Do you believe in reincarnation? Honestly, I’d wrestled with the notion throughout my childhood and into adult life. I was convinced of its existence about a dozen years ago after my first trip to Bob’s. I haven’t confirmed with my personal God, but I am reasonably sure I was a caveman in my former life. No, not because I have trouble walking upright, live in a cave, or have trouble communicating clearly with my cave mate – but because I am an uber-carnivore. I like meat. I like meat a lot.
I mean; sadly, there aren’t too many things on this earth that excite me more than a perfectly cooked piece of beef. Because of this affliction, I have traveled the country and dined in the finest and most touted cow palaces in the land. After ingesting quite possibly the equivalent weight of 3 or 4 full grown steers, I came to an inarguable conclusion - that all the others were vying for the Silver Medal because Bob’s has the Gold locked up. Bob’s serves not only the best steak in Dallas metro – the unchallenged epicenter of great steakhouses - but in the entire country and beyond. Period. End of story.
As I’ve touted Bob’s to friends and families around the country over the years, I often get asked…”isn’t one prime steakhouse as good as the other in terms of beef quality? So how can one be THAT much better than another?” Valid question I suppose. If you know anything about prime beef, then you know that less than 2% of restaurants in the country truly serve USDA Prime Beef. Within the Prime designation there is an even higher level of prime that only the top tier of that 2% actually serve and that’s where Bob’s plays, having their elite prime hand selected especially for them, trimmed to their specs and then aged for 28 days. It is true that the lion’s share of prime steakhouses get their beef from purveyors in the Midwest, namely Chicago. So, that does beg the question, if you order the top of tops on Prime beef and you get it from the same purveyor, what makes Bob’s so much better? Honestly, I’m not sure. Could it be their oven is seasoned from cooking up great steaks for 13 years? Sure. Do they bring it to room temp with kosher salt and pepper resting on it? Could be. The 1500 degree oven? Okay. Truth is I don’t care what’s behind the magic. I just know the result is something special. And even though Bob’s doesn’t have a classically trained chef in the kitchen, whoever is manning the stove has their pHD in Steakonomics.
Over the years, I’ve developed a few litmus tests for different types of restaurants that I use as standards to base my core evaluations on. For example, salsa, cheese enchiladas, and margaritas are my bench marks for tex-mex spots and Bolognese sets the bar for Italian restaurants. When it comes to prime steakhouses, it really comes down to two different cuts of meat, the filet (known as the “chick” cut by some chauvinist steak-eaters) and the rib-eye (the ONLY cut steak purists order). Based on what I’ve written above, you can probably guess that Bob’s aces my bovine litmus test and while that in and of itself separates them from the pack, the rest of their menu lineup is worth your time as well.
Appetizer options offer up outstanding versions of the usual steakhouse suspects, which, is fine. There’s no shame in brass tacks high end steakhouse grub done extremely well. Shrimp is shown several different ways – cocktail, fried, and with remoulade or a combination of all three. Yep, the shrimps are monstrous and the sauces are bold. And honestly, when it comes to shrimp there’s really no point in over-thinking the preparation. Mammoth onion rings (see them on Dishes to Die For) are inch thick slabs of sweet onion with a divinely crispy crust. Finally, Bobs’ serves up some of the best sautéed mushrooms we’ve ever had, having absorbed just the right amount of port wine, butter, and (do I taste?) Worcestershire.
Don’t you dare skip over the salads, most of which can be ordered in halves. The Chophouse is as solid a version as you’ll find anywhere. I’m also a big fan of the Asparagus salad that comes with strands of roasted red peppers and a light vinaigrette. I have also been deeply moved by the blue cheese salad (Dishes to Die For) which comes with creamy blue dressing, more than a handful of crumbled blue cheese, chopped eggs and crushed roasted pecans. Perhaps my favorite though is the tomato and mozzarella salad. At its best in the summer at the peak of tomato season, this baby comes with chunks of ripe tomatoes, sauteed red onions, and cubes of fresh mozzarella all drizzled with an herby vinaigrette.
Bob's offers the traditional roster of cuts and there's nothing fancy about the preparations. Prime beef cooked simply. Got it? Regardless which cut you order at Bob’s the result is bovine perfection on a plate. Want a black and blue filet? No one does it better. T-Bone mid rare? You got it. NY Strip blackened? No prob. Even if you ask for the hockey puck (filet medium well), they’ll happily butterfly the steak and somehow keep it moist inside.
In addition to the normal cuts, perhaps the tastiest offering on the beef docket is their signature Cote de Bouf bone in rib-eye - a Flinstone-esque behemoth that teases even the biggest appetites with its presence. It has the classic rib-eye marbeling making it ultra flavorful but the bone in takes it to yet another level of savory.
If steaks aren’t your cup of tea, I’d like to slap you to your senses but there actually are other offerings that are very noteworthy at Bob’s. The roasted pork chops are two perfect hunks of prime pork broiled just like a steak and served with a simple house made cinnamon apple sauce. These are fantastic. The rack of lamb is a contender too. Also simple in its preparation, when roasted to that oh so perfect rosy medium rare there isn’t a much better rendition in these parts. And, of course, they’ve got various sizes of succulent Australian Lobster tails. Here’s a tip. Instead of the surf & turf entrée order, get one of the tails as a starter for the table. They’ll chop it up in the back for you so all you have to do is fork your bite and dip it in the clarified butter. After all, it’s Bob’s. Let’s eat like kings!
If a deal is to be found at a place that charges the cost of a tank of gas for a ½ lb steak, it is the fact that Bob’s includes 2 outstanding sides with each steak. Three different potato offerings include Baked (come on, this ain’t no Sizzler), Smashed, which could very well have a stick of butter in each serving, or Skillet – sinfully delicious pan fried thinly sliced potatoes with a wicked green peppercorn sauce and onions slathered over the top. The other side? Bob’s signature cinnamon glazed carrot that doubles as both a tender and perfectly sweet, eye sight improving vegetable and then a falic symbol for others. Other sides include the aforementioned mushrooms, creamed corn, asparagus, etc.
It’s a rarity that I find myself wanting a dessert at Bob’s. I’m usually so stuffed the only thing on my mind is an after dinner drink to evaporate some of the full feeling. BUT, we have been known to dive into a dessert or two when push came to shove. I realize vanilla crème brulee is the stereotypical steakhouse dessert but we simply love Bob’s version. It’s a giant portion – at least enough for two to share, and it has the rock hard sugar torched top and the consistency of the custard is creamy and firm with just a hint of vanilla. No style points but it’s as good of a brulee as you’ll ever eat. The other table sharer dessert is the Brownie Sundae. An enormous chocolate and peanut butter brownie is topped with triple chocolate and peanut butter cup ice cream. Hot chocolate peanut sauce seeps over everything and a scoop of real whipped cream and cherry are the crowning achievements. Jenny Craig? Yeah...not so much.
On the wine list you’ll find cursory offerings of top label French, Italian, and Australian wines but the bulk of the list is dedicated to big, oaky, expense account friendly cabs from Cali. For those that say the American cabs overpower the food, settle down. A meal this big can hold its own against any big Red but if you want to get in touch with your softer size, the list of blends and merlots is stout as well. Because of the relatively simple approach to the wine, there’s no true sommelier on staff but Wine Manager Andy Powers as well as the waitstaff and managers are more than knowledgeable enough to guide you to a great selection. Cocktails? If your perfect steakhouse evening goes something like this – vodka martini up with 3 olives, steak with California red, crème brulee with after dinner drink, then finding a place to smoke a cigar, first of all, God bless you. Perhaps we were separated at birth. But, in the game of pre-dinner martinis, Bob’s plays for keeps serving up the best around both in their preparation and taste. The proof behind that statement rests with Emma, the sassy dark haired head bartender. I’ve seen her make thousands of martinis over the years. (No, not all for us.) And while those other hacks use the stainless steel shaker which doesn’t get the drink cold enough and also waters down the go-go juice, Emma and her team kick it old school with a manual, jack hammer motion preparation. It’s something you need to see in person to understand but the result is an ice cold tini with tiny little ice shavings dancing throughout the glass.
Can we all join in and give Bob's a golf clap for his service team, led by Terri at the front of the house and Karen Lenahan (ask for a table in her section) on the floor. It is a nice touch in a sector of the business that seems hell bent on pushing tuxedoed 60 year old men at their diners.
The atmosphere is primarily what you’ve seen in many other high end steakhouses. Mahogany, granite, brass, glass, mirrors and now, thankfully, plasmas. The booths up front are prized for their locale and relative seclusion from the bar traffic as are the back rooms. There’s a whole throng of local celebs that have their own table in their own section and some even with their own secret entrance and exit. What? Status seating in an unpretentious city like Dallas? Apparently so.
And finally, Bob’s offers up something that few other high end chophouses do – the owner Bob Sambol is actually there. He’s almost always in the house. Whether palm pressing, meeting guests at the door, or bellying up at the bar to watch the game with his patrons, Bob is the quintessential restaurateur and is a big reason the place is packed with regulars and returning out-of- towners every night of the week.
When I first arrived in Dallas, this joint was called Bob & Del’s Chophouse. We all know what happened to Del and the successful Del Frisco’s brand but at that time, plain ole Bob’s was struggling a little. My first experience at Bob’s was a first Monday of the month cigar dinner where they shut down the entire restaurant for the evening. For $65 every diner got appetizers for the table, their choice of a steak and side, a dessert, all the house wine or beer they wanted and three cigars. From shutting the place down for the night to the $65 a person, now such a thing is beyond unimaginable. In fact, a few years ago when the Byron Nelson golf tournament was going on Tiger Woods’ people called and wanted Bob to shut down the restaurant for a few hours so El Tigre could come in and have dinner without dealing with any fanfare and they were willing to pay ‘whatever’. Would you be tempted to cave to the wishes of the world’s most recognizable athlete? Bob never considered it. He told me he wouldn’t do that to his regular customers who already had reservations booked for that evening. My, my, my how times have changed. The truth is, seeing celebrities at Bob’s is basically a nightly event. And if Michael Jordan can come in like a regular diner, walk through the crowd and meet and greet people (like he’s done more than once), so too can golf’s greatest.
While many other steak restaurants are looking for a hook or gimmick to wedge their way into Dallas' beef elite, Bob's has forged ahead with the same classical, no bones about it approach from day one. And there's something to be said for a steakhouse that doesn't try to be something it's not and an owner with the stick-to-it-ness to weather the storm and who’s put in the sweat equity that’s earned him and his restaurant mountains of acclaim from local and national media alike. Bottom line, Bob's does it right and Bob's does it best.
snootyfoodie note: the above review is for the original Bob's location in Dallas only. As you know, we don't play the chain game.
In the city, country, world, and beyond, Bob's serves the very best steaks. Period.