"High End" dining?

The_Kapn

The_Kapn

Moderator Emeritus

Batch Image
Joined
Apr 8, 2004
Messages
8,542
Reaction score
2...
Points
113
Location
Marianna...
Last week, Mrs Kapn and I went to Ruth's Chris in Orlando.
I am approaching a birthday (which I refuse to acknowledge :redface:) and she wanted to do something special.
We have heard so much about Ruth's Chris and decided to give it "a go".

Bottom line, it was "OK" but the ribeyes were not all that special.
To be fair, they had a great concentrated beef taste because of the dry aged Prime they use.
But, nothing special about the cooking.
We had a Crab Stuffed Mushroom appetizer which was "to die for"!
And, a great baked potatoe.
Bill was $109 which was not un-expected and not regreted.

Mrs Kapn and I decided that we felt Emeril's in Orlando and Joes Crab Shack were better values in the little bit of "high end" dining we have done.
Also, the 'Ohana at the Disney World Polynesian Resort is a great value.

We divide our dining out into two catagories:

We do not spend over about $25 each for a "meal" that is just "eating".
That would be most of the "chain" steakhouses, seafood places, etc.

When it goes above that, we are into "dining" and there must be some "value added" in terms of quality, service, decor, or whatever.
We need some return on our money to pay a premium.
I guess a part of that is having a real chef who "presents" the food as opposed to a cook who "serves" the food.

Just rambling---thought I would throw this out for discussion.

TIM
 
The_Kapn said:
Last week, Mrs Kapn and I went to Ruth's Chris in Orlando.
I am approaching a birthday (which I refuse to acknowledge :redface:) and she wanted to do something special.
We have heard so much about Ruth's Chris and decided to give it "a go".

Bottom line, it was "OK" but the ribeyes were not all that special.
To be fair, they had a great concentrated beef taste because of the dry aged Prime they use.
But, nothing special about the cooking.
We had a Crab Stuffed Mushroom appetizer which was "to die for"!
And, a great baked potatoe.
Bill was $109 which was not un-expected and not regreted.

Mrs Kapn and I decided that we felt Emeril's in Orlando and Joes Crab Shack were better values in the little bit of "high end" dining we have done.
Also, the 'Ohana at the Disney World Polynesian Resort is a great value.

We divide our dining out into two catagories:

We do not spend over about $25 each for a "meal" that is just "eating".
That would be most of the "chain" steakhouses, seafood places, etc.

When it goes above that, we are into "dining" and there must be some "value added" in terms of quality, service, decor, or whatever.
We need some return on our money to pay a premium.
I guess a part of that is having a real chef who "presents" the food as opposed to a cook who "serves" the food.

Just rambling---thought I would throw this out for discussion.

TIM
Click to expand...

Happy B-Day and I agree with you on the fine dinning. Also the Ohana is a real nice place indeed.
 
With good prime steaks available at Costco, the Mrs. and I have actually stopped going to steakhouses. We both agree that I/we can prepare steaks better at home. We still eat out for ambiance and to change it up a little, but not for things we make well at home.

Oh and she refuses to eat at BBQ restaurants since I built a UDS!
 
deepsouth said:
the more i go out, the more i enjoy my own cooking. my wife actually doesn't even like to go out to eat anymore. of course, she doesn't like to cook either.....
Click to expand...


I agree. I cook and my wife cleans the kitchen. For her birthday i took her out to a real nice resturant at one of the casino's. When we got home, she told me it was a waste of money because my steaks were better and our house was a lot quieter.
 
Happy birthday. Been to one Ruth's Chris and that was in San Antonio. It sucked! Way to pricey and quality was not that good. Will not eat steak out because no one can cook a good steak, less the Square Grouper on Cudjoe Key. Their Porterhouse steaks are #1. I will only eat Sushi when I go out. No one elses food, can compare with homemade.
 
Thanks for the report and H A P P Y B I R T H D A Y !!!!!!!! How many is that?

I used to entertain clients at Ruth Chris's (if their was one in the town I was working) all the time and I really never saw the "Big Deal", steaks where OK, service was OK, but..........always kinda left something.
 
Haven't thought about it until your post, but I took my girl to that same RC about 10 years ago. Had never been to one before, and thought it would be great for her birthday. Although it was good, it just wasn't OMG WOW. To us, it should have been kickin'. Haven't been back.
 
Happy birthday! I've never been to R.C.'s so i appreciate the report. I'm glad your meal was not terrible - and not regrettable. Maybe on your actual birthday, you can cook your own steaks...bet they'll be better!
 
Johnny_Crunch said:
Bad when Joe's comes into the conversation with Ruth's.
Click to expand...

I wudda thunk so too.

But,
We had one of their "buckets" or whatever a couple of months ago, and I gotta call them High End by our standards :redface:
Even though it is "rustic", we had high end service, high end food, and a high end check :redface:
Worth every penny.

TIM
 
I agree with you regarding RC's steaks, they are definitely okay. And YES, the sides are typically the stars of the show.


Oh, Happy Birthday...
 
Got to agree here. Most of us can cook a steak much better than any restuarant. Took the wifey to a high end one, great sides and apps, but the main course was disappointing. One of my principals was bragging about the chicken and steak there. Huh. Mediocre at best. Maybe I need to have him over for some good food.
 
The Brothers in the major metro areas (can you spell New Yawk) have reminded me that they can spend $25 on a burger and chips easily.
I feel for you :-D:-D

The $$ amount is obviously geographically adjustable!
Down here, $10-20 buys a damn fine meal for "eating" in most places.
Once you break $25 or so, we are now talking of "dining", at least in my world.

We went to Emeril's in Universal City a few years back for LUNCH.
Bill was $80 for Mrs Kapn and me.
I paid the bill with a $20 tip and never batted an eye.
Waiter was "perfect"--whenever you started to think "where is he" he was there! He never was hanging around or bothering us when we did not want the attention.
Appetizer was calamari--done to perfection.
My main course was Sea Bass--YUMMY and once again, perfectly cooked and presented.
Mrs Kapn had some dessert "to die for".

To me, that is "dining" and worth every penny.

TIM
 
I do make a point never to order a steak anywhere as I can produce better results than most restaurants usually.
 
As far as "dining" goes, I have to rate the following restaurants high on my list of fine dining:

  • Yachtsman Steakhouse -- at Walt Disney World
  • California Grill -- also at Walt Disney World
  • Flagstaff House -- Boulder, CO

I'm sure there are others, but those are the ones that come to mind immediately.
 
Kapn,

Would definitely echo your comments about Emeril's. Went to his "Emeril's" restaurant in New Orleans last year with low expectations, expecting what you often get in "celebrity" restaurants (pretentious food, overpriced, overbearing waitstaff). What we found was silmilar to your experience. Really tasty food, not too much/not too little, good value ($80 for lunch for two with appetizers, drinks, dessert and tip) and attentive, helpful waitstaff. We agreed that it was probably our best meal in New Orleans. Their banana cream pie is super! I had a similar experience when I went solo to the restaurant in Orlando. I sat at one of the seats overlooking the kitchen and had a great chat with the chef over dinner.
 
I don't mind paying 100 plus bucks for a dinner for two if the food, service and wine make for a great meal. But when it comes to steak, I stay at home; and Atlanta has some VERY good steakhouses. They just can't give the same lovin' that I do to an ancho chili crusted ribeye grilled over red oak.
Now pretty much any other style of cooking I defer to the chefs of Atlanta for a high end meal, but not steaks and BBQ.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

S
High-end pellet grill rec?
2
Replies
33
Views
1K
oldgfbbq
O
J
Premium/high end offset
2 3
Replies
55
Views
4K
cayenne
cayenne
T
Buying a new smoker/grill. Which one?
Replies
1
Views
693
bschoen
B
L
Picanha V2 - Throwdown entry
Replies
12
Views
406
Big George's BBQ
Big George's BBQ
NCGrimbo
Question for the pizza oven guys and gals.
Replies
12
Views
699
NCGrimbo
NCGrimbo
Back
Top