The Big Steer Restaurant and Lounge — Restaurant in Altoona

I'll start by saying the 6oz medium rare filet I ordered was perfect! Cooked absolutely perfectly, tasted juicy, delicious. Steak wise definitely 5 stars worth.

Side note: It's pricey, which is normal for high quality steak, and usually that's where good sides will help balance the scale but I wasn't impressed with any of the sides we had at the table or what I saw brought to nearby tables. Don't mistake me, they weren't terrible, I'd say half way decent, but not quite up to the same quality as the main entree.

It was certainly very busy, expected on a Friday evening. The half hour wait wasn't bad at all and the host checking everyone in was polite and friendly. I couldn't tell if he was the usual host because he seemed to have other usefully restaurant skills that made it so he could help out his coworkers without letting his own duties slip. I wish I remembered his name to add it because he was certainly a very hard worker, on top of his game, and the restaurant should consider itself lucky to have him.

Sadly I can't quite say the same with the wait staff. They got drinks as quick as they could, brought meals out together hot, did a quick check in, but otherwise I did not feel very welcomed by, I had an uncomfortable vibe from the workers and I can honestly say I don't ever remember feeling that way in a restaurant. Yes I had a toddler and did realize after ordering a couple of sodas that this wasn't a kid friendly place. Ok, well we're here, we're going to eat, and I made sure nothing but child did interfered with staff doing their jobs and tried to keep his noise limited. Unfortunately since they don't have kid's menu or entrees under $26 it was extremely hard to find "a meal" for him and the only reply I received for our waiter was there's Mac n cheese side on the back, saying this without looking at us and running to another table. If she gave us 60 seconds of time I would have been able to tell her he's allergic to all dairy products...but that conversation never happened during the 30 seconds of taking our order and rushing away.

For the $86 paid (not including a tip) for only two steak entrees, two sodas, no appetizers, no alcoholic drinks or desserts, For that price I expect an extra 45-60 seconds of time needing a little help with menu options when a kid's menu doesn't exist. And I expect that when I return a side of pasta because I didn't want anything on it, just plain pasta, I wouldn't get a deer in the headlights look and then brought back a side of spaghetti covered in butter and cheese....far from just plain pasta that my son still couldn't eat. I didn't have it in me to correct her again so it got pushed to the side and eventually thrown away with scrapped table food.

For some the restaurant might be acceptable for them and that's good as having really should enjoying their night out. Unfortunately for us I left the restaurant uncomfortable, neglected service wise, and wishing we spent our Friday night at a different restaurant. My time is valuable and it's limited so however I choose to spend it should be worth spending it on.

Sadly this restaurant is not worth the time to...

I have been to some very high end steakhouses all around the country, and this little local spot definitely makes my top 5 and totally rivals said steakhouses.

Not too sure why the bad reviews, but things happen I guess.

The Establishment itself isn't too big, but it's perfect for this town. I got in early around 5:00 p.m. and sat at the bar, (of course hahaha) and for the duration of my visit, the place was constantly packed, overflow of hungry little festerlings waiting in the bar area until a table opened up.

The hostesses were super nice and accommodating. I went and sat at the bar, and Noot was my bartender. Very eager to serve, very attentive my entire visit, absolutely on the ball. I was also told by another local patron that she was bartender of the year in Des Moines. Literally one of the best bartenders I've had at all the places I've been to all over this nation. Made sure my drink was full, and also would set out glasses in anticipation of my next beverage request. The other bartender, I can't remember his name, he had a mohawk I think it might have been James or pete? This guy is a phenom with whiskey knowledge and from what I gathered, he's also a collector, so he definitely will have the perfect recommendation for you. Towards the end of my visit, a server came out from the back. I can't remember his name either because I was pretty much two sheets to the wind, but he came by and told me the whole process on how they make their prime rib, and even gave me a little history lesson on the owners that opened the place back in 1984. He was also server of the year for Des Moines. A majority of their ingredients are locally sourced, and I could be wrong but, I think even including the beef. And the bar area they have a big screen TV, they're playing the Iowa Oregon game. I don't know why people say that the place is dated, it's really not. It's actually really nice. So let's get to the food. Before I forget, you can buy a box of hamburger patties, I think 25 patties for 50 bucks, that is made of all the trimmings of the different types of steak. I wish I had room in my freezer, I would have bought one. I ordered bacon wrapped scallops for an appetizer, reference my picture. As one of my sides, I ordered the French onion soup. Reference my picture. For dessert, they slid me a boozy grasshopper which was super good. I also had the cream brulee, which was pretty good. So the coup de gras, prime rib with two huge fried prawns, creamy jalapeno saw some place of horseradish, and a loaded baked potato. Everything was absolutely PERFECT. The prime rib was out of this world, and that says a lot coming for me. So tender and moist, the fat was even good.

I'm glad I decided to come here over TRH up the road, because in my experiences, TRH is ONLY GOOD, IN TEXAS.

I will definitely be stopping here for supper again next time I'm in the area. I want to try the 60-day aged Ribeye. What a great find!

Thank you to everyone that made my experience memorable and pleasurable. You guys really do go out...

We saw this place on our way to our hotel, after 10 hours on the road. We wanted a good meal and decided to order our meal to go. We travel across the country and do not mind paying for a good meal, especially a steak dinner. We were excited after reading the reviews. The staff was extremely helpful and our order was prepped by them perfectly. We were very disappointed by what we received from the kitchen staff. I ordered calamari as an appetizer. The menu states thatbl its "lightly" tossed in sweet chili sauce. Perfect! That's my favorite. I did request a small side of the sauce, but I didn't need it as the calamari was DRENCHED in sauce. It took away the crispy coating and made it a bit overwhelming.

The side salad is definitely not what you'd expect to come with a $45 entree. Wilted, brown iceberg lettuce with one cherry tomato, one cucumber slice, and one black olive. We were extremely disappointed as we do enjoy salads with our meal. Next to the baked potato. It tasted like it had been cooked early afternoon and kept warm. They were pretty gross. My husband got his baker loaded and the bacon and cheese were baked on and crunchy. Completely inedible. The flavor of the steaks were decent and they were cooked to the proper temperature. I had the mixed grill, and the steak was tiny with no option to upgrade. The crab cake was good, but could have used a second on the grill to crisp it up. The remoulade sauce was very good. My scallops were VERY overcooked and rubbery. All in all, we were disappointed and wouldn't go out of our way to eat there again, or recommend it. Which is sad because we do love steak and will be moving to...