The Chop House — Restaurant in Athens-Clarke County Unified Government

We decided to try the new Chophouse restaurant because we had never been there and I had heard a lot of good things about it. We didn’t have much of a wait to get our table which is understandable on a Tuesday night. They did have quite a few diners though. The ambience was rather upscale but not too pretentious. The server showed up pretty quickly and took our drink orders and dropped off the menus. He also told us about the specials and the fish of the day which was Chilean Seabass. I was so tempted to get Sea Bass. I kind of wish I had got it because it’s not a regular menu item. They might not have it again for a while. I ended up ordering the prime rib because I love prime rib, and I have not had it in a very long time. My husband ordered the fillet medallions, and I don’t remember what came with it because I was too busy looking at my prime rib. For sides, I ordered the cream spinach, and the macaroni and cheese. Tim got a baked potato and some kind of skinny little onion rings. I’ve had onion rings like that before and never like them because they seem like they’re more batter than onion.

They brought some delicious bread and butter out for us and it was warm and delicious. The butter with soft and whipped and spread easily which I appreciate. I hate to get butter that is still cold from the refrigerator. I always end up sitting on them to soften them a little bit so I can spread it.

Tim’s dinner came with a salad, but I ordered mine separately because I had chosen two different side items. I have to say it was one of the best salads I have ever had. I would love to have that just for lunch by itself. Everything in it was fresh, cold and crunchy. It had yummy little crispy brown things on it that look kind of like dried mealworms, but obviously they were not. They were very tasty and added crunch and a wonderful flavor to the salad. They did not have my favorite dressing on the menu, but the server told me that they in fact did have it available. They make all of their salad dressing from scratch every morning and you can really tell. They are fabulous!

But I was wrong about the onion rings. He let me taste his onion rings, and they were absolutely great. I did not taste anything else from Tim’s dinner, but it looked very good and he said it was excellent. The prime rib came in three sizes. I asked for the medium. I should have ordered a small because it really was a lot of food. I finished it, but I was fat and stuffed. The beef was cooked perfectly and came with something kind of sauce on the side. It was a perfect complement to the pink and juicy prime rib. The sides I had ordered were both wonderful too. The macaroni and cheese came out hot with a crusty top that was out of this world. I know for sure when I go there again I will definitely order the mac & cheese. The cream spinach was also wonderful. It was not as hot as the macaroni but it was still very very good. It could’ve been a little more warm I think. I ate the whole bowl of creamed spinach before I touched anything else. It was one of the best dinners I have had in a very long time and I was so full that I could not even think about getting dessert. I did look at the dessert menu, and they had several things that I liked, including cheesecake and key lime pie.

There were several other options but I didn’t pay much attention to them because you know cheesecake.

If you are looking for a special night out or a celebration dinner, the Chophouse in Oconee County is a perfect place for it. You will...

We met with some friends for lunch this week; party of 5. First time diners for all of us, so we weren't sure of how the menu worked, lunch vs. the "full" menu. (This comes into play later in the story.) The waiter was very polite and gracious, although felt he may have been fairly new to THIS restaurant.... He took our orders....drinks took a bit of time to come to the table (mostly just waters) and bread was delivered by three different waitstaff...(third one realized we already had TWO, and redirected to another nearby table). Bread was very tasty as well as the seasoned butter. The waiter described the "daily special" to us and the sauce/trim on the steak that was featured that day. It was our understanding (misunderstanding in this case) that it was a "lunch special" of the day, and my husband and I both ordered it. No mention of the price or that it was a full menu priced item (I usually would ask the price, if not stated by the waiter, OR if we had been alone, I would have asked, but since we were with our friends, made assumption it would be no more than double what the other steak offering was on the lunch menu. We ordered, and were all talking and thought nothing more of it. Good conversation continued, and after a medium wait, thinking the food should be coming out shortly, the waiter came out to ask "how I would like my steak" cooked. I told him, and he went off to the kitchen, so assumed they had not dropped the steaks as of yet. Then 2 minutes later he returned, explaining "the sauce" was different that day and he described todays sauce, asking if that was ok... fortunately we were open to the alternate sauce, and he left again towards the kitchen. We finally had our food delivered within a somewhat acceptable time (really only obvious "delay" were the beverages (waters)). Plate itself was neutral in temp, but the thing I noticed the most was the baked potato seemed a bit "stale"...not piping hot at all and a bit "stale", like it was reheated from EARLY that morning or last night. The steak was cooked correctly, but again not like it came right off the grill (I know steaks must rest for a minute, but it really came across as "room temp".) The spinach side, while the flavor was delicious, again could have been a bit warmer...even if the dish it had been served in had been pre-heated prior to it being plated or the cruette quickly placed under the broiler for a last "warm up", it could have added to the "final served temp". We all enjoyed our food, and while portions were spot on, the temps were disappointing. The final "surprise" was when we received the bill. Each of the steak specials were priced at over $50 EACH; a bit steep for a "lunch" special. While again its uncomfortable to ask pricing of a special while sitting with others at a table, this could have been remedied by the waitor stating the price up front OR handing out a "specials" menu with the price listed. We will be back, as the food is very good, we'll just be wiser before choosing any off menu specials! (It would be encouraged for waitor to state or it...

I have seen the Chophouse several times will visiting my daughter in Athens. I have always wanted to try it and tonight we did. Unfortunately, it was quite a disappointment. Where do I begin? Upon being seated there were small bread plates on the table. We were never given bread even though everyone around us had it. When the waitress came back to our table, I asked her what the plates were for and she said appetizers which makes zero sense. Why would they put appetizer plates on the table before any were ordered. If none were ordered, that's a waste of plates having to be washed. We ordered the meatballs as an appetizer, I ordered the prime rib sandwich, and my daughter ordered a hamburger with mashed potatoes. The only positive thing I can say is the hamburger had a very good flavor and the mashed potatoes were very good. We say for quite a well & no meatball appetizer. I asked the waitress if the meatballs were going to come out with the food. She said, no they shouldn't, but said she would check. As soon as she walked away from the table, the food came with no meatballs. I ordered my prime rib sandwich medium and it was completely raw. In addition, it was completely full of fat and very chewy. I understand what prime rib is and that it has some fat, but I would say at least a third of it was fat and right in the middle of the piece of meat, so after sending it back to be cooked up a bit more, I had to extract the wads of fat before eating it. I would also expect a better but if meat for a $20 sandwich. The broccoli has literally been steamed maybe a minute and had ZERO seasoning on it. Our drinks were never refilled and the waitress didn't even offer to fill them even though they were empty. When it came time to pay, I actually had cash which never happens. Upon receiving my change, I see that the waitress took it upon herself to keep the coin portion of my change. It wasn't much, but still, you don't take it upon yourself to keep my money. Very curious how their steaks are, but I don't think I will be find out after this horrible experience...I would have been furious if I had paid their $30-$50+ for a steak and had such...