The Texas Chophouse — Local services in Mount Vernon

We decided to try The Chophouse on my husband’s birthday (2/20) which also fell on Wednesday (Wed & Thur Happy Hour nights) We arrived about 5:30pm (absolutely no one else in the bar or restaurant) we were seated by the wine room (and kitchen) as to accommodate our group of 4 (vs us all eating on bar stools) My husband asked upon looking at the wine list why there were no Texas wines. We were told “if you want Texas wine, then you can go to a Texas winery”. OUCH! That wasn’t very nice. The whole wine list was basically CA. But what’s funny, The Chophouse shows up at “local Texas wine & food fests” but they aren’t interested in sourcing local wine from any. Things just went down hill from there.... Our appetizers took forever to come out from the kitchen and dinner was the same (once we left about 7pm, there was still only a very few people in the bar, absolutely no one in the restaurant) We were brought some rolls while on a long wait for our dinners. We watched in the kitchen as they were removed from a plastic bag and warmed up. (So not fresh) Food was mediocre (and very overpriced) at best. Not sure why our food took so incredibly long when it all lacked so much quality and restaurant was so empty. Truffle pasta (too small of portion) didn’t taste very truffle-like, added chicken was dry and scant considering it was a $6 add on. My husband felt he should’ve had a whole breast. Arancini was kinda soft vs crisp, wedge salad was good but had very little bacon (and no pecans) for the price. We had carrot cake for dessert, but it was incredibly sweet and not understanding why it had a huge lump of orange marmalade on the side. And didn’t like that we bought a bottle of wine we couldn't keep with us at the table. A $90 bill for what we felt was very average quality food we could’ve gotten else where for much less. We really expected more. After living in Dallas and Austin, we’ve been to plenty of nice “city” restaurants. But this is not a city restaurant and they shouldn’t be charging city prices. They just aren’t up to that par. (We’d rather make a 40 min drive to Los Pinos Ranch Winery, where the Chophouse’s chef used to work ((who no longer has a chef)) has a much better quality of food and very much worth the $) We will never go back. We have no clue to how they even stay...

I can confidently boast of being among the very few people, that have actually exhaustively had this restaurant’s ENTIRE menu. I know it so well that I order sides meant for different entrees, for myself.

I have been always amazed, by the consistency in the high quality that they maintain. They never quit to dazzle me. The Ribeye is my best, and I just keep coming back.

Smitty and his crew are outstanding. Attentive, caring, engaging, polite, jovial, beaming. I mean they just make you feel like family and make sure everything is all right. Smitty and his crew have never hesitated to rectify anything, like I asked once that my Bass be cooked longer, and they never stopped till my expectations were met, and I publicly thank you Smitty and your team.

Stephanie on the other hand, is one of the most kindest and friendliest souls you could ever come across. I think she does this more out of passion than business. She will visit EVERY table and converse with her guests, like they are her long time friends. She watches everything like a hawk, to make sure she misses nothing, even those gestures on a disgruntled face, and she will fish it out of you and fix it. That’s just who she is.

Brad is always smiling, always friendly, always humble, warm and engaging.

The ambience is EXCELLENT! If you take your time to consume the whole package other than just the food, you leave with a happy, elevated spirit. Every piece is deliberately picked. The walls are lined with stories that will amaze you! I have always met very great people here while dinning.

I read a review from one Mr Scott Sartain and I find no truth in it, from my many visits to this place. This is simply an outstanding fine dining spot, that never slacks. You shouldn’t throw such a negative review if you never even mentioned your dissatisfaction, or tried to solve it.

I’m so grateful to Brad and Stephanie, for bringing this quality of dining experience, ambience, restaurant design and service delivery to such a small town. They might appear pricey, but their quality matches their price. This is a gem, a gift to Mt Vernon and it’s environs. I’m glad that gem is in my town!

Brad, Steph, Smitty and your entire team, thank you for your great service, keep that flag high up there! I love you...

Sad to write this review. Wondering if Chophouse on Bankhead, now just "The Chophouse" is under new management? New chef?

The service was great. Better than our last visit. Place was empty on a Friday night, which was our first signal that something was amiss. City Cafe closed next door was another bad omen.

I ordered the Chilean Sea Bass and my wife ordered the blackened salmon. We had tempura asparagus for an appetizer and it arrived in record time. It was good.

When our entrees arrived, they were very well presented and looked amazing. However, when I tried to cut into the sea bass to make sure it was done, I couldn't cut into it. Even with a knife it was very tough. The center temperature was cool, if not cold. I was amazed. I told the waitress, who arrived to check on us that it was so tough I couldn't cut it and it was cold. She was embarrassed but professional and took it back to the kitchen. She returned with the sides, perhaps with a bit more -- to tide me over. The carrots were incredible. Roasted potatoes were also better than average.

She returned with the same piece of fish with more glaze on it. I was speechless. (You can't take bad, tough fish and tenderize it and somehow make it "good.") It was inedible, even though I tried. The sauce was overwhelming. The fish was still not hot and extremely tough. I just wanted to ask the chef, "Hey buddy, got a meat thermometer?"

I sent it back and ate the delicious sides. Mistakenly, I ordered a shrimp cocktail to replace the fish. "You can't screw that up." Well, yeah, you can. The first shrimp I removed was somewhat translucent and definitely not pink. Very rare and a bit tough -- they all were undercooked. Wow.

The salmon was "not as good as last time, but it was okay," said my better half.

We got the bill and had a nice $35 comp. I was too embarrassed to complain about the shrimp, so the comp was fair enough, I guess. But then I read the total and see a 5% charge for using a credit card. You'd need a wad of cash if you were a family of 6.

Nice, upscale restaurants are hard to find "behind the pine curtain" and it appears we've lost one of the few...