Side Porch Steakhouse — Restaurant in Bartlett

We were given a gift card. Decided to use it for a special occasion last Saturday night. We had never been there before. Definitely not the ambiance of a typical steakhouse. Seemed more like a Perkins or Cracker Barrel. It has bright led lights, was loud, busy and people were packed like sardines. The servers would brush up against our table just to get thru to wait on their tables and deliver their food. We had reservations and as we were waiting to be seated we saw one couple get up and leave after receiving their drinks bc they had been waiting so long for their food. They paid for their drinks, talked to the cashier about it and left angry and disappointed. Granted, they did have one party so it was slowing the kitchen down. After seeing that, we didn't know what to expect. We ordered 2 desserts so bc our food took awhile, too, (steak was overcooked but we didn't complain) our server surprised us with giving us one of the desserts free. I understand the desserts are made from Frost Bakery (haven't been there before either) but we were not impressed. It was a large serving but the strawberry cake was ice cold and hard. It tasted just like a boxed cake with canned frosting with jam in the middle...Duncan Hines, maybe? Took the other dessert home to let our children share. They thought the same thing and 4 days later...its still sitting in the fridge uneaten. Our server, however, was wonderful . She was very friendly and took great care of us and had great communication and continually kept apologizing for the long wait. Seems like having made reservations, management would've not booked so many tables during the time of the large party. The hot, fresh croutons were delicious! They were the highlight of the meal. Glad we didn't have to pay for any of it. We probably won't...

Used to come here every time we came to Memphis. It was part of our eating out rotation. Today was... let's say... different. Began two and a half hours before we arrived. We made a reservation and was told our table would be ready when we arrived. We arrived 2 minutes before seven, and table's not ready. We were told another table was late getting there and they were giving people a 20 minute grace period. We were seated 10 after 7. For appetizers about 15 minutes later. Ordered. Got salads another 15 minutes later after asking about them. In the middle of eating salads, the owner came to talk to dissatisfied customers behind us. He was dismissive, defensive and rude to them. It appeared to us that he could care less about them and their complaints. Our plates arrived at 7:55, which at my age, is pushing the borders of how late I can eat. This is why, BTW, I was perturbed by the late seating. I made a reservation so we could go right in and possibly be done eating at 8 or a bit after. Started eating the steak, and I thought it had a good taste, and then noticed a big hair on top. Asked a different waitress to get our waitress. She showed up. I showed her the problem. She acknowledged that this was gross and asked if I would like another one. I told her to put it in a to go box because it was too late to wait for another steak to be cooked and then eat it. Also, my wife said her steak was quite tough. That dinner was almost a full $100 for two people. You might ask, why didn't I talk to the owner. I didn't feel comfortable doing so after listening to the way he talked down to the family behind us. The Croutons were great, so that kept it from being only 1 star. We won't be back....

Food great but claustrophobic atmosphere. I've added this to one of my favorites. Lets get my complaint out of the way so I can tell you about the food. It is horribly claustrophobic in there. The tables are much too close together. The wait staff has less than 12 inches to walk through in most places. Each time one passed by, they bumped the chair next to me into me. The tables were so close you felt as if you were in the next tables conversation. It is in what appears to be an old house and the floors bounce up and down when anyone walks on them. It is quite frightening. Even the bathrooms are tight. I had to climb on the toilet to close the door.

Now that that is out of the way...I still go there because the food is well worth the horrid lack of space. The salad is nicely unpretentious. It is a simple iceburg lettuce salad garnished with grated red cabbage, carrot, and garnished with a tomato slice. I chose ranch dressing and it is that wonderful old fashioned type made with real mayo & buttermilk like mom used to make. It is served with a basket of some of the best giant garlic croutons I've ever eaten.

I am not overly fond of the steak marinade. It simply taste like they use worchestershire to marinate, but the steak has always been very tender, juicy, and cooked perfectly to the way I requested. The baked potatoes are always fresh out of the oven. No brown horrible old potatoes here. These are straight from the oven to your table, with butter, sour cream, or any way you want them.

I recommend you try it at least once and form your own opinion. But be prepared to wait. It is a small restaurant that is very popular. Even at 5pm there is a...