Rare Steakhouse

First an foremost, I have to mention the most important reason that I am giving a stellar review to Rare. The people who are waiting on me, or hosting me, at a fine restaurant, can make or break the night, in my opinion. And, as in the casino, you can win or lose. You win BIG at Rare if you get Steven and Raphael. I can't leave out Dam because we like him as well, very much, but lately we have had Steven and Raphael. They work flawlessly, you are never ignored, and they are kind, courteous, and consistent. In some restaurants you wonder where your food is or where the waiter went with the bill. NEVER ever with Steven and Raphael. Top notch service always. Rare is open and continues to be our favorite restaurant at Encore! My fiance and I went to Rare on New Years Eve Day at about 3:30 for a bite and a drink. The staff greeted us in their customary polite and friendly manner and we were seated at a clean, linen covered table with a good distance from any other diners. Our waiter was there immediately with the menus and water, and took our order soon after that. We chose 3 appetizers and 2 drinks. As soon as he went to put in the order we had a plate of their amazing warm herbed bread and butter delivered, as well as a chef's special tasting. The tasting was wonderful and the bread was delicious, as usual! Our 3 apps arrived soon after. We had the crab cake, the shrimp cocktail, and a salad, of which name is escaping me. The crab cake is a no brainer. It's all crab, less 'cake' which I love. I cant stand crab cakes that are all Ritz crackers and this is not! The shrimp were HUGE and I think there were 5 and we may have left one on the platter. Bad move but we were getting full! And the salad was very good and had a wonderful dressing. All in all, once again, we were over the moon with the service, food, cleanliness, drinks, etc. This is a 5 star restaurant. And well deserved. Also, I think it is fair to give a nod to our favorite staff: Dom, Steven, Michael, Raphael, and Malik. All the staff are great but those fellows stand out to us. And as I stated, they are open for business during this time, and I would recommend getting a reservation.

Recent Visit 2/21: We went to Rare for dinner this past weekend and once again, we were over the moon with the food and the service. We (my husband and I) both love seafood and steak so we didn't know what way we were going. We ended up with the 'Petite" seafood tower and it was divine! It had oysters and littlenecks, lobster, tuna tartar, and huge shrimp. It was REALLY good and a lot of food. We also got a Caesar salad for him and I got the Baby Iceberg. I have had it before and I love the thick cut of warm bacon on top...so good. In addition to the items we ordered last night, I am mentioning items that we had last weekend as well. I forgot to do it and it is worth putting this out there. Get the side if fries! They are crispy on the outside and like an amazing mashed potato on the inside! And the side of Brussel Sprouts. They are grilled, and I don't know what they do but they have a sweet bacon flavor. Amazing! And last but not least is our go to favorite, which is the Chesapeake Bay Crab Cake. ALL CRAB, barely any filler, in this wonderful sauce.