice. It came with a large baked potato filled with butter, sour cream, cheese and bacon bits as desired.

Houston’s is one of the better examples of how a chain restaurant should operate. It does what it does well, and the food is consistent. But one of the draws of this particular location is its lakefront view – every table has a perfect vantage point.