The Narrows Steakhouse — Restaurant in McCall

I'm rating this mid stream for a couple reasons. The atmosphere was really nice though a little dark. Tables were nicely situated and the decor was very upscale. We were seated next to "the houses favorite room" which is a glass wine cellar that had more wine in it than my wife could drink in a year. Their storefront boasts 450+. The chairs are nice bucket seats on casters that don't roll very well at all. The wait staff were very friendly. We told them it was our first time and they were very helpful with explaining the menu and what was available. We ordered a cesar salad and lobster bisque as appetizers. Prior to appetizers the chef sent out a spoonful of bison tar-tar and it was delightful. The bisque was very nice, more to the tomato's side than the cream, which was tasty for me but some might find it a little acidic. Huge chunks of lobster that was perfectly cooked and I mean huge and you could almost have a chunk of lobster with each spoonful. On to what was supposed to be a salad. Overly large cubes of fried Munster along side full stems of Romain lettuce hearts, accompanied by three large flats of crispy fried Parmesan the size of a spatula each. There was literary no way to eat this "salad" as every bit of it was over sized. It has to be completely deconstructed to become a salad. If I wanted to my wife to make a salad she could have done that at home. Dressing from a bottle is disappointing but not every chef has the staff on hand to prepare everything from scratch so that can be overlooked. After the appetizer the chef sent out a spoonful of a delicious peach sorbet and that was refreshing and a nice pallet cleanser. We weren't starving so we decided to share the bison Wellington that comes served with "mashed" potatoes. First thing is it looked beautiful. Second was the cook on the bison was perfect and the seasoning was amazing. Absolutely delicious. I've never had a wellington so it was a real treat but inside the dough was raw at the bottom and the outside of the bottom almost scorched but the top and sides were flaky and perfect. Back to the "mash" this was very tasty for idaho gold flakes from the box. I'm no fool when it comes to potatoes and I know that flavor and texture from childhood. They might be able to pass it off as a puree but that was not a mash. The gravy was tasty but it's disappointing to say the least at those prices. Carrot spears were very nicely cooked to be right at the edge of crisp and were very tasty. For the price I would have expected The Narrows to be better about their food prep and freshness but the wait staff and the atmosphere were great. So I rate it in the middle of the road and based on that I...

I am writing this review in an effort to foster a change. I have eaten here many times. Not once has the experience been smooth. Now, the ambiance of this restaurant is unbelievable. The views are fantastic, roaring fireplace in the wintertime, great bar. The staff are nice and ready to help. However, the food is sooo disappointing. They have a very limited menu in all categories. Unfulfilling appetizers, except for the Pork Belly. As a Steakhouse, their "Steaks" are pitiful. The chef cannot get the temp right at all, ever! The cut of steak is terrible, very fatty, does not at all seem to be a prime cut AND has a lackluster flavor. As well as asking for all of the money! VERY EXPENSIVE! For meh food in all categories. I do not mind paying for a fine meal, but I expect a fine meal. Even the desert selection is awful. All kinds of weird selections and not one traditional desert or even something creatively fun. Some kind of European selection of ick. I always say that I will never go back, but I do because of the ambiance and the bar. It is fantastic. But I am always leaving irritated and feeling robbed for a 300 plus dollar meal. I mean the menu is just awful in its selection and a horrible representation of central Idaho. It is a foo-foo menu with exorbitant pricing. And it one of the worst and most expensive steakhouses I have ever been into.

UPDATE: I read that new management has been placed and the menu updated. I was excited to try them again, because truly this is a wonderful venue on several levels, including atmosphere, wait staff, location, bar stock and postcard quality views. The menu has in fact been updated to a much higher quality beef selection. HUGE improvement on the steak quality and cut. Tremendous gains on flavor, resulting in a nice top end steak. Their side selection was also improved, for example we ordered the twice baked potatoes, which were excellent. Also the dessert menu has changed, house made ice cream, and some other quality choices. My heart in this review is to effect positive change and give feedback for improvement, not to whine about missing perfection. This has a high price point therefore I have high expectations. Some minor complaints: They took away the house made croutons on the ceasar salad. Not a good move. Also the appetizer section is lame, you need at least one more protein choice in there. Everything else is well...

If I could give this very regrettable steakhouse negative stars I would!!!!

Firstly I'd like to say that I have been to this restaurant once before but after my last visit under no circumstance will this restaurant ever have a cent of my hard earned money again.

I went to this restaurant for a family dinner and its was one of the worst experiences I have ever had at a restaurant. Our waiter was Michael and he was utterly incompetent and rude.

In the three hours we were there we received bread five minutes before having our food come out....... Our table had 9 people and we got one measly bread basket with 6 little bread slices, thanks Michael!

The whole entire time Michael kept reaching over everyone's faces grabbing utensils that were unused because who knows why.

We sat there for almost an hour with everyones water glasses completely empty because Michael was probably to busy counting the utensils he collected from our table, taking pictures as trophies.

The first time I had went to this restaurant which was 2 days prior to this experience when we were done with our food our waiter took our plates and boxed up the remainder. He was very kind and tentative the whole time. When Michael was our waiter he handed us oversized boxes to put our food in. I personally do not care I boxed my own food but when every other waiter boxes up the food and Michael doesn't it makes you wonder if he disliked my family so decided to give unwelcoming and downright disgusting behavior to us the whole night.

When I received my steak that I had ordered medium rare it was severely undercooked and when I had try to get Michaels attention to tell him it was undercooked he ignored my every attempt. Later that night I got food poisoning from it, I had a upset stomach throughout the whole night and even threw up.

If I were to sum up the visit the 3000$ we spent could have been better spent at a fast food restaurant at least they have some customer service and...