Bent River Cattle Co & Steak House

[shawnw]

So was Bent River just terrible or is there someplace else that was beating it? Not sure what it competes with...

[Easy180]

Most restaurants don't make it past a year so my take is it was a combination of zero advertising, Hollie's nabbing the Moore folks wanting steak and the tornado

[shawnw]

Ah Hollie's. Have heard good things but haven't tried it.

[Jeepnokc]

We looked at going there earlier this year but the reviews were so bad we chose not to go. Hollies is excellent btw.

[Zuplar]

We looked at going there earlier this year but the reviews were so bad we chose not to go. Hollies is excellent btw.

This is exactly why I never tried it. Hollies is one of my favorite Steak restaurants around.

[Roger S]

So was Bent River just terrible or is there someplace else that was beating it? Not sure what it competes with...

It was getting hammered on Urbanspoon and not just by people with 1 review. I was really hoping it would be something closer to a prime steakhouse but unfortunately it was more in line with all the other southside steak houses.

If you like Hal Smith restaurants you will be good with Hollie's...... Fortunately, for me, both times I have been there the meal was free. I wouldn't pay to go there myself. What they do to a slab of pork ribs should probably be against the law.

[SoonerDave]

It was getting hammered on Urbanspoon and not just by people with 1 review. I was really hoping it would be something closer to a prime steakhouse but unfortunately it was more in line with all the other southside steak houses.

If you like Hal Smith restaurants you will be good with Hollie's...... Fortunately, for me, both times I have been there the meal was free. I wouldn't pay to go there myself. What they do to a slab of pork ribs should probably be against the law.

I drove by the Bent River location yesterday and saw that it was closed, and in all honesty considering its proximity to Hollie's, it isn't surprising that two steakhouses in such close proximity couldn't both survive. Never had a real incentive to go to Flat Iron, and I've heard mixed reviews on Hollie's (so I'm assuming they're heavily leveraging the name), so I haven't really been racing there, either. Trouble is I just don't think of a big steak dinner as as prelude before heading to the movies, but perhaps that's just me. I'm probably in a decided minority here, but I'm just not a huge fan of the Hal Smith restaurants.

[Zuplar]

It was getting hammered on Urbanspoon and not just by people with 1 review. I was really hoping it would be something closer to a prime steakhouse but unfortunately it was more in line with all the other southside steak houses.

If you like Hal Smith restaurants you will be good with Hollie's...... Fortunately, for me, both times I have been there the meal was free. I wouldn't pay to go there myself. What they do to a slab of pork ribs should probably be against the law.

I had to Google Hal Smith cause I had no idea who this is. After seeing the restaurants they own, I'm surprised. About half I really like and the other half are just okay. Still IMO all those restaurants are something I'd considering, but their price points help.

[SoonerDave]

I had to Google Hal Smith cause I had no idea who this is. After seeing the restaurants they own, I'm surprised. About half I really like and the other half are just okay. Still IMO all those restaurants are something I'd considering, but their price points help.

I at one point thought the Hal Smith group had bought out Ted's Cafe Escondido, but I no longer see it listed among their restaurants. My general complaint/observation about their restaurants is that they are heavy on atmosphere, which is and can be very good, but the food is highly variable. As an example, we've visited Charleston's a few times, and noted a really nice atmosphere, but when we weighed the food against the check, we felt it was good, but not great. On the other hand, we've enjoyed Red Rock in our few visits. Overall, though, some of the HS price points are just too high for us. Realize that's a matter of preference/taste, but that's how it is for us.

[Garin]

They owned Ted's at one time and I thought they still did….. Red Rock is one of my favorite Hal Smith restaurants, However the price points are a little much for the food you're getting.

[SoonerDave]

They owned Ted's at one time and I thought they still did….. Red Rock is one of my favorite Hal Smith restaurants, However the price points are a little much for the food you're getting.

Well, with my curiosity piqued, did a little reading and it appears the owner of Ted's originally formed some sort of partnership with the HS group some time ago, but HS has announced plans as recently as the last year to build new Ted's locations (at least in Tulsa, and I suspect its up and running by now). So it may have been that the owner wanted to retain more of the control yet leverage the experience of HS to expand the name. Not sure.

All I can offer is that my wife and I were big fans of Teds while we were dating, and then for a couple of years after we married, but we noticed more or less out of the blue the prices shot up and the quality became very...average. After several subsequent tries, we simply stopped going. It was only after that time I had read of what I at least thought at that time of HS buying out or forming whatever business affiliation arose with Teds - everything made sense, and we've not been regular customers since - even after they built a location close to us. They still succeed, apparently, so to each his or her own, I s'pose.

[Zuplar]

I at one point thought the Hal Smith group had bought out Ted's Cafe Escondido, but I no longer see it listed among their restaurants. My general complaint/observation about their restaurants is that they are heavy on atmosphere, which is and can be very good, but the food is highly variable. As an example, we've visited Charleston's a few times, and noted a really nice atmosphere, but when we weighed the food against the check, we felt it was good, but not great. On the other hand, we've enjoyed Red Rock in our few visits. Overall, though, some of the HS price points are just too high for us. Realize that's a matter of preference/taste, but that's how it is for us.

That makes sense. I have noticed that those restaurants are ones I hear people actually talk about their atmosphere. Sometimes it's a nice change of pace, but I can see how some such as Red Rock and Charlestons are a bit on the higher side. Funny thing is I know part of the reason why I recommend Hollies is because the atmosphere is different than that of say Texas Roadhouse. Sometimes people want a more formal environment than a place that throws peanuts on the ground.

[SoonerDave]

That makes sense. I have noticed that those restaurants are ones I hear people actually talk about their atmosphere. Sometimes it's a nice change of pace, but I can see how some such as Red Rock and Charlestons are a bit on the higher side. Funny thing is I know part of the reason why I recommend Hollies is because the atmosphere is different than that of say Texas Roadhouse. Sometimes people want a more formal environment than a place that throws peanuts on the ground.

I hear ya there. I like Texas Roadhouse, and contend they have as good a dinner salad as you'll find anywhere right now, but would very much like an alternative that isn't quite so...countrified... for lack of a better word. Kinda loud at times. Heck, I used to like the general quiet atmosphere at the old, defunct Steak 'n Ale, lots of compartmentalized dining areas where a couple or small dinner party could have a nice meal, visit, and not feel challenged by the jukebox or screaming birthday songs or just the general noise inherent with an open-floor format.

Now, that's not to say I'm looking for some uber upscale environment like a Mahogany, just something with the general quality of Texas Roadhouse with a fractionally quieter "ambiance," that's all. Red Rock and Charlestons are just a bit on the high side for us to be anything more than a once-in-a-great-while visit.

[Zuplar]

I hear ya there. I like Texas Roadhouse, and contend they have as good a dinner salad as you'll find anywhere right now, but would very much like an alternative that isn't quite so...countrified... for lack of a better word. Kinda loud at times. Heck, I used to like the general quiet atmosphere at the old, defunct Steak 'n Ale, lots of compartmentalized dining areas where a couple or small dinner party could have a nice meal, visit, and not feel challenged by the jukebox or screaming birthday songs or just the general noise inherent with an open-floor format.

Now, that's not to say I'm looking for some uber upscale environment like a Mahogany, just something with the general quality of Texas Roadhouse with a fractionally quieter "ambiance," that's all. Red Rock and Charlestons are just a bit on the high side for us to be anything more than a once-in-a-great-while visit.

I have to say I agree with all points. I think honestly if Roadhouse didn't have good food, which I think they do majority of the time, that I'd hardly ever go there. Like you said it can get pretty loud there and at times it's just as loud as the bar section at BWW. It'd be one thing if there were TV's everywhere and we were watching a game, but for it to just be the dining area it's unfortunate. I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that everyone is packed in there and all the tables and booths are really close.

[SoonerDave]

I have to say I agree with all points. I think honestly if Roadhouse didn't have good food, which I think they do majority of the time, that I'd hardly ever go there. Like you said it can get pretty loud there and at times it's just as loud as the bar section at BWW. It'd be one thing if there were TV's everywhere and we were watching a game, but for it to just be the dining area it's unfortunate. I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that everyone is packed in there and all the tables and booths are really close.

I realize Roadhouse is a chain, which immediately vilifies them in the eyes of some, but for us they do a good job of providing consistently good food, cooked the way we like it, and they generally bend over backwards to fix anything on the rare occasion something isn't quite right. I can't recall ever having, as an example, a waiter or waitress with an attitude, or that was anything less than attentive. They keep the water glasses filled, the hot rolls rolling, and their cooks manage, somehow to get the steaks to the varying degrees of doneness my family likes - ranging from medium to well and in-between. I think for anyone or any family, the duo of quality and consistency tied to a reasonable price will keep people coming back, and that's the case for us. But, like I said, just wish it wasn't quite as noisy. Ah, the latitude to pick nits

[kbsooner]

If the owner of this building/Bent River is out there, Moore/South OKC needs a nicer upscale sports bar/pub to watch games at. This spot could be it. Talking in the mold of Republic...

[Zuplar]

I've heard Twin Peaks is nicer and more upscale than most of the other ones out there. I've never personally been though.

[Garin]

Twin Peakes wanted to build in Moore but the city did not want them because of what they are..... Makes no sense. Dan Mcguiness will be back pretty soon and hopefully they've learned from the last time what to change in the new setting.

[Jersey Boss]

I've heard Twin Peaks is nicer and more upscale than most of the other ones out there. I've never personally been though.

+1 TWIN PEAKS would be a welcome addition. The one on Memorial has good pub food and is not overpriced.

[Zuplar]

Twin Peakes wanted to build in Moore but the city did not want them because of what they are..... Makes no sense. Dan Mcguiness will be back pretty soon and hopefully they've learned from the last time what to change in the new setting.

From what I've heard it's a lot more family friendly then places like Hooters or Emerson Biggens. I get the play on the name, but still from what I've been told they have good food, and all have went back. Actually a 70 year old lady at work talks about that place and we were all surprised she went. She said based on the name and perception it's deceiving, but she said likes the food and goes often. So to me people representing Moore should have gone to one before turning it down.

[mattjank]

Noticed some work trucks in the parking lot this morning. Any idea what's going on?

[SoonerVIC]

Noticed some work trucks in the parking lot this morning. Any idea what's going on?

I was wondering the same thing.

Bump

[yunome12@yahoo.com]

U hit the nail right on the head. We need a NICE sports bar other than BWWs. I enjoy the atmosphere, but the menu is horrible. Would like to see a Tilted Kilt or Twin Peaks. To bad the City of Moore let the old folk run them out of town two yrs ago. Twin Peaks was a done deal until citizens of Moore complained not wanting that type of establishment. Shame on you Moore!

[Roger S]

... To bad the City of Moore let the old folk run them out of town two yrs ago. Twin Peaks was a done deal until citizens of Moore complained not wanting that type of establishment. Shame on you Moore!

Yeah! Shame on me!.... No wait... I didn't complain about them.... Although I would have but for different reasons.

Still some work going on at that building but haven't heard anything about what may be going in there.

Not really a fan of Hideaway Pizza but I think they could make a go of it at that location.

[JesStang]

Yeah! Shame on me!.... No wait... I didn't complain about them.... Although I would have but for different reasons.

Still some work going on at that building but haven't heard anything about what may be going in there.

Not really a fan of Hideaway Pizza but I think they could make a go of it at that location.

I'm not either but a Hideaway would kill in that location! I still want a nice Italian restaurant in Moore. I bet they are charging a pretty penny for it though.