Iama Critic Rating - Chophouse '47 - 4 Stars
36 Beacon Drive, Greenville, SC
Our Experience:
How do you judge the value of indulgence? I have waited for years for the "perfect opportunity" to enjoy Chophouse '47. And by perfect opportunity, I mean the day that someone said "Hey Chef, this is your day, pick the place, any place, our treat!"
Well that day finally came and I was the man of honor! (Which means I ate free.)
Dining at upper scale restaurants, and by that I mean "expensive", requires that you set aside your normal methods of critique, such as price/portion/value ratios and other such nonsense. Because there is no economic values in a restaurant that serves a $100 steak. And where are you going to find another restaurant to compare that $100 steak to?
Rather, to be enjoyed, Chophouse '47 should be judged solely on a pleasure scale.
The Service - 5 Stars (18% tip)
20% of hundreds of dollars is more than I make per hour, so I have no mercy for waiters who work at upper scale restaurants. For what I am paying them upper scale restaurant waiters should be near flawless, and that means far more than simply filling my glass.
Thankfully our waiter was extremely attentive and social. He felt more like part of our group than he did a waiter, and for his effort he received a King's Ransom.
Because of the extreme cost at upper scale restaurants, my crew typically provide tips at a lower scale than regular restaurants. We provided 18% or more for 5 star service on the pre-tax portion of the bill, 16% for 4, 13% for 3, 11% for 2 and 0% for 1 star service.
The Food:
Table Bread - 1 Star
Chophouse '47 started our dining experience with the most amazingly boring table bread. Wow, not the start I was hoping for. I have had better table bread.... well, almost everywhere!
$6.00 Sizzling Bacon - 5 Stars
I have never seen anything like this sizzling bacon before and it is fabulous. It will kill your arteries but who gives a hoot! You must order this appetizer if you love bacon.
$8.00 Steak Fries - 5 Stars
These steak fries were cooked to perfection, sadly we only received four of them, so fights broke out at the table and soon the police were called to break up the melee.
$8.00 Green Beans - 3 Stars
I never thought I would live to see the day that I would spend $8 on a small plate of green beans. I was rather surprised at how unimpressive and average they were. A few were even shriveled.
$9.00 Onion Rings - 3 Stars
Although impressive in size, these onions rings simply do not measure up to what you can get at other restaurants for much less.
$9.00 Sautéed Mushrooms - 2 Stars
I do not know what the waiter did with the rest of our order of sautéed portabella mushrooms, because surely, not even Chophouse charges $9 for two little slices of mushroom. There was not enough to share with anyone.
$14.00 Carpaccio - 5 Stars
At the price of an entire entree at any normal restaurant, this Carpaccio was gorgeous to the eyes and flavorful to the palate. It was enjoyed by everyone. And was the only item we ordered all night that any effort was made on presentation. It not only tasted good, it looked good. Highly recommended.
$50 Seafood Sampler - 4 Stars
Our seafood sampler included Lump Crabcakes ($15) Lump Crabmeat ($16) Jumbo Shrimp ($14) and Oyster Rockefeller ($14). So you save a little money buying it all together. The seafood itself was spectacular; but the presentation was 2 Stars at best and consisted of nothing but lemon wedges and iceberg lettuce. Seriously? We have all seen Iron Chef on Netflix and know what a good presentation looks like.
$49.50 16oz Prime New York Strip - 4 Stars
It took everything I had in me not to order the $97.50 40oz Porterhouse. But I did not want to appear as though I was taking advantage of my host who was paying the ticket. So I ordered this one pound Prime New York Strip instead. It was exactly what you would expect, and at this price, deserve for $50. It was beef perfection. But has Chophouse never heard of presentation?
This gorgeous steak was served on a plain white plate devoid of anything but the steak! What a hideous presentation. Yea, yea, I can hear some people saying that the steak does the talking for itself. But if we are going for pleasure, give me something gorgeous to look at.
Total Bill:
Suffice it to say that our bill was outrageous. The $153.50 worth of food I listed above was just for the items I sampled. There were eight people at our table who consumed multiple bottles of wine, several appetizers and at least one dinner entree each.
Final Thoughts:
I do not even want to entertain the thought of how many homeless people I could have fed with all the money my group spent at Chophouse. And if you can't suppress those sort of thoughts, then wait till someone else is paying the check. I did not spend a dime of my own money and I still feel a tinge of guilt to this day. But that is the price of indulgence.... and having a conscience. read more