Texas Roadhouse — Restaurant in City of Ithaca

Yesterday was my wife's birthday, and we were driving back home from Ithaca. We had heard about Texas Roadhouse, but had never visited one. I'm glad we visited this one.

My daughter, who is 3 wanted to pay for mommy, so she brought her 2 quarters. Promptly, she dropped one by the sitting area (we waited 2 minutes) and she began to cry. I looked for it, but I couldn't find it and I was about to go back to the car to get another one, but this lovely young waitress gave me one from her tips. OK, you guys were extra nice to my daughter--- I was won over.

The service: Ally was our waitress. She was genial and friendly. After she took our order, she came by often to see how we were doing and to ask if we needed something. Prior to being seated, Lewis took us to our table and gave us a tour of the facility and meats (if you want you can pick the cut of beef you want). We mentioned that it was my wife's birthday and he said he'd mentioned it to our waitress.

Midway through our dinner, Andrea the manager dropped by to welcome us and to wish my wife a happy birthday. Towards the end of our dinner, Ally and her colleagues gave my wife a birthday, "yahoo."

I pointed out to my wife that in our town we have young people in the food industry who inhospitable and disinterested. They just go through the motions of serving their guests. The young ladies and gentleman who we saw actually worked well for their wages. They were all polite and friendly. Human resources person-- you did good with your Ithaca crew.

The food: The bread and butter (a cinnamon concoction) was totally delicious. It was followed by a bag of peanuts which our daughter loved. The appetizers came quickly. We got the sampler. Never had fried pickles before--- they were pretty good. I won't ordered them again, but I'm glad I had a taste. My wife was delighted by her frozen mango margarita and gave it 2 thumbs up. The chili was freshly made and I highly recommend it. My wife's shrimp and mashed potatoes were great and so was her meat--- medium done. TBH, my steak was a little dry, but the ribs were good.

Overall, my family had a great time. And I look forward to visiting another Texas Roadhouse. Hope it matches the standard of the...

Growing up in NYC, the land of abundant and varied restaurants, my first independent dining experiences --preapproved by Mom-- were at places like Blimpies (think, "Subway with oil and vinegar dressing") and Tad's (think, "Texas Road House, but like a cafeteria"). You could join the elegant riff-raff off the streets and get a steak, baked potato, salad, a slab of crusty garlic bread, and water for --wait for it-- $1.29. Tad's steaks were thin but broiled over an open flame and sometimes tasty, a far cry from why you might get today at Texas Road House.

The steaks at Texas Road House are thicker, juicier, and almost always (* update) well-prepared. The baked potato is offered with toppings (the basics are free). The house salad is generous, and the bread baskets never seem to get empty. Unlimited peanuts, more than you want to eat. Be sure to dump the shells on the floor, it's part of the roadhouse atmosphere. No kidding.

Of course, the prices aren't $1.29. Even the early bird special (smaller steaks but a filling meal nonetheless) is getting ready to cross the $10 line.

Service is friendly and very predictable (good training). You won't be ignored. The booths, and even the tables, are fairly intimate and you may not notice the dozens of other diners. You cannot fail to notice the entertainment, which includes lots of big-screen TVs and the occasional floor show. Yup, the servers all parade out and do a bit of line dancing, accompanied by canned roadhouse music.

It isn't a high-priced steakhouse and doesn't pretend to be. All in all, the early bird and specials are reasonably priced and you'll enjoy your visit.

update 20200108: asked for medium steak, got well done. Dry, chewy. Mistakes happen. Server apologized but did not...

I don't know if we went on a bad night or what. Went later in the evening. Around 930pm on 2/9/2019. When we walked in the hostess just looked at us then finally said "how many" with a horrible attitude. Got seated. Our waitress Emily was fantastic. She is the only reason I am giving 2 stars and not one. The floor was disgustingly dirty. They were getting ready to close, I understand that, but it was quite annoying to have the crew "cleaning" up around pur table the entire time we were there. I ordered an 11oz sirloin with salad and mashed potatoes, my wife orders a full rack of ribs and same sides... The salad came prompt and was okay. The entree came shortly after. My steak was cold and rubbery, my wifes ribs were cold and very fatty. Both of our mashed potatoes were disgusting and cold. Looked like they were sitting all day and were just reheated. I don't care what time of the day it is... We pay the same price as any other time, our food should have the same quality.... A member of staff in the middle of our dinner interupted our conversation to ask for the peanut buckets so he could bring them out back for the night. That was rude. His pants were sagging and his underwear was hanging out. The manager was too busy hanging out with every female member of staff that he could. Absolutely no idea how to be a manager. Finally the bill came, I paid, Emily thanked us and we proceeded to walk out. Passed over 10 members of the staff including the manager and not one told us thank you or to enjoy our night. I will never be back. This place needs a secret shop or something from the owners. Disgusting. Get your...