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| - I am puzzled why most casinos feel the need to have a steakhouse--especially locals casinos, where the offerings usually are mediocre and overpriced. Sadly, that was the case at Austin's on our recent visit for Restaurant Week. While the service was impeccable, the food was nothing special and took a big bite out of our wallet.
We were drawn in by the lure of Beef Wellington, which neither my husband nor I had ever had. A staple of '70s dining, I now know why it has lost its luster. Glad I tried it, but I'm not really a fan of a steak wrapped in an unnecessary puff pastry. This is all about presentation and little about flavor, although the steak itself was OK but a bit bland. In contrast, the tuna tartar appetizer had too MUCH flavor. The crispy shallot topping took away from the delicate flavor of the tuna, and there was more cucumber salad than fish on the plate. The final course, a Nutella brownie, tasted like something I could have made at home, and that's not saying much. We split a good, fairly priced bottle of Malbec ($39), but the meal itself was advertised on the Restaurant Week website as being $40 (reasonable) but was, instead, $50 at the restaurant (not worth it for what we got).
As I said, the service was great, and I was so pleased to see our server, Deontae, promote Restaurant Week rather than keep it on the down low (as some restaurants seem to do). Not sure I will visit Austin's again, but I'm glad they participate in Restaurant Week and hope next year's menu will be more in line with most locals' dining-out budgets.
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