Double Cut Steak House — Restaurant in Lake Delton

I was pleasantly surprised finding a higher end steakhouse in the middle of the Wisconsin Dells. The atmosphere was quiet, elegant, luxurious, and yet very welcoming at the same time. The service was nothing short of spectacular. The staff was very attentive and yet not hovering. Everyone was quite friendly and took time to stop and talk, and check to see if we needed anything. The menu had quite a bit of variety, with many appetizers, salads, soups, and of course an extensive assortment of carnivorous entrées from land and sea. The side dishes are quite large, with more than enough food for sharing among two or three people. The prices were as expected: expensive. Food portions were generous for the main entrées.

Our party of two adults and four hungry children ordered a lobster dinner, a 20 ounce prime rib dinner, 3 8-ounce beef tenderloin meals, one children’s chicken strips and french fries meal, five shrimp cocktails, garlic mashed potatoes side x 2, and an order of asparagus. The lobster was prepared broiled, and was cooked to perfection. The prime rib was served at perfect temperature, medium rare, and was delicious. I did not sample the children’s chicken strips but the portion size was good and the fries were tasty. I must say that I was slightly disappointed in the beef tenderloin preparation. The underlying cut of meat was perfect, however my personal preference is to have the exterior browned to a deep golden brown without blackening. On the one that I sampled the temperature was quite rare yet had been ordered medium rare, and the exterior crust had a slightly charred, carbonized flavor, not the perfect dark brown Maillard reaction that a steak lover dreams of.

There was no room left for desserts but the representative tray was appealing and with portion sizes designed for two diners.

Overall we all enjoyed our dining experience. I am not sure how often we would return, but this is primarily due to us being out of town guests at a family resort destination. The elegance and prices bespeak a more “special occasion” restaurant, not what we commonly seek on a family getaway.

UPDATE, January 2018 We returned to Double Cut during another trip to the Dells, again while staying at the Kalahari Resort. We were able to obtain reservations on a Friday Night within 60 minutes of our phone call, unexpected. Our party of 2 Adults and 2 kids sat at a nice semi-circular booth with plenty of room and we were greeted by our server almost immediately. On this occasion we ordered the Iced Shellfish Tower, an enormous platter of fresh seafood that left no one disappointed: large servings of King Crab, Oysters, 2 whole cold lobster tails, Large Shrimp, and fresh Crab meat. It was all delicious, including the fresh Bloody Mary mix for oyster shooters. Main dishes this trip included the Filet Mignon for my wife, and Prime Rib for myself and our two boys. The meat temperatures were true and accurate: medium rare with a warm red center. We ordered plenty of sides to share, and there was enough room for desert. We chose the Cheesecake, Chocolate Layer Cake, and Creme Brulee. This was an enjoyable meal and I was quite pleased with the service, enough to seek out the manager and tell him so. We have already planned our next trip to the Dells and Double Cut will be...

My family’s meal choices: Appetizers :escargot, truffle fries: escargot was wonderful and had what seemed to be some kind of puff pastry on the top of each one. Sauce was mild- not overwhelmingly garlicky like it can be elsewhere. Truffle fries were good. Only feedback was they were just a little soggy- but still delicious. Dinner: -dry aged bone in ribeye, absolutely the show stopper. Amazing- cooked to perfection, perfectly seasoned. Yes, this is the $100+ cut- it was worth every penny. I regret I did not order this. Happy my husband shared with me. -sea bass: this was my selection- it was just a little burnt on the edges. Dryer in those areas. I would have preferred if they were not charred. But the flavor was wonderful, it was a perfect portion. Would order again. -prime rib: this was interesting, as it was cut as if it was cooked after being cut. Meaning, the temp ordered was medium, but on the outside, it was not pink at all- inside it was. My son loved it, but he’s 13. He thought he was ordering ribs… so he didn’t know better. It did not look at all how I expected, but the kid ate every bite and swore it was the best thing since the invention of video games. -kid’s cheeseburger and fries: my little guy is a cheeseburger connoisseur. He said the burger was “freaking awesome” (he’s 8) and that’s high praise from him. I snuck a fry from his plate- those were perfect.

Sides: loaded potato (fabulous, cooked to perfection), bourbon mushrooms (these were more saucy than flavorful. Kind of in a salty, buttery brown gravy. Didn’t hate them, didn’t love them. They were fine.) Asparagus: perfectly cooked. Not limp. Lightly seasoned. Fabulous.

Dessert and drinks: Key lime pie: was TO DIE FOR. The crust/shell was thick and moist but not crumbly.

Mojitos: I saw they offered a flavored mojito on the menu and asked if they’d do regular mojitos. I lived in Miami for years, lived on traditional Cuban mojitos and I was surprised to learn that the bartender was Turkish! He made the best mojito I’ve had outside of Miami, or my own house. Very VERY proper mojito. Worth the $15 price.

Our server was Mallory. She was so wonderful and accommodating. She was attentive, pleasant, and patient. We never had to ask for anything, she was one step ahead. We had such a great time that we intended to go to dinner again the following day and even requested Mallory, but we had a last minute change of plans. I regret not going back!

The atmosphere is nice, understandably a little noisy (everyone’s got their kids) and I was surprised at the patron’s casual attire. Not an issue for me, just used to seeing steakhouses of this caliber requiring a sport coat. I’m sure my husband was grateful that I didn’t make him wear one! lol

For as busy as they were, there was no crazy wait for any food. Really- the service was impeccable. And despite my few trivial critiques, none of those things were enough to reduce my perception of the menu or the place. I would simply order something else because I think it was a preference issue, not a quality issue. It was worth every penny. Everyone got something they loved, and it was a rich experience.

Highly...

We visited this restaurant on two nights during our recent vacation to the Dells. My husband, myself, and our 4 y/o son had a varied experience. First off, the male host and both waiters that we had were very friendly, prompt, and informative. The pricing is appropriate for upscale dining. Has dimmed lighting, with decently spaced tables, booths, and open seating around fire pits. Now for the food: Short rib tacos - AMAZING (This was our favorite thing we ordered, both nights. Recommend ordering extra radish/jalepenos, as it really needed the crunch/bite). Calamari & Rock shrimp - Standard, nice light coating. Scallops & Tuna poke - Pretty good, nicely cooked; it was waaaaay too over-sauced though for presentation. Crabcakes - TERRIBLE. They were over-seasoned, over-cooked, and had a soured-heavy sauce. We didn't even eat one of the 3 that were served between us; which is very unusual. As we never waste food. Lamb Chops - Cooked a perfect mid-rare with great flavor, served with an abundance of onions; though we enjoyed that. (Strangely enough, our waiter said that the chef's temp are always way off, so he put the order in as medium-well, but surely came out mid-rare as we requested. Unsure why he said there are many issues with requested temperatures of meats?) Quick Smoke Salmon - Wonderful! We ordered this off of our waiter's recommendation, and it did not disappoint. Came in a smoke cover to the table; was easily our favorite entree. Charcoal Prime-Rib Sliders - These varied between garnished on the two nights we ordered them, but they were cooked medium, with pretty standard flavor; they were good for our 4 year old son, just removed the extra bun. Cheesy mashed potatoes - Meh... These are literally their garlic mashed potatoes with a slice of melted cheddar on top. Mac & cheese - Fair to dry. Broccoli - Standard. It was a nicely steamed 1/4 head of broccoli. Tender. Creme Brulee - This is my dessert of choice, a very good rendition, the hazlenut was far better than the vanilla; served with a variety of fruit. Citrus & Almond Mousse - The actual mousse was nice. However, the slivered almonds were wet & not crunchy, which took away from the dish. Unfortunately on Sunday (our 2nd visit) there was a male that had vomited in the men's bathroom, which my husband made the waiter aware of early in our meal. When he returned with our toddler son before we left about 90 mins later, the vomit was still not attended too (leaving a very sour smell in the restroom), and there had been a similar accident in the only other male stall creating a issue for our son who does not yet use the urinal. I would not expect this issue in this scale of restaurant. Otherwise, overall, it was a...