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I thought my entry on the number of steakhouses we have in Baltimore might generate more comments than it did. It only had one comment until a couple of days later when Dan responded with this long and interesting recap of his steakhouse experiences. I always like hearing how other people are treated in restaurants.
But could he really have finished Shula's 48-ounce steak in 18 minutes? EL
I'm surprised there hasn't been much interest in this thread. Based on my personal experiences with each one, I'd rank the steakhouses here in Bmore this way-
1) Capital Grille
2) Ruth's Chris (Water Street)
3) Ruth's Chris (Pier)
4) Shula's
5) Prime Rib
6) Sullivan's
7) Flemings
8) Morton's ...
Capital Grille- steak is great, service is top notch. on a cold rainy night, instead of forcing me to run out to an ATM to get cash so i could tip the valet, my waiter gave me cash out of his wallet. smart move b/c obviously i was going to make up for it and then some in his tip, but still classy.
Ruth's Chris (both locations)- my wife doesnt care for butter on her steaks, but we've always had good food, good service, and when she asks, they dont put butter on her steak. I ask for her butter. Most consistent of the chains.
Service at Sullivan's is still a work in progress. nice outfits on the waitresses- basically an upscale Hooters. steak quality is ok, not the best- actually, their seafood is better, which is sad for a steakhouse.
Shula's is really friendly service and good meat, but a bit depressing- seems like no one other than hotel guests actually eat there. their prices are high even for a steakhouse, if that makes any sense. I finished the Shula's 48oz steak challenge in 18 minutes.
Prime Rib- good food, good service- my complaint is actually the other customers. I love dressing up to go to dinner, but I dont like fighting past cougars prowling at the bar to get to the bathroom. I am also annoyed by snooty old white men. Do they have carryout?
Flemings- wonderful wait staff, so-so food, terrible experience. our experience was sad- waited 40 minutes to get our apps (waitress smartly comped us extra apps), then another hr for our steaks (manager comped us a bottle of wine as we waited). Finally, when steaks came out, mine had hair on it. they apologized profusely and comped the meal, but at that point, meal was ruined. doesnt help that their steaks are obviously not prime beef. i really wanted to love the place b/c they tried so hard, but their meat quality is inferior to others, and well, almost 2 hrs to get a steak with hair on it just isn't getting my business.
Mortons- WORST SERVICE EVER. I went in college with my finacee (now wife) and another couple 10 years ago, we were treated so poorly, it was absurd. Yes we were in college, but we were well dressed and well behaved- instead of making it a nice experience, they basically told us, "get out of here you poor students, you deserve no respect b/c we assume you wont tip well." I will NEVER spend another $ there.
Posted by: Dan | February 27, 2009 12:06 AM