Outback Steakhouse — Restaurant in Inver Grove Heights

It makes me really happy to finally give another good review of a restaurant! I haven't had very good luck lately...but that changed walking into Outback Steakhouse! For those visiting who haven't been here in a while, the appetizer portions have been changed. You now get more for your money! They are quite large, so think carefully about how many you get when ordering. Our server was Amanda, and she was spectacular! Their Sprite has correct mix ratios, and was crisp and clean tasting, so the machine is well maintained. For appetizers we had Aussie Cheese Fries and Sydney Shrooms. Both were excellent in flavor freshness and texture! Also ordered was a House and a Caesar salad, again fresh and delicious! For the main dish a seasoned and seared a 15oz Ribeye steak (medium rare), and fries (had I known that portion sizes for appetizers had changed I would not have ordered fries as a side). The steak was a little bit on the salty side, but nothing less than delicious and very tender. It is the best steak I have eaten in quite some time. My partner had Queensland Chicken and Shrimp Pasta. Because I can't eat the pasta, I only have her notes to go by. It was a proper temperature, the chicken was well seasoned and tasted quite good. Everything seemed fresh, and her only complaint was that the noodles would have been better if there was a bit more sauce. For dessert we had the New York Style Cheesecake. It was one of the best we have had in the area, and it was large enough to share. We will definitely...

Update: I came back. What a difference, my Filet was perfect as were the sides. But what really got me was the service, probably the best I have had. Geaneen was a super star, as was the rest of the support team. I can only say THANK YOU. I will be back. Service was sub par, almost 10 minutes before server walks up and says I can finally take your order. I ordered water, and soup and salad. Asked if wanted both at once and I indicated didn't matter. 3 minutes water shows up, 10 bowl of soup shows up then another almost 10 a salad shows up. Asked for a bowl of Potato soup. about 8 minutes later another bow; shows up. In the meantime, another patron shows up. Server walks right up and introduces herself, took his drink order and was back 2 min later with Drink. he orders and she says would you like some bread while you wait. He gets his bread in less than a minute, and as I am finishing up I am now asked if i would like some bread. Soups were ok, for price good. Salad was as asked for. Your Tip reflected my service.

Need to mention it looked like there was maybe 2 other tables in the whole place.

Well 7 months later in the pandemic Outback doesn't want to address my visit. I guess it matches the service I received, they don't care. ...

One of my favorite chains. The food is always delicious (the specials are always creative and fantastic), reasonably priced ( even for things like steak and lobster) and the service is excellent. Every time we visit, we're treated with great respect and the staff seem like they genuinely enjoy working there. Any order can be greatly customized, and if you want a particular sauce that doesn't come standard with the meal, you merely request it, and will bring it to you for free. Regardless of what you order, hot, fresh bread ( and butter) is promptly brought out to your table ( with more available free with your order if you so desire). The atmosphere is what you would expect from casual dining, with pop music in the background, and often sports or local news on the TV. Various decorations from Australian culture around the restaurant complete the theme. The place is always a very clean, from the dishes to the bathrooms, I've never had any problems with the appearance or cleanliness of it. They get huge props from me for having military/veterans' discount available. Make sure to ask about and sign up for the VIP discount program, as the discount is incredibly easy in sign up for, definitely worth it and very much adds up...