Good Steaks

[midgetonadonkey]

My girlfriend is taking me to dinner tonight for Valentine's Day and I want to know a place to get a good steak. I've been to The Little Red Barn and that place is okay. Any other ideas?

[SpursWoman]

Saltgrass was AWESOME the last time we went there... :)

[midgetonadonkey]

Where is that located?

[SpursWoman]

There's one on 281 around Thousand Oaks/Henderson Pass ... another one off I10, but I'm not exactly sure where. :oops

[travis2]

I-10 and Huebner...it's in the Huebner Oaks shopping center.

And I don't remember which exit to take to get to Saltgrass off of 281...might be better off (heading north) to get off at Bitters and head up the access road from there...

[travis2]

OK, looks like it's the 1000 Oaks exit heading north...it's between 1000 Oaks and Donella.

http://www.saltgrass.com/images/salt8.gif

http://www.saltgrass.com/images/salt12.gif

[tlongII]

Has anyone been to SA Prime yet?

[midgetonadonkey]

Has anyone been to Beef and Bourbon on the Eastside?

[sa_butta]

Texas Roadhouse, and Texas Land and Cattle are all good steaks reasonable prices.

[IceColdBrewski]

Another vote for Texas Roadhouse. Get the biggest Ribeye they have. Cooked medium. If you're feeling adventurous, tell em you want it covered with sauteed onions, mushrooms, and jack cheese. Those onions and mushrooms are good enough to be a meal all by themselves.

They have excellent prime rib too.

[Shelly]

Has anyone been to SA Prime yet?


I remember that it got bad reviews by the restaurant critics!

[Shelly]

Flemmings just opened in the Quarry. Great food, but very $$$$

[T Park]

Saltgrass.

Won't get a better steak for the money.

For an appetizer, do the Shrimp and Chicken Embrochet (spelling is wrong I know, sorry, can't remember how to do it)

[tlongII]

I remember that it got bad reviews by the restaurant critics!

Really? msufan can't be happy about that.

[SpursWoman]

Another vote for Texas Roadhouse.


Oh, damn...I forgot all about them. Very good ... very reasonable $$, and you get to throw peanut shells on the floor. :lol

[midgetonadonkey]

Where is the Texas Roadhouse? I think I've decided on going there.

[T Park]

I 10 and huebner.

Same area.......

[Shelly]

Really? msufan can't be happy about that.

http://www.mysanantonio.com/entertainment/dining/stories/MYSA120205.WK.saprime.review.118cef0b.html


Restuarant Review: SA Prime — Steaks, Silver Oak by glass

Web Posted: 11/30/2005 04:32 PM CST

John Griffin
Express-News dining editor

Success does not necessarily breed instant success. A little hard work and more hard work, not to mention a dash of ingenuity and a pinch of originality, are essential in any major endeavor, especially in the restaurant business, with its flukes and fads and fickle nature.

SA Prime
7959 Broadway, (210) 798-5630. (NC) Lunch: Mon.-Fri. Dinner: Mon.-Sat. $$$. Credit: All major. Business casual. No smoking.

Report card
Food: D+
Service: B-
Ambience: B+
Value: C-

Express-News dining critics pay for all meals and strive for anonymity.

You can tell from the moment you enter the building that a lot of hard work has gone into SA Prime, the new independent steak and seafood restaurant on Broadway that would like to challenge the big boy chains. Few places in town pull off the luxurious sweep of the entry area as you whisk past the plush bar into the mirrored, but otherwise bare, dining rooms beyond.

And that is as it should be. After all, the management and staff behind this venture have spent more than a few years of service in the employ of the competition, and it shows in a few well-chosen areas, especially some of the steaks, which are as good as you'd expect when ordering USDA prime.

Unfortunately, for diners and staff alike, too many other areas are like the original cast of "Saturday Night Live": not ready for prime time.

This becomes apparent almost immediately upon ordering because the starters, soups and salads are a truly mixed lot.

The crab cakes are practically as good as they come. Lumps of succulent crabmeat, held together by nothing more than a few spices and a prayer, leave you feeling like a fat cat who's nabbed more than a canary.

Their exact opposite would be the beefsteak tomato salad with blue cheese crumbles. This isn't the season for tomatoes, and the refrigerated shotputs served to us were anything but ripe. Not helping matters was a dressing that tasted like mayonnaise with a few blue cheese crumbles stirred in more for texture than flavor.

Cooking an unripe tomato can help concentrate its flavor. So, we ordered the broiled tomatoes that were said to be stuffed with creamed spinach. It didn't help. Not only was the tomato not broiled, it was barely heated, and its mealy interior had not been scooped out; the fairly good creamed spinach had simply been spooned on top.

The kitchen was truly overzealous with the salt, laying it on too heavily in both the French onion and Spicy Chicken and Rice soups as well as the fried calamari, the Parmesan potatoes, the salmon and even one of the steaks. But nowhere was it quite as bad as the au jus that accompanied the prime rib. Even the salt addict at the table couldn't eat that.

You might do better with the salads, though I'd opt for the mixed greens or the Caesar over the iceberg, which was limp with edges that had begun to brown. At the center of the sad little heart was a tiny cup of balsamic vinaigrette that had not been emulsified before being served, so you had to dip each leaf deep in the oil to get to the sweet-tart vinegar below. Both the mixed greens, with its slivers of artichoke hearts, and the Caesar were fresher — to mention gargantuan in portion — but both were also badly overdressed.

One of the bar's exemplary margaritas could make such lapses more bearable (though not even that stellar concoction could temper the salt in that au jus). For wine lovers, SA Prime offers an impressive list of both whites and reds, old favorites and enticing newcomers. And, in what may be a first for San Antonio, it offers Silver Oak's Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon by the glass (for $24).

That would certainly go well with your choice of steaks. We had nothing but raves about the New York strip, which came to the table cooked perfectly to order. And we liked the flavor of the rib-eye, except, again, for a too-generous hand with the salt shaker.

There was nothing fancy about the prime rib, which made it a traditional delight and just what my friend had in mind when she ordered it. A rack of baby back ribs was sweetened with a honey sauce that had a touch of hot pepper in it, but a serving of pork medallions suffered from an excess of rosemary that made it slightly soapy.

The worst of what we tasted, however, was the seafood. Two separate orders on one visit simply were not fresh and had to be sent back, leaving my friend without an entrée. From this arose one of the best experiences of our visits: My friend hadn't made a big deal about the fish, but the manager, truly horrified by what had happened, tried his best to make it up to my friend to get her to return, including the offer of a free meal.

I don't know if she'll do that, but I do know that if he and the rest of the staff at SA Prime coax that level of professionalism from the kitchen, then things can only improve.

[SpursWoman]

There is also one (Texas Roadhouse) at 35 & 1604 by the Live Oak theaters. :)

[IceColdBrewski]

There's also Roadhouse over hear by the Ingram Mall on 410. Other side of the highway though. Between Culebra and Ingram I think.

[Summers]

But if you decide to spend big bucks, Ruth's Chris is really good (must have creme brulee for dessert). Or Dan McClusky's (do they have one in SA?).

[gay abc]

But if you decide to spend big bucks, Ruth's Chris is really good (must have creme brulee for dessert). Or Dan McClusky's (do they have one in SA?).

not anymore - there was one on broadway YEARS ago - is the one on 6th street in austin still there? - DAMN those were good steaks :smokin

[IceColdBrewski]

Where is the Texas Roadhouse? I think I've decided on going there.

The chili is a good side order. The loaded baked, or sweet potato is also a can't-miss. Don't ruin your appetite on rolls and peanuts. It's always hard, but try to restrain yourself. :hat

[Slomo]

Oh, damn...I forgot all about them. Very good ... very reasonable $$, and you get to throw peanut shells on the floor. :lolNow I know which place you are talking about. :)

Good steaks indeed :tu

[SequSpur]

texas roadhouse sucks.

[Slomo]

texas roadhouse sucks.
Yes, it must be hard to wade through knee deep peanut shells...:depressed

[MannyIsGod]

You guys are thinking fo a different place. The peanut shells is Logans roadhouse. I don't believe Texas Roadhouse does that, but I could be wrong.

[IceColdBrewski]

Yes, it must be hard to wade through knee deep peanut shells...:depressed

:lol

Yeah. I'm guessing everything sucks when you're a bitter midget.

[IceColdBrewski]

You guys are thinking fo a different place. The peanut shells is Logans roadhouse. I don't believe Texas Roadhouse does that, but I could be wrong.

Texas Roadhouse does it too. Better enjoy it while it lasts. My brother in Vegas said that the Health Dept. in Nevada made all the resataurants that do it take all the peanuts out, because of people who are allergic were having reactions to all the shells that were laying around.

[2centsworth]

You poor Kids, Saltgrass?, Texas Roadhouse?, why not Dennys?

Do yourself a favor and one day order a Prime Rib from Mortons. Or if you ever go up to Austin try Eddie V's.

[Kori Ellis]

The steaks at SaltGrass (ribeyes) are actually better than Morton's.

[Pistons < Spurs]

Texas Roadhouse does it too. Better enjoy it while it lasts. My brother in Vegas said that the Health Dept. in Nevada made all the resataurants that do it take all the peanuts out, because of people who are allergic were having reactions to all the shells that were laying around.

I've also seen many restraunts have to get rid of the whole peanut thing because of worms. Apparently, having all those shells lying everywhere makes great homes for magott like worms. We used to have a couple restraunts like that when I lived in Kansas, and they all had to do away with it to comply with the health dept.

[SequSpur]

Texas Roadhouse has peanuts and serves steak ummss...

[Vashner]

UR Cooks is good.

[Sapphire]

UR Cooks is good.
I thought that place closed down?? We have always liked Saltgrass--great service at the one at 1000 Oaks, and we love the range rattlers, I think they're called. The shrimp and jalapeno appetizer.

[T Park]

The steaks at SaltGrass (ribeyes) are actually better than Morton's.

Doesn't suprise me.

Saltgrass is the shit.

[2centsworth]

The steaks at SaltGrass (ribeyes) are actually better than Morton's.
Prime Rib, do yourself that favor and you'll be embarrassed you ever mentioned SaltGrass and Mortons in the same sentence.

[Guru of Nothing]

Best steak I ever ate in SA was at Veladi Steak House, but I think they are long gone. Not sure if anyone filled the gap in their place.

[IceColdBrewski]

Mortons is too high society for my taste. Too many stuffed shirt types hangin around in there. And you need fairly deep pockets if you want to make a place like morton's a regular outing. Not so with the Roadhouse. I'm a meat, potatoes, and beer kinda guy. Not a meat, broccoli, and champagne kinda guy. I like to enjoy my steak in the kind of places where you can watch the ball game, throw the peanut shells on the floor, and listen to the tunes on the jukebox. Roadhouse has the better value as well. More food for less money.

[IceColdBrewski]

The top 10 according to the voting public in San Antonio:

http://sanantonio.citysearch.com/bestof/winners/steak

[Kori Ellis]

Prime Rib, do yourself that favor and you'll be embarrassed you ever mentioned SaltGrass and Mortons in the same sentence.

I've eaten Prime Rib at the Mortons in Beverly Hills. It was good, but I'm not a Prime Rib fan.

[Guru of Nothing]

Prime Rib, do yourself that favor and you'll be embarrassed you ever mentioned SaltGrass and Mortons in the same sentence.

lololololol at pimping a chain restaurant so hard.

[2centsworth]

The top 10 according to the voting public in San Antonio:

http://sanantonio.citysearch.com/bestof/winners/steak
went to saltgrass a few years back and didn't like it. I should give it another shot.

[SpursWoman]

went to saltgrass a few years back and didn't like it. I should give it another shot.


We went to Saltgrass fairly recently ... every different cut of steak each of us ordered could be cut with a fork and was out of this world...and I'm more of a *chicken & fish* person, too. :fro

[TheTruth]

The top 10 according to the voting public in San Antonio:

http://sanantonio.citysearch.com/bestof/winners/steak
is this kinda like the san antonio express news surveys that has pizza hut the best pizza place in town? or taco cabana the best taco place?