Anyway, today I had the pleasure, or so I hoped, of dining at Outback Steakhouse in the lovely city of Commerce, GA. My brother Ben and his wife Rose, along with loyal Canon Review reader Dickson S., had been to this particular Outback on more than one occasion, and each of them have had rave reviews about this place. Well, I had never been to this particular Outback, or any Outback Steakhouse for that matter, so when they asked me to join them today, I accepted just to see what all of the fuss was about. Also, I had nothing else going on today.
We get there at about 6:00 or so, and the first thing I notice is that the location is kind of hidden in the back of a shopping center. I wasn't that surprised because there's only so much space in Commerce, and by the time this Outback was built most of the more desirable locations were already taken. I don't think it's had an effect on its business, as the restaurant was gradually filling up throughout our stay there, I just found it somewhat curious is all. When we got there, there were only a couple of tables filled, which isn't surprising considering it's 6 p.m. on a Monday. Heck, I actually prefer eating somewhat early at any restaurant just for that reason, so you miss the crowds and nothing is out of stock by that point. We get seated at a booth and wait a couple of minutes for our server to appear. The interior of the restaurant is rather dark, and there are some typical Australian artifacts like a boomerang on the walls. Also, there were at least three big screen televisions, and each one was tuned into a different channel for some reason. I guess because there was nothing special on at the time. After perusing the menu, which was about seven pages, for a few minutes, I decide to be different from the rest of my compatriots and not get a steak, even though I like steak and the name of the restaurant contains the word "steak" in its title. Instead, I go with one of the featured items on the menu, the BBQ Mixed Grill which came with three coconut shrimp, barbecue chicken, and some baby-back ribs. The dish also came with a side of fries and some coleslaw, which I'm not crazy about but I figured I would try anyway. My dining companions got three different cuts of steak, Rose ordered the Victoria Filet's with blue cheese and an add-on order of grilled shrimp, Dickson got the Teriyaki Marinated Sirloin dish, while I believe Ben order a New York Strip steak but to be honest, I'm not 100% sure about that one. They all ordered their steaks well done. Also, they ordered a Bloomin' Onion and one Alice Springs Chicken Quesadilla.
First we were served some bread, which after 10 seconds of researching on the internet, I have found out that the bread is known as Bushman Bread. It's a honey-wheat type of bread that is colored black, in case you're like I was and have never been to Outback before. The bread was okay, it wasn't exactly something I would order on its own, but it wasn't anything I would refuse to eat either. Our appetizers came soon after, and I only had a little of the Bloomin Onion, mainly because I'm not a huge onion fan. To me it was just ok, but I found no fault with how it was made, as it was nice and warm. The chicken quesadilla, on the other hand, was delicious. The dish was packed with chicken, cheese, sauteed mushrooms, bacon and honey mustard, and the combination of all of those flavors was just excellent. Heck, I could have just ate a whole one of those chicken quesidillas and I would have been happy with my meal. I even got the courage and tried a little bit of the beer that Dickson ordered (a Shock Top), mainly due to his prodding that I take a sip. Well, I don't drink beer (or any alcoholic beverage) and after tasting the beer, I'm not going to be drinking any more anytime soon. To be honest, I've had beer a couple of times, and I can't see how anyone can stand the taste, but to each their own. I think I'll just stick to drinking soda and juice.
After we polished off most of our appetizer, our main courses came. I started off mainly with the chicken, and it was everything I could have possibly hoped for. The sauce they used on the chicken was rather bold, although not spicy or anything like that, and added a real kick of flavor to the chicken, which was cooked perfectly and wasn't too tough to eat. The coconut shrimp was very good by itself, although I must say I didn't care much for the dipping sauce that the shrimp came with. It tasted rather bitter, like it had too much lemon flavoring in it or something, and I did not think it went all that well with the shrimp at all. I'm sure other people probably like that sauce, but it just wasn't for me. As for the ribs, there was a good bit of meat on them, and the meat and the sauce combined to make for a rather tasty dish. The fries were also pretty good, not too salty and flavored nicely, while the coleslaw seemed decent, although I'm not the most qualified judge on that subject. Everyone else at my table seemed to enjoy their meals immensely, and at the end we were all stuffed. Well, I thought about getting a desert, but since everyone else seemed ready to go, I decided to pass. In hindsight, I don't need the extra calories, anyway. The service at Outback was very good, as our waiter was very attentive and was always on top of things.
Overall, I don't really have any qualms with my experience at the Commerce Outback Steakhouse today. I suppose I have a couple of minor issues, but I would definitely dine there again. I'll give it a 7.838 out of 10. Well, thanks for reading, and if you have any thoughts or issues with this or other posts, or future ideas for reviews, than feel free to share them by leaving a comment, or by sending me an e-mail at KtheC2001@gmail.com.
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