I’ve heard a lot of great things about a fine dining steak house called Baton Rouge now for some time.
My mom and dad love the place. I’ve heard others say they ha
ve the best ribs in town.
So, I went recently, expecting hefty prices, but exceptional service, high quality food and lots of steaks to choose from.
Well, after reviewing the menu several times, I was extremely disappointed. Oh the prices were hefty, but the selection of steaks for this supposedly “steak” house were quite slim.
Actually, for the hefty prices they were charging, I was expecting fine dinning items on the menu. You know the kind of things prepared by exclusive chefs – which amazing descriptions.
Things like quail in a bourbon sauce, with wrapped in brochettes, and covered in Champaign demi-glaze. Or maybe blackened pan seared steak, served with sweet potato fritters, in a peppercorn and crème sauce.
Those are the types of things you find typically at exclusive high-end fine dinning restaurants. Those are the types of things prepared by exceptional chefs, who can charge outrageous prices for their pieces of food art.
At Baton Rouge, they were charging those outrageous prices, but didn’t have the fine dinning food or famous chefs to back up those prices. For a supposed “steak house” they only had three steaks on the menu – all costing about $30.
They had a clubhouse sandwich, hamburgers, salads, even ribs. But they didn’t have anything special, which you’d find exclusively at a real fine dinning establishment.
Fine dinning isn’t just about great food. It’s about food art. Real fine dinning occurs when you have an exceptionally talented chef taking unusual food pairings, tossing them together and creating visually stunning plates, which taste as good as they look.
Anyone can make a clubhouse sandwich – and hamburgers – if I wanted a burger I’d go to McDonald’s.
Fine dinning is also about the experience. The whole staff should be very prompt, overly friendly, and go way out of their way to offer you a suburb dinning experience.
Our drinks we ordered came right away, but when we asked for our bill, it took well over 15 minutes. We only ordered drinks, because we were disappointed with the menu selection and price. Yet with only two drinks, it cost $20!
At a real fine dinning restaurant that’s okay – but at a regular upscale eatery that’s a rip-off.
We went to the Keg – a real steakhouse with lots of steaks to choose from – and got more drinks and lots of real high quality food.
The Keg isn’t fine dinning – it is just an upscale steak house. But their prices are right, their service outstanding, and their food very good.
The Keg doesn’t offer fine dinning cuisine – but even they take the time to create unique food combinations which only they have.
I love their pecan sirloin – a sirloin steak, covered with feta cheese, roasted pecans, and a peppercorn sauce.
At Baton Rouge, they didn’t even go out of their way to create a unique dinning experience. Well, okay that’s not entirely true. They try to create a fine dinning experience without the fine. You pay an over inflated price for moderate to poor service, average bar-type food, in a cozy atmosphere.
If I was a tourist and didn’t know any better, I probably would have paid those outrageous prices and enjoyed the meal, not knowing I was being ripped off. But as I’m not a tourist, I knew better.
And now you know better too.
My mom and dad love the place. I’ve heard others say they ha
ve the best ribs in town.So, I went recently, expecting hefty prices, but exceptional service, high quality food and lots of steaks to choose from.
Well, after reviewing the menu several times, I was extremely disappointed. Oh the prices were hefty, but the selection of steaks for this supposedly “steak” house were quite slim.
Actually, for the hefty prices they were charging, I was expecting fine dinning items on the menu. You know the kind of things prepared by exclusive chefs – which amazing descriptions.
Things like quail in a bourbon sauce, with wrapped in brochettes, and covered in Champaign demi-glaze. Or maybe blackened pan seared steak, served with sweet potato fritters, in a peppercorn and crème sauce.
Those are the types of things you find typically at exclusive high-end fine dinning restaurants. Those are the types of things prepared by exceptional chefs, who can charge outrageous prices for their pieces of food art.
At Baton Rouge, they were charging those outrageous prices, but didn’t have the fine dinning food or famous chefs to back up those prices. For a supposed “steak house” they only had three steaks on the menu – all costing about $30.
They had a clubhouse sandwich, hamburgers, salads, even ribs. But they didn’t have anything special, which you’d find exclusively at a real fine dinning establishment.
Fine dinning isn’t just about great food. It’s about food art. Real fine dinning occurs when you have an exceptionally talented chef taking unusual food pairings, tossing them together and creating visually stunning plates, which taste as good as they look.
Anyone can make a clubhouse sandwich – and hamburgers – if I wanted a burger I’d go to McDonald’s.
Fine dinning is also about the experience. The whole staff should be very prompt, overly friendly, and go way out of their way to offer you a suburb dinning experience.
Our drinks we ordered came right away, but when we asked for our bill, it took well over 15 minutes. We only ordered drinks, because we were disappointed with the menu selection and price. Yet with only two drinks, it cost $20!
At a real fine dinning restaurant that’s okay – but at a regular upscale eatery that’s a rip-off.
We went to the Keg – a real steakhouse with lots of steaks to choose from – and got more drinks and lots of real high quality food.
The Keg isn’t fine dinning – it is just an upscale steak house. But their prices are right, their service outstanding, and their food very good.
The Keg doesn’t offer fine dinning cuisine – but even they take the time to create unique food combinations which only they have.
I love their pecan sirloin – a sirloin steak, covered with feta cheese, roasted pecans, and a peppercorn sauce.
At Baton Rouge, they didn’t even go out of their way to create a unique dinning experience. Well, okay that’s not entirely true. They try to create a fine dinning experience without the fine. You pay an over inflated price for moderate to poor service, average bar-type food, in a cozy atmosphere.
If I was a tourist and didn’t know any better, I probably would have paid those outrageous prices and enjoyed the meal, not knowing I was being ripped off. But as I’m not a tourist, I knew better.
And now you know better too.
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