06/11/09

Simply one of the best steakhouses

by hotelman21

The steak I had was one of the best I have ever had. Cooked to perfection, it was paired with carmelized onions that complemented well with the delicious garlic mash potatos. The service was wonderful as expected. I will return!

• Pros: Steak, location
• Cons: busy, make reservations

05/06/09

Unsanitary food. Appearance only goes so far.

by deidresanch

I have always been a fan of steak, being originally from the south, so of course I had to try Grill 23. Upon hearing good reviews about Grill 23, I decided to make reservations online for my recent graduation dinner on May 1, 2009. My party’s first impressions were positive. We had no trouble waiting for our table, and the décor was ambient and beautiful with wood paneling. I felt that my waiter was prompt and his service to our table was decent enough.

When my party received our food we were initially impressed by the taste and presentation. However, our impressions abruptly went sour when one person in our party spotted something CRAWLING on her mashed potatoes. She immediately called one of the waiter’s attention. The waiter took her plate away without an explanation or apology. We waited approximately 5-10 minutes before my friend contacted ANOTHER waiter and asked, “what are the restaurant’s procedures regarding a mishap in your food?” The staff appeared to be negligent and unconcerned. When the manager finally arrived for what we thought would be a sympathetic apology, he stated that he could only replace her order. My friend stated, “I have lost my appetite and would rather not have another plate.” She then respectfully asked for a refund and the manager refused to give us any other options. He said, “I can only replace your order, but since you ate half of it, I can give you half of your order to go.” I have previously dined at a fast food joint where the manager refunded an order with no problem, regardless of the amount of the food consumed or other variables. Not only was the manager not prompt about this serious matter, but he was unprofessional and had some nerve.

Overall, Grill 23 lacks in professional management, and promptness about a serious manner. The quality of the food was subpar and unsanitary. This is an occurrence one would expect at a fast food joint or chain restaurant, but not at a restaurant that has been deemed “Best of Boston.” I would highly recommend that you dine somewhere else – perhaps try another steak house in Boston such as Abe and Louie’s.

• Pros: Friendly waiter, nice decor
• Cons: Unprofessional management, unsanitary food

10/18/08

Great Meat, Average Sides

by TheReviewa

Grill 23 is a great restaurant for a special occasion or a guys/girls night out. The meat is very good and the appetizers are quite niece too. If you don't like steak, try the yellow-tail entree. This Sushi-grade dish is a fantastic alternative to red meat. There is an impressive wine list and some interesting cocktails to choose from. Or, if you want to keep it simple there are plenty of beers for about $5. All together this is a nice alternative to S&W or Davios if you are looking for a new steak house. However, on balance, we prefer Davios.

• Pros: Entrees and apps are great
• Cons: Sides are nothing to write about.

09/29/08

Decent Steak, Misleading Reservationist

by jsteff22

Ok, so the steak was pretty good, but have had better at Abe & Louie's. I had the arugula salad which was nothing special either. I agree with other reviewers that the place is loud, but it didn't bother us too much. My boyfriend loves steak and we have been to several of the other steakhouses in town, so for his birthday we decided to try something new. I went on the website and they had a pretty strict dress code, and when I made the reservation I double-checked with the reservationist what the dresscode is (jacket/tie, business formal is what she said so we dressed to the 9's). When I showed up, most of the patrons were in jeans/tee shirts (no exaggeration) and I saw one patron walk in with gym shorts on. Now, I am all for casual dining, but I suggest Grill 23 recheck their website and what their reservationist tells customers. It was almost embarassing as my boyfriend and I were the most dressed up people in the restaurant.

• Pros: Good Service, Ok Steak
• Cons: Slightly overpriced, Inaccurate standards of dress code and ambience

07/14/08

They don't know how to cook a steak!

by kart420

This was my second visit here with my husband - went last year around the same time. Both times I ordered my steak medium, and both times it came out rare (2 different cuts of meat mind you). On our first visit, our server was attentive, great personality, and very apologetic about the undercooked steak and rushed it back to cook longer. Unfortunately it wasn't the same once it came back. This last time, our waiter disappeared on us (the last we saw of him was when he took our entree order), so when the steak came rare, there was no one to tell. I decided instead of sending it back to eat the more cooked portions, but unfortunately I did eat some of the rarer portions - about 3/4 of the way through the entree I could feel my stomach turning already (I'm one of those unfortunate souls who cannot digest rare/raw meat). When a different waiter came to clear our plates, I didn't even get to finish telling him my steak was undercooked - he could immediately tell it was rare. Unfortunately though, no one, neither our original waiter nor a manager nor the chef, came to apologize. I wasn't looking for anything free, just some acknowledgement of the error. Needless to say, after two blatent errors with no apology from management or the kitchen, I will not be going back, nor will I be recommending this place to anyone. I will stick with my favorite, Smith & Wollensky - I've been to 3 of their locations (NY, Boston and Vegas) numerous times (it was our fave place when we lived in NY) and have never had this problem. It got 2 stars because the blue cheese mashed were awesome and the wine list is tops - they even had a wine from a not so well known vineyard we visited in New Zealand so that salvaged the meal for me.

• Pros: Ambience, wine list
• Cons: Can't cook their steaks to order

05/18/08

not bad food, good servic

by Cashm

appetizer was great, best crab cake, fantastic service, nice wine list, main course, too much salt, disappointing, husband had the halibut and was way to salty he said. I had the soft shell crabs, not bad, just disappointing. The hash browns and onion rings were good.

• Pros: great service, great crab cake
• Cons: not everything is good IMO

02/18/08

One of the best meals of my life!

by bunheads

The food is spectacular. I had the 3 pound lobster and my husband the fillet, and both were perfection. It is definitely costly but worth every penny. This is not a place that we can afford to go to often, but it is perfect for that special occasion dinner. The food is so wonderfully prepared that if you are going to eat here you should spare no expense and spend your money freely. So go, order to your heart's delight and don't worry about the bill. It's going to hurt a bit once it comes, but you'll be so happy you splurged after the fact.

• Pros: The food is devine!
• Cons: You pay a pretty price for it.

02/01/08

Overpriced and Loud

by ZachH

I recently went to Grille 23 for a business function. It to me is overpriced for what it is. Also, I had trouble conversing with my colleagues as it is incredibly loud. Additionally, our service was what I would expect at a place like TGI Friday's. If I was paying out of my own pocket, I would have complained to the manager. I, along with my business colleagues, will probably never go there again because the other alternatives in Boston are much better in service, menu, and value. If you're looking to go Grill 23, you should instead consider Capital Grille, Abe & Louie's, or Ruth Chris Steakhouse.

01/18/08

Not a favorite

by kgib1182

I ate here for a buisness dinner about 2 months ago, I did not have to pay..however I felt bad for the person who did as it was not up to par with other restaurants we have had business dinners in before. For starters they tried to seat a party of 9 in this small round booth underneath the staircase...which could not have comfortably fit more than 7 people, they seemed annoyed when we told them we couldn't all fit in the space and didn't seem to care that we were irritated since we had reservations made about one month in advance....finally they moved us and yes I know it is a steak house, but one would think they would have some chicken or vegetable option on the menu...they did not, steak and seafood thats it, they told me they took the chicken off the menu the week before... I ended up getting a pasta veggie dish made special by the chef....which you know must have been way over priced, it was terrible, I can cook better than that! Completely bland with no kind of flavor what so ever! Some of the other people in the party enjoyed there meals and some said they wouldn't eat here if they had to pay....not the worst restaurant, just not worth this type of money...you are much better off at Abe and Louies...like I said not a steak person, but everyone who had steak agreed they liked the previous months dinner at Abe and Louies far better!

• Pros: Friendly bartender
• Cons: snooty hostess, food sub par

07/23/07

Upscale Dining At Its Best

by equity6

My family and I had dinner here on July 22, 2007. Being a Sunday evening in the summer, the restaurant was not overly crowded. We had a nice window table overlooking Berkeley St. This is not a typical steakhouse in its decor. It is upscale and beautifully decorated with great artwork throughout. Our server, Jennifer, was polished and professional. Our salads were great - I had a wedge of baby iceberg with a great bleu cheese dressing and a wedge of the cheese. We all enjoyed different steaks - I had a bone-in Delmonico which was flavorful, juicy and hearty. Others had filet mignon and the 18 oz. NY strip and all loved the staks which had a tasty, crusty char to them. Side dishes shine here. Hash brown potatoes are omelet style, crisp on the outside and hot and moist insdie. Ginger beets are different and a real treat. Broccoli au gratin is taken to a new height here. Incredible bread basket. Cocktails are steakhouse-big and well made. It is an expensive restaurant and very much worth it! Great dining experience.

• Pros: superb steak, creative side dishes, polished service
• Cons: steaks not cooked exactly as ordered