Buffalo Chophouse

This place is a joke. I'm surprised they didn't charge me to walk in the door. I've been to some of the best restaurants in the country and this place was as pretentious as they come. First of all, the food was ok, but it wasn't as good as it cost. The service was speedy and I felt like they were pushing me out of the restaurant, just to turn the table for some other sucker. That's what I felt like, just another sucker to them, not a customer. Most of the servers were not very good (dropping things, unorganized, and neglectful). My server saw me as a dollar sign, and he didn't seem to care about my experience at all. He was trying to sell me things that I had no interest in buying (only to up the bill, and hopefully, for him, the tip). I understand trying to make money, but there is a certain line you don't cross, NO means NO! They charge for everything you could possibly think of. I understand that a restaurant needs to make a profit, but I've had better food, with an attention to detail, from a hot dog cart on Main St. Nothing comes with any of the entres, except exactly what you ordered (what, no vegetable or anything?). The food presentation was terrible, (chef?) and I'm surprised they didn't charge us to use their silverware. I have no problem with paying a fair price for a meal, when it's worth it (I actually enjoy paying for the experience), but this place has no idea what fine dinning actually is. I saw an inexperienced wait staff and an under managed dive. To top it all off, we were sat next to a bunch of drunken frat boys who were as loud and obnoxious as can be. If I wanted to go to Hooters I would have. This should not be tolerated in a fine dinning establishment. We were better off going to McDonald's. We sat at a table with a pile of dirty dishes behind us and the smell of stale coffee. It's a poor deign for a restaurant, and I will never return to the Buffalo Chop House ever again, and I will be sure to tell everyone that I know that it is a HUGE waste of their time.

Posted 11/07/09 | Report Abuse

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My wife and I were first time visitors to Buffalo and were referred to the Chophouse as the best place to go for steaks. Because of the age of the establishment, we were expecting a retro 50's experience. Actually it was more like late 19th Century one that would have appealed to Diamond Jim Brady. My wife and I prefer to share entrees. We would not be able to take home leftovers, since we were out of towners. Since they charge $15 to share an entree plate, we decided to have a large seafood appetizer for two. The menu stated that a single appetizer would be treated as an entree and $10 charge would be added. The food was great, but our total dining experience was shattered when we got the bill and $10 had been added anyway. We complained to the waiter but no adjustment would be made. This is deceptive a business practice that will ultimately bankrupt this establishment. There were not a lot of people there on the weekend night we went. It is unfortunate that a restaurant that has decent food, service and environment can still manage to alienate its clientele.

Posted 05/21/09 | Report Abuse

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I made reservations for 8:00Pm on a Saturday night. I called the day before to verify my reservation, as this was my first time dining at the Buffalo Chophouse. The hostess advised us at the door that it would be a few minutes and to grab a drink at the bar. My GF and I proceeded to order drinks at the bar from a very snooty older blond woman. We sat at the bar for about 30 minutes and still no word on our table. We then decided to order another round of drinks and contributed the delay to a busy night. A friend of mine and his GF walked in and had reservations for 8:30 and proceeded to be seated. My GF approached the hostess at 8:45 and asked when were going to be seated. The hostess proceeded to tell my GF that our reservations were canceled and it would be a few more minutes. Now I am a little irritated at this point. If there was an error why wasn't it addressed when we first arrived?
I can't really say anything bad about the food. I ordered the 14oz filet which was great and my GF ordered the lobster tail which she loved. We also ordered salads, crab cakes, and a twice baked potato. Everything was made to perfection.
The seating arrangement was a little crowded for my likings. I also thought that it took forever to get our food between dishes. We were seated at about 9:00PM and didn't get out until about 11:10PM.

Posted 02/16/09 | Report Abuse

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I dunno about some of the other reviews, maybe we just got lucky. I think if you go in here expecting a neighborhood steak house, you'll be disappointed. If you go in here expecting something similar to The Capital Grille, Smith and Wollensky, or The Palm, you'll be very very happy. Don't be fooled, it's very pricey, however the smallest cut of meat they have is 10 oz, and that's a filet. It goes up from there. Yes, the ribeye costs $44, but it's 2 pounds of meat. If you can eat it in one sitting, then good for you, but for most people, it's two meals, and $22 for 1 pound of ribeye in a restaurant is not terrible. I don't know about the "no bread" guy, the bread was certainly free, and quite good, and came with both butter and a plate of pepperoncini and olives. There is an entire page of the wine list devoted to wine by the glass, and it was very reasonably priced. The side dishes are family style, and can easily be split between 2 or 3 people. The Chateaubriand (for two people) is amazing, and comes with wild mushrooms on the side. By far the best side dish is the creamed corn. If you think you know what creamed corn tastes like, you don't. You'd swear you were eating this straight off the cob, but it's delicious and creamy. The appetizers were good, the fried calamari, which apparently recently underwent a recipe change, was delicious. No room for dessert, but the coffee was good, and they were very attentive with refills. The leftovers will make another delicious dinner tomorrow.

Dinner for 3 people with appetizers, wine, entrees, and 3 sides was just about $200, and the service was very prompt, although the restaurant was only about 70% full.

Posted 06/07/08 | Report Abuse

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Don't get me wrong, the food was good. But, the steak was only marginally better than I had at a chain like Outback Steakhouse and I paid three times the amount that I would have paid at the Outback. The meal was a la carte, no salad, no bread, no side, just steak for the hefty price. It was good food, but I will never go there again.

Posted 02/08/08 | Report Abuse

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In the past I was always pleased with the finest service and great steak at the Chophouse. Tonight I have to say it fell far short of my expectations. My date and I had the usual Chophouse fare. Our tab came to a little under $200 - nothing crazy. My server was pleasant enough however his training left much to be desired. He seemed to have his attention monopolized by the loud, drunk four top next to us. At one point he left our table in the middle of our order to joke around the table next to us. My date and I felt ignored. I had to ask for the dessert menu, and we had to stare at his butt (although beautiful) many times during the evening while he dealt with the drunks. He does not know how to serve open (although his assistants did), nor did he offer to get our car when he brought the check. The food was good, and no one does steak better than the Chophouse; however this server has made me cross the Chophouse off my list for good. Has the clientele really become a bunch of drunk old people while I wasn't looking? Thursday night and no one but badly dressed drunk 50 year olds. I'll have to stick with the more hip crowd at Left Bank or Fiamma.

Posted 02/01/08 | Report Abuse

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Visited the Chophouse about a year ago, waited for over 15 minutes for our waiter as he polished silver at an empty nearby table. Entrees were less than satisfactory. Brought to managers attention and did not receive so much as an apology for poor service, oh well we just won't go there again.

Fast forward to May 07, son graduates from college - wants to go to the Chophouse for a celebratory dinner - against our better judgement we agree and make reservations for 16.

We waited for over 45 minutes for our first drink order, mgr could not understand why we would expect to receive them sooner. Waited another 30 minutes for our appetizers that were presented in the most unappealing manner I have ever witnessed.

Another hour later, and trips to the bar on another floor to get our own drinks, our cold food starts to arrive.

Four hours and close to $2500 later the evening came to a close. I must say, by far the worst dining experience we have ever had, from NYC to San Francisco. The absolute worst service, attention to detail, entrees and most importantly customer service whether its a party of 2 or 16, this place can't get it right.

The fact the restaurant was at barely half capacity on a Saturday night, in the middle of graduation and prom season should have been warning enough.

Posted 06/06/07 | Report Abuse

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Buffalo Chophouse has the best steak in Buffalo. Located on Franklin Street, parking might be a challenge. The ambiance of the place is excellent, for a date or just for a business meeting. This is one of the more upscale restaurants in Buffalo. Dont take my word for it, try it out. The steak would run you about $40-$50 dollars though, and may I suggest medium rare??

PROS: Best Steak in Town
CONS: Price

Posted 06/14/06 | Report Abuse

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