Steak 954 — Restaurant in Fort Lauderdale

UPDATE 25-March-2025

After speaking with the Director of Operations, my guest and I felt heard. Peter was great, and I am glad we were able to connect regarding this visit. Peter and I both agreed the situation could have been handled differently while we were at the restauraunt, but what really impressed me, was his efforts to not only listen to our concerns, but Peter then went above and beyond to make things right. In addition, Peter has invited us back to Steak 954 for a future visit, and we will give Steak 954 another try in the very near future, on my next trip to Ft. Lauderdale.

This was not the Stephen Starr experience.

I frequently visit Starr Restaurants in Philadelphia for 20+ years. From Jones & El Rey to Parc & Barclay Prime. When in other cities the consistency and great service is always outstanding, including Le Diplomat in DC, and Makoto in Miami. With Starr, I know the food and service will be amazing.

Sadly, this was not the case at Steak954 in Ft Lauderdale.

The service was great. Our waiter was attentive and thoughtful.

The food, however, was what I would expect from a fast food chain.

Inedible.

Ceasar Salad – old romaine lettuce and a super small portion

Whipped Potatoes – Cold, Old, Super Starchy and had the consistency of boxed mashed potatoes that you “just add water”. We couldn’t eat it

Bacon Mac & Cheese – Sour taste, minimal bacon. We couldn’t eat it.

Filet – OVER salted to the point our mouths burned. Burnt on the outside (ordered medium) , it was so bad we cut the top and bottom off of the steak just so we had something to eat.

Horseradish Crème Fraiche – watery, no kick, tasted more like ranch dressing. Served in a mini gravy boat?? Thankfully the waiter was thoughtful and brought me horseradish on the side.

We expressed our displeasure with our meal and the waiter sent a manager over.

The manager started off by asking us about our meal. But his remedies just fell flat. He offered us a gift card to come back. We said ok, but the gift card never came.

He provided us with generic business card, with his info written on it.

To make things worse, the manager began to only address my friend whom I brought, because my friend mentioned he owns 2 restaurants. I was then ignored for the rest of the conversation, only adding to the poor handling and experience.

One steak was removed from our check, even though we ate nothing as you can see in the photos. Sidenote, I was able to take these pictures because after we complained, the plates were left on our table until we left.

Overall, I will continue to enjoy Starr Restaurants both in my hometown of Philly, and elsewhere, but this experience at Steak954 has seriously done a disservice to the Starr Brand, and it is my hope, that Stephen spends some time there for quality control checks and service standards.

Lastly, I waited a week to post this review, in hopes we would hear from a manager,...

So if you are expecting an upscale dining experience don't hold your breath. If you enjoy being nickled and dimed well your in luck. So let's start with arriving on time for reservation. We did that but only seated a half hour later. When the waiter arrived after us sitting at table for approximately 10 minutes without being greeted he was actually very pleasant but seemingly overwhelmed. I am going to guess he was newer not properly trained but trying his best. So he offers us a champagne toast to celebrate our anniversary very nice right... Not so much when check arrives it stated complementary toast was $2.00 each. Can't make this stuff up... Gets better they tell you to be sure to have your parking validated only for the restaurant to apply a $10.00 charge for parking. Not that the $14.00 is a big deal but why would this even be a thing. So solely on principle I shared with the server I was confused why to validate parking was $10.00, he said this is all new to him and others questioned it and he sent a manager over to our table. The manager was in my opinion smug. You know when someone is fake smiling but is obviously annoyed that he had to talk to a guest. That was my opinion of his demeanor. He arrives at our table with fake smile does not attempt the minimum pleasantries asking about meal, acknowledgement we were celebrating an occasional, nope that did not happen... In regards to server again very nice young man seemingly trying very hard but the only waiter who seemed to have no partner and only received random help from others. No bread brought to the table until my 2nd request. Appetizer arrives and guess what no utensils to eat with. No major issues but a combined lack of training and lack of support. To be fair the saving grace was the food overall was good, but past that not much good to share. That said my wife and I enjoy the occasional upscale dining experience and decided to try someplace new vs one of our traditional visits at Ruth Chris (Boca Raton location) which handsdown in my opinion is head and shoulders above Steak 954 as it relates to an upscale...

High end steakhouses can be a bit hit-or-miss so I don't often patronize them. I'm glad to say this one was in the "hit" category and definitely delivered an exceptional meal.

Our group were walk-ins during the height of spring break, but figured we'd be OK as this isn't a casual place. The restaurant is located in the "W" facing the beach, and while you can get beautiful views outdoors of the water we opted for a more comfortable indoor table. The decor is high-end with a beautiful jellyfish aquarium dominating the entry/dining area.

We were able to get seated quickly and the staff was very friendly and professional. The entrees are ala-carte so you'll want to select some sides to go with your meal. We ordered some french onion soup as appetizers along with asparagus, mushrooms, and fries as our sides.

Most of the group ordered the filets, with one adventurous person getting the tar-tar steak salad, while I decided on the Wagyu rib-eye end-cap. The prices are what you'd expect for the location and type of place (i.e. expensive) so I ordered with some high expectations.

The filets were very good, and the tar-tar steak was decent, but definitely spring for the Wagyu (I highly recommend the end-cap) as we all agreed it was by far the best. I'm the only one that finished my french onion soup but I thought it was very good. The asparagus was excellent, but I can't recommend the mushrooms or fries as we left most of them alone.

To expand on the steaks, they were cooked perfectly, with an amazing crust of seasoning. The big difference with the Wagyu Ribeye is that it has a lot more fat, and therefore flavor, but if you like the leaner cuts by all means go for the filet. But the wagyu was probably more tender and just delicious overall. I guess the highest compliment I can give them is that the steak was better than I usually make at home, and I love the steaks I make. Highly...