Murphy's Steakhouse — Local services in Smithville

This is a brutally honest review. Let me break it down…Objectively. If you're looking to order out, you'll be happy with the experience … because the food is quite delicious.

However, if you're looking to dine in… hopefully the experience differs from mine and more closely reflects the previous reviews. Maybe off day? Here's what went down:

While ordering, while trying to order food: the waitress cut my mom mid sentence to insist that she take our drinks first, but then took the whole order after we let her know we knew what we wanted. It's all about posture, tone and tact.

Had a waitress look directly at me raising my hand for a refill and carried on as if she never saw me.

When we received our order, we questioned the portions based on the wording of the meal. Mom order a mini rib-eye and I ordered the ribeye sandwich. Hers was 9 bucks and mine was 11. We received the orders and noticed that the steaks had to be switched in the kitchen. I received what looked like the mini and she received what looked like a regular ribeye. When we asked the waitress about it she stated that everything is freshly cut which… didn't really answer our question and she seemed unimpressed with our logic. This leads us to believe that their logic is that the two pieces of bread made up for the loss of steak on my burger. So the dollar was for the bread and even if so, she paid 8 bucks and if I paid 10-11, take a dollar off and I still paid the same amount and was given less steak. It just didn't make sense.

Then the waitress insisted on cleaning the table off while my mom was still eating and that killed her appetite and so we left and yeah. Now I understand if it was a packed restaurant and there was people lining at the door that she needed to clean the table preemptively but there were so many tables available and we were very clearly eating and I felt it was just in poor taste. This was also the waitress that cut us mid sentence to tell us that we will order our drinks first before we...

Dear Murphy’s Steakhouse,

I'm writing to share my experience at your restaurant on April 19, 2025. We've been loyal customers, making the trip from Austin, Texas, for our past three visits – all based on positive word-of-mouth recommendations. Today, however, marked a significant departure from our previous positive experiences.

We arrived at 4:15 PM and were served promptly at 4:30 PM. While the steak was delicious, as it has always been, the service unfortunately fell drastically short of expectations. After ordering, our initial requests were met, but thereafter, our table remained uncleared, and we weren’t offered drink refills or checked on to see if we needed anything further. We dined surrounded by dirty dishes from our salad bar, a situation I've documented in the attached photographs. Our entire dining experience lasted only 21 minutes, ending at 4:51 PM.

This wasn't simply a matter of inattentive service; it felt as though our patronage wasn't valued. We believe the waitress was named Mary Cassie (as per our receipt), but I'm unsure if this is correct. While we are committed to leaving a fair tip that reflects the value of our food, in no way does this reflect the service quality we received and deserved.

I'm hesitant to say whether I will return. While your restaurant boasts excellent food, the inconsistent service is a major concern. My hope is that this feedback prompts a review of your service standards, ensuring all customers – regardless of their perceived tipping potential – receive the level of attention and care they deserve. We chose your restaurant because of its reputation; we would appreciate your response and efforts to address...

This is a place I've been wanting to visit ever since my sister in law told me about it. After reading many of the reviews we made it a 'day trip' from Georgetown for lunch one day recently.

It was just as quaint and delicious as advertised. The employees that work here are down to earth, folksy and friendly people who strive to offer the patrons a great meal. It's almost like stepping back in time. The Winchester post office is located inside the same building as the restaurant but was closed on the day we visited. This is a very old country style, charming atmosphere.

I ordered the 8 oz. Rib Eye steak medium rare with a baked potato. All dinners come with one side and a trip to the salad bar and pinto bean pot. The salad bar was not overwhelming with offerings although it had all the right fresh ingredients to satisfy most veggie eaters and made a delicious first course.

Like other reviewers have claimed, I'm sure my steak weighed more than 8 ounces. My wife ordered the 10 ounce sirloin but my steak was larger than hers. However, both were cooked to perfection. The only thing about the steaks here, they lack any seasoning before being cooked so they come to your table salt-free. When placing your order you have the option of adding different topping for an additional fee such as blackened seasoning, mushrooms, onions, shrimp, etc. Next time I might spring for the blackened seasoning. As it was, a little salt, pepper, and A1 steak sauce available on the table was the right addition to an otherwise semi-bland piece of charred meat. But I didn't have any problem putting my "8 oz.", more like 10-11 oz., steak away, although I was completely...