Completely agree about steak.

I've yet to have one that tasted any better than what I can grill myself, and often not even that good.

I think that is part of the reason I don't choose it... I'd much rather use my fine dining opportunities to try something i can't whip-up at home. For the same reasons, I've nver been a big fan of sandwich shops, unless they are really specialized.

Completely agree about steak.

I've yet to have one that tasted any better than what I can grill myself, and often not even that good.

I think that is part of the reason I don't choose it... I'd much rather use my fine dining opportunities to try something i can't whip-up at home. For the same reasons, I've nver been a big fan of sandwich shops, unless they are really specialized.

that's a great point, I can grill a good steak. I will probably F up some of my favorite seafood dishes if I tried so I'll leave it to the pros

I think that is part of the reason I don't choose it... I'd much rather use my fine dining opportunities to try something i can't whip-up at home. For the same reasons, I've nver been a big fan of sandwich shops, unless they are really specialized.

Not much I can't make myself... So for me the decision is based on whether I feel like cooking or not... Sometimes I just feel like being able to set back, relax, and let someone else make, and clean up, the mess.

There are lots and lots of things I could cook but is far too much trouble or I don't have the necessary equipment.

Pizza is a prime example. Unless you have an ultra-hot pizza oven, no way to duplicate it at home.

Also, I'm not going to fry up my own tortillas and I don't have a flour tortilla machine... Or spend all day making several different salsas.

And very difficult to make your own Thai food or decent sushi and things like that.


Steak... You buy it, you cook it. Totally different thing.

I was being a little facetious, but mostly patting myself on the back that I predicted that it would close in a year, exactly one year before it closed.

I only copied one comment, but it was really part of a larger discussion about just how lazy our local businesses are about marketing. We've had this discussion in other threads, but it's almost impossible to know when your favorite local place is open, menu, prices, etc without major digging. I haven't been absolutely everywhere, but I have traveled a lot, and OKC is the one of the only places I've seen where so many local businesses think websites and information control is unnecessary voodoo.

To counter the examples of other steakhouses, Broadway 10 is super visible in one of OKC's most desired districts (not to mention beautiful from street view), The Ranch and Mahogany are a stones throw from the richest burbs in Oklahoma, and both have beautiful websites. Meat Market Refectory also has a gorgeous website. The George had none of that for the first 6 months. Yes, restaurants stay open with repeat business, but you need people to actually feel like trying the place.

Also I get that as a server, a 2-top isn't your favorite, but even large groups probably split tickets into twos, and they're buying product that helps keep a place open. To me, you're basically picking and choosing whose money is and isn't good enough for you.

It's not a big deal, we're both probably right as to why this place closed. On to the next brave soul.

I hate to beat a horse to death, but these are concepts that are important to understand in future discussions about other restaurants.

More importantly than anything, I'm not saying a 2-tops money isn't good enough for me: I'm saying it's icing on the cake, but the cake is plenty good with less icing and sometimes better.

Special-occasion non-recurring diners (in quantities of 4 guests or less) probably make up 35% to 50% of the traffic in this type of restaurant and contribute maybe 15% to 25% of the revenue. For sure a good business does everything they can to get this type of clientele to come in the doors and to get them to come back on the rare occasions they're willing to spend money, but your primary target is to get business owners in your door, and you do that through word of mouth in the business community. David Stanley isn't going to listen to the Sports Animal and say "Well by golly, I've never been to the George…I think I'll reserve a room for my $7,500 upper-management Christmas party". He's going to go to a place he's been to many times before, that he was told about when he was on the golf course with Hal Smith or Larry Mathis. Fred Hall isn't going to walk into the Meat Market Refectory the day it opens and buy $10,000 of gift cards to pass out to his employees for Christmas. But Fred already knows about MMR and will almost certainly try it out a couple times in the next year leading up to the 2016 holidays…and if he likes it, maybe that's when he'll purchase $10,000 of gift cards for his employees.

Those big OKC names are the meat and potatoes (Ha!) of prime steakhouses in OKC…Tons of those big dogs were at the George in the first 3 months, and a lot of them LOVED it. But the restaurant quickly fell apart from lack of execution, and that well of big-time guests and their clout dried right up.

Steak... You buy it, you cook it. Totally different thing.

I must be doing something wrong then because my steaks require more effort than that..... Just getting my hands on a prime steak takes me at a mimimum 30 minutes... Longer if I have to go to Rhett's and if I have to go to Rhett's I'm almost to Mahogany.

I must be doing something wrong then because my steaks require more effort than that..... Just getting my hands on a prime steak takes me at a mimimum 30 minutes... Longer if I have to go to Rhett's and if I have to go to Rhett's I'm almost to Mahogany.

But you get some Rhett's potatoes! Very important!!:)

I know some will be aghast at this comment, but I've never, ever had a great steak.

Every single time I've ordered steak I've left wishing I had tried something else instead.

Have not had the steak at Mahogany, The Ranch or Red Prime though. However, my previous experiences make me inclined to not go to any of these places for red meat. I did not order steak at Red or Broadway 10 due to my prior experiences elsewhere.

I plan to try all eventually and hopefully will have a transcendent experience which will get my back on board with steak.

Do me a favor, find some collaborators (3 to 5 other people) and go to all the steakhouses and do the following:

Bare minimum (steak) comparison: Order at least 1 Ribeye, 1 Strip, and 1 Filet. Order them all MR and have them served family-style then cook them up on the plates (I believe everyone in the metro is serving them on the 400°+ plates). You can sit at the bar and have a drink if you want to do just the steaks.

Full restaurant comparison:

Order an appetizer
Buy 2/3 salads and maybe a soup and preferably split 2 of them and maybe try different dressings on the splits.
In addition to the bare minimum add a Lobster Tail and if enough people an off-menu steak as well. (Like the Dry Aged Ribeye at Ranch or the Bone in Filet/Strip at Mahogany)
Buy 2 or 3 sides
Buy the "most popular dessert".

I think if you tried one of each of the 3 major cuts at each restaurant, you'd probably taste a lot of good steaks and also a few great steaks.

The bare minimum will run around $180 (inclusive of tax and gratuity) divided by however many people. Add in some drinks and it will run $60 - $80 per person per steakhouse. You can do all this sitting at the bar.

^^^And yes, I will happily join you on this trial

But you get some Rhett's potatoes! Very important!!:)

HAHA... Yes.. You make a very valid point there. ;+)

^^^And yes, I will happily join you on this trial

In. Sounds amazing.

Honestly just go to Red and order the 7 oz filet. Any crust and sauce will do, though I love the garlic herb and jalapeno bearnaise. Add in the green chile mac and you've got yourself one of the best dinners in the metro.

The rotating floor is too narrow, loud and breaks down a lot.

The rotating floor is too narrow, loud and breaks down a lot.

I'd assume that if someone decided to bring it back, they'd fix the loudness and breaking-down (nothing could probably be done about the width of it).

Honestly just go to Red and order the 7 oz filet. Any crust and sauce will do, though I love the garlic herb and jalapeno bearnaise. Add in the green chile mac and you've got yourself one of the best dinners in the metro.

I will do this.

Hopefully, it will change my opinion about steak.

I'd assume that if someone decided to bring it back, they'd fix the loudness and breaking-down (nothing could probably be done about the width of it).

Exactly. And "too narrow" is completely subjective, and based on server preference rather than customer preference. It's plenty wide enough for a four top and a server, and PERFECT for two diners (date night) while at the same time taking up very little of the overall real estate and leaving a massive amount of remaining space for larger tables inside the pillars. If an owner didn't want to cede the view to tables of 2-4, a creative space planner could place the interior tables on risers and *presto* EVERYBODY has a view.

I know someone who works on the first floor of this building and recently said to them, "it's a shame that the George closed" and they responded "yeah but the new place is good, too" and I was like, what?

Anybody know anything about that?

I know someone who works on the first floor of this building and recently said to them, "it's a shame that the George closed" and they responded "yeah but the new place is good, too" and I was like, what?

Anybody know anything about that?

There is a deal in the works to make it some type of Hal Smith concept and from what I've heard, the rotating floor will probably be reactivated...supposedly it is still completely functional. As of the last time I heard anything, a deal was not in place yet, so it may have changed since that time.

This person indicated they had eaten there (as a post-George establishment), thus my surprise.

This person indicated they had eaten there (as a post-George establishment), thus my surprise.

Strange...too my knowledge, no deal has been signed and the space was going to require some rearranging before opening.

So, being a cross of curious and nosey, did anyone ever open a new concept at the top of Founders after the George closed up shop?

7 month later and no PR? Highly unlikely.