Outback Steakhouse — Restaurant in Middletown Township

I'll admit, we don't eat at Outback Steakhouse very often. It's not that it's a bad steakhouse -- it's just not a good one. It's a franchise -- a fast-food version of what a good steakhouse should be.

We were reminded of all that as we visited the Middletown location last evening. We arrived early for dinner knowing how crowded this place can get (we pass it all the time), and used the waiting list option which worked well, though unnecessary for our 4 pm arrival.

We started with a bloomin onion, which I quietly protested but my girlfriend wanted to try. After she ordered it, I warned her that it was highly unhealthy which was quite evident once we started eating it. So much grease on the plate along with an overload of sodium. We ate a quarter of it before pushing it aside, realizing this was not edible worthy.

Next, we both received sirloin steak combinations. Mine came with the Alice Springs Chicken, and my girlfriend's steak came with coconut shrimp. We both also opted for a loaded potato on the side. The steak was decent. Everything else tasted way too salty...

...and this is the problem with Outback. Everything is bathed in salt. Even the loaded potato is coated in salt. It's the first thing I taste when I bite into my chicken as well as my girlfriend's coconut shrimp.

I can't specifically blame this location for the quality of the food -- it's indicative of the franchise. However, as we loaded up on sodium while listening to the screaming kids who were placed in the booth behind us, I felt that perhaps next time I'll spend more money to eat at a proper steakhouse that cares about properly seasoning their food rather than catering to the masses.

The service was good. We were warmly greeted as we walked in and our waitress was very nice. Our bill came to a little over $80 for both our meals and sodas, which was less than half the price we would have paid at a...

If I could give no stars I would. I myself am a food manager and the way that management (Samantha) treats the customers here is absolutely disgusting. I got my food and the steak was no good and smelled like feet and was slimy and obviously way out of code. I sent it back and said no thank you for anything else as I was disgusted already. And the waitress said I will have the manager take it off. By the way I wanna add the waitress was actually amazing she was the only good thing there. So no entrées were consumed, as we did not any longer want any of this old food. We only ate the soups, the front of the house manager ignored us the whole time walking through the whole restaurant never once came over saying sorry or introducing herself after such a big mess up, I then tried to find her and she kept walking away. So I decided after I left the restaurant to call her and ask her as one food manager to another why would she not come to my table or acknowledge me. And she should have comp the food as I would do for any customer at my store she made us pay for the soups. And all she can say to me was I took the meal off for you. And I said yeah I’d would hope it was food out of code. Then she follows up with a ok and that’s it not even I’m so sorry about that or anything I then told her she needs customer training because this is not how you handle serving rotten food to a customer she says I’m sorry you feel that way and ok… I am appalled with this type of manager to run a food service. A customer safety and hard earned money should be a priority. Sad sad sad service and I will definitely never return or let friends and family...

This used to be one of my favorite places to go for a great meal. We haven't been in a while because what used to be a unique menu has become just like every other chain restaurant with little to set it apart. That's not a knock on how good the food is, just a comment on how bland the menu has become.

We decided to give Outback another try recently and we were disappointed.

We started off with the Blooming Onion/Cheese Fries combination and the fries were OK but the onion was overcooked and not very fresh.

The bread and salads that came with our food were one of the best parts of the meal. The fresh bread was delicious and the salads were fresh as always.

Our steaks were well cooked and tasty but when you charge $23 for prime rib you need to have larger portions. I understand beef is expensive but this was not worth it. In addition the anemic side of mashed potatoes was almost an insult for the price of the meal.

Our server was friendly and took care of all of our needs throughout our meal. The service here has always been great.

I do love a good steak and in that respect I was satisfied. Unfortunately, Outback's prices have gone up while their portions have gotten smaller. This is a problem because there are plenty of other places that serve steak just as good, have better menus and...