Steiner Steakhouse Review from Austin360.com

Melissa

I saw that in the paper yesterday. We have only been on time, and the only thing that impressed me was the bill. Despite having reservations, we were seated upstairs, right next to the bar. Normally not an issue, but between the basketball games on the TVs and the country music blaring through the speakers, it felt more like a sports bar than an upscale steakhouse. Not exactly the ambiance of a fine dining establishment.

The food was actually really good, but it couldn’t make up for the other shortcomings. In addition to the amabiance (or lack thereof) issue, the lights were glaringly bright (it was long past sundown, so it was all articficial light). Also, the wait station was right in the thick of the dining room, leaving us with having to hear waiters yelling, “Where’s the pepper mill?”

In one word – tacky. All around.

Long story short, if I want a great steak, I have no problem paying for it. But I’ll do it downtown where they pay attention to detail, and I can actually hold a conversation with my husband.

holly

We’ve had nothing but positive experiences. The food has been fantastic and the view is incredible. Live music a plus. The history of the orignal ranch is really interesting if you have time for that. We go often. I’m so sorry to hear of the trouble for others. Maybe it was an off night.

The Poster formerly known as Steiner Res

We’ve been several times, some for dinner, some for the lighter dishes, some just for drinks and appetizers. All in all, it’s a good place. The first time we went the steaks weren’t cooked correctly. Every other time, they have been great.

ARS

We have been several times. We have found the atmosphere, food, drinks, and service to be fantastic. We hesitated to go because we have two kids and we were not sure how child friendly the place was. Our kids love to sit outside and listen to the music and the wait staff has always been outstanding to us. We try to go atleast once a week.

NV

We have only been twice, don’t get out much I guess. Food was excellent, price a bit high but I guess you are paying for the view. We also have brought our elementry aged childern along and the staff was very accomadating! So glad we have a nice steakhouse so close by.

http://www.smileycat.com Christian

We’ve been a few times for dinner and for drinks and have enjoyed it. Food, atmosphere and service have been good.

With regard to seating (at any restaurant) I always check out the table first – we’ll ask to move if we’re not satisfied with the location. In fact, more often than not we don’t take the first choice offered us.

Laura

Been there about 5 or 6 times…and love it! We have brought out of town guests as well.

John

Why won’t anyone tell the honest truth about the Steiner Ranch Steakhouse? I am so tired of reading how wonderful this place is, so I have decided to write my own review which may or may not even be read by you…but thought it was worth a shot.

Upon arrival to the Steiner Ranch Steakhouse my wife and I were greeted by an obnoxious valet “punk” for lack of a better word. He seemed quite put out over the fact that I was curious as to weather or not this service was free. After receiving some snide remark I decided to park my own vehicle. I had made a reservation approximately three days prior, requesting a table with a view or some ambiance, since it was the fourth of July night and I wanted to be sure my wife and I got a table in a timely fashion. We checked in at the front desk right on time, if my memory serves me it was around 7:00pm. I was told it was going to be around a fifteen minute wait. No problem, my wife and I grabbed a drink at the outside bar from a female bartender with the nicest scowl on her face. It was around 101 degrees outside and not even the misters were keeping her cool enough to perform her job with a smile.

After about an HOUR past our reservation we decided to go check on our table. It seems they had forgotten about us and once again blew us off for another fifteen minutes or so. Our table was finally ready one hour and fifteen minutes after our reservation time. We were seated in the worst location possible, at a table for four just outside the kitchen doorway to the dining room. Thanks for the table with the view or some ambiance. Instead we watched the wait staff come and go all night long.

The food was far from memorable. I had the Chilean Sea bass which was a flavorless flop under the guise of being something fancy all wrapped up in a Banana Leaf. It sounded good off of the menu but was a huge disappointment. This is coming from a guy who orders Chilean Sea Bass at every opportunity (might I recommend Eddie V’s Arboretum for their Chilean Sea Bass in Garlic and Butter…to die for!) The Orzo rice medley was watery and reminded me of Rice-a-Roni. My wife had the Medallions of Beef which were smothered in some sort of sauce. Medallions of beef should not be smothered in anything. Her mashed potatoes and vegetables were nothing to write home about.

We decided to see if we could take something positive away from the meal and ordered the Raspberry Sorbet for desert. We received two generous scoops of what tasted like store bought sorbet positioned on the same plate so as to resemble a perfectly round pair of woman’s breasts (sorry…but that’s exactly what it reminded us of).

We were then treated to some extremely generic live cover music on our way out the door. The best part of the evening was watching the firework show over Lake Travis which had absolutely nothing to do with the Steiner Ranch Steakhouse.

Obviously, the Steiner Family has deep pockets and are extremely influential about the area, however since I have absolutely nothing to lose and don’t need to suck up to the Steiner family I thought I would tell it like it is, not how the Steiner Family would like it to be. Needless to say, our first visit to the Steiner Ranch Steakhouse was our last and we will not recommend this joint to anyone, except for maybe a cocktail and a sunset. Too bad nobody else feels the same way we do…chickens!

I’m sure the next review I read about the Steiner Ranch Steakhouse will be just like all the others…Bulls@!T. Thanks for your time.

Poster formerly known as

So why do you wait 8 months to complain? It’s not like people have been entering posts daily on this topic (last post — also 8 months ago).
SRS is not Flemings, Sullivan’s, Ruth’s Chris, etc., but the steaks are pretty good, and the cooking has improved considerably. And you short drive is great! Take it for what it is — good, not 4-star, nice views and facility. Oh — I agree that having to wait over an hour when you have a reservation us unacceptable. Don’t mess with the hostess–get a manager next time!

Melissa

No, it’s not Ruth’s Chris or Sullivan’s, but since they charge the same prices, I would expect a certain quality. We have been once and were disappointed as well.

Poster formerly known as

Actually the ticket price is less than those steakhouses — both the steaks themselves and the fact that the sides are included. Sorry, but have you checked the prices at any of the higher-end steakhouses recently?

Melissa

Yep. I have. Our bill for 2 (including wine) was about the same at Sullivans as it was at Steiner Ranch. And the atmosphere and service at Sullivans is MUCH better. I WANT to like SR Steakhouse; I really do. We would be there all the time. But our experience was just bad. It’s just loud and feels like an overpriced sports bar.