SMITH BROTHERS STEAKHOUSE TAVERN

Last Friday, the Fiance and I had our first dance class in preparation for our First Dance. On our way out the door, we began to review options for dinner. Neither of us wanted to cook, the weekend ahead was full of Chinese food and I wasn’t craving anything after a big Japanese lunch. When he asked “What about steak?” I knew I was marrying the right man.

Atmosphere: For a standalone steakhouse in Scarborough, I expected Smith Bros to be more of homey, hole in the wall type restaurant. Instead, the restaurant was more Jack Astors, The Keg, located next to a Boston Pizza. The interior was dark with lots of wood and leather. A lounge, bar, waiting area was open for diners to grab a drink before while waiting for their table. We didn’t have a reservation and was seated within 10 minutes. Diners ranged from families celebrating birthdays to couples on dates, and the dress code varied as much. Originally, I was wearing leggings and a sweatshirt (ready for dance class), and I was glad I changed into a dress.

Service: From the host to our server, service at Smith Bros was friendly and efficient. Nothing remarkable happened during our meal but we felt welcomed and taken care of. The host walked around the dining area and personally checked in on all of the tables. I may have confused our server. Initially I ordered my steak medium, then changed it to medium rare and the steak arrived medium. The meat was still tender and delicious, so I had no issues.

Food: Starting with drinks, I choose the beer sampler, 4 mini glasses for $7. This was a great value and I had a different beer for each course. Between the two of us, The Fiance and I tried all 3 of the Premium Smith Bros Draughts. All three beers were crisp and refreshing with the red being our favourite.

The Fiance ordered a bowl of Mussels and the 14 oz Ribeye cooked to medium. I went with a 10 oz Striploin set meal, a “Complete”, that came with a choice of appetizer and dessert. For the appetizer, I went with the classic Caesar Salad and the Orange Chocolate Mousse for dessert. I was so tempted by the All You Can Eat Mussels and Fries for only $19, a deal I will come back for. I settled for sharing a single bowl of the PEI mussels, steamed with Smith Bros Lager, shallots and parsley. The mussels were fresh, flavourful and the broth simple but rich. Most of our bread was used to soak up the broth. My caesar salad arrived dressed with a smattering of cheese and croutons. I would’ve liked a few more croutons but the dressing was creamy and the the lettuce crisp.

Each steak order came with a choice of steak sauce and side. I chose the Peppercorn Cream sauce with a Baked Potato while The Fiance chose the Crumbled Bacon & Bourbon with Matchstick Fries. Between the two sauces, we both preferred the peppercorn, that was rich and had lots of peppery flavour. The crumbled bacon and bourbon was basically just gravy and it was hard to taste the bacon. For the sides, while I did enjoy my baked potato with chives and sour cream, the matchstick fries were perfect.

Now the steaks. All bells and whistles aside, Smith Bros plates a decent steak. While I expected my striploin to be lean, The Fiance’s ribeye was also lean with little marbling. This was a little disappointing but, the meat was very tender and juicy. The char on the outside was well-done and seared in the meaty flavour. Our bill came to just over $100 before tip and for the quality and quantity of food, it was a good value compared to similar steakhouses. My dessert of orange-chocolate mousse tasted exactly like a Terry’s Chocolate Orange, therefore perfect.