Birthday parties often provide the chance to try somewhere different, and this one was no exception.
I get the feeling I must have been one of the few left in Tokyo not to have tried an Outback Steakhouse. In fact, I couldn’t even picture it, until checking it’s location and realizing I’d known it all along. Anyhow, it proved to be an enjoyable distraction.
Spacious, kind of cozy, packed with a mix of parties (we sang happy birthday many times – for young and old), lovers, coworkers and gaijin.
The service was okay. But just okay. They tried hard to do the genki thing, but didn’t come across as all that sincere. Drink orders took forever to materialize, so in the end we resorted to ordering two at a time, after a few rounds of which the staff grasped the concept of thirsty diners and got their act together.
The menu had plenty to offer, and pretty pictures to make ordering simple.
I’d been warned by a trusted source that if I wanted to eat more than one dish the Bloomin’ Onion ® was best avoided. Advice followed, but I have to admit that it looked bloomin’ tasty.
Aside from the slow beers, margaritas and Cassis sodas, we had the customary bread and butter, which was sweet tasting, and the perfectly naughty Aussie Cheese Fries. Bad for you, but enjoyable in the way the bad things usually are.
We ordered various steak sets, each of which was accompanied by a choice of soups, salads, and sides. The soups were poor, afterthoughts at best. The salads little better, with even the ubiquitous Caesar Salas being less than it could have been. The jacket spuds (that means potatoes) looked okay, but I neglected to sample. I went for mashed potato instead, which to be honest wasn’t great – good mashed potato should be done with enough cream and butter to make even the sturdiest lady cow wince.
There was rice (but no peas), coleslaw and veggies, too. All were passable at the price point. And as for the steaks…
My filet (apparently recommend, as highlighted in red on the menu) was somewhat disappointing. Flavor mild to say the least, and screamed “Japanese style,” which is to say it was kind of buttery, or like marshmallow. Steaks should have more substance.
The Outback Special, favoured by three of my dining partners, was far superior. For a start it was bigger, and the juicy flesh and full flavour was much better than expected. Finally, the NY Strip was pretty good, too. Less filling than the Special, but overall a more accomplished steak.
I wasn’t too miffed at my poor choice, as (luckily) my dining partners all being ladies, they decided to give me half of their steaks. Helping them out seemed like a good idea, but by time I was finished I was less sure.
Desert was suggestively shaped sugary death in a bowl. I didn't go there.
03-5459-7751
Outback Steakhouse
Wednesday, December 28, 2011 at 1:13PM | 
The only place that didn’t have a queue outside it was T.G.I. Friday’s, and so (being in need of a drink) that’s where we ended up.
Along with the appallingly slow and ill-timed service (my dining partner and I had thought eating lunch together, at the same time, might have been nice), and the weak G&Ts, the food wasn’t up to much either.
