The Peddler Steakhouse Filet Mignon - Gatlinburg

When in Gatlinburg, you must make time to eat at the The Peddler Steakhouse. Yes, it is always crowded, but the wait is worth it.

Tip #1: To avoid a potential long wait period, simply go into the bar / lounge area and take an open table. Usually there is a table or two open. From there, simply place your dinner order when the waitress comes by.

We took the lounge option and and found a table upstairs. The view is nice, overlooking a small river running beside and under the restaurant.

Peddler Salad Bar

As on cue, the waitress asked if we were here for dinner or just drinks. We choose option dinner and drinks. After we ordered, we headed downstairs to the salad bar. And when I say salad bar, I mean amazing salad bar. As you can see by the pictures, I had of course lettuce as a base, several types of cheese, carrots, celery, hard boiled egg halves, green olives, real chopped bacon, (Not the cheap fake bacon bits from other salad bars) and about another half dozen items piled high on my salad plate. The salad was tremendous.

Peddler Filet Mignon

As if on cue, as soon as we finished our salads, our steaks were delivered. I order the Filet Mignon well done and butterflied and a baked potato. The steak was cooked perfectly and it tasted fantastic. No doubt the best steak in Gatlinburg, Tennessee. The baked potato was well cooked and smothered with butter which was perfect.

Peddler Cherry Cheesecake

For dessert, we shared a piece of cheesecake covered with strawberries. It was the perfect topper for a splendid meal.

The Grassy Knoll Institute scores 5 out of 5 shots and recommends The Peddler Steakhouse for dinner.

Back To Blue Plate Special Archives

LURKING ON THE GRASSY KNOLL

Caffe Capri - Filet Mignon

Caffe Capri, an Italian style restaurant is located in Boardman, Ohio. Patty and I have tried Caffe Capri several times before and found the restaurant and food very good. We were seated right away and our waitress came and took our drink orders.

We ordered appetizers as well. We went with the fried mozzarella cheese with spaghetti sauce. The breading was perfect, just enough crunch to keep the hot melted cheese manageable.

Bread was brought to the table. It was fresh, warm, and tasted fantastic.

The salad was standard fare but with the added grated cheese it was good.

I ordered the filet mignon, and it was very tender, zero fat, and a generous enough portion. The taste was good, it was juicy, and cooked just right. The filet came with a side of pasta. I chooose penne pasta. It was very well cooked, zesty sauce, and complimented the filet. The cost was around $30 dollars for the meal without tip which is adequate here in town.

Caffe Capri - Filet Mignon

The Grassy Knoll Institute scores 4.25 out of 5 shots and recommends Caffe Capri for dinner.

Back To Blue Plate Special Archives

LURKING ON THE GRASSY KNOLL

Longhorn Steakhouse - Filet Mignon

Longhorn Steakhouse

 The city of Youngstown has plenty of restaurants to choose from with many good steak houses. Longhorn Steakhouse in Boardman, Ohio was our selection for dinner tonight. We were seated quickly and our waitress came over to take our drink orders. A few minutes later she took our dinner orders

Salad

Our salads were delivered to our table. The salad was standard fare. It was fresh, had adequate lettuce and tomatoes, crunchy croutons, and several assorted other greens. The good thing about the salad was that it was fresh. That goes a long way.

Longhorn Rolls

The rolls were delivered at the same time as the salads. The rolls were warm, fresh, and appeared to be home made. They tasted very good as the butter melted right into the dough.

Loaded Potato Soup

One of my favorite types of soup is potato soup. Longhorns version of potato soup had of course chunks of potatoes in a creamy sauce. A sprinkling of bacon bits, shredded cheese, and some chives. The soup was very good, not the best, but very good.

Filet Mignon

Of course, when you are in a steakhouse, you order the steak. I selected the Filet Mignon and loaded baked potato. I asked for medium well done and to butterfly the steak. In less than 15 minutes, my filet was delivered to our table. It was cooked perfectly. BTW, this is the 9 ounce filet, and it was juicy and tender and bursting with flavor. There was not one iota of fat on this steak. It ranks up in the top 5% of filets.

The baked potato was well cooked. I hate when the potato is only halfway cooked and hard in the center. This one was hot and flavorful, with plenty of butter, melted cheese, and enough bacon covering the top to compliment the entire taste of the potato.

Strawberry Cheesecake

Feeling saucy, I went for dessert. I was full from all the food but the cheese cake looked intriguing. I ordered a slice. I wanted cherry cheese cake but alas, they did not have that on the menu. The closest they could get was strawberry sauce. The dessert capped off an almost perfect dinner. The cost of the dinner was right around $30 dollars not including tip but including dessert.

Also a plus was that Longhorn offers Coke Zero. I see more and more restaurants are offering this most excellent diet soft drink. Zero calories but all the Coca-Cola taste.

The Grassy Knoll Diner scores 4.5 out of 5 shots and recommends Longhorn Steakhouse for dinner.

Back To Blue Plate Special Archives

LURKING ON THE GRASSY KNOLL

Japonais Restaurant - Mirage Hotel Las Vegas

Japonais Filet

The Mirage Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas has several outstanding restaurants and Japonais ranks as one of the best. As most of you are aware, I am not a friend of oriental cuisine so when I walked into Japonais, I had the feeling that I may not enjoy the evening. I was wrong!

The seating was not traditional, simply small tables low to the floor with bench seats and low lighting. As expected, the restaurant had a Japanese theme. (Hence the name) But that isn't what's important.
As you can see, I ordered filet mignon with creamy potatoes. It was served on a square low brim hot clay plate. The filet was around $40.00 without tip. A coke was added to complete my meal.

Surprisingly, the fillet was very flavorful, tender, juicy, and excellent. I was a little skeptical about the potatoes as well but they were very good. Instead of mashed, they were puree style with grilled asparagus.
The Grassy Knoll Diner awards 4 shots out of 5 and recommends Japonais restaurant for dinner. Minor deductions for a minor mishap with our waitress and the cost being just a tad to pricey.

Back To Blue Plate Special Archives

LURKING ON THE GRASSY KNOLL

Peddler Steakhouse - Filet Mignon

Peddler Salad

The Peddler Steakhouse has a reputation as being the best steakhouse in the Gatlinburg Smoky Mountains. We are all about to put that reputation to the test.

Yes, the Peddler has already been critiqued, but the steak was so good last time, it would merit a second visit. As usual, the Peddler was packed, all the tables occupied and about 100 people waiting to get a table. Knowing the little secret to secure a table we moved to the cocktail area overlooking the scenic stream. (You see, there is usually an hour to two hour wait for a table down stairs but if you go to the cock tail area, there are tables scattered about and you can order dinner and sit there.)

Our waitress came over and asked us what we wanted to drink. I went with the diet Coke and said we would also like to order dinner as well. (In like Flint) I began with the salad, one you make yourself from the salad bar down stairs. Notice the huge chunks of ham and hard boiled egg halves plus real bacon, not those cheap baco bits. The salad is a meal in itself. There were dozens of choices to select from. No two salads are the same.

Peddler Filet

The Gatlinburg Peddler is famous for steak, so of course I ordered the filet mignon and a baked potato. For the restaurant being so crowded, the service was quite peppy. In less than 20 minutes our steaks were delivered to our table plus another round of diet Cokes. Of course the filet was prepared perfectly. The taste was exquisite, yes, I said exquisite. Zero fat and juicy and tender and bursting with flavor. One of the best steaks I have ever had.

The only setback for the Peddler is it's own popularity. No matter when you go, no matter what day, you will always wait. Always. A one hour wait time is the average to get a seat.

The cost for the dinner is around $45.00 without tip but you get a fabulous salad, great steak, big ass baked potato, hot fresh rolls with butter, and the soft drink, (Coke) of your choice.

Yes, the Gatlinburg Peddler Steakhouse reputation does exceed expectations. With that, The Grassy Knoll Diner awards 4.75 out of 5 shots to the Peddler and recommends the steak house for dinner.

Back To Blue Plate Special Archives

LURKING ON THE GRASSY KNOLL

1. 
   

   Chica said

   January 23, 2008 at 12:05 am e
   It’s taking a day or more to recieve your alerts in my email for your posts. :/ Shame on you for posting such delicious food, I’m fighting not to gnaw at my monitor..LOL
   Reply
2. 
   

   LOTGK said

   January 23, 2008 at 8:52 am e
   Do you mean the Yahoo alerts? if so, there is no problem. I just don’t update it as I should.
   However, if you subscribe to the feed…
   http://lotgk.wordpress.com/feed/
   Either through Feedburner or Google reader, you will receive updates as they happen.
   Reply
3. 
   

   Chica said

   January 23, 2008 at 10:26 am e
   WEll I have since done that, because I did finally realize it was slow. 
   Reply
4. 
   

   LOTGK said

   January 23, 2008 at 10:31 am e
   Thank you.
   Reply
5. 
   

   Kathy said

   January 23, 2008 at 1:22 pm e
   The salad is an entire meal in itself. Looks yummy.
   Reply
6. 
   

   Lead Scientist said

   January 24, 2008 at 6:21 am e
   and its only a 5 minute walk away.
   Reply
7. 
   

   LOTGK said

   January 24, 2008 at 8:31 am e
   Everything in Gatlinburg is a five minute walk away.
   Reply
8. 
   

   Paul said

   December 25, 2008 at 7:16 pm e
   Metal plate looks good.
   I am Paul.
   I love steaks and steakhouses around the world!
   Reply
9. 
   

Stack Restaurant - Filet Mignon

How Did They Arrive At This Name

At least I know where this restaurant got it's name from. The waitresses and hostesses were all gorgeous women and of course, all were stacked in the breast department. Pamela Anderson size stacked. Hence the name. Stack!

Tomato Soup And Grilled Cheese

We had reservations and we were seated right on time. Menu's were brought out and drinks were ordered. (Lemon water for me)
I started out with tomato soup and a grilled cheese sandwich. I love tomato soup and it did not disappoint. The soup was hot and thick and very tasty. So was the grilled cheese sandwich. Crunchy but not burnt.

A perfect Filet Mignon

The main course was of course filet Mignon and a twice baked potato. The filet was cooked perfectly, medium well done. The portion was generous, the taste, very good. Not a sliver of fat. All grade A choice filet.

The twice baked potato was a huge portion. In fact, it was two large potatoes. I only ate one but it was very good.

The cost was pricey, coming in at around $60 plus tip. (Apparently the price of breast implants has risen)

The total experience was pleasant, service and food excellent allowing the Grassy Knoll Diner to award 4 out of 5 shots to Stack and recommends Stack for dinner while in Las Vegas.

Back To Blue Plate Special Archives

LURKING ON THE GRASSY KNOLL

1. 
   

   Gumby said

   May 19, 2008 at 9:45 am e
   So where are the pictures of the stacked blonde waitresses?
   Reply
2. 
   

   Aintgotno said

   May 19, 2008 at 4:16 pm e
   only in america … 
   Reply
3. 
   

   LOTGK said

   May 19, 2008 at 5:55 pm e
   God bless America.
   Reply
4. 
   

   Chica said

   May 19, 2008 at 11:35 pm e
   Haha I could spend 60 bucks feeding my family for two weeks. The waitresses must have been worth it.
   Reply
5. 
   

   LOTGK said

   May 19, 2008 at 11:53 pm e
   Gumby, I have a few snaps of the waitresses. Seriously, they looked like Pam Anderson clones.
   Blue, Las Vegas should be a country all it’s own.
   Chica, they were.
   Reply
6. 
   

   Fish-On-A-Wall said

   May 20, 2008 at 10:57 pm e
   Should be called Stacked.
   Reply
7. 
   

   Ben said

   May 21, 2008 at 11:08 pm e
   First Hooters now Stack, I am waiting for a restaurant called “Hung”…I wonder if they’d serve vietnamese cuisine.
   Reply
8. 
   

   Dexterp said

   May 24, 2008 at 8:02 pm e
   sound like fun
   Reply
9. 
   

Gibsons Steakhouse - Chicago - Filet Mignon

Gibsons Steakhouse

If you ever find yourself in Rosemont, Illinois, does yourself a favor and head on over to Gibson’s Bar And Steak House for dinner. It’s just across the street from the Donald E. Stephens convention center.

If you get there before 6pm, you should be able to find a table. After 6, expect a long wait as the restaurant. We have been here several times before over the years. We made it before six and our hostess seated us and our waiter was over in a few minutes to take our drink and dinner order.

I ordered the Filet Mignon, (Here is a tip for you diners out there: If the restaurant has “Steak” in its name, you order the steak for your meal) The price of my entre was $33.00 plus a diet soda.

The Filet was a solid 8 ounce size, cooked to my specifications, and they nailed it. It was full of flavor, tender, juicy, and cut like butter.

Roll And Butter

Don’t worry, I didn’t forget about the rolls and bread that came with the Filet. The steak was just that good. The bread was also very good, a pretzel style bread roll that when topped with butter, was very tasty indeed.

Hash Browns

Instead of the atomic size baked potato that is a popular side dish option, I went off the grid and selected the house home style potatoes, or hash browns as many people know them by. The portion was generous, the potatoes hot and well cooked, and was a good variation from the standard baked potato.

What you see here was $36.00 before tip. When you look at the 8 ounce Filet, the rolls, and the hash browns, the price was in line. Add top shelf service, a clean restaurant, and you have a fantastic experience and meal.

The Grassy Knoll Institute scores 4.25 out of 5 shots and recommends Gibsons Bar and steak house in Rosemont for dinner.

Back To Blue Plate Special Archives

LURKING ON THE GRASSY KNOLL

Texas Roadhouse Restaurant - Filet Mignon

Texas Roadhouse Of Gatlinburg

The Texas Roashouse Restaurant, located on the Parkway in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, is famous for its steaks and BBQ ribs. It was packed with about 75 people waiting outside for a table. It took about an hour before our beeper activated signaling our table was ready. The waitress took us to our table, took our drink orders and returned quickly and promptly took our dinner orders.

Texas Roadhouse Dinner Rolls

I have been to the Texas Roadhouse before and I remembered the rolls. Our waitress brought them to our table as we were being seated. They were hot, fresh, very good tasting especially with the cinnamon butter that came with the rolls. Clearly, Texas roadhouse knows how to do rolls.

Texas Roadhouse Filet

I went with the advice of our waitress and went with the Filet Mignon with a loaded baked potato and steak fries. (You get two sides) After eating about 25-30 shelled peanuts supplied to our table, (There are two tin buckets on every table, one empty, one full of shelled peanuts) our dinners arrived.

As you can see, the steak looked delicious and the loaded potato and steak fries were generous. The waitress asked me to check my steak to see if it was cooked to order. I ordered it well done, and informed her that they could butterfly the filet if necessary. (Butterfly steak, cutting the filet in half making it easier to cook thoroughly through without burning the outer steak) It was not to my order. It was almost bloody red and I asked her to please return it and butterfly the steak and cook it to well done.

About ten minutes later our waitress returned with the filet looking exactly the same. It was not butterflied. I could see that the steak was not cooked more as the red blood was now oozing out onto the plate all over the steak fries. I sent it back once again asking that it be cooked to well done. Once again, it was returned and I could tell that the chef did not cook my filet further. In fact, it was now cold. So was the potato and fries.

At that point, I refused the steak and asked to speak to the chef. I was denied. The waitress said they were to busy and the chef was very busy and behind in his cooking. That explained everything right there. The chef never attempted to recook my steak and figured that I would accept what was served to me. I did not!

Since everyone was already finished with their dinners, I completely rejected my steak and stated I would not be paying for it. The manager agreed after coming over to my table and inspecting the steak. He apologized several times and offered any other entree for free. I declined and we left.

The Grassy Knoll Diner scores 0 out of 5 shots and DOES NOT recommend Texas Roadhouse restaurant Filet Mignon  for dinner.

Back To Blue Plate Special Archives

LURKING ON THE GRASSY KNOLL

1. 
   

   Gumby said

   May 2, 2010 at 7:44 pm e
   I thought this was going to work out well. The steak did look damn good. Will you ever go back and chance it again?
   Reply
   • 
     

     LOTGK said

     May 2, 2010 at 10:56 pm e
     I will return, and in fact have already done so. However, I did not order the Filet again. You will in my later updates my experience at the Texas Roadhouse.
     Reply
2. 
   

   FreakSmack said

   May 2, 2010 at 10:56 pm e
   The least they could have done was send you on your way with a couple pails of peanuts and rolls. I’m not going to lie I go to a place with good rolls for the rolls, I only order a meal because they frown upon you sitting there and only eating the rolls.
   I like the choice of the double potatoes, I like to rock the double mashed at Chili’s.
   Reply
   • 
     

     LOTGK said

     May 2, 2010 at 11:25 pm e
     Double potato, I’m Irish, I had no choice. 
     And yea, they did attempt to satisfy me with a free any thing dinner, but everyone was already finished, and with it being busy, it would have been another half hour, and nobody wanted that.
     Reply
3. 
   

   Elecpencil said

   May 2, 2010 at 11:31 pm e
   Good for you for refusing the steak. I also hate bloody steak and want it well done. I never order prime rib as it is always bloody. I once saw a woman send the bloodiest steak I have ever seen back at Brown Derby. She told the waiter,”I said, rare not well done.” I think it was Mrs. Dracula.
   Reply
   • 
     

     LOTGK said

     May 2, 2010 at 11:47 pm e
     She would have loved the Texas Roadhouse steak. 
     Reply
4. 
   

   Ska2682 said

   May 2, 2010 at 11:42 pm e
   The only way to eat a steak is Medium-Rare. I little blood is good for the soul. “Meat tastes like murder, and murder is delicious!”-Denis Leary
   Reply
   • 
     

     LOTGK said

     May 2, 2010 at 11:55 pm e
     I would have accepted medium rare. However, this steak was very rare, blood was oozing out after I cut into it. It was not how I ordered it.
     Reply
5. 
   

   Delong said

   May 3, 2010 at 8:17 am e
   Your crazy. I’ve been eating at Gia’s pizza for years and its always been good service and good food.
   Reply
   • 
     

     LOTGK said

     May 3, 2010 at 10:12 am e
     Methinks you posted in the wrong Blue Plate Special category.
     But, Gia’s in Boardman, Ohio has not been open for years, I believe it has been open just under one year, so if there are more of these restaurants, God help us all.
     Reply
6. 
   

   Max Jackl said

   May 3, 2010 at 1:29 pm e
   I’ve been to the Roadhouse. They do have great rolls. My dinner was good, I got the ribs, they were fantastic. I’d rate them a good.
   Reply
   • 
     

     LOTGK said

     May 4, 2010 at 11:57 pm e
     The ribs are coming up max. I returned to the Roadhouse for other times I had good results. The filet was the only unworthy dinner I had there.
     Reply
7. 
   

   Ahrcanum said

   May 3, 2010 at 6:26 pm e
   Hope u r lurking way far from the Tennessee floods! Have a good show, and a better meal and the next stop. Damn- it looked so good too. How was the salad?
   Reply
   • 
     

     LOTGK said

     May 4, 2010 at 11:58 pm e
     Yes, far from the floods. And the salad, it was good, I like the eggs and celery they add. I only use pepper, no dressing.
     Reply
8. 
   

   The River Yeti said

   May 5, 2010 at 7:14 pm e
   At our Texas Roadhouse (in FL) you throw the peanut shells on the floor….Booya.
   Reply
   • 
     

     LOTGK said

     May 5, 2010 at 9:56 pm e
     Yes, the one in Gatlinburg used to be that way. I guess it wasn’t sanitary and they give you an empty bucket now.
     Reply
9. 
   

   Moominboy said

   May 13, 2010 at 2:22 pm e
   Oh I would have grabbed it. I love my steaks rare, in fact I wouldn’t mind if it was still moving ;P The whole plate looks mouth-watering. But it’s bad style to insult the customers intelligence (or at least their perception).
   Reply
   • 
     

     LOTGK said

     May 16, 2010 at 1:32 am e
     Yes, you would have loved this steak then.
     The sad part is, its a great restaurant, I have eaten there plenty. I just won’t recommend the steak.
     Reply
10. 
    

    Tushar Bhatti said

    August 31, 2012 at 7:56 am e
    Hello would you mind stating which blog platform you’re working with? I’m planning to start my own blog soon but I’m having a tough time making a decision between BlogEngine/Wordpress/B2evolution and Drupal. The reason I ask is because your design seems different then most blogs and I’m looking for something unique.
    P.S Sorry for being off-topic but I had
    to ask!
    Reply
    • 
      

      LOTGK said

      September 10, 2012 at 8:19 am e
      I am using WordPress.com
      A modified version.
      Reply