Black Angus Steakhouse — Restaurant in Santa Ana

My wife and I went tonight. We got the Prime Rib and two lobster tails meal. It was big enough to share! We got drinks and a dessert. I'll start with the meal. The prime rib was good. It was tender and cooked perfectly. I'm a fan of strong horseradish so I got some of it straight. It was great! It had a good burn! Those who like horseradish will understand. It's not the strongest I've had but it did the job! The lobster tails were perfect as well. They were cooked just right and with the butter it was perfect. Now I know people may disagree with me but I'm a fries kind of guy and not so much into baked potatoes so I went with fries. They were great as well. I didn't even have ketchup with them. I just enjoyed them with the rest of my meal. I got the Hawaiian Avalanche which was a kind of fruit smoothie with whipped cream and a cherry on top. It was also amazing! I felt like I was back in Hawaii. It might sound like a strange pairing but it worked so well with the meal! My wife got a raspberry strawberry lemonade and it was also pretty good. I prefer less sugary lemonade in general but I knew what to expect so if you like sweet lemonade then this is definitely for you. Finally we got the chocolate chip cowboy cookie for dessert. It's basically a pan with a big chocolate chip cookie in it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top. It's smaller than a pizzokie which is obviously what this is copying. I love a good pizzokie from BJ's and this wasn't quite that but it was still good. It had softness to the center with crispy edges. The ice cream scoop was a bit smaller than what you'd get at BJ's but I'd say it was proportional to the cookie. Overall it was a great meal and I'd recommend trying these dishes if you haven't! Our waitress was attentive and helpful. She let us try a sample of the lemonade before we got it as we weren't sure if it was something my wife would like. We really appreciated that and we liked the lemonade so much that we ordered it. Even though it was busy, we had put in a reservation earlier so we got seated quickly. They even were able to seat us in a tall walled booth that was a bit more secluded, which was nice. It was a...

My +1 and I received a coupon in the mail for a campfire feast special, so we decided to check the place out. It had been years since either of us had been to a Black Angus steakhouse, and never to this one. We decided to make a Saturday night dinner reservation, which was a good idea because the place was packed.

Parking was terrible. The lot is way too small, and after circling the lot a few times (with several other cars doing the same) we decided to ignore the "Private Parking" signs in the nearly-empty parking lot right next to it. Fortunately, our car was still there when we got back.

Inside, it felt like we got transported somewhere in the Midwest. From top to bottom, the place was covered in wood with pictures of cowboys and rodeos covering the walls. It was pretty rustic and neat. Despite having reservations and getting there 10 minutes early, we waited 20 minutes after our time for getting a table. I overheard one employee telling a server who had just clocked out to hurry up and leave before management asked her to stay.

When we were seated, the waitress took out fun orders right away. She returned shortly with water and bread, but the bar was backed up so our other drinks took about 10-15 minutes.

Our campfire meal special included appetizers, so we opted for the sampler. It was a lot of food! We really liked the zucchini and potato skins.

I ordered a New York strip, which was tender and delicious. My +1 ordered prime rib, which was also pretty tender and juicy. I ordered coleslaw and macaroni and cheese for sides, which I thought were bland. My +1's loaded baked potato and broccoli sides came home with us because she was full. Dessert was a big chocolate chip cookie and ice cream, which was delicious.

Overall, I had a great time, and if not for the fact that it was so busy I probably would have...

In a word: disappointing. My mom and I came to Black Angus with high hopes, as they are an establishment toting 60 years in the industry. We made reservations two weeks prior for Valentine’s Day for a mother-daughter date. When we arrived, we checked in and were told they were behind on reservations and it would be a 20 minute wait. It’s fine, 20 minutes isn’t terrible. We checked after 20 minutes had passed and were told it would be another 20 minutes. This time, they were accurate. As we continued to wait in the overflowing lobby for 40 minutes, other families and couples experiencing the same delays began leaving one by one. But, my mom and I were determined and stuck it out.

When we were seated, my mom ordered a 6 oz. filet mignon with a baked potato. I was feeling fancy and ordered their steak & sea combo of prime rib and lobster tails. Her 6 oz. filet was 80% fat and gristle, bordering on inedible. My lobster was over-cooked, making it dense and tough. I have ordered prime rib a few times in the past and while I expect prime rib to come with some fat, I probably had 3 or 4 oz. of fat which was pretty hefty. I overlooked it, though, as I was still able to eat the rest—but the combo was still very disappointing given the price. The only redeeming factor for either meal was the potato-based side dishes and they’re the only reason I didn’t give a one star review.

We couldn’t even mention anything to our waitstaff because once our food was set down, we didn’t see her again for nearly 30 minutes. I know it’s busy, but a small check-in somewhere in there would have been nice. By the point she came to collect our plates, we were just ready to leave. We will not be returning, and now we are out a hefty chunk of money for a much less than...