This past week the crew got together for a steakhouse excursion to the new BLT Steak that opened in Bally’s.
It took a month for our schedules to come together but finally we all were in town and free on the same night, so it was off to BLT Steak.
We had a reservation and were seated right on time so things got off to a good start. The waiter was very helpful going over the menu. We all started with a Caesar Salad, which I thought was a great start to the meal.
Shortly after we got our salads the waiter brought out a bowl of hot popovers. I was actually looking forward to these as I had been hearing so much about them. They lived up to the advance billing – light, airy and laced with Gruyere Cheese. This was a great change of pace to a traditional basket of bread.
BLT has something for everyone’s steak taste, be it wet and dry aged steaks or Prime, Angus or Wagyu beef. I went with the Bone-In Rib Eye – my go-to steak when I go to a steakhouse.
For the most part I enjoyed my meal but the waiter informed us all the sides were a la carte, which is standard for a steakhouse. What isn’t standard is when the sides are just enough for one person. I have never been in a steakhouse where the side dishes weren’t enormous and big enough to share.
One person would get a vegetable with the other getting a starch so you can split them. That was not the case here. We all ordered sides priced around $10. It’s a minor detail but when you are paying $50-$60 for a steak, making the side dishes small to get another $10 out of each customer just doesn’t feel right.
I have one hard and fast rule when it comes to steakhouses – you must cook the steak correctly. In the rare instance (excuse the pun) you get it wrong it should be under cooked – never over cooked. You always can put a steak back on the grill but once it’s over cooked it’s done.
My friend ordered his filet rare and his steak wasn’t close to being rare. The waiter explained that the steak looked that way because they char their steaks. You can have char on the outside but the steak needs to still be the right temperature inside.
I have never seen a waiter try to talk a customer out of what he wanted and that was a huge turn off. It also appeared the attention level of our waiter started to decline when no one was drinking alcohol. This is something I have experienced many times in high-end restaurants as waiters give their attention to the party tables because the bill will be bigger and thus so will their tip.
The concept of BLT Steak is great. I love the fact the steak is served in a cast iron skillet but when the service faltered it really put a damper on the dinner.
When the waiter brought our check there was one more mistake made. When I made the reservation they took my total rewards number. When we arrived the hostess asked me for my total rewards card to put the number on the check.
I would get my points and discounts, but when the waiter brought the check he forgot to take the rewards discount off. This was about a $30 oversight on his part just to add to our frustrations.
With the one steak being cooked wrong and the service we received I give BLT Steak a rating of 2.5 Forks out of 4.
Marco D’Angelo is a Race Horse Owner & Breeder, Professional Sports Handicapper & Bettor. Get a Free Sports Pick from Marco daily by following him on twitter: @MarcoInVegas. You can contact him at [email protected].