The Western Reserve — Restaurant in Muskegon

Went here to have a solid steak meal and was not disappointed. I was sad they didn't have their full menu (there was a convention in town that they'd created a limited menu for) but that didn't diminish the quality or flavor.

Our waitress was really friendly and helpful (and patient since it took us forever to decide because we also took a look at their Moderately numbered drink menu as well).

I ended up getting a steak (the no frills one for about $18) with garlic mashed potatoes and a garden salad.

The salad had a good mix of greens but I wish they had more than just parm and cherry tomatoes. But the ranch tasted in house made and was flavorful and thick.

I ordered the steak medium done and it was perfect. Slightly rare in the middle and very juicy. The whole steak was edible, no super tough fat or anything and it was super flavorful. I barely used steak sauce (which is rare for me) and just about died of pleasure from the mashed potatoes.

If you like strong garlic flavor and slightly chunky mashed potatoes then this is right up your ally for a side dish.

And last but not least: the atmosphere. Steakhouse's that were built in the 90s and earlier 00's tend to be enclosed and darker (especially at night) and try to have that rustic feel but usually just feel greasy and unclean to me. This place was not that. It's very clear they had a higher end feel in mind but wanted to keep the rustic vibe in the design. The ceiling is at least 2 stories up, maybe 2 and a half? The windows are huge. But the touches, when you close, have that rustic touch. The floors are wood, they're bar is saloon style, complete with the amazing wood craftsmen you think of when you think of the speak easy's of the early 1900s. Their waiting area has a giant fire Billow for a table. The front desk is also very early 1900s style with thick handsomely carved wood.

The only thing stopping me from coming more often are the prices. Though well deserved, I unfortunately need to eat more than once a week lol.

Our bill equated to about $25/ person plus tip but we also got cheaper stuff and no alcoholic beverages (even though they were hella tempting).

10/10 would...

I enjoyed most of my meal but it was very underwhelming. I love red meat so I usually will get some enjoyment. Basically it's overpriced. I know Ruth Chris is a little more expensive but it's infinitely better. I got a ribeye for over $50 at Western Reserve. This was literally the same steak as I would buy at Costco and throw on the grill with the exact same taste. They don't even offer a béarnaise sauce to assist with their very average tasting meat. For the people that have been to a good steakhouse, the meat will melt in your mouth. Also, the caesar salad was horrible. The croutons were small and the lettuce chopped up into tiny pieces. No anchovies and if they used Romaine, it was not good romaine (green and crunchy). Looked like iceberg in my opinion. The "garlic" mashed potatoes were only good because they were loaded with butter. Did not taste any garlic. Again, I can duplicate this for a third of the price. This place is new but I don't see it being here very long. They are trying to go for an upscale vibe but their food is...

I came here 09/18/25, arrived and it didn't appear to be too busy. The booth we sat at had direct sight line to kitchen window pass through/heat lamps. Our female server didn't smile once. She was slow to approach and slow service. We were there 40 min and still didn't have our food. We ordered 2 burgers, 1 shrimp/grits, 1 salad. I could see our order ready " under the heat lamps " and the server was standing there waiting on something. It sat there for about 15 min and when we got our food the fries were cold. She didn't check in with us to let us know about the food or to bring it out to us. The shrimp/grits was the appetizer that we could've been eating but she didn't bring it out until she finally brought out the food. VERY poor service! And she didn't smile or engage with us. I had to ask another server to get ours for our check. Which was $91.00 That strip of muskegon had several other places to go eat. I would not recommend this place and would suggest going elsewhere. This was the 2nd time here, the first time was...