Little Red Barn Steak House — Restaurant in San Antonio

😾 Bad review INCOMING ! I remember seeing great reviews for Little Red Barn Steakhouse here on local Fb groups, specifically for their chicken fried steaks - never been there before today. This ad came up on my fb stories and we decided to go today considering there was a special....figured perfect time to try them out. Now I'm filled with regret. Should've just gone to Aspen Creek Grill or even Texas Roadhouse for what we paid because the food and service wasnt good...

First of all, the chicken fried steak did NOT look like the picture on this ad...It didn't even fill a quarter of their small plate. I dont have pictures because I wasnt impressed and was hungry...It was WAY too small that even the server herself said "That is really small for me without me saying anything....I told her yeah, are they usually this size and she said yes so I just accepted it if that's how they are....So besides it being too small, it definitely lacked enough seasoning and it was chewy instead of tender.

Not done ! I picked baked potato for my side. They charge extra for cheese and for sour creme...that's fine....but I got a tiny tiny container with cheese and the same size one with sour creme....the thing was TINY like probably 1/4oz or so....WHAT?! So I asked our server for more cheese and she asked 1 or 2? I said 2 since i was given the option....so I see her chat with several other customers and/or coworkers and she NEVER BRINGS THE CHEESE...I finish my tiny steak and most of my potato because I was purposely picking at my potato so slow waiting on my cheese.....partner finally gets her attention and asks what about my cheese and she looks at me and my potato and says: "Would you like a new potato? It's not going to melt in that!" 😅 I really didn't but w/e, I got a NEW potato with 2 tiny things of cheese (she should've made it 3 if she was gonna bring a whole new potato because 3 or 4 cheese things there equal 1 regular bit of cheese at ANY OTHER RESTAURANT'S baked potato.....) and no sour creme ! I was just furious....ate some of it like that because I was hungry and didnt want to wait 15 more minutes for sour creme. Butter is fake by the way, didnt even touch it. It's the hydrogenated soybean oil as first ingredient instead of "cream" like normal butter. That's a minor complaint but adding it because I was mad about the steak and the portion size...

Okay - besides the steak and sour creme and cheese portions that were wayyy too small...For desert, I asked for the apple pie a la mode....they charge $1.50 extra for ice cream...that's fine....I only like my apple pie with ice cream not without. But I get it and the ice cream "scoop" looked like a mini cookie scooper kinda scoop....AT LEAST MAKE IT A FULL REGULAR ICE CREAM SCOOP FOR $1.50!!!! 😾😾😾

Also, no refills were brought until server offered baked potato because I guess she felt bad for making me wait forever for my cheese and forgetting. Partner never got his drink refilled and his chopped steak he also said was bland.

Rant over....will never go there again with this experience...It was pretty out of our way, too and only went because Ive read good things about it so writing this so others arent disappointed like we were. Do NOT go there !! 🤯😾😾😾 Slow service · Disappointing food · Small portions · Poor...

Let me start by saying, I LOVE STEAK! I'm very particular about my steak. Seasoning, preparation, how it's cooked, the whole 9 yards. Little Red Barn does steak right!

We walked in on a Wednesday night at 7pm. There was plenty of seating available even though they had a large group in one of the side rooms. We were immediately greeted with 2 delicious salads served in perfectly chilled metal bowls with our choice of dressing. My wife and I both chose the house dressing, "Green Goddess", and let me tell you it was amazing! I will say if you're one of those people that doesn't like cilantro you may not like it because it does taste like it has cilantro in it. I am one that LOVES cilantro so it was right up my alley.

My wife and I both had a half and half mix of sweet and unsweet tea. They brought an entire pitcher to the table and left it! You want to make me a happy man, you bring me an entire pitcher of whatever I'm drinking to the table and leave it there for me, you've hit God level server status in my eyes. 🙌 This tea was the perfect blend of southern sweet tea cut just right for my diabetic ass. I don't do it often but this was worth the splurge.

I ordered a porterhouse steak prepared medium rare with a side of steak fries. The steak was cooked perfectly seasoned just right and served on a metal plate. I didn't even need to cut into it to check it. I knew it was done right. The steak fries were nicely seasoned with a special blend of spices and were fried to perfection.

My wife ordered the skewers prepared medium well with a loaded baked potato. Her skewers were tender and delicious served with onion and bell pepper slices. The potato was cooked well and not overdone served with plenty of butter, sour cream, cheese, and bacon.

We both received freshly baked dinner rolls with our meal served with honey and butter. May I suggest opening one of the butter spread containers, filling it the rest of the way with honey and mix it together using your knife. This made a perfect honey butter spread for the hot and fresh dinner rolls.

For dessert we ordered a slice of their decadent cheesecake prepared by a local bakery daily. The waiter recommended their strawberry sauce to drizzle over the cheesecake and I must say it was the perfect addition.

The service was top notch and above and beyond!

Edit: I forgot to...

Never did I think the day would come when I would leave the worst review I have ever given regarding a locally owned restaurant that I would consider a staple in San Antonio. From working there while attending college in 1984 to it being my Dad's go-to steak place back in the 80s. But it has finally happened. This place has gone to SH!+. Raphael must be turning over in his grave or trying to bust out to fix his legacy. The daughters have turned this place into a joke. From adding a BAR to trying the whole Dance Hall Live Music thing and whatever other gimmick the girls tried just to keep people interested or to try and attract new customers.

Today, my wife and I went for a late lunch. Gone are the thick pewter salad bowls that kept your iceberg lettuce crisp and fresh, Club and Saltine crackers with your salad, and a full basket of rolls with your meal Instead, we got our salad in a tiny stainless steel mixing bowl about the size of a cup and one bread roll each. I asked our waitress for some more rolls, and she responded that they were .40 cents each. Wow, really??? Texas Roadhouse will bring you an entire basket of endless rolls with that sweet cinnamon butter. Our steak I could have cooked at home in a frying pan since they just used a flattop grill to cook theirs. No special seasonings added other than possibly season all salt. Maybe it is a sign of things to come, but unfortunately, this will be our last time driving completely across town for an overpriced mediocre meal that I can say WOW, I'm glad we came. I am all for supporting the home team local businesses, but I can't see this place moving forward much less, staying in business much longer against the chain steakhouses. For what I paid, I would much rather just go down the block to Saltgrass, Texas Roadhouse, or even Longhorn Steakhouse. Sorry Nancy, but you guys are no better than and dated like Hungry Farmer. There is nothing special about eating at the Little Red Barn anymore, especially for...