Bricks — Restaurant in Reno

To preface this, my wife and i only eat out once or twice a year and we are both steak lovers so our choices tend to be steakhouses. I had never heard of Bricks, but the wife found it on google, so we decised to give it a shot.

To begin; parking was a bit confusing, but once i found the right turn in it was fine. The place was clean. I know that seems like a given, but my last steakhouse i went to was filthy. The bathroom, entry area and dining area were very well maintained. I even went over the top and checked the window for dust and nothing, this was an amazing thing for me.

Our waitress was attentive, knowledgeable and personable. She made recommendations and responded to questions with a smile that just made you feel at home. While she was attending to orders and other tables, a gentleman would come around checking our beverages and removing plates or bringing more bread. The staff here are on point.

Our appetizer, a baked mushroom cap dish was both well presented and something i hadn't had before. Not my cup of tea, but the missus adored them. The bread was warm, fresh and plentiful. At no point did i think i should save the last piece because i always knew more would arrive, something i dont experience too often.

For our dinners, i am a filet man, so i judge all steakhouses on how well their filet is. They did not disappoint, cooked to a perfect medium rare, the texture melted in your mouth. The creamy mashed potatoes served with it were delectable, soft and garlicky. The missus ordered their special, elk chops, an experience to say the least as we have never had elk. At first i thought it was under done with as red as the meat was, but once you took a bite the flavor hit you, texturally it was a bit tougher than my filet however once it hit your tongue you realize that the redness was perfectly cooked, both tender and seasoned well.

As for the price, we did end up spending over $100 per person, but that included the wine, appetizer and dessert so i didnt mind the cost and felt it was comparable to other restaurants in the steakhouse category.

All in all, Bricks has a well earned reputation. The courteous nature of the staff, on top of an amazing chef made this experience one to remember. I will definantly eat here again and highly recommend you...

Really nice ambiance. We were greeted warmly when we arrived and seated at the exact table my friends had requested. My veal piccata was delicious, though the shape of the veal was so uniform it made me wonder a bit about whether it was actually fresh - however it was very good, so I suppose it doesn't matter. It was served with pappardelle pasta - not my preference, but tasty. My sister had the filet mignon which was perfectly medium rare and served with delicious mashed potatoes and a nice combo of veggies, well seasoned. He husband had the lobster tail with the pappardelle pasta and veggies. He said it was good, but maybe not $75 worth of good. He's not fond of spending a lot on dinner out and had to be talked into the lobster because it was a birthday treat. Our Caesar salads were fine but nothing special other than it was nice that anchovies were offered. The sourdough bread was fresh and delicious and it was nice to have it served with more than adequate individual butter. The Baked Alaska was good, rather a small portion - cut out of a large dessert, not a traditional Baked Alaska - and my brother-in-law noted the price had doubled since the last time. My brownie and peanut butter ice cream were delicious - I really liked the thin layer of dark chocolate icing on the brownie. Again a fairly small portion, but just right for one person in my opinion. I would probably give the restaurant 4.5 stars, but our waitress was a bit of a turn off. We are gray haired and we were dining early, and we felt we kind of got labeled in her mind as those "old people." Yes, we're older, but we still are interesting people and like to have fun and enjoy a nice meal. We felt a bit talked down to and humored. But overall, I would definitely go back. There were quite a few other items in the menu that I'd like to try and the overall...

So I celebrated my 30th bday at Bricks with my husband and 2 friends (total of 4ppl). The food was alright and the atmosphere was nice but I definitely felt a weird feeling being there primarily from the waiters. When the bill arrived I noticed an 18% gratuity added into the bill for a dinner of just 4. I am aware that gratuity is at the discretion of the restaurant but the general rule for automatic gratuity is a party of 6 or more ppl. So to me this didn’t sit right. I asked them about this over the phone prior to making a reservation and that was not disclosed to me. A 👩‍🦳friend of mine also mentioned that they only added gratuity for her with 6 ppl when she went with her family. So being a group of 4 people of color, it just did not sit right with me. I want to hope it had nothing to do with that. I just wish the restaurant were more transparent and open about their gratuity so that it doesn’t appear as if they’re being selective or prejudice. My husband is normally a heavy tipper and our meal came up to approx. $500 but after this event, I was completely turned off and quite frankly disappointed. Just a recommendation/feedback for the owner, kindly be more transparent about your gratuity policy prior to serving or on your website (which is not currently available). That will help prevent uncomfortable...