Charley's Steak House — Restaurant in Dr. Phillips

Update: of the 6 nights I was in the area, I ended up eating here 3 times. I tried Fogo, Capital Grill, and Kavas Tacos, but kept coming back to Charley's for the outstanding service (Jonathan and Orriana).

In the area for work and looking for a spot to eat. It smelled amazing from the outside, so I decided to stop. I was not disappointed. There was one amazing flavor bomb after another throughout the experience. The servings are massive. I dined solo, but would recommend that you bring more than one, because the portion sizes are what I'd call family style.

I opted to sit at the bar since I was dining solo. The service at the bar was impeccable. Johnathan was amazing, his cocktails were perfect, well balanced, and flavorful.

The starters are normal steakhouse fare, with one notable Florida specialty, gator bites. I've had gator before with mixed results. I will say, the way these were prepared was uniquely good. A hint of citrus that perfectly accentuates the flavor of the gator meat. It came with a lemon, but it was not necessary. Many times, gator is over seasoned, but this appetizer, like every part of the meal was well balanced, bringing out the flavor of the base ingredient. On night 2 I opted for the grouper, similar in balanced flavor, but uniquely different from the gator, and on night 3 I just had oysters.

The steaks and the lobster tail on night 3 were all incredible. For night one, I opted for the bison ribeye, med-rare, night two the bone in strip, night three they had a special for the lobster tail. Each steak was exactly med-rare, perfectly seasoned, just enough salt, garlic and pepper to bring out the best flavor from the cuts of meat.

The side of mushrooms was massive and also well seasoned. I have no idea what they are sauted with, but they were so good, and there was so much in the serving you will be pressed to consume them all between three people let alone as a solo. The asparagus was equally delicious on night two and the garlic broccoli on night three was equally delicious. Often the broccoli and asparagus get overcooked or overwhelmed by the sauces and seasonings. Not here. Every single item I ordered was exceptionally seasoned with perfect balance to accentuate the main ingredient, not to mask it.

I only had desert on night 2 (butter cake) and ended up sharing it with my fellow travelers at the hotel. I swear the vanilla ice cream tasted homemade, the vanilla burst forth and was the perfect indulgence with massive slice of cake. Way too much for a single person, it was a perfect size for three of us.

Overall, this is fabulous traditional American steakhouse, with dark colors, rich flavors, and impeccable service you...

THERESA BLANCO: Thank you for your swift reply. I would be happy to provide my email address, but prefer not to post here publicly. If you could please provide an email address in which I may contact you, that would be appreciated. I look forward to hearing from you. Regards, Sharon S.

We chose Charley's to celebrate our anniversary. It was good, a higher end establishment, but fell short of exceptional. I must first add as a side note, I was taken aback to see so many patrons dress in jeans and the like. My understanding was that proper dress codes were required- not like it looks as though one is dining at Applebees. The young man who was our waiter did in fact perform his job exceptionally well. The seating hostess was very personable too. There was a delayed period of time in receiving our bottle of wine. Our waiter made a gesture to amend this by providing a complimentary appetizer. That was appreciated. Now for our food selections- I had previously looked at the menu online and was eagerly anticipating steakhouse quality lamb chops. I was disappointed with the very first cut into the chop- over an inch thick of fat. Considering the two chops were bone-in T bone cut (not French/lollipop cuts), this was a fair amount of nonedible potions of the order. While several other cuts of meat and a lobster tail were initially presented on a platter to select, unfortunately, lamb chops were not. Had they been, perhaps I would have ordered otherwise. After that first cut, I debated informing our waiter and requesting the order be redone, but did not want to create a situation during what was to be a romantic anniversary dinner. The other order was a New York boneless strip. My fiance informed me later that while the initial cut into his steak was medium rare, as he cut further in, it was cooked as if a medium preparation. Additionally, we ordered what we thought per the menu would be traditional au gratin potatoes (thinly sliced and layered). What we received should truly be listed as Texas potatoes or potato casserole- it was diced potatoes with a cornflake type topping. They were flavorful, but not what was anticipated when ordering. Lastly, it was thoughtful that we were provided an anniversary card and some dendrobium orchid blooms- a momento to save. However, even though when asked if we wished to order dessert, we declined, still, it would have been nice to have been brought something a little sweet to share for the occasion as we have encountered at other establishments on special occasions. So overall, while the potential was there to be a five star evening, we are rating the...

BABY!

One thing for certain: I will absolutely be back. Faouzi, Steve & Tic were super amazing to me and my sister as we celebrated her graduation.

We ordered & rated: 1 Acqua Panna (L) - 10/10. who doesn't love water?

2 Prosecco - 9.5/10 I loooove prosecco. Very similar to the Lunetta one if you've had that.

Rolls - 100000000/10!!!!!!!!! JUST LOOK AT THEM. Soft and airy on the inside and crisp on the outside. Beautifully made.

1 Rose Lemon Drop - 10/10. Very good. Not overly sweet but hit that SPOT!!!

1 Red Wine - 9/10. 10 years in a desert or something? My sister loved it!

1 Hibiscus Lemonade - 10/10. Tastes so good.

2 House Salads - 9.5/10. lettuce was fresh and crisp. Tomatoes were fresh. Not drenched in sauce but not dry at all. Perfectly seasoned. Perfectly made. no olives on ours. We usually dont care for house salads but that house made vinaigrette was TOP TIER!

Meatballs - 8.6/10. Great that they are beef because my sister doesn't eat pork and they were good. The gravy was good. We found ourselves dipping steak in it.

24 OZ Porter House - 10/10. I'm usually a strip girlie, but I wanted a filet too and it was cooked PERFECTLY. Medium rare.

18 OZ Strip - 10/10. Medium.

Asparagus - Good sauce. Almost like lemon butter. 8.5/10

Mashed Potatoes - 9.5/10. Super buttery which doesn't bother me at all but my sister isn't into butter like me. Haha.

Butter Cake - 10/10. flaky crust. Soft and light insides. It's not too sweet, but very much good. Ice cream was good and had not melted by the time it got to the table. whipped cream was good.

Oh my God, are you kidding me? It was soooooooo good. I loved it.

I don't even know what else to say but get hereeeeee and ask for Faouzi & Steve. Faouzi gave us recommendations and he didn't miss with a single one of them! That man was 5-0. Steve was so attentive and caring. & Tic was great to speak with. Loved it. Loved it. Loved it.

Next time, I will be planning to get a seafood tower. I was recommended an after-dinner drink from Tic of a Clase Azul with a Nutella & Ferrero Rocher rim and it sounded so good but honestly my stomach would not be able to handle that, but I will try to get it next time. I'll just apologize to my body in advance.

10. 10. 10. 10. 10. 10. 10. 10. 10. 10. 10. 10. 10. 10. 10. 10....