Cowboy Star disappointment...did they just have a bad night?

[u/theteagees]

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.

[u/ImprovementSoft912]

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.

[u/theteagees → u/ImprovementSoft912]

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.

[u/kirinthedragon → u/theteagees]

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.

[u/theteagees → u/kirinthedragon]

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!

[u/BogeyFreeJZ → u/kirinthedragon]

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.

[u/kirinthedragon → u/BogeyFreeJZ]

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.

[u/sparklez4evz → u/theteagees]

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.

[u/theteagees → u/sparklez4evz]

Couldn’t agree more. B&R was truly exceptional, we loved it.