Charley's Steakhouse

03/02/09

Really good food, not so great service at a price..

by scruggsharbor at Citysearch

We had reservations at 6 p.m. on Sunday and were seated immediately. Our waiter was prompt and friendly,suggesting drinks to start with. He made a suggestion of a house special appetizer we did not see on the menu. After he described it we decideed to order it and enjoy a beverage. This was a huge mistake. When the bill came this appetizer was $66.95!! Ridiculous and nothing special. We wondered why he did not mention the price of this plate. We had much of his attention until the room began to fill with a few more customers. Once our food arrived we did not see him. I must say 4 out of 5 dishes were amazing in taste, presentation and how well they were cooked. My "Kansas" steak was a disappointment in that after I removed the thick layer of fat it was cooked rare and not medium like I ordered. By the time our waiter came to the table the rest of our party was almost done eating. I asked him to remove my steak. The (female) manager came to see about our meal and offered to"re-do" my steak but I declined. She put it in a to-go box. The $30 steak appeared on our bill prompting me again to ask him to remove it. He did so. I did not appreciate having to ask twice. All in all the food was over priced but good and memorable. We have been to Charley's 7-8 times and the service has always been a little questionable and at times unreliable but the food is almost always really, really good. We headed to the bar for an after dinner drink and took the suggestion of the very friendly bartender to order the flavor-infused martini's. Our surprise came when the bill for 3 simple martini's came to $45, not worth it, ever. Another disappointment. For some odd reason we had a good time while regretting the money we spent at Charley's. We may go back but not for a long while.

• Pros: Ambiance, food, wine list
• Cons: value

11/23/09

Not worth the price

by waternwind at Citysearch

I have eaten here about a dozen times over the years - Charley's has a reputation for great steaks. This is well deserved as I have never had a bad meal here. However for what should be a 5star restaurant - it has a more casual dress code and the service equates to more of what you would find at Chillis or Applebees. Still the prices for a restaurant with no view seem kinda high to me.

If I am going to spend 100.00 for 2 people - I am going to pick a waterfront restaurant with a nice view. Better place for a business lunch with a client.

• Pros: Food always good
• Cons: Service marginal - Overpriced

11/09/09

Best steak ever

by CSMobileUser2 at Citysearch

I love a good steak...this was by far the best I have had.could not disagree with the negative reviews more. It is pricey but so worth it.

11/07/09

Won't go back

by Catcamx3 at Citysearch

We were seated by the windows out front. The area smelled musty and dirty. The bathrooms were dirty. The room was very loud. Most of the patrons were dressed ultra casual and made me feel like I was a pub, rather than a "top of the line" steakhouse. Jeans and t-shirts! Waiter was friendly, but not personable. Not very attentive.

Although the appetizer was good (new crab cakes w/mango salsa) everything else was a dissapointment, as far as I was concerned. (I guess the bread was good.) Salad was so-so. My filet had fat and grizzle on one entire side. The smoke flavor was overwhelming. Even the asparagus was smoked. Yuck. Desserts were average at best.

To top it off, the bill was $100 more than our estimation. Dinner for four (three ordered the "special" - one ordered a steak w/no sides) three iced-teas and two appetizers came to $250. A bit much for no alcohol. I won't go back.

• Pros: crab cake appetizer
• Cons: everything else

10/05/09

Aint worth it

by Wes351 at Citysearch

We asked the watress to have out steaks cooded well done. She states ok. They were all bloody when we got them... Please, don't waste you money. go somewhere else. we paid 178.00 with tip.

• Pros: Potato was yumm
• Cons: Steaks were not good, way under cooked

03/03/09

Ruth's Chris!

by CSMobileUser at Citysearch

If your looking for great steaks don't go here. Overpriced. Ruth's Chris is a little more expensive yet a whole lot better.

10/14/08

Overpriced Mediocrity

by TampaInsider at Citysearch

An absolute rip-off. We live in Tampa, and have enjoyed Berns steakhouse a number of times and came to Charleys just on a whim to compare. We were a party of four and were offered a "appetizer sampling platter," which turned out to be over $110! The salads that came with the steaks were nothing but iceberg lettuce and some sauce. The service was good at 6pm, but declined into misery after the poor girl got swamped after 7. $500 for four people (wine not included) + mediocre meal = DO NOT GO HERE!

• Pros: None
• Cons: Overpriced, average steaks, poor salads, poor service.

05/20/08

best local pick up spot

by robberken at Citysearch

we were there last might and last week. i am playing tour guide of tampa to 2 of my friends from reno. they are gone now but said they had "researched" tampa hot spots and mentioned this site, so i had to see for my self. they liked charleys best so i have to give them props from reno. i have a 5 year history and i must say that sometimes i find a new favorite hangout but it seems i gravitate back to charleys when i really want to hang it all on the line. i always meet cool people and cant help but smile when i leave. the food is as it always was and the service is very cool (relaxed) but very solid. i like it because no matter what i'm doing i can always break off and show up and charleys.

05/01/08

better than ever

by estemper at Citysearch

we were there last night and i heard a table say they were going to post a review on citysearch. we only caught the last half of their troubles but i just have to say they were not there to have a good time. i always have fun and a great steak so i was just curious what she was going to say. i don't see her post so if she does, let me say her party was apparently comparing everything to other restaurants. when i want french/vietnamese, i go to restaurant bt. when i want italian, i go to donatello's. my point is, she wanted charleys to be what it is not and was blind to what they do great. she wanted a kids menu. charleys is not kid friendly. she wanted a quiet table even though she reserved a table in the bar lounge; charleys bar is loud. i guess i had a great time because i know what to expect and i come when i want to have a charleys night out. i wanted to say something to her but decided she would tell us all about how she was disappointed. when i read the reviews from years past on this board it seems to be a recurring theme. those who go to have a good time and a great meal, everything is great. when someone shows up expecting morton's steakhouse or some other experience then they have a hissy fit. one comment was "don't believe the hype". how can you not believe the hype when you are surrounded by happy people?

now that's out of the way. last night i had a nice glass of wine and the monster app for 5 people, shared of course. later my friend ordered some south american red wine that was crazy good and we all had shots at the bar after dinner. that's what i call a charleys night out. and for the gal who was not a happy camper, well she is invited to join us next time we go.

03/31/08

Worst Steakhouse in Tampa

by jed525 at Citysearch

I came to the restaurant with a party of eight and not a one of us was impressed. I had started with the beefsteak tomato salad, which was far from pleasurable. The tomatoes were not even close to being ripe. The filet I order medium rare came out charred on the outside and closer to medium well then even medium. Another guest ordered their filet with a bufferfly cut, medium and the oscar topping. The oscar topping was the only thing done right. A few of the guest had ordered sodas to drink but the soda machine broke down around mid-point through the meals. These individuals switched to water but were still charged for the sodas. We all agreed we have had better meals at Outback for a third the price. If you are going to spend this amount of money - I recommend Shula's, Ruth's Crist, or Fleming's. These are all far superior to Charlie's.

• Pros: The ambience is the only thing this restaurant has
• Cons: Value, Food, Service