17 Prime Steakhouse — Restaurant in Charleston

There is something to be said and respected about a restauranteur being humble enough to ask an outside Chef for their opinion of their food. I’ve seen enough episodes of Gordon Ramsey’s Kitchen Nightmares to know that when they tell Gordon that “everybody loves our food or “I rate our food a 10” that most often times it’s not even close.

Lynn Clingman and I went to 17 Prime Steakhouse within the first week of opening simply because we want to support local restaurants as close to their opening day as possible. After months of expenses, they really appreciate early support to begin the cash flow in the other direction.

Now, I don’t make a habit of eating at a new place and offering up my opinions. Learning that I am Chef, the FOH manager, and Doug the owner, asked me for mine, so I shared a few MINOR points of contention. Humbly, they took notes to share at their next staff meeting.

Fast forward to last night and I was happy to see that they took my recommendations to heart and we had an incredible dining experience.

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the incredible beverage program and Frank the mixologist here at 17 Prime Steakhouse. He’s not just mixing drinks, he is masterfully creating amazing cocktails and Alcohol free options that prompt an “Oh Yeah!” after your first sip. Sets the stage for the incredible dining experience to come.

We had: Ceasar Salad with(optional) Anchovies- this was the best Caesar Salad we have had in Charleston. Right down to the housemade Croutons.

16 oz Certified Angus Beef Ribeye- perfecly seasoned and cooked to Mid rare, amazingly tender and a beautiful char. Everything I look for when ordering steak.

Bearnaise Sauce- this was one of my points of contention on our first visit. They fixed it! I look for a buttery flavor with Tarragon running in the background and this hits the mark!

Pan Seared Wild Salmon with Asparagus- crisp exterior and moist flaky interior. The Asparagus were crisp tender and perfect.

Ty’s Mac & Cheese- al dente pasta elbows in a creamy cheese sauce served in a cast iron dish that kept it hot and melty for the entire meal

Potatoes au Gratin- one of the best versions I’ve ever had. Thick cut potatoes cooked to maintain their integrity with bubbly Cheddar cheese, also served in cast iron…a pro move!

Chocolate Layer Cake-we appreciated that it was chocolatey yet light…a good thing after such a rich meal.

The staff at 17 Prime Steakhouse have found their stride and they have achieved their desire to become our neighborhood Steakhouse….i know it has become ours and we can’t wait to go back!

17 Prime Steakhouse 2049 Savannah Hwy Charleston,...

Prime 17 was the worst dining experience I’ve ever had. When we first entered the restaurant, they offered to seat us a few steps from the restrooms. It was not because they were busy. We declined. They seated us in the dining room, which was very small. Our server/waiter, Wit, was not at all interested in getting to know us. He did not engage us at all, he was too busy bragging about his life in the military and all his educational accomplishments. I ordered the Teriyaki Steak Bites from the Appetizers list. They brought them out on a small tray with wilted lettuce on the corner of the tray. They were luke warm, not hot. They were not plated very appealing. Ate a couple bites and stopped. Too much Teriyaki sauce and that was about it. Wit never stopped to check on us or to ask if everything was alright. We always had to flag him down or get his attention whenever he was near our table. I ordered the Wedge Salad with grilled shrimp on the side. We waited about 20 minutes for our next entrees. After flagging Wit down, we asked him about our food and he said it would be coming right up. And then as an afterthought, he said they were “going” my shrimp. He did not deliver our food to our table, someone else did. They brought out the Wedge Salad, if you could call it that. It amounted to a very small slice of lettuce that looked wilted and like it was a old, not fresh at all. The dressing looked gross, just dumped on top of what little lettuce there was. The menu said it came with bacon on it, there was no bacon. Instead of bringing my shrimp out on the side as I had order it, it was dumped on the so called Wedge Salad. I refused the Salad and explained that it was not a Wedge Salad with just a small slice of lettuce and that I had ordered the shrimp on side. A waitress, not Wit, brought out 4 small, pink in color shrimp on this metal like bowl. They were clearly not grilled as I had ordered. They looked like they had been boiled. I refused them. They looked gross. Wit never stopped by our table except when we had to flag him down. He seemed to go out of his way to ignore us. His service or lack there of was the worst, I’ve experienced. I could not wait to get out of there. The dining area was so small, only had a few tables in it. The building outside was not even biting at all. Except for the Prime 17 sign, I would have never known that was the restaurant. No valet. The manager, I’m assuming he was the manager, because he did not introduce himself, stopped by at the end. Didn’t say much, just said “how was it?” We visited Prime 17 on 7/19/2025. I hope that I never experience a dining place...

This was my 4th time of dining here. The 1st time I sat up at the bar, ordered wine, She Crab soup, Caesar salad & Prime Rib- They said they were out of prime rib.. but it had just turned 6pm, which I thought was odd since they only opened at 5pm. I then ordered a ribeye with a side of bernaise. The second time, just wanted a quick bite and had the She Crab soup & Caesar salad. The 3rd time came in with friends. We ordered cocktails, wine, Wedge salad, Caesar salad, She Crab soup, Filet, Prime rib, Ribeye, Au grautin Potatoes, Creamed Spinach & most recently came in with my friend. We had wine, Calamari, Caesar salad, Porterhouse, 4 side Scallops, Creamed Spinach, Mashed potatoes & were given an Espresso Martini-ish cocktail for a delightful dessert. My takeaway- I like the ambience, the steaks are to die-for, cooked perfectly every time, we have had: black-n-blue, medium rare & medium- all absolutely cooked perfectly, juicy, flavorful, delicious! The she crab soup is a different style, kind of a tomato base but delicious.. the salads are great. The creamed spinach is good. Mashed potatoes are just to be expected. The scallops and calamari are so so. The au grautin potatoes, we can do without. The cocktails are fabulous. Bottled wine- always a great choice. Timing can be a little off. Service has been excellent. The owner/partner & manager are very nice.

However, was very disappointed that an automatic gratuity was added to our table of (2) when our check was less than when 3 of us came in & gratuity was not added then, Especially when we told our waitress that we were going to tip her in cash and we had a $100 cash already on the table for her which was a 30-32% gratuity (depending upon taxes) They said that they automatically add gratuity when it's over a certain dollar amount.. which we thought was odd based on 2 other previous expenditures when the checks were higher and/or had a higher ppa. Perhaps we were singled out being women.. just irritated both of us, ruining a pleasant dining experience. So just be weary of automatic Gratuities being charged, especially if you are women. Just made us feel uncomfortable. Our bill was $349.98...