Charbroil Steak House

I've avoided reviewing restaurants during this recession because I hate hitting them when they're down. But if the restaurant is covered up with customers, they're fair game. Such was my experience with the Charbroil Steak House in Phenix City.

When we arrived after 8 pm, there was a wait. When we asked the hostess how long the wait was, she replied that they were just waiting for people to get up. We decided to stay and I went to the rest room to wash my hands. On the way, I counted 7 empty tables.

After about ten minutes several people had been seated but there were still 5 empty tables and so we pointed it out to the hostess. This time she said that the kitchen was "behind", which is like saying, "You're not going to get served either way but you're better off standing up".

Before we gave up, a member of management noticed us and got us seated. They had plenty of wait staff and they were prompt and courteous. They have no beer list but they do have a tall draft for a very reasonable $3.25.

For an appetizer, we tried the grilled sausage and pimento cheese which struck us as innovative. It was served with crackers and a mustard based bbq sauce which we thought went well together although the sausage was a little bland.

For the meal we ordered the specialty, a rib eye medium rare and the ribs. The rib eye was a thin piece of meat but cooked perfectly which is a good trick with meat that thin. However, it had no crust which is ironic since the menu particularly points out that it's cooked with a Charbroil Grill that can put a restaurant crust on at home. The ribs were a little tough and over cooked but the sauce had a nice burn to it.

The meals come with two sides and the best one was a fully loaded baked potato. The corn was also good and not just a half ear that you see in so many places.

The restaurant seems to be struggling to find where it wants to fit in to the genre. The pictures on the wall were mostly nice prints of the Columbus area as opposed to the nick knacks that one finds in most restaurants of this type, but the clientele on the night we visited wore tee shirts and UA hats. There were a lot of families. They advertised that they have "6 TVs viewed from all angles" but they were 2X4 flat screens tuned to wrestling for some reason during March Madness and that doesn't make a sports bar. All the tables had candle holders but there were no candles and two of the four flames outside were out.

The restaurant is owned in part by Abott Turner of the Bradley Company family and there's an obvious attempt to connect Charbroil Grills with the restaurant. The restaurant has been open long enough to shake down now and I'm guessing the owners haven't dropped by there recently. They're in a game with the likes of Longhorn Steak House and that's an organization that does look after details. Still, judging from the crowd we saw, they are doing something right.