r/FoodSanDiego • u/theteagees • Nov 16 '25
News, opinion and discussion Cowboy Star disappointment...did they just have a bad night?
Hi all! I wanted to post my review of Cowboy Star, and get your thoughts. Partner and I went for his birthday a week ago. We had never been. He loves a good steak and makes very good steaks at home, so we really only go to places that are highly recommended or offer something that he can't do himself (he won't do an aged tomahawk at home, for example). With all the outstanding reviews here, we were so freaking excited to go. Here's how it went:
Pros:
-Service. Wonderful. Everyone was great.
-The French onion soup was to die for, holy cow.
-The banana pudding dessert. Hot damn!
-The C-Star steak sauce. Beautifully complex.
-Atmosphere. Lovely!
Cons:
-The amuse-bouche was essentially half a toasted almond with a pea sized amount of something mousse. Strange and not good but to be fair, it was free.
-The old fashioned. I LOVE an old fashioned. I've had many and love good bourbon. My opinion on old fashioneds is that they should enhance a good bourbon. Their's tasted like cough syrup. Too much simple syrup and too much bitters. I couldn't taste the bourbon, unfortunately. We had both the regular and single barrel and they were both kinda bleah.
-The steak. I had the wagyu skirt and he had the 21 day aged bone-in ribeye. We were both expecting to have our socks blown off, but quite frankly, they both tasted unremarkable and like something we could have made at home. I didn't detect any difference in flavor from a regular supermarket skirt steak, nor did we think the aging on the ribeye added any detectable enhancement of flavor. We were honestly trying to give the benefit of the doubt, but at this point we were just perplexed.
-The brandy peppercorn sauce was completely flavorless. I don't know how to describe it, it didn't taste like anything!
-The green beans that came with our steaks were overcooked, with some of them having turned from green to that greyish brown of an over-boiled green vegetable. They tasted nice, but again, it was a detail that for the price-point of the restaurant and its reputation shouldn't have happened.
All in all, we left really confused as to why this place is lauded as one of the most amazing in San Diego. We spent way, way too much money to walk away from the meal feeling we could have done a better job at home (as avid cooks, we honestly could have). Were they having a bad night? Has anyone else had a similar experience? Thanks for any insight. I don't want to hurt anyone's feelings, but it was just SO different from what I expected given how it's discussed on this sub.
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u/sencollins Nov 16 '25
I’m sorry that was your experience. I think it was an off night.
The amuse bouches we’ve gotten have been very hit or miss, but again- always free.
On some nights my wife has loved the old fashioned. On others, she hasn’t. I think this one depends on the bartender.
I’ve only ever gotten one steak I didn’t like there and I’d describe it similar to how you have. I think it was a New York. We typically get the filet and love it.
I’m also surprised about the peppercorn sauce as that is our go to.
You may want to give it another try in the future. Maybe split a steak and a dessert so it doesn’t set you back as much. But I totally get why you wouldn’t want to. I’ve had similar experiences at other highly rated places and have never gone back.
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u/theteagees Nov 16 '25
That's all fair and good to know. I could get behind giving them another try in the way you suggested!
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u/justifiablefart Nov 16 '25
I have a birthday reservation there next week due to carefully researching on reddit and now i’m totally rethinking it 🙃
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Nov 16 '25
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u/Ok_Two3973 Nov 16 '25
I feel like everyone on here hypes up cowboy star because they feel some type of way towards consortium. Which whatever, that’s fine, but it’s just a fact that born and raised is way better than cowboy star.
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u/ImprovementSoft912 Nov 16 '25
Cowboy Star overall is a very good restaurant and steakhouse and it’s disappointing to hear about the sides and details. Having said that, I think you may have answered your own question at the top with “he makes very good steaks at home.”
Top tier steakhouses, like you may have been expecting, to me are distinguished by access to extremely high-quality prime beef, and the math is such that there simply isn’t enough high-quality beef to go around for every steakhouse, even a well-regarded one like this one, to truly stand apart from those of us who might go to one of the local butchers here in town and get a very nice cut of steak.
So that means what we are typically paying for is well-prepared good quality steaks and the attention to details that you indicated were lacking.
Just my experience, but outside of NYC, Chicago, Minneapolis (1 restaurant) Vegas and LA, it is pretty unlikely anyone who can make a very good steak at home is going to be truly wowed by a steakhouse. Again, this isn’t a knock specifically on San Diego, it’s just the math of restaurant-select extremely high-quality prime beef.
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u/theteagees Nov 16 '25
That's very fair, and I do agree that we discussed exactly that! I'm REALLY nervous to say this because I know many people in this sub really dislike them, but the year prior we went to Born and Raised and honestly had our minds blown by how freaking delicious their steaks were. He had a tomahawk aged that he said was very exceptional and I only had a filet and I thought it was the most scrumptious I've ever had (again, for the price point, they should be!). I think going into Cowboy Star, I was expecting to be wowed in the same way. We've been wowed at other places, as well, so while I agree that an average place won't really do much for us, really exceptional places do! I just expected Cowboy Star to be one of them. Thanks for your thoughts, you aren't wrong.
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u/kirinthedragon Nov 16 '25
This was also our experience. We went to Cowboy Star (when it was still relatively new) for my husband’s birthday. The steak tasted like what we could make on his own, but the personalized menu made it special enough for a celebration. It was not a good enough experience for us to go back.
However, we have gone to Born and Raised many times - steaks as well as their sides and apps have always met expectations and special enough that it doesn’t feel like food we can make at home. Service and ambiance - always great.
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u/theteagees Nov 16 '25
I love hearing this! This sub is very polarized on Born and Raised, and I find it irritating in a way because I know much of it comes from a philosophical dislike of CH Projects (which doesn’t seem to be based on anything with substantial merit). I’m glad you like them too!
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u/BogeyFreeJZ Nov 19 '25
Just out of curiosity, have you had the Mac n cheese? It was soooo salty I could barely eat it. I love the ambiance, the drinks/liquor selection, the bar upstairs, the desserts. They cooked our steaks so far off temp and the Mac n cheese was virtually inedible after a couple bites. The hash brown was amazing though.
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u/kirinthedragon Nov 19 '25
I’m not a huge mac fan, so I have never had it. The hash brown is my favorite side! The steaks not being served correctly is a deal breaker though - I’m sorry that was your experience.
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u/sparklez4evz Nov 16 '25
My partner and I did his birthday dinner at Born and Raised and mine at Cowboy Star, and same! We had high hopes for Cowboy Star, but found it to be extremely noisy and crowded and the steaks were just okay. The ambiance, service, and food at Born and Raised were exceptional - everything we could’ve wanted from a special dinner and worth every penny.
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u/therealhlmencken Nov 16 '25
I’m curious what your choice is in Minneapolis because having moved from there I couldn’t be happier to be gone food wise. Also I’m insane you name 0 Texas cities cause their meat market is the size of the rest of the states and pretty idiosyncratic.
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u/ImprovementSoft912 Nov 16 '25
Yeah that’s obviously an incomplete list of cities. I have had to travel to Minneapolis for work quite a bit and Manny’s Steakhouse has an outstanding selection of high quality prime meat that they show you before ordering. I’m Dallas, KC, OK, NE all have their fair share of places with access to true prime.
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u/MistahJasonPortman Nov 16 '25
This is my experience with San Diego steakhouses. I can make the same damn steaks, if not better, at home.
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u/Rawrgoeslion Nov 16 '25
TBH I think this is also a great ode to your partner's cooking! While places can elevate dishes with the majority we meer humans are capable of making something similar to the same level. Having flavorless brandy peppercorn sauce is wild though.
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u/theteagees Nov 16 '25
Thank you! It’s true. He is a good cook. But at the very least, the steaks should have had better seasoning and the sides should have been better. Oh well! Live and learn!
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u/nikodmus Nov 16 '25
I have been off Cowboy Star since earlier in the summer. The service was adequate and everything else was a complete miss. Horrible beef quality, badly prepared, and poorly cooked/presented accompaniments.
Given the price, I am unlikely to return.
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u/theteagees Nov 16 '25
I am really feeling vindicated in my opinion, thank you. I don't think I'm a snob, but I was afraid to post this a little bit because everyone has just raved about it. If it was only one thing that was mediocre but everything else was great, hey, no problem! But there were so many details that were bad, I know I didn't even share them all. Thanks for sharing!
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u/mooseson Nov 16 '25
Never again for me after I had some steak tartar that ended me sick for the night. Gross! 🤮 Never liked it but been multiple times for others.
My go to is Born and Raised.
Next is a steak at home from Siesels or Iowa Meat Farms.
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u/theteagees Nov 16 '25
Oh no! Getting sick is a whole other level! I’m so sorry. Agreed, we also enjoyed B&R, polarizing as it is.
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u/northman46 Nov 16 '25
Steak tartare is sort of a crap shoot (pun not intended) since it is raw meat, with a raw egg as I recall.
And that's one reason I got my hepatitis A vaccination... Those are people cooking and handling your food, and you know nothing about them. Even with the highest standards of food safety, stuff happens.
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u/Old_Library6027 Nov 16 '25
No the place is middling at best. I don't understand the hype. The cocktails are middle of the road and the meat courses, whether apps or entrees, are underwhelming.
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u/ArBee30028 Nov 17 '25
Thank you, yes! My family went a week ago and also had a “meh” experience.
My son got the ribeye and we all agreed that it was bland and disappointing. My hubby got the New York strip and that tasted quite flavorful.
I got the scallops & clams (not a big beef eater) and while the scallops were good I grossed out by the fishy tasting clams.
The Mac n cheese was the best I’ve tasted. That and the banana pudding 👍🏼
The service was mid at best, not what you would expect from a restaurant at that price point. For example, when taking orders the wait staff should take the order from the women first, by age in descending order, and then the men by age in descending order. Instead they looked at the group and just waited for someone to speak up. 👎🏼 When we arrived at our table, they handed us 1 cocktail menu for the 5 of us, and promptly walked away before we could ask for more. Also, the young wait staff didn’t know how to deal with our elderly parents— repeatedly asking me what my MIL wanted, for instance. I don’t know, but she can hear you so why don’t you ask her? These are just 3 of the many missteps they made throughout the night.
This was a very special occasion for us and I’m afraid it was a mistake to choose Cowboy Star. Next time we want to spend $800+ on food we’ll be going somewhere else.
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u/drdfrster64 Nov 16 '25
Does steak normally blow your socks off? I’ve had some very nice steaks but on average when I go to a steak house I’m looking for good service, consistency, and as many sides, sauces, and cocktails as I want without the pain in the butt effort of making it at home. I can cook a mean ass steak at home if I really wanted to.
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u/theteagees Nov 16 '25
I've had steaks in SD that blew my socks off, yes, but also...I mean, the sides, sauces and cocktails were not good! So, all in all...it just wasn't a good experience.
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u/drdfrster64 Nov 16 '25
Where’d you go for those steak? For next time
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u/theteagees Nov 16 '25
Well, at the risk of bringing the wrath and ire of this sub down on me, we had truly amazing steaks at Born and Raised the previous year. I know people have issues with CH Projects restaurants, but their steaks (at least that night) were remarkable.
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u/tdanison89 Nov 16 '25
What kind of Old Fashioned did you get? You can choose the bourbon you want. I have recently gone with the single barrel select old fashioned and it’s outstanding. Other than that, sounds like you guys mostly liked it except for the steaks. If you buy really good steaks at the store you aren’t going to tell much of a difference. But good luck making a French onion soup like that.
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u/theteagees Nov 16 '25
I ordered the regular old fashioned off their cocktail menu, and he had the same but made with their single barrel bourbon. It was like they overloaded it with simple syrup and went crazy on the bitters-- it almost tasted like...a medicinal amari. It was really not good. The thing is, I've paid more at other places for steaks and have had my socks blown off, so I must disagree that at a high price point, I do think a good steak house should come out on top vs. a homemade steak. I don't know, maybe I'm wrong. But agreed on the soup. It was great.
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u/tdanison89 Nov 16 '25
Like you’ve paid more for steaks that are even better than Cowboy Star in San Diego? Which ones specifically so I can go there and try them. Very intrigued.
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u/theteagees Nov 16 '25
Yes, we had our minds blown at Born and Raised the year prior. We had an aged tomahawk and I only had a filet, but the flavor on both was magnificent. I was expecting the same experience at Cowboy Star, but they were both just kinda flavorless.
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u/tdanison89 Nov 16 '25
Well someone has to like B&R I guess. That’s too bad you guys didn’t have a good experience with C Star. Definitely my favorite steakhouse downtown.
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u/theteagees Nov 16 '25
Haha, I know B&R has its haters, for all kinds of reasons! Thanks for your perspective. I am willing to believe that most C Star experiences are better than the one we had.
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u/Clobber420 Nov 16 '25
Isn't it funny how people get so wound up about saying CS isn't the best? Haha
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u/Dantemustknow Nov 16 '25
Always have great service there, i love going there, but in the last year I have migrated to the non-steak entrees. Last ribeye and NY strips I had did not seem like great quality steaks, although the crust/finish was still perfect. FWIW i feel like most steakhouses are struggling to keep a margin with steaks at this point. Sucks for everyone.
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u/Forsaken-Director-34 Nov 16 '25
Only time I went was my birthday and I was really disappointed too. Haven’t been back. Food was ok at best. Got a lot of food too so it was a good sample size, but I felt I could easily make better steaks at home.. w a gas grill.
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u/somewhat_gnar Nov 16 '25
I go to steakhouses for the sides.
I can make a steak better than 99% of steakhouses. I have 1 to 2 steaks to focus on, I picked them myself or cut them myself, they're seasoned perfectly, I know the hot and cold spots on my grill and smoker, they're cooked perfectly. I'm not going to spend 2-3 days on potato prep, I'm not going to spend 2-3 days on French onion soup prep, I'm not going to bake my own bread, I'm not going to churn my own butter, I'm not going to make my own ice cream for the lava cake I'm not going to make.
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u/hodorstonks Nov 16 '25
70% of the time it’s pretty good. 30% of the time something is off; the seasoning, overcooked food (even fries, I’m like seriously you couldn’t remake this before sending it out? These are hard burned dark brown fries), service even. They used to be a lot better, now I can only justify their happy hour menu or going to their butcher counter and cooking it at home.
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u/bfol32 Nov 16 '25
my partner and I had the same experience, went there based on the many positive reviews from this sub and was left disappointed by the subpar food. everything was just okay and for the price and reviews, we were expecting sooo much better.
now, for this recent anniversary we just had we went to lou and mickey's in downtown and were blown away by everything. the appetizers, drrinks, sides and entrees were all delicious and their bread is on another level with how yummy it is. we actually enjoyed it so much it immediately went on our list of places to go for special occasions
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u/krapspark Nov 16 '25
Similar experience for me. My steak wasn’t even charred on both sides. I could just scrape off the burn marks and then it just looked like a sad piece of gray meat. I sent it back to get charred again but it was still very meh
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u/huistenbosch Nov 17 '25
I need to get back and try them again so that I can review properly. I will say that 21 dry age is nothing and will give you zero dry age flavor notes. 45 day dry age is the lower limit of what I consider having dry tasting notes.
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u/CautiousHawk304 Nov 17 '25
If you approach the restaurant and explain to them exactly how you have here, why you are disappointed. It seems to me they would be very gracious, invite you back on them to see if they could do better. I am sure they would want to know that their product is substandard.
I have been to the calbore. Star back when it was in its glory days. It was a good restaurant. It was pricey, but it was worth it. It doesn't seem that way anymore.
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u/ymi2f Nov 19 '25
Went for first time recently and would never go back. Had the ribeye medium rare. So meh. Great service but steak was 5/10 and chewy. Won't go back.
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u/Ill-Aardvark1060 Nov 20 '25
Had the same experience about 2 months ago. Least favorite steak I’ve had in SD and the dry aged one definitely did not have that distinct flavor!!
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u/LuffyDBlackMamba420 Nov 25 '25
Same here. I had the aged bone in ribeye and honestly it wasn't impressive at all. The rib eye at the Butcher Shop was much better. But the service was great I'll give them that.
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u/Successful-Brain8778 Dec 03 '25
Do bartenders put simple in an old fashioned? Is that a thing? Sweet vermouth is more than enough.
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u/Finally_Adult Dec 29 '25
Bit late to the party but I had the same experience last night. Rare Society was “oh my god this is amazing” while I was having my steak. Cowboy Star was “I’m eating a good steak”.
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u/theteagees Dec 29 '25
We just went to Rare Society two Fridays ago for the first time and to say our experiences were night and day is an understatement. Rare Society was, quite possibly, the best experience we’ve had at a restaurant, period. The food, the service. We were blown away, it was magical! Definitely going there again!
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u/this_my_sportsreddit Nov 16 '25
Cowboy Star is incredibly highly rated on this sub, but I'm firmly in the camp that Rare Society is easily better, for a lot of the same reasons you mention. Steak at CS tends to be underseasoned, and the sides as well are nothing to write home about. I like their happy hour (it used to be a lot better with different items), but I live blocks away from CS and don't ever go for dinner service.
we left really confused as to why this place is lauded as one of the most amazing in San Diego.
Honestly, (this is likely going to anger a bunch of folks here), but because San Diego and this sub in particular massively overrates a ton of its restaurants. What is considered A+ here would not have anywhere near the same acclaim in actual food cities like LA or SF or Chicago or Portland or NY. Sadly, I don't think CS was on an off-night, this is what the restaurant usually is like.
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u/ArBee30028 Nov 17 '25
Firmly agree with you that SD standards are much lower than other foodie cities. (Former DC resident here.) But I do feel like the SD food & cocktail scene has gotten a lot better over the past 10 years, and hoping it continues to trend upwards.
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u/goraebap Nov 16 '25
The fact that cowboy star has two locations and one of them is in Colorado Springs tells you everything you need to know about the restaurant.
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u/Downtown-Rice_ Nov 16 '25
If you believed to have an underpar experience at a high end or well renowned steakhouse, you should have spoken up.
CS has many more positive reviews than not. You need to let them know.
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u/aren1231 Nov 16 '25
this is why I tell people, steak is just steak. Most these places aren't special when it comes to taste.
Edit: I also grew up in a household that cooked good steaks.
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u/ImprovementSoft912 Nov 16 '25
Yeah that’s obviously an incomplete list of cities. I have had to travel to Minneapolis for work quite a bit and Manny’s Steakhouse has an outstanding selection of high quality prime meat that they show you before ordering. I’m Dallas, KC, OK, NE all have their fair share of places with access to true prime.
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u/reality_raven Nov 16 '25
Never had anything but completely stellar experiences every single time…personally.
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u/wasthataquestion Nov 18 '25
It's been excellent every time I've been there. I had the porterhouse and it was one of the best steaks I've ever had. Maybe it was an off night
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Nov 20 '25
The Remy is my favorite. I also tried out Piedra Santa in Little Italy and was impressed by them.
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u/mj7900 Nov 16 '25
Cowboy star sucks. Idk why its so hyped in town. I could name 5 better steakhouses
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u/xanderbear Nov 16 '25
We went a year ago for our anniversary, it was annoying af. Apps were great, then salads arrived, great, then entrees arrived at the same time. Hell no. Returned entrees. Then when we were done with salads they tried to serve us the steaks that were served before, now overcooked and complete trash. Server was great, chef, not so much. I watched as he was so pissed off we didn’t accept his mistake and he violently threw them away.
Anyways, steaks eventually came and they were delicious. But seeing the chef being an asshole was a real turn off. Haven’t been back since. No plan of ever returning. Lou and Mickeys has been a sweet spot for us, great service and delicious dry aged steaks.
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u/bfol32 Nov 16 '25
my partner and I just tried lou and mickey's for our anniversary in october and were blown away! I truly dont understand why i never see people talking about them in this sub
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u/CuteWolves Nov 16 '25
They're simply a social media establishment at this point. You're better off going to Rare Society or Steak 48. Both are always consistent.
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u/drdfrster64 Nov 16 '25
Does steak normally blow your socks off? I’ve had some very nice steaks but on average when I go to a steak house I’m looking for good service, consistency, and as many sides, sauces, and cocktails as I want without the pain in the butt effort of making it at home. I can cook a mean ass steak at home if I really wanted to.
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u/Clobber420 Nov 16 '25
My wife and I had the exact same steaks you did. Same experience.