For the price point, I'm going to have to critique a little harder. Total for 3 came out to just under $550, almost $200 per person (which was fully expected but still high). I personally would've rather spent this money on an omakase or michelin, which both can cost about the same as this but with better quality, but steak is steak. This was my 2nd time here, and it was sadly not the magic I remember it being. Steak was very tender for sure, and service was good - but overall not the *wow* I expect for the price point.
First on the steak, which is ofc the star of the show: the extra charred exterior on the steak (as advertised during the mini info speech by our server) was not all that impressive nor noticeable, and I've definitely had and made steak at home with a better crust. I asked for lighter char, which from what I understood would come more like a restaurant standard char (they said their ovens were extra hot hence extra char for *their* usual steak standards). Mine felt sadly pretty soggy and wet, and although inside was really tender, the exterior ruined it the longer I ate it. We all traded bites and they agreed. That was probably the biggest disappointment, with the soggy crust.
Secondly, the knife. The dull, hardly serrated knives had us all hacking our way through the steak with ugly cuts that ripped apart the meat and pressed out all the juices for every bite, and I couldn't cut my bites as small as I wanted to because it took that much effort - so just big chunks each time. My friends also noticed this.
Thirdly, the flavor. Lightly salted on the outside but bland on the inside - which is why the outside should have a slightly heavier salting, to balance out the unseasoned inside for a perfect bite. Both my friend and I had to take turns aggressively trying to get salt out of the salt shaker, which we couldn't even see how much was coming out due to the dark room, but it was much lighter flow than a normal diner salt shaker so it took some time to salt each individual bite with enough salt. Our other friend was content with her seasoning and commented that ours did indeed have less than hers did. Maybe a different chef?
Fourth, the garlic mashed potatoes barely had any garlic, just a forward taste of cream and a hint of the prior (delicious but where's the garlic?) - and the truffle fries were again limp and soggy (not crispy, at all) and heavy on the parmesean but light on the salt and truffle flavor. I remember ordering truffle fries years ago that I enjoyed but this time, not so much. Really needed a truffle aioli to go with it - the one at shake shack would've easily trumped this one. :(
Fifth, I thought it was a bit strange to have to cut into our steaks upon their arrival to check for correct doneness. It has been many years since my last visit and I don't remember that being standard practice, so I was thrown off this time. I understand why they do it, as Im sure people complain a lot halfway through their meals once they get into the center, but I do feel like it cools down the steak a lot faster, and I feel like 90 percent of the steak was pretty much a cool room temp by the time it made it into my mouth, even as slightly bigger chunks. Maybe it also contributed to how soggy it turned out being, since the cut down the middle probably leaches out more juices than starting from the edges. It also felt impossible to truly see the inside well, with the tiny flashlight pointed at the angle it was at hence creating shadows, so we all just nodded in agreement and moved on with the dinner so we could eat it while as hot as possible. Mine was a bit more done than I had asked for, but it was still fine enough to eat, and the other two seemed to have theirs cooked to their orders.
Next, the creme brulee we had for dessert had a really hard top. We all agreed that the layer of torched sugar on top was much too thick (should be sturdy but delicate enough), but this one needed to be stabbed a few times to break through and was not fun to eat the big chunks of sugar pieces so we didn't finish it - this coming from all three of us who have had a decent amount of them and never had this thick of a top.
Lastly, one of the drinks ordered was way too sweet and my friend couldn't drink it, so they re-made it for her with a different alcohol (but upcharged it without letting her know the price difference until seeing it on the receipt, which wasn't too much but just seemed tacky in practice), and then the bad drink charge also showed up on the receipt so she had to flag the waiter down to let them know for them to remove it since she didn't even get to drink it.
On the positive end, we had a celebration and the guest of honor was content. I will emphasize again that the steaks were still quite quality meat and tender, and the workers were all extremely professional. The busser especially was really attentive and great at refilling our waters. read more