Prime Steakhouse — Restaurant in Aiken County

We have wanted to try Prime since we spotted it in passing while heading somewhere else months ago. My fiancé has his birthday on the fourth, so I figured tonight was the perfect time to treat him. Upon entering, the place was very nice, and the hostess asked if we had reservations. We did not, but they were also not necessary.

They were not busy, which was no surprise as soon as I looked at the menu. The prices on the menu here on Google Maps are completely incorrect! Double them, and you have approximately the correct prices. (If I remember correctly, the cheapest entree item on the menu was about $38. The cheapest appetizer was somewhere in the range of $15). By no means was the cost necessarily a problem to pay. It would have just been nice to be prepared for it.

Moving on to the atmosphere, it is a bit of a small place, which I suppose some would consider "intimate," whereas if you have social anxiety like us, you quickly notice that if the place was full it would be cramped. Hardly anyone was seated near us, as we were in the back near the bar, so we did not feel crowded at all at the time. If there was music, it was low enough that I did not notice it during our conversation over dinner. Something I was pleasantly surprised by was that unlike other nice restaurants in the area, they are not quite as dimly lit, which is nice.

As for our service, our waitress was wonderful. She was attentive without being overbearing, and she was extremely good at her job. She made you feel welcomed and comfortable the whole time you were there, and if you needed anything, you could easily ask. Our drinks were never empty, and we never waited long between courses.

Last, but definitely not least, let's talk about food. Their huge draw here are the steaks and the touted knowledgeable preparation of them. Two complimentary items featured are ice water, bread, and butter. Neither of us opted to drink the ice water. We did, however, partake in the bread and butter. The bread had a crunchy texture, but was very tasty and served as a great little something to whet your appetite.

First, our appetizer was not one featured on the menu. It was a special our waitress mentioned. It was ahi tuna, and while it was easily one of the top seared ahi tuna we have had, it does not take the top spot, instead coming in at a very close second. The dipping sauce was great, and so was the presentation.

Next, our entrees came with a simple salad with kalamata olives, tomatoes, and some sort of vinaigrette. Now, I understand you can't expect to have everything everywhere. I truly do, but if you are paying so much for an entree, why can you not get a higher quality salad than iceberg lettuce? I would have loved it to have been mixed greens instead, but perhaps I'm just being picky.

Now, we arrive at the main attraction. The entree. We both chose to get the filet mignon (his medium rare, mine medium) with mashed potatoes, onion rings (2), and added a side of sautéed mushrooms to share. Our steaks were delectable. I am not kidding. The steak was an experience and a half. It was very tender and cooked perfectly. The sides paired well, but I really did not see the point of two onion rings.

So what's my final verdict here... I think that the food was good. I really do. Do I think that it was $168+ good? Maybe not. I really feel like the price is a bit too inflated, though the food is good. You can eat for much less at really nice restaurants...

Part one: In regard to The food, my 8 ounce fillet cooked medium rare was fine! Just how I wanted it. My husband asked for his steak to be cooked medium medium well. Any good chef cook for that matter will be able to accommodate for that!. The dinners came out. Mine was perfect. It was medium rare. My husband was medium rare not even close to medium to medium well! And the people never even apologized for their mistake?! At that point in time when your spouse or significant other is unhappy and they want to leave, your dinner is ruined too!! So, what’s the point of being there at that point in time? There isn’t. So, we asked for a box and we left we gave no tip because if the server or servers were on point they can read and these people have been there To understand beef not cooked to the preference of the client since they’ve been through this several times before I am sure that chefs who cooked the steak and the food may not do the job as stated on the service ticket. My husband and I so thoroughly enjoyed this restaurant for a number of times! However, if the owner has now transitioned to the other owners, they are not even close to doing their job! This is a problem. They are charging high prices for poor quality with regards to what the customer desires. We are not drama queens from wherever: San Francisco LA whatever you want. If we want a steak cooked medium well to medium we expect it and we expect that the chef knows how to do that. And since they can’t, they should not even be working there! So we need to really talk about the servers. The servers could tell that there was something awry. But they didn’t have the fortitude to say we are not charging Mr. Glisson’s steak for the evening because we know he was thoroughly unhappy yet; did say anything. I was saying something as I was very blunt yet they did not do right by my husband… Therefore the servers did not get a tip. We are posting my husband steak. You must understand this state now has been sitting out for an hour. As any good chef or cook knows that after you cook a steak, you let it sit. Why? Because it continues to cook. So the problem is chefs in some of the restaurants. Just send the product out right away when it’s not ready it’s still undercooked. It still has to cook yet. That is the beauty of a good cook from the bad one. And this place has a bad cook. And, by the way, when we would eat dinner there prior these steaks were black Angus grass fed. These steaks are corn fed! It doesn’t take a rocket scientist or someone with a very exceptional pallet to know the difference. So they’re not even serving the food that is on Reported on the menu! Definitely don’t go here. You might be happy. We...

TL;DR - Overpriced steakhouse.

Pre-visit/outside: There is no dedicated parking lot for the restaurant so be prepared to find street parking. There is a little cutout for parking directly across the street from the restaurant so it shouldn't be too hard to find. The restaurant is located off the main street in downtown so it is a little easier to find parking around as well. When we visited in 2021 they were flying the blue line police flag outside. We had no issues making a reservation ahead of time.

Interior: I thought the inside was a bit dimly lit and poorly laid out. Tables were quite close to each other and that made it a bit hard to navigate through the restaurant. Gave it a bit of a cramped feel. Also thought it was odd that they had TVs playing a recording of a concert that was being played as the music in the venue. Just a bit odd to see the video in addition.

Food: We ordered the Filet Mignon Bruschetta appetizer, a glass of wine, the prime rib, a side of risotto and an 8 oz steak. Overall the food was good, the appetizer was a nice riff on the traditional bruschetta and it came in an Asian sauce with wasabi on top. I thought it was a nice balance of sweet and spicy. The steaks were well cooked and thick. Both came with mashed potatoes and onion rings. The mashed potatoes were creamy and the onion rings were crunchy. Both plates felt dominated by the steak though. Steaks also could have used a little more seasoning. The risotto was very creamy and had plenty of butter and cream. My only problem was that the food wasn't a cut above anywhere else you might go for a similar meal. Portions were very large and we got two meals out of our entrees.

Cost: The food not being a cut above really becomes an issue when you look at Prime's prices. At $50 per meal plus $10 wine and $10 sides, and $20 for the appetizer, our bill came to $160 before tip. For that price, I expect the food to be very good. In my opinion it was just fine. I've cooked better prime rib at home.

Service: It almost seemed like there was an abundance of wait staff the evening we were there. Our waitress came plenty of times to the table in addition to others refilling our water and bringing out various plates of food. Just felt a little pushy with how frequently the staff came...