Merrill & Houston's Steak Joint — Restaurant in Beloit

My wife and I have been wanting to eat here for awhile now - we live about 30 minutes away and don't generally travel in this area very often but based on all the great reviews and the exceptional curb appeal of their website we decided last Saturday to finally stop denying ourselves. So glad we finally gave in to our desires.

Ambiance: Rustic and loft like in a pub setting. The actual dining room is not very big and is really just an extension of the bar area so don't expect anything too formal although they still have some white table cloth tables and you will feel fine dressed up if you like - business/cocktail casual would be even better though. They do have an outdoor patio with a nice river view too.

We arrived at 6:30 PM with no reservations after enjoying pre-dinner drinks at one of their other properties across the street - the Rooftop at the Hotel Goodwin (another great spot with terrific service). We were offered a table right in front (a bit too close to the hostess stand) or a patio seat; a bit chilly and we would have been the only ones out there. We were perfectly happy to eat at the bar which we often do when we go out anyway; it allows us a chance to meet people and see how well the staff works together.

Food: The menu might be priced at the 4-star level but everything we had was 5-star or better which means eating here is a tremendous value. Our takeaway at the end of our meal is why would we eat at a Long Horn, Lone Star, or Outback when we can have the higher quality here for the same price. In our view MHSJ compares more correctly to Chicago mainstays like Gibson's, Gene & Georgetti's, or the Erie Cafe.

The Baltimore-Style Crab Cakes came as two medium-sized, perfectly prepared pieces. So good you might even consider ordering more. We also had the best Shrimp de Jonghe I have ever had - nice and hot from the oven with a perfect garlic butter and bread crumb blend - not overpowered by garlic as is so often the case.

At the recommendation of our bartender Arden my wife and I both ordered the Ironworks - a signature preparation of their house-cut rib eye. It is worth mentioning that our rib eyes were perfectly trimmed and prepared medium just the way we love it - and the topping was fantastic. I usually avoid ordering rib eye's at 4-star and below spots because they are more often than not too gristly. Our steaks were buttery smooth and could at times be parted with just our forks. I had a delicious parmesan potato for my side and my wife went with a nice fully loaded baked potato. The only thing we would change would be to remove the aluminium foil from the potato just before serving it.

Service: The only thing better than the food is the service. Our bartender Arden was polished, knowledgeable, and professional - well beyond her years. Jesse and Tim worked the bar with her and their teamwork and camaraderie was obvious. On several occasions they easily stepped in for one another to offer a helpful comment or to serve or remove an item for us and others, and were smiling, talking, and working around each other effortlessly; a truly beautiful sight and something you look forward to seeing at a 5-star restaurant.

Summary: Our compliments to Executive Chef Bobby Walker Jr. and his entire staff for exceptional execution in the kitchen. Kudos and a tip of the hat as well to General Manager Jayme Braatz for recruiting, training, developing, managing, and leading a team at this high level - you cannot do it on your own and it takes true leadership to reach this level.

We can hardly wait...

I live in Milwaukee but called ahead of time to set a reservation to take my father out for a great Steak. Was told that they did not take reservations for their outdoor seating. Before hanging up I asked if they felt confident I’d be able to be seated if my party of 3 showed up around 4:30pm-5:00pm. Was told yes.

Upon showing up At 4:45pm I was told by the hostess the soonest I could be sat would be 8:00pm. I asked about the outdoor seating and the hostess said I would need to make a reservation to dine there as well. I explained my phone call earlier but was just told the same , “The soonest we could seat you would be around 8:00pm.” They also said that whoever I spoke to on the phone was new and didn’t know what she was talking about. I wasn’t interested in arguing with the staff any further and wanted to leave but my father felt it was worth it. So he told hostess that he was going talk with the customer’s at the bar to ask them move a seat over so we could all sit next to each other at the bar. Hostess all of the sudden found a table for our party.

Our waiter’s name was Rosie C. She is the only reason this review has any stars whatsoever. Couldn’t have asked for a better waitress. Was fast, attentive, and genuine. Rosie asked for our orders and my father and I went with the 18oz ribeye. I asked for it to be cooked medium and my father wanted medium well. When we got our steaks mine was well done on one half of the steak and medium well done on the other half. My father’s was well done all the way through. Our drinks I would give 4/5. They were good and there was a large enough selection.

My personal take is if I was paying $30 or less per steak then fine. I shouldn’t expect higher quality steaks. However the steaks are being charged premium $48+. There are plenty of steakhouses in Milwaukee that not only get the correct temperature of the steak but are also seasoned much better. So if you’re charging the same as other premium steakhouses I expect the same quality steak.

I didn’t make any fuss with Rosie on the steak quality because she really was busy enough and I was over the experience. I don’t recommend this joint at all really. Will be trying out The 615 next time I’m in town and will be retrying this place at a later time to see if this was just a...

Merrill & Houston's clearly tries to be a quality steak house. M&H is in a great location and is a beautiful restaurant. I personally love the industrial feel and look. Previously my wife and I had only been to M&H for drinks. This time we came for dinner. I called first and was told there was no available seating for 3 hours. While I was on the phone my wife reserved our table online and we walked in and were seated right away. Odd. I ordered a great draft beer and wife a mixed cocktail. Drinks were above average and priced right. We ordered crab stuffed mushrooms as an appetizer. I ordered the mushrooms because I was curious how crab and mushrooms could be paired better than sausage and mushrooms. The dish was good. I think sausage stuffed mushrooms are better, but these were good and again appropriately priced. Next, we received our lobster bisque & bread. The lobster bisque tasted floury and had chucks of flour. We sent it back. The soup was gross. When the rolls were tabled I noticed a fried smell. I ignored the smell until my wife said the rolls tasted fried. We asked the waitress and yes, they flash fry the rolls to give achieve a crispy crust. The bread was crispy, greasy and not good. I do not understand why they feel the need to fry rolls. Next, we received our main courses. We both ordered the specials. I ordered the cowboy steak and my wife ordered the grouper. These were both specials. The steak was and the grouper were both seasoned & cooked perfect! They were outstanding! The steak was paired with canned mushrooms and waterlogged garlic mashed potatoes and a pile of fried onion strings. I also ordered the peppercorn sauce. The peppercorn sauce was ok. It mainly tasted of flour. The grouper was served over a rice risotto that was simply gross, floury (again) and mushy. The grouper was also sided with roasted Broccoletti. The broccoletti was good. Over all Merrill & Houston's was a quality restaurant and tries. If they succeeded at making good food I would definitely be back. But they did not. My steak and grouper were great! Everything else with our entrees was bad. Fried bread? Yuck! And flour flour and more flour in the bisque, risotto and...