I’ve always enjoyed their steaks but never realized until recently that they don’t use prime beef, only choice. Their exact response was “choice or better”. Not sure what that means since they wont say it’s prime.
It could mean 1 of 2 things IMO:
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They can’t reliably always get prime from their supplier at their contracted price and therefore don’t want to claim such.
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There are some items on the menu that aren’t prime on purpose, so it’s easier to be clear and just claim choice or better to encompass everything.
It does seem odd that a big chain like this would deal in anything other than prime. I’ve always had a good steak there, but since you guys led me to the promised land of Flannery, Heartbrand, and even Costco Prime if picked carefully, I haven’t gone to any steak restaurants. And, I probably wouldn’t order steak there anyway as I’m convinced that between the above sources and my BGE, I can end up with a much better product at home.
Chris
Maybe Capital Grille sources its meat and waitstaff from TGI Friday’s. 
i have had restaurants give me half-assed answers when inquiring about meat grade. Needless to say i don’t go to these restaurants
I think a lot of consumer are generally ignorant about the grading systems for meat in the United States. (Here’s waiting for Bill or Fleming to post a link to the USDA!) For that reason, consumers who go to Outback, Longhorn or Capital Grille really don’t care about wether or not they are getting prime beef. OTOH, if you visit a restaurant you like, specifically an independent, and you find they are not serving prime beef, it may be in your interest to inquire where they are sourcing their meat from. One example may give you pause to reconsider the idea of no longer patronizing the restaurant again.
Painted Hills (http://www.paintedhillsnaturalbeef.com/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;)
These guys make excellent stuff if you have never had it btw. My wife and I made a tenderloin on Christmas day. The cows are all Angus (Angus-type), and come from seven ranchers. At any given time they grade between 80-85 Prime, sometimes above 90% Prime (in fact bonuses are given to ranchers to reach less than 10%). Most of the reason the cows are not considers Prime are because of age, not quality. They are fed an all natural diet (all organic). So while you are getting a Choice steak, it is essentially a Prime steak based on percentages. Often, next to many others’ Prime steaks it has performed better. Just something to think about.
They MAKE it? Really?
I’m headed there tonight…I’ll see what the menu reads.
Yeah, right after the cows lay the eggs, what? ![[new-here.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/4/4f12a4e22d562f86ca4e3d18cc0affcfb2516fa8.gif "[new-here.gif]"){kind=small}
sorry to hear that
Actually fairly good. Best steak ever, no…but still good. (I had the Porterhouse)
On a menu note, nothing is mentioned about grade of meat used. I think that most places would use/say “Prime” if they were actually using prime. There are good cuts of beef out there that are graded “choice” or “choice or better”.
01 Peter Michael Esprit d’Pavots
02 Penfolds Grange
for the wines, BTW.
PM was brought
Grange was off list.
Co-incidentally I had dinner at the Capital Grille in Seattle last night.
Of the steaks discussed by the waiter, only the Chefs Suggestion ‘Delmonico’ was described as ‘Prime Cut’, so I ordered it. In this case the Delmonico was a bone-in rib eye. It was nice and tender as a decent rib eye would tend to be. In terms of flavor, I don’t know - it was bathed in balsamic vinegar so probably a bit of a waste if it really was prime.
The others drinking wine w/ me were eating fish, so we stuck w/ the 05 William-Selyem Sonoma Coast I brought (had no idea where I was having dinner when I left the house yesterday AM - birthday celebration for a co-worker who likes steak).
The restaurant was fine for a chain, I guess. I had a basic Caesar salad, the sides were decent, I passed on dessert. But I rarely go to a steak restaurant, so I tend to want something a little more special. Fond memories of Sparks and Lugars back in NYC in the 90’s.
On a more positive Prime Beef theme, I have two 50 day dry aged, 24 oz Flannery Rib Eyes arriving today. These will be simply grilled and shared w/ my wife and our two guests Thursday.
Should be great as usual, but I have to say the prices are way out of control.
Some restaurants and butcher shops source what is called “Choice Plus.” What that means is they get the top 1/4 of the Choice continuum, and sometimes part of the order spills into the Prime grade. It may be that a meat grader calls some of the steaks prime while another grader may call the same steak choice. (Makes me wonder if the packer has a NFL type challenge flag to throw, and it goes to the review booth for a replay?) Other times the packer uses some prime to fill out the order. Hence, Choice Plus. So I’ve been told.
How was the Painted Hills end product and how did you cook it John?
What Frank said. Also, some of these places (Capital Grille is one of them) will do in-house dry aging that will further enhance the flavor of the final product you’re getting at the table.
They might use the “choice or better” to cover themselves legally because paying for “prime” filet mignon is a waste as it is basically marbling-free. The other cuts of beef could very well be prime.
The dinner was very disappointing. Service was rushed and the meat(my rib-eye) was very fatty. I should have sent it back but didn’t want the hassle.
Prime is supposed to be more marbled than choice, no?
The steak it self was so fatty you couldn’t find the meat to see the marbling.
Classy move by Capital Grille! I had made the reservations through Open Table. After you eat you get a email from Open Table asking you to rate your experience and any additional comments. I just wrote what I posted here, the meal was rushed and the food disappointing. I just received a phone call from the managing partner @ the Capital Grille Stamford. He read my comments and was very upset. He insisted I come back and have dinner on them. He gave me his name and number and said to call him personally when I make the reservation. That’s going far beyond what the needed to do. Bravo!