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bigcigar

bigcigar 1164

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Agree with Al Biernat’s. Always interesting people watching there, too.

I went to Town Hearth with a group of 6 in October for my wife’s birthday and they sat us in the private room. It was a phenomenal experience. Nothing really set it apart from other top steakhouses in Dallas food or service wise, but it was nice to have our own space to celebrate. 

The steak was pretty much the same quality as what you get at Neighborhood Services. If I want steak and it’s just my wife and I, I’d rather go there. Meatballs and porterhouse for 2 with drinks for about $125.

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Landomatic

Landomatic 3813

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Always contended that "best steak" was really more about the sides, the service, the space, etc...pretty much all the other variables other than the actual steak.  They all pretty much source their steak from the same place...Allen Brothers.  And any chef worth half a shit can cook a steak right.  So it comes down to all the other things for me.

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C-Man

C-Man 27194

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1 hour ago, bigcigar said:

Agree with Al Biernat’s. Always interesting people watching there, too.

I went to Town Hearth with a group of 6 in October for my wife’s birthday and they sat us in the private room. It was a phenomenal experience. Nothing really set it apart from other top steakhouses in Dallas food or service wise, but it was nice to have our own space to celebrate. 

The steak was pretty much the same quality as what you get at Neighborhood Services. If I want steak and it’s just my wife and I, I’d rather go there. Meatballs and porterhouse for 2 with drinks for about $125.

Heard Town Hearth is amazing. Going soon as in-laws have a nice gift card we are going to use.

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Spoosner

Spoosner 86

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Only been to Nick and Sam's once and was completely underwhelmed by both the food and service.

I'm still somewhat new to the city and have more exploring to do, but Bob's on Lemmon is easily the best steakhouse experience I've had so far.  I think it obviously depends on what type of scene you're looking for though.  Al Biernat's is next on my list based on this thread.

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PorscheGuy

PorscheGuy 127

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Ok, I need to give Bob’s on Lemmon a try. Currently burnt out on options. Nick and Sam’s is way past it’s glory days. Past three visits have been under whelming, bad, and laughable. 7 or 8 years ago it was killer.

Love Papa’s. Hate location. The Houston one is one of my all time favorites.

Town hearth is great. Food fantastic. Service and drinks awesome. It is what Nick and Sam’s used to be. But sometimes you want to be able to not have to scream to be heard across the table.




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Landomatic

Landomatic 3813

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Bob’s on Lemmon is definitely old school so if you’re looking for young and hip, it ain’t that.  However, it is by far the best Bob’s I’ve ever been to.  Not sure why but the food and service are better and it just has a charm and authenticity to it that can’t be reproduced.

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C-Man

C-Man 27194

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On 4/8/2018 at 11:54 PM, OatmealRaisinCookie said:

No Nick & Sam's?

I mentioned this on another thread, but had III Forks last week and it was pretty 2nd tier. Lots in our group got the premium offerings ($190 tomahawk, the Waygu, the bone marrow) and nobody was blown away. I just stuck with the typical bone-in ribeye which I use to judge a steakhouse.

It's the Silicon Valley of Dallas steakhouses -- used to be fanfuckingtastic, now only marginally tolerable.

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DFWTexEx

DFWTexEx 276

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Quote

Well...this list sucks:

.

Quote

I just don't get it.  Papas is OK, but geesh.

Agree on both counts.  Pappas is ok, but there is some seasoning on the steak that doesn't sit well with me and driving to a quasi-suburban parking lot in a part of town that did not make it, is just not fun for me.  That said, the onion rings are crazy good.  

I am not sure what to say about Knife. I thought it was just barely good.  My foodie friends all hated it.  The atmosphere is weird and seems all over the place.  The overhyped bacon sampling is just not good at all.  But, the press really loves this place.  As I have often said, no one sells himself better than Tesar.

Town Hearth was also ok. We went really on in the run, maybe its second week.  The steak was fine, but nothing special.  The soggy french fries were unforgivable.  The price did not seem right for the overall experience.

Happy to see CBD there.  It's not really a traditional steakhouse, but I had a steak there for my last birthday.  It was perfect, as were the sides and the service.

On the other hand, SER is just plain terrible.  I can't imagine why it would be on this list.  The steak was bad.  The sides were average at best.  The service was awkward and bad.  I have been back for just drinks and apps and everything sucked.  Even the shared signature dessert.  It exists only to steal money from convention attendees.

I'm still an Al Biernet's guy or maybe Bob's. I haven't been N&S in a long time, but, just like the writer said, it's a place you go for the whole experience and it's fun (or at least it was).

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Landomatic

Landomatic 3813

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If I had to come up with my own top 10, it would look something like this, although there’s a big gap between a lot of these.  Not counting places that serve steak but aren’t a steakhouse (CBD Provisions, etc).  And not counting multiple locations as stand-alones (Bob’s, Del Frisco’s, etc).  And not counting places in the burbs...

1) Al Biernat's

2) Town Hearth

3) Del Frisco’s

4) Bob’s

5) Capital Grille

6) Nick & Sam’s

7) Knife

8 - Truluck’s

9) Ocean Prime

10) Perry’s

Cant bring myself to even include Pappas Bros as I would never go eat there over any of the other places on my list just due to the location alone.

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C-Man

C-Man 27194

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On the other site -- it might've been Lando -- somebody discussed a steak house (they do much more than that) out in Addison or close to it that was pretty good and very reasonably priced. Was it Table 13? Does that ring a bell?

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Landomatic

Landomatic 3813

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27 minutes ago, C-Man said:

On the other site -- it might've been Lando -- somebody discussed a steak house (they do much more than that) out in Addison or close to it that was pretty good and very reasonably priced. Was it Table 13? Does that ring a bell?

Yeah I used to love that place.  Haven’t been in a few years.  Used to be one of my favorite little known places that was kinda under the radar.  It was very well decorated, had a great bar and menu and the service was always spot on.  Kind of an unassuming little place in one of the strip malls at about Beltline and Inwood.  And they always had a Frank Sinatra cover band which we thought was pretty cool.  Reasonable enough prices for that level (although I wouldn’t call it cheap) and just an overall good dinner experience top to bottom.

All that said, it’s kind of a haul from where I’m at now considering I drive by a handful of good to great places between my place and it.  And the extra cost for the Uber pretty much offsets the savings.  But I’d definitely go back in a heartbeat.

Dinner menu with prices...

http://www.table13addison.com/menu/

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C-Man

C-Man 27194

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17 hours ago, Landomatic said:

Yeah I used to love that place.  Haven’t been in a few years.  Used to be one of my favorite little known places that was kinda under the radar.  It was very well decorated, had a great bar and menu and the service was always spot on.  Kind of an unassuming little place in one of the strip malls at about Beltline and Inwood.  And they always had a Frank Sinatra cover band which we thought was pretty cool.  Reasonable enough prices for that level (although I wouldn’t call it cheap) and just an overall good dinner experience top to bottom.

All that said, it’s kind of a haul from where I’m at now considering I drive by a handful of good to great places between my place and it.  And the extra cost for the Uber pretty much offsets the savings.  But I’d definitely go back in a heartbeat.

Dinner menu with prices...

http://www.table13addison.com/menu/

That's probably where we're going for Mother's Day Brunch. Mrs. C-Man's parents live out in Farmers Branch so it's close to them.

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Landomatic

Landomatic 3813

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28 minutes ago, C-Man said:

That's probably where we're going for Mother's Day Brunch. Mrs. C-Man's parents live out in Farmers Branch so it's close to them.

Hmmmm...interdasting.  My parents are in town for mother’s day and I am seriously struggling.  My mom (mother #1) gets offended by anything too fancy and/or expensive and my wife (mother #2) gets offended by anything not fancy and/or expensive enough.  You might be on to something

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solamente73

solamente73 1132

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Wife (no pics) asked me what I wanted for Father’s Day.  Since she asked in front of the kids, I couldn’t be sexually explicit, so I went with ‘date night’ since we’ve been in baby jail the past few years.  She’s arranging babysitter, etc.

We like terrific steak and traditional high-end steakhouses.  We want to try a new one and are willing to travel out of the ‘burbs.  For reference, Bob’s in Grapevine is our favorite of the ~7 steakhouses in our immediate area, followed by JR’s.  When we were DINKs, we’d travel to Del Frisco’s Double Eagle in Addison.  We thought III Forks was terrible (letting people in for dinner wearing jorts?  Really?).  We abhor see-and-be-seen and trendy places.

I read the thread, but recs based on our tastes? I’m leaning towards Al Biernat’s North - the menu looks incredible.  Hell, the happy hour bar menu is almost more tempting than the dinner menu.

TIA.

 

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C-Man

C-Man 27194

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On 6/8/2018 at 11:05 AM, solamente73 said:

Wife (no pics) asked me what I wanted for Father’s Day.  Since she asked in front of the kids, I couldn’t be sexually explicit, so I went with ‘date night’ since we’ve been in baby jail the past few years.  She’s arranging babysitter, etc.

We like terrific steak and traditional high-end steakhouses.  We want to try a new one and are willing to travel out of the ‘burbs.  For reference, Bob’s in Grapevine is our favorite of the ~7 steakhouses in our immediate area, followed by JR’s.  When we were DINKs, we’d travel to Del Frisco’s Double Eagle in Addison.  We thought III Forks was terrible (letting people in for dinner wearing jorts?  Really?).  We abhor see-and-be-seen and trendy places.

I read the thread, but recs based on our tastes? I’m leaning towards Al Biernat’s North - the menu looks incredible.  Hell, the happy hour bar menu is almost more tempting than the dinner menu.

TIA.

 

I've got a good friend who goes to the Al Biernat's North a lot and they're still working out some kinks. Personally, I'm come down to the original if you're going to do Al's. We are going to Town Hearth for the first time on Friday. It's supposed to be amazingly good.

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solamente73

solamente73 1132

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14 hours ago, C-Man said:

I've got a good friend who goes to the Al Biernat's North a lot and they're still working out some kinks. Personally, I'm come down to the original if you're going to do Al's. We are going to Town Hearth for the first time on Friday. It's supposed to be amazingly good.

Original Al’s it will be, then, unless you report back on TH and rec that instead.

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Landomatic

Landomatic 3813

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48 minutes ago, solamente73 said:

Original Al’s it will be, then, unless you report back on TH and rec that instead.

You should book TH now if you’re interested (not sure when you’re trying to go) because reservations are pretty hard to get there at good times on weekend nights with any kind of short notice.

I’d be shocked if you could get anything other than 6:00 or 10:00 on Thursday through Saturday calling even a week in advance.  And this weekend will likely be worse with Father’s Day.

Also, if you’re thinking of going on Father’s Day (no matter where you choose)...don’t.  It will be a far worse experience than a normal night.  Just pick another night to celebrate.

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C-Man

C-Man 27194

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21 hours ago, solamente73 said:

Oh, snap, I’m a week behind - didn’t realize FD was this coming Sunday.  We want to go Friday night.  I’ll see what’s available at both places.  6PM would be fine because we’re old homebodies.  

We will be at Town Heart at 6 on Friday night. My wife made the reservation over a week ago and it's all she could get. Just FYI.

I'd suggest original Al's -- it really is pretty awesome.

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solamente73

solamente73 1132

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9 hours ago, C-Man said:

We will be at Town Heart at 6 on Friday night. My wife made the reservation over a week ago and it's all she could get. Just FYI.

I'd suggest original Al's -- it really is pretty awesome.

Posted a reply earlier but it doesn’t show now?

We’re doing Al’s Oak Lawn on Friday night.  We’ll do TH for a ‘date night’ as we continue to emerge from baby jail.

My SOP with new (to us) steak houses is to try the wedges, fillets, lobster tail, au gratin... basically looking to baseline.  But the Air, Land, & Sea has caught my eye.  What say y’all who know Al’s... keep it traditional for a traditional guy, or go ‘exotic?’  What’s the ‘can’t miss’ on their menu?

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DalTxHornFan

DalTxHornFan 3097

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You can't go wrong with the original Al's.  I've never had a bad meal there, but I confess that I rarely get a steak.  I love the lamb chops and the veal osso bucco as far as entrees. Great apps and salads.  I've paired these entrees with boar chops, steak tartare, oysters rockefeller, and wedge salads in recent years.  Have a right proper martini.  Drink some wine.  Y'all will have a great evening.   

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Landomatic

Landomatic 3813

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17 hours ago, solamente73 said:

Posted a reply earlier but it doesn’t show now?

We’re doing Al’s Oak Lawn on Friday night.  We’ll do TH for a ‘date night’ as we continue to emerge from baby jail.

My SOP with new (to us) steak houses is to try the wedges, fillets, lobster tail, au gratin... basically looking to baseline.  But the Air, Land, & Sea has caught my eye.  What say y’all who know Al’s... keep it traditional for a traditional guy, or go ‘exotic?’  What’s the ‘can’t miss’ on their menu?

I've eaten at the OG Al's probably more times than I care to admit and tried a lot of things on their menu.  Here's my 2 cents (some already mentioned)...

Drinks - Mentioned already, but get a Martini with some stuffed olives from the bar while you wait to be seated.  I need that to start a proper steakhouse experience and they know how to make a good one.  Obviously, get a couple glasses or bottles of decent red wine with your meal.

Salad - They do have a good wedge, but most good wedges are good.  I personally don't like to waste the stomach space, but I get it if that's just kind of part of your steakhouse thing.  That said, the best salad is the Al's Salad but it's almost more of a meal (for the wife) than a starter.

Appetizer - Believe it or not, their Escargot & Tortellini is insanely good.  I'm not usually into that kinda shit, but they put some kind of crack in it.  Probably the only thing we almost always get when we go there.  You will want to lick the bowl and they give you bread with it to sop it up so you pretty much can.  If you can't bring yourself to be that adventurous, they make about as good a Lump Crab Cakes as I've ever had.

Main - Steaks - Like you, I almost always just do the filet and theirs never disappoints.  Don't waste money on the bone-in, that's a gimmick.  However, if you want to splurge a little, they have some kind of aged 44 Farms ribeye special that isn't on the menu (don't quote me on exact name - my usual waitress just knows that's the one I want when I tell her I want the special ribeye).  It's the best ribeye I've ever had and the huge increase in quality to slight increase in price ratio makes it well worth it.  Their Prime Rib is also the best I've ever had and it's not even close.  It's huge and comes with beans and mashed potatoes.  But I'm guessing you want more of a traditional steak.

Main - Other - The lobster is great, but lobster is just kind of lobster anywhere IMO.  I think they just sell it as an add on if I remember right.  The Chilean Sea Bass, Atlantic Salmon and Pork Chops are also great.

Sides - My top 3 in order are Macaroni & Cheese, Creamed Spinach and Truffle Fries.  I don't know if their Mac & Cheese is the best I've ever had, but it's the best in Dallas and it's close to the best ever.  Don't wast the money on adding the lobster...the difference is negligible and not worth the extra $10 or whatever stupid price-hike they charge.  The Creamed Spinach, much like the escargot, has crack in it and is something I would never think I'd say that about.  It's amazing.  I don't know if their Truffle Fries are on their main menu or just on their bar menu or not even on the menu, but they should bring them to you if you ask.  Really tough to beat.  I admit I've never had their au gratin potatoes but I'd have a hard time believing they are as good as the 3 I just listed.  Or, hell...they're probably the best in town too for all I know so get them too I guess.  The best part is you can ask for half orders of each so why not get all four.

Desert - Get an Al's Coffee if you want another drink (assuming you're Ubering).  I never probably need one by the end, but I usually get one.  It's a perfect way to end things.  I've tried a few of their real deserts, but nothing really stands out.  Probably because I'm usually too full to appreciate it and/or too drunk to remember it by then.

Damn, this is all making me hungry for Al's.  If Mrs Solamente bails on you, PM me and I'll come meet you.

Enjoy and have fun and be safe.

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solamente73

solamente73 1132

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Lando, thanks for the great write-up.  It happened to hit on a lot of things that the wife (no pics) and I were discussing.  We're excited for tomorrow night.

I could type a long response, but quick hits:  a Martini is a must; I love escargot but was confused about the tortellini part but will definitely try now; great tip about half portions of sides - we'll get 'em all; wife (still no pics) says no chance in hell she's backing out, so you're safe to make other plans.

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solamente73

solamente73 1132

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19 hours ago, DalTxHornFan said:

We're all waiting for the play by play of the big dinner at Al's.

Wasn’t sure if serious.

6 hours ago, Landomatic said:

Yeah, come on @solamente73...get your shit together.  And @C-Man...you’ve got some reporting on Town Hearth to do too.

Apparently serious.

Babysitter got held up at work and was late, so we didn’t have a chance to visit the bar first.  Really liked the atmosphere, though it got loud as the night went on.  I asked for a booth when I made the reservation, but we think they sat us at the wrong one - it was ‘Reserved,’ set for 5, and the waiter (who was average) didn’t have the table cleared for a long time because he thought we were waiting for the other 3 guests.  Didn’t matter, it was a great table.  People watching was interesting - everything from Dallas Old Money blue hairs in coats/ties and church dresses/pearls to chicks dressed to go clubbing to characters dressed and acting like flamboyant celebs.  Hell, there was a guy there in shorts and a fishing shirt.  We’ve been in baby jail in the ‘burbs for too long.

Drinks:  I have a particular martini I’ve been drinking for the last 20 years, they made it to order, it was the 3rd best I’ve had at a steak house, and that’s a complement to their bartender.  Wife (still no pics, though I should have taken some, the way she dressed up for this) had the watermelon basil martini and it was the perfect balance between fruit and crisp/refreshing (didn’t ruin it by making it too sweet).  Wines by the glass were unappealing, so we got a bottle.  This is where we got in trouble.  As opposed to Ubering, wife wanted to drive us, I assumed because she wanted to be sober for the kids when we got home (she hardly drinks more than 1/2 glass wine/time since we started a family) and wanted to save ~$75-$100.  Buying a bottle kept our glasses full all night and she drank too much to drive, so I cut back to be able to drive.  So, no Al’s Coffee or customary cognac for me.

Appetizer:  the escargot and tortellini is incredible. Period.  My wife is not the type to like escargot and she even thought it was amazing.  I’m tempted to go back and just have 2-3 orders for dinner.  Great rec.  Repeat: order this if you go there.

Salad:  we split the wedge and... it was a wedge.

Entrees:  I had the Air, Land, and Sea.  The buffalo fillet with demi was really good.  The quail was a little dry but well seasoned.  The prawn was way over cooked.  The scallops... one of the two was the literally best I’ve ever had at a restaurant - high quality, perfectly cooked, perfect accent sauce.  Very happy choosing this entree.

Wife ordered a petite fillet.  Meat quality was high and it was perfectly cooked; however, it wasn’t seasoned well and was devoid of flavor.  Also, wife found the plating incredibly underwhelming - they threw a fillet on a plate along with a haphazardly applied dollop of whipped sweet potatoes.

Sides:  We went with au gratin, mac n’ cheese, and creamed spinach.  Lando clued us in to half-order sides, so we asked about that.  Au gratin and mac available only in full orders (pre-portioned in the kitchen) but the spinach was available in half order.  All three were good, but none stood out.  That’s not a bad thing; just not our all-time faves.  Au gratin was the best of the three.

Desserts:  Wife got the creme brûlée and said it was really good.  Got the pecan pie for the babysitter and she liked it.  We saw another table get some sort of a la mode desert that we’ll get next time. 

Yup, next time.  Great rec, y’all.  Overall, Bob’s - Grapevine is still our favorite and most convenient steakhouse, but we had a great time at Al’s.  I really want to go back and try more of the non-traditional / stereotypical steakhouse fare - my sense is that is where the place will stand out.

 

 

 

 

Edited by solamente73
Play by play of afterparty with wife and babysitter I’ll have to post in U in her B
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C-Man

C-Man 27194

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5 hours ago, threesheets said:

That's one of my favorite dishes anywhere.  The lobster risotto that comes with it is ridiculous. 

The lobster risotto is my buddy James's recipe. He was the chef that opened Al's with Al 20 years ago. They had a major falling out in Year 2 and James left to open Tramontana in Preston Center.

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C-Man

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Town Hearth was pretty, pretty, pretty good! Wife and I sat at the bar as we were the first ones there. Ordered a Pimm's Cup and it was great. In-laws arrived and we were seated. Place is busy and loud -- but that didn't bother me. The decor is kitschy as can be -- definitely not your typical, stuffy steakhouse. I later learned we were supposed to have ordered the crabmeat tater tots. Oops.

We had the rock shrimp appetizer and an order of the fries -- think this is where I got confused. Shrimp was terrific, fries were good. I ordered the 45-day wet aged NY Strip (medium rare plus). The first half of my steak was a little more done than I usually would like but the second half was perfect. Odd. The flavor was very, very good. MIL got the filet, BIL and FIL got the dry-aged ribeye. I had a bite of all of these and enjoyed them very much. Got fried brussels, mushrooms, mac/cheese and roasted corn. They were damn good. All in all it was a great place. I'll probably branch off and get something other than steak next time.

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solamente73

solamente73 1132

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10 hours ago, bigup2dahorns said:

You went to Al’s on Friday? I was there. The staff was making a big fuss about DL Hughley showing up with his crew before his show at Verizon that night, they sat right next to us.

So that’s who that was.  Lulz.  

Then you saw me.  I was the handsome guy sitting next to the hottest chick in the place (11/10, yes, my wife, but I totally understand if you might take issue with that if you were with your wife (obligatory)).

Edited by solamente73
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