Only the Steak is worth the trip
Written: Apr 24 '03
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Pros: The steak is great
Cons: Everything else
The Bottom Line: Order the porterhouse and the hash browns to go. For 75/person i want to be treated better than the meat.
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| jsbs104's Full Review: Bobby Van's Steakhouse |
Although the address above is NY, the review below is for the DC location.
If people research Bobby Van’s through various sites they will have a pretty good idea what to expect from this high end Steak House. After visiting many “Men’s Steak Houses” around the country this one does not give the same stuffy, leather chair, humidor atmosphere, but more welcoming to both sexes as well as families. Once seated the experience of a great Steak House began (or so I thought). This was a Monday night and the restaurant was 20% full and we had a party of 12.
The wait staff is very friendly but completely incompetent. They are almost insulted if you do not order what they want to bring. When ordering the appetizers I needed to repeat three times our table wanted both the seafood bouquet and the blue point oysters.
The enormous platters of the cold seafood bouquet arrived. The two-foot round platters were placed on raised pedestals in the middle of the table and one has to sit back in the chair and whistle. Located on a mound of ice are (1) two split small lobsters; (2) a bevy of cooked shrimp, and (3) a pile of jumbo crabmeat. Included are several sauces to dip this food of the sea. I started from the middle and worked my way towards me starting with the crab that was delicious, sweet and in large pieces. There must have been ¾-1 pound of the crab. My next stop was the shrimp, perfectly cooked but with absolutely no flavor, as bland a shrimp I have ever had. The half lobster was slightly better but also cooked in the same tasteless liquid. The red cocktail sauce had no tang and there was no means of increasing the flavor. No garlic, no horseradish, no hot sauce. Overall, I was disappointed in this dish. Lots of look, not much in flavor.
I sat back and waited for our platters of Blue Point Oysters to arrive. They never did and when I asked the waiter where they were he stared at me dumbfounded and told me I never ordered them.
We ordered platters of porterhouses (medium-rare), several filets and a separate t-bone (medium). The bad news first, the t-bone arrived and was well-done and sent back. The kitchens second try brought a black-and-blue steak. My colleague decided just to keep and eat it. The porterhouses were sliced into strips in the kitchen and four measly pieces were placed on each plate for presentation (there was loads on the original platter). I was looking forward to the experience of cutting into that “hunk of beef” and I felt robbed of. The slices ranged in doneness from rare to medium-well (although ordered medium-rare) that was a positive for someone like me who looked forward to tasting the different textures of doneness. THE MEAT WAS UNBELIEVABLY GREAT at all levels of doneness. This was the reason I wanted to come to this place, the corners of my mouth smiled slightly and I looked at the platter still remaining to be shared and thought the next 20-30 minutes was going to be great. You can literally slide your tongue through the slices and the texture was somewhere between foie gras and ice cream.
For sides, I heard the Hash Browns were to die for and although the waiter was reluctant to bring them, I was glad I insisted when order that we wanted a portion of these in addition to the creamed spinach, mushrooms and mashed potatoes. The hash browns were truly finger-licking good but the rest of the sides were just OK.
Some at the table had room for dessert, but not me (there is a limit to everyone) and I watched in awe as several of my colleagues pounded back yet another course. Nothing was left so I assume they were pretty good.
In summary, this is a steak house so stay with steak house stuff. The Waiters get an “F”, the seafood platter was overrated and overall bland, a gentlemen’s “C”, the oysters, well in hindsight probably good that the waiters did not bring them, but on the entrees, if you can get the doneness of the steak as ordered it is fantastic, an “A. The sides were a good accompaniment, a “B+.” But the star of the show is truly the steak.
Recommended:
No
Kid Friendliness: No
Vegetarian Friendly: No
Notes, Tips or Menu Recommendations Porterhouse (more than one person minimum) and the hash browns
Best Suited For: Business
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Epinions.com ID:
jsbs104
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Reviews written: 56
Trusted by: 1 member
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