10 Restaurant Chains With The Best Steak Dinners & 10 With The Worst
Which Chain Restaurants Make The Cut?
Ah, steak: succulent, rich, and beefy. It has long been associated with nights out, special occasions, and upscale dining. For many of us, it's a special treat. That's why it's incredibly disappointing when we end up with a sub-par steak dinner. While many chain restaurants in the US are carving up some mouth-watering cuts, cooked to perfection, others serve steaks so tough and tasteless that you don't know whether you're eating beef or the bottom of a shoe. So you're never left with a disappointing steak experience again, here are 10 restaurant chains with the best steak dinners and 10 with the worst.
1. LongHorn Steakhouse
Few steakhouses offer better value than LongHorn, where you can get a steak dinner for as low as $30. What's more, it's a genuinely great steak, made from high-quality cuts that are fire-grilled for a nice smokiness and balanced char.
2. The Keg
The Keg is a Canadian steakhouse chain with several locations in the US. It has a high-end restaurant feel but for a reasonable price and its steaks are consistently good quality, perfectly cooked, and flavorful.
Michael Gray from Wantagh NY, USA on Wikimedia
3. Fleming's
Fleming's Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar is an upscale steakhouse chain. It's known for using USDA Prime Beef, the highest grade, celebrated for its tenderness, marbling, and incredible flavor, which is aged for at least 21 days. Entrees here go for more than $50, but for that price, you're guaranteed to have a great steak.
4. Texas de Brazil
What's better than great steak? Great, all-you-can-eat steak. Texas de Brazil is a Brazilian-style steakhouse where beautiful fire-roasted meats are carved tableside in a lively and sophisticated atmosphere.
5. Ruth's Chris Steakhouse
When it comes to chain steakhouses, you can't get much better than Ruth's Chris. It uses USDA Prime Beef which is cooked on super hot 500-degree plates, ensuring an even sear that locks in the juices and results in an audible sizzle when it's brought to your table.
6. Smith & Wollensky
Smith & Wollensky is another upscale option with a high price point. It's renowned for its large portions, remarkable staff, and huge wine list all in an old-school elegant American steakhouse setting.
7. Chili's
A good steak doesn't always fetch a $50-plus price tag. Chili's delivers a tasty ribeye or sirloin steak in a fun and casual setting for a fraction of the price.
Pablo Andrés Ortega Chávez on Wikimedia
8. Saltgrass Steakhouse
Saltgrass Steakhouse is a Texan chain with over 80 locations around the US. Their focus is on capturing the flavor of open-campfire cooking which they achieve by chargrilling their steaks. The Western decor makes for a memorable experience and the quality of the food for the mid-range price point is hard to beat.
9. The Palm
The Palm offers one of the best high-end steaks you can get at a chain restaurant in the US. The first location was opened in NYC in 1926 by Italian immigrants who intended it to be an Italian restaurant before pivoting to steaks after so many requests. This chain uses USDA Prime dry-aged beef, offering a large variety of cuts.
10. Logan's Roadhouse
Logan's was designed to resemble a 1940s or 50s American roadhouse restaurant. It has a laid-back atmosphere, free peanuts, delicious dinner rolls, and nice mesquite wood-grilled steaks which they offer for a reasonable price.
Now that we've talked about the chain restaurants where steak lovers won't be disappointed, let's go over some of the less-than-satisfactory options.
1. Applebee's
Applebee's is a beloved family restaurant chain where you can get delicious wings, tacos, and burgers, but we wouldn't recommend the steak. The chain uses primarily USDA select beef which is the lowest grade, often resulting in tough and dry steaks.
2. TGI Fridays
Like many restaurants with an incredibly broad menu, TGI Fridays tries to do so many things, but they fail to deliver quality when it comes to steaks. The chain uses lower-grade beef which is dressed up with marinades and seasonings to hide the fact that the steaks aren't very tasty.
3. Olive Garden
Olive Garden is a great place to go for pasta, garlic bread, and soups, but steak? Not so much. The chain uses lower-quality cuts of beef and diners complain that steaks are overly salty or chewy.
4. Ruby Tuesday
Ruby Tuesday is a casual restaurant chain celebrated for its endless salad bar, ribs, and chicken but, just like most restaurants that don't specialize in them, the steaks here are underwhelming. It uses USDA Choice beef which is a step above the lowest, but still often results in chewy and flavorless steaks.
5. Sizzler
Sizzler was founded on the idea of offering Americans a steakhouse experience at a more affordable price point. People love the all-you-can-eat salad bar and hot bar, but the steaks are unfortunately not very tasty, using low-quality beef which they try to mask with heavy seasoning.
RegionalQueenslander on Wikimedia
6. Sirloin Stockade
Sirloin Stockade is an all-you-can-eat restaurant, but like many buffet-style eateries, it opts for quantity over quality. The steak here is low-grade and as basic as they come.
7. Claim Jumper Steakhouse & Bar
Claim Jumper is a casual restaurant chain that leans a little too heavily into a Gold Rush theme. It offers a diverse menu of classic American fare, but although steakhouse is in the name, the steaks here are not the strong point. Although it uses USDA Prime cuts, diners complain of inconsistent quality.
8. The Cheesecake Factory
The Cheesecake Factory is famous for its massive menu and gigantic portion sizes, but not its steaks. While they use decent quality beef, the preparation is often the issue, with steaks being overcooked, dry, and tasteless.
TriviaKing (talk)DWS on Wikimedia
9. Golden Corral
Golden Corral is an all-you-can-eat chain that offers steaks as part of its dinner buffet service. While steaks are cooked to order on a charbroiler right in front of you, the quality of the beef is pretty low and you simply won't get the rich taste or tenderness of a better-quality cut.
Ildar Sagdejev (Specious) on Wikimedia
10. Outback Steakhouse
Outback Steakhouse is an Australian-themed restaurant chain with hundreds of locations around the US. While they pride themselves on their steaks which are hand-cut and decent quality beef, the restaurant's lack of specialization results in poor consistency and many find the steaks overly salty.
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