It's unfortunate that you had such a poor experience at Flemings. My wife and I have gone there a half dozen times and have had nothing but great experiences.

Thanks for the tip on the waitresses at Sullivan's... that makes it sound more like a nice night out with the guys than a romantic dinner with the wife...

Great post!

The Jupiterspouse and I have been to the Ruth's Chris at Water Street several times and enjoyed it.

We tried dining at The Ruth's Chris at the Inner Harbor about a year and a half ago, and it was a big disappointment.

We had made reservations but they didn't show up on their books when we arrived. The hostess argued with us about that, insisting that we must have made our reservations for the Water Street branch. Instead of hiking over there we insisted she call them. She found out, no, that wasn't the case, but kept trying to figure out what kind of mistake *we* had made, rather than accepting that a reservation may have gotten lost and dealing with the problem.

Eventually we did get seated. Unfortunately it was at a very cramped table right next to the kitchen, where the waitstaff zoomed past with trays just inches above Jupiterspouse's head.

Service was slow. I don't blame the waitstaff for that, the restaurant was slammed. But what we had expected was a pleasant leisurely dinner, and what we got was cacophony and turmoil.

Eventually we decided to leave and called the Water Street location. They said "come right on over."

The difference was night and day. We felt welcomed. The ambience was calm and friendly. We were not interrogated about our laxity in making reservations. We were placed in a quiet room at a quiet table. Service was excellent.

So my advice, if you want a place with an actual steakhouse feel, is to skip the Inner Harbor Ruth's Chris.

great post. I agree with Morton's. will never spend any money there ever again. overcharged for my drink at the bar (charged more than the menu said. I brought it to their attention, and they said they'd fix the menu, but still charged me the higher amount. took 45 minutes to even get a menu. steak was horrible. blah.

I meant to comment on the original post but never got around to it.

We had a company dinner to celebrate the moving of our help desk in Baltimore to NYC at Shula's. A bittersweet celebration at best, but that is another story.

It was the same as Dan described, the place was nearly empty the whole time. I did like how the menu was painted onto a football though.

Anyway, my boss at the time got the 48-oz steak and polished it off pretty quickly, but not as quickly as Dan.

I had a filet mignon which was done perfectly. It may have been only USDA Choice, but it was very good.(I wasn't paying for it, so what the heck?)
I ordered broccoli with it and was brought out a floret that was gigantic. Who would eat a floret of broccoli that was larger than a softball?

We all were looking over the after dinner drinks menu and I commented that I liked Grand Marnier. Shula's offered the 150-year old stuff for $35 a serving. My boss insisted I order one, and I did. First time, and only time, I have ever had a serving of liquor that cost $35.

That was back in the days where investment banks could do what they pleased. And did.

For those that drink the regular GM (or GranMa as they say here), the 150 year old stuff is a bit lighter in consistency but a lot hotter going down.

We don't have a Prime Rib (obviously), a Shula's or a Flemings here. Y'all need a Del Frisco's, which if I'm just rating the beef, I think is the best of the chain steakhouses we have. (The Cap Grille has Choice beef and Prime service.) And our Ritz Carlton has a great steakhouse in it, but I'm not allowed to mention what it is.

We had a very similar experience at Morton's. After finding a babysitter for our 2 young children, we went to Morton's hoping for an upscale dining experience. The result: our waiter treated us like kids ("Hi, Guys! You kids having a night out?"), ignored us to attend to larger tables and refused to notice that our glasses were empty for most of the evening. We won't be returning.
Love that Capital Grille, though!

I share the disappointment with Morton's. I found the service there to be disorganized, what with the concept of having a duo of waiters.

Also, I don't care for the way that the meat is wheeled out to the table so you can pick out your cut. I guess this is just the next step beyond a lobster tank. Fortunately, Morton's only brings out beef for this exhibition. I don't know if the dining world is ready for a cart filled with chicken parts.

I travel a lot for business and wind up with a dinner invitation from local attorneys who are trying to get my business. And invariably it is a Morton's, Capital Grille or equivalent steakhouse. I love beef but I really despise most steakhouse experiences. The cart of raw meat, a restaurant full of middle-aged men in suits, bland side dishes big enough for an entire meal (where does one find a 5 pound russet potato?) etc. I love it when the host asks me where I would like to eat -- I always say a local joint with local food and atmosphere -- keep me away from the tourists. I'll be in Miami this week (thank you Lord) and I want Cuban. If I really want to go to Morton's, I could go there anywhere.

I've eaten at Morton's in several other cities and have never had a bad meal at any of them, so any problems at the Morton's in Baltimore (which I have yet to visit) may be peculiar to the operators of that location. (While I think the Morton's meat cart show is a waste of time, I vaguely recall that Shula's has also tried that gimmick. There's nothing like having a 3-lb. live lobster waved in your face.) Shula's is OK, but I definitely prefer Morton's.

Conversely, my first meal at a Ruth's Chris in D.C. in the 1980s was so horrible that I've avoided the chain ever since. Apparently, I was at the RC in D.C. in the bad old days, before Ruth Fertel was forced to send Steve de Castro there to clean it up. As a reward for that clean-up job, de Castro got his own RC franchise in Baltimore, which had led to his current empire of eateries. Even under de Castro, the local Ruth's Chris locations have been uneven -- I know some people who love the Water Street RC, and others who have had bad experiences at the Annapolis RC.

hmpstd,
When I was at Shula's (probably 8-9 years ago), they brought the meat out on a huge platter for us to select the steaks we wanted.
I was hoping they were representative cuts and that the meat they were going to cook and serve us was still refrigerated. I know that steaks and such should be taken out of the 'fridge for about 30 minutes prior to cooking, but those cuts looked like they had been out a bit longer.

Skin wrote "If I really want to go to Morton's, I could go there anywhere."

That's both the boon and the bane of chain restaurants: You know what you are going to get. Yes, there are times when I don't want to wonder what is going to be on the menu, but not often. Otherwise I would have missed a little hole-in-the-wall in Manhattan Beach with wonderful craft beers and great sandwiches, or the real German restaurant in a Tampa shopping mall (in between stores, not in the food court or outside area).

aww, I'm flattered to get Comment of the Week. as far as the 48oz steak challenge, I thought speed was the only way I was going to finish the whole thing. aftewards, my wife said, "i've never been so disgusted and so proud at the same time." i am a lucky man.

I would like to add a great experience that I had at Capital Grille. I am a poor college student but my friends and I decided to splurge on a fancy dinner out(about 12 of us) and made a reservation there. They accomadated us well, giving us a private room without us even asking and never once being put-off by the large group of young kids(a few who were wearing slightly outrageous goodwill suits) or that fact that half of us were not drinking. We had two servers, excellent service, a delicious meal and even gave us a free dessert after messing up the order only slightly. I was so impressed that they treated us like valued customers even though we are clearly not their normal crowd. We all chipped in for as much tip as we could possibly afford. Such a great experience!!! I'll be back anytime I have a little extra money to splurge.

KJJ, I love to hear stories like that. I guess I no longer can pass for a kid, but I used to hate being treated poorly because I was young. As someone who had worked a number of tipped jobs, even as an 18 year old, I tipped very well.

I now want to go eat at the Capital Grille sometime.

I have to say that my eyes glaze over when I see posts about steak houses. I justy don't see that there's much to say.

I don't get the love of the meat at the Capitol Grille and Shula's. It is by definition inferior quality meat and I honestly think it tastes that way.

I will give you the service at Capitol Grille is outstanding.

I echo the Shula's comments - that place is flat out depressing.

Honestly, Flemming's is probably my favorite for the money, then Morton's. If you go to Flemming's ask for Don, great waiter. I've never had any issues at Morton's.

I honestly think the meat at Flemming's is by far the best.

Two other fab steakhouses, one in the area, one not. One of the best I have ever been to is Bob's (Dallas, Plano, SF). Locally, I think Lewnes' Steakhouse in Annapolis is among the best.

Prime Rib is too stuffy. Sullivan's should not be in that list - it is more in line with Outback (I've commented on Sullivan's before).

by the way. I've heard great reviews about stoney river in annapolis (and soon to open in towson). anyone been there yet?

Yes, I was in Stoney River Steakhouse on Saturday night. My wife had a Rib-eye steak and mashed Sweet Potatoes and I had the Cowboy Rib-eye steak with Carmelized onion Mashed Potatoes. They were both great meals. We will definitely be going back. Service was wonderful. Their signature breads - Stoney River Puppies - were to die for. Sort of like a white bread (not corn meal) hush puppy with poppy seeds and sweet honey butter.

Have any of you business travelers been to Bern's in Tampa? When I lived there in the early 80's it was a fabulous place I had the pleasure of visiting only once or twice when someone else was paying. I just took a look at the menu and it looks just as great as then. Way beyond the usual chain offerings. There was even a separate dessert room. Doubt I'll make it to Tampa anytime soon, but would love to hear if anyone has been to Bern's.

I have been to Berns though it has now been a few years. I thought my steak was fair though it honestly could have been caused by the fact that we had just played 36 holes in the scorching heat and I was dead tired. The rest of my group loved it.

The atmosphere at Bern's is definitely top notch - we even took a tour of their wine cellar. I would definitely give it another shot when I was more awake.

I was at Bern's in the late 1980s, and, while one member of our group thought it was just OK, I (and the rest of the group) thoroughly enjoyed the experience. Be forewarned, though, that if you're staying at one of the Gulf Coast beaches in the St. Petersburg or Clearwater area, it's a bit of a drive to cross over to Tampa and to get to Bern's.