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Roots Steakhouse

tkd7

By tkd7
in New Jersey: Dining

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  • 2 weeks later...
PaulaJK

PaulaJK

Posted
Posted

Tkd7...After your visit, please share your opinions with us.

I realize that most people are extolling the steaks. On 3

visits there, my lamb chops, ordered rare, arrived well done.They

were replaced but you are so out of sink w. your fellow diners.

Then the salmon 'medium' ordered by two of us arrived over

cooked & dry. On the 3rd try my rare lamb chops arrived medium

at best. I find all of this rather disconcerting, especially for a steak house.

The quality of the product is good however. The sides are fair tasting,

small portions [for one] & expensive. The macaroni & cheese

seems to have cinnamon on top. The setting is quite noisy

when the restaurant is full.

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  • 2 weeks later...
tkd7

tkd7

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I visited Roots last Saturday with a group of four other guys. The interior is very well done. Our table was at the front of the restaurant. I never felt crowded by another table or bar patrons. The vibe is of an upscale casual restaurant, if that makes sense.

I started with a martini. I will say that Roots does not excel in cocktails. The bar is certainly servicable, but they spend their time on the wine collection, not the cocktail program.

I had the French onion soup as an appetizer. It was tasty but not spectacular, which is fine with me. That is all I am looking for from French onion soup. My preference would have been to try one of the seafood selections, but my group was not into that.

I had the T-bone special for dinner. Not all the steaks are dry aged, so if that is important to you, make sure you ask about your selection. I would say the steak was cooked a tick over medium rare. The butter finish on the steak was apparent but not overwhelming. The strip steak portion was the tastiest. We ordered a selection of sides. I sampled the asparagus, brussells sprouts, and mushrooms. The vegetables were prepared well but not as flavorful as I would like. Perhaps it is the time of year. We shared a bottle of inexpensive Zinfindel between the five of us. Dessert was a chocolate pudding cake that was very well done. Rich but not too sweet.

The bill came to $103 a person. I enjoyed the meal and the service was excellent. We never felt rushed. I will be going back.

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tommy

tommy

Posted
Posted (edited)
We shared a bottle of inexpensive Zinfindel between the five of us. 

hopefully they reworked their wine list sine the time I went. There were very few options under 80 dollars at that time.

other than convenience, i see little reason to go to Roots for steak, assuming one has access to NYC, which i assume most people around Summit do. i don't think it compares to even mid-tier NYC steakhouses (S&W, Palm, etc), assuming your tastes lean towards the dry-aged end of the spectrum, as mine do.

Edited by tommy (log)
tommy:eats.com
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tkd7

tkd7

Posted
  • Topic Starter
Posted
We shared a bottle of inexpensive Zinfindel between the five of us. 

hopefully they reworked their wine list sine the time I went. There were very few options under 80 dollars at that time.

other than convenience, i see little reason to go to Roots for steak, assuming one has access to NYC, which i assume most people around Summit do. i don't think it compares to even mid-tier NYC steakhouses (S&W, Palm, etc), assuming your tastes lean towards the dry-aged end of the spectrum, as mine do.

My friends and I have been doing the steakhouse thing for a while, and the best steak I've had was the Porterhouse for Two at Stage Left in New Brunswick. It beat all the steakhouses I've been to.

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steakas

steakas

Posted
Posted (edited)
We shared a bottle of inexpensive Zinfindel between the five of us. 

hopefully they reworked their wine list sine the time I went. There were very few options under 80 dollars at that time.

other than convenience, i see little reason to go to Roots for steak, assuming one has access to NYC, which i assume most people around Summit do. i don't think it compares to even mid-tier NYC steakhouses (S&W, Palm, etc), assuming your tastes lean towards the dry-aged end of the spectrum, as mine do.

My friends and I have been doing the steakhouse thing for a while, and the best steak I've had was the Porterhouse for Two at Stage Left in New Brunswick. It beat all the steakhouses I've been to.

I looked at SL's menu and only saw a Wood Grilled Filet Mignon. Is that the steak you're talking about or did you have a strip?

Thanks

Edited by steakas (log)

:D

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tkd7

tkd7

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Posted
We shared a bottle of inexpensive Zinfindel between the five of us. 

hopefully they reworked their wine list sine the time I went. There were very few options under 80 dollars at that time.

other than convenience, i see little reason to go to Roots for steak, assuming one has access to NYC, which i assume most people around Summit do. i don't think it compares to even mid-tier NYC steakhouses (S&W, Palm, etc), assuming your tastes lean towards the dry-aged end of the spectrum, as mine do.

My friends and I have been doing the steakhouse thing for a while, and the best steak I've had was the Porterhouse for Two at Stage Left in New Brunswick. It beat all the steakhouses I've been to.

I looked at SL's menu and only saw a Wood Grilled Filet Mignon. Is that the steak you're talking about or did you have a strip?

Thanks

No, they had a porterhouse for two. It is on the daily menu. I would suggest calling ahead to ensure it is on the menu when you go. One problem with Stage Left, if you think it is a problem, is that in their effort to bring the freshest food to the table they will often run out of things. They would rather serve fresh food and run out of it then keep something too long.

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tkd7

tkd7

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I called and they said the PH for 2 dry aged 21 days.  Me must check it out :biggrin:.  tkd7, who does it rank over? Thanks!

The places we've been (in no particular order)

Sammy's

Peter Luger

Chophouse

Morton's

Roots

Ruth's Chris

My favorite steak was the Metropolitan Grill in Seattle.

What are your suggestions?

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richl2214

richl2214

Posted
Posted

Have you been to DelFriscos?

"My rule of life prescribed as an absolutely sacred rite smoking cigars and also the drinking of alcohol before, after and if need be during all meals and in the intervals between them." ~Winston Churchill

Morels- God's gift to the unworthy human species

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