Sophia Steak Lake Forest — Restaurant in Lake Forest

Wednesday (1/25) evening I took my husband to Sophia’s Steak in the Lake Forest location to celebrate his birthday. We like to plan unique dinners for each other on special occasions. Secretly we find a new location and surprise the location upon arrival. I knew I needed a steak house for my Ed. Sophia’s Steak moved into a previous restaurant we loved. The remodeling is so stunning, cozy lighting, beautiful linens and several seating options.

We ordered Double Cut Bacon and Yellowfin Tuna Tartare for appetizers and they were so delicious. We shared a Bill’s Classic Caesar Salad with anchovies. The salad was a favorite of the evening, crisp, cold, fresh garlic and parmesan. Next time I will order the full Caesar for myself! Ed ordered the 10oz Prime Flat Iron Steak medium-rare with Roasted Mushrooms. He is a purist with french fries so he was leery of the Seasoned Steak Fries. Our waitress, Isabella, asked the chef for a sample. Wow, they were perfection, crisp on the outside and very tender potato inside. The salt, pepper and onion powder were very light and to Ed’s satisfaction! I ordered the 8 oz Black Angus Filet medium-rare with the Maitre D’Butter (more garlic) and the Crispy Potato Hash (3D shaped wedges of crispy edges and tender shredded potato inside.) If you love the crispy pieces of hash browns you will love this side dish. Our steaks were prepared to perfection. With every course we were given new flatware and a very attentive server. He kept my glass of water full and I drink a lot of water!

Our dinner was finished with two decaf cappuccinos and the most delectable chocolate cake with silky fudge frosting adorned with a candle. We usually don’t finish a dessert, but we savored the whole slice. We highly recommend Sofia’s Steak and we will be returning. Isabella was extremely knowledgeable and delightful; she made our evening very special. Our compliments to the chef(s).

I would like to see an upgrade in the...

First of many phenomenal dinners.

I'll start by saying I've gotten really particular about dining out. To be impressed, the food has to be so good I wake up the next day still thinking about it, the service has to seamless, and I want to ambience to be just so.

Sophia succeeds on all 3 counts.

Food: Sophia manages to have steak house classics with enough unexpected options so no one is bored. We started with beef carpaccio and tuna tartar before moving onto mushroom soup and a wedge salad. The tuna melted in my mouth and the lardons on the wedge salad were sublime.

For our mains I couldn't resist the scallops with risotto, the Tuesday special. Whoa. What a treat.

Service: Our server, Fernando, was attentive and knowledgeable and paced our meal perfectly. The rest of the staff moves fluidly and despite the fact that the restaurant completely filled while we were there, we were taken care of the whole time-- right through coffee and desserts, because who says no to chocolate cake and key lime custard?!

**Worth noting- my husband went to culinary school in Ireland and worked in France and Switzerland. He will not stop talking about the chocolate cake, so hats off to the pastry chef!

Ambience: Loved the attention to detail in terms of noise control, such as clever acoustic panels and drapes(I sound like a real curmudgeon but I do like to hear my friends/family) and the layout of booths & tables.

The artwork on the walls is varied and feels like it's someone's personal collection which adds to the convivial (aka not stuffy) vibe.

I didn't drink (gasp) because I was driving. I'm taking Uber next time so I can try some of the wines- the list was great and it was hard to not indulge.

Seriously a delightful evening and I'm already thinking about what I'll...

In looking for a great local steak house with an amazing experience to celebrate our 22nd Wedding Anniversary, Sophia Steak was recommended by a friend/restaurateur.

The booking process through Resy was simple.

We arrived about 20 minutes before our 6PM reservation on a Saturday night and staff pleasantly greeted us and immediately wished us a Happy Anniversary.

Upon being seated, our server (Jana S) also immediately wished us a happy anniversary and offered to bring some bubbly to the table to celebrate.

We started the evening with a 2018 Chateau St Georges Saint Emilion and some amazing Tiger Shrimp for the table. The wine was outstanding to start the evening and the appetizer was incredible.

For dinner the group moved to a Marengo Barolo and ordered Roasted Chicken; Filet; Flat Iron & the Tomahawk for 2 along with various salads and sides. The meal was brought out with great style and table served together. My wife had the chicken and was extremely pleased. Our friend had the Flat Iron which I think is difficult to cook, but done perfectly with great flavor. As for the Tomahawk for 2, I split that with my son and was amazed. Pre cut by chef and plated with the bone, béarnaise sauce and home made steak sauce it was cooked to perfection at medium rare. The fat left an amazing buttery taste throughout. Really can’t say enough about the tomahawk.

For dessert, Sophia’s treated us to a Triple Chocolate Mousse Cake for our anniversary which was outstanding.

The environment, the staff, the service, the food, ALL OUTSTANDING. Will definitely go back to Sophia Steak, and very eager to try some of their other restaurants around the area.

Thanks to Jim L for the recommendation. Wow,...