Walter's Steakhouse — Restaurant in Wilmington

This is one of the strange instances where I visit a number of times just to get a feel for the place. Walter's steakhouse is located in Little Italy and has wonderful reviews so instead of hitting one of the chain steakhouses, we opted to try here. It's also very close to us, so that was a bonus.

Our first visit was rather tenuous: in the time that we confirmed the appointment, we had a series of bad luck happen and thought we'd miss going altogether. When I called to let them know this, the hostesses response wasn't a late charge or punishment for short notice but rather "are you ok?" She then said that if we decided to come that there would be room for us. Glad we went after all! We were taking exceptional care of that evening and much of the same for our second visit. While I know that the main draw are those delicious prime rib steaks, I've been enjoying the salmon of the day specials and am happy to report that they do not skimp on the seafood! Every single bite had a piece of either salmon or shrimp. All very fresh!

Tonight was very special. The last time we were there, it was a 28th anniversary celebration. This time was a last hurrah before the wife starts chemotherapy and radiation tomorrow. She ordered the king size prime rib, and I got the seafood Tuscan pasta. Once again, outstanding quality meal. This one was HUGE shrimp and crab chunks with spinach in a blush sauce. Oh, and the appetizer? Bourbon meatballs? Get your own or else you will find yourselves fighting for the last ones.

What was really nice was that the owner was was going around to everyone's tables to see if they were enjoying themselves. It was a great night with ambiance and amazing food. I'll concede that it's a bit pricey, but for beautiful memories, it's priceless. Oh, they have a nice bar, which has specials during the week, and price fixe meals on certain days.

Everything is recommended from my standpoint, so you can't go wrong and it's perfect if you want a Fred Flinstonian slab of cooked to order meat. Thank you to the owner and staff for making these visits possible and we will...

Walter's Steakhouse is not only very good, but consistently so. I've visited twice, and ended up ordering and enjoying the same meal both times.

To start, the atmosphere is a classic steakhouse vibe; it's not too formal, but formal enough. The interior seems well-maintained, and the booths are comfortable.

Service is excellent. Both times, the servers did a great job of making recommendations and answering my questions, as it seems like they know the menu very well. It seems like the waitstaff enjoy and think highly of the food served, so they can be passionate when they explain dishes. The first time I went, my partner and I lost track of time and were there past closing on a weeknight, and our server kept providing excellent service and didn't try to rush us or make us feel unwelcome.

The food, at least everything that I've tried, is excellent. Above and beyond excellent. Normally I'm fairly critical when it comes to food and steakhouse fare especially, and I couldn't find a single thing wrong or off-point. I had the Caesar salad to start, and everything was fresh and the dressing decent and tossed sufficiently. As an entree, I ordered the king-cut bone-in prime rib, and both times it was cooked perfectly to the medium-rare that I ordered, carved well, and seasoned well enough to complement the meat without overpowering it. Meat quality is excellent. The au jus is good enough, but I found their au poivre sauce to be extraordinarily good; I like to think that I make an excellent au poivre at home, but Walter's surpasses my own. I had the twice baked potato, and it was delicious without being excessively rich. I also tried the steak fries, and they are cooked correctly and not underdone as is common in the industry.

I have not tried wine there yet, but the wine list looks promising. Same with dessert.

And for as much praise as this is, even my leftover prime rib was decent when I reheated it in the microwave the next day; it was better than most prime ribs when they're served fresh.

Prices are very reasonable for what you get, and I'm looking forward to more visits...

2023-10-28 Update I haven't updated this in quite a while so here goes. We've been here quite a few times since my original review, and they have been consistently great every time. We have never had a bad meal here. The stuffed mushroom appetizer continues to be a hit, albeit a bit small. Three mushrooms, not particularly large. But very nice flavor. The filet mignon is always top notch. This most recent visit we added the caramelized onions and sauteed mushrooms which perfectly complimented the meat. We've also had in the past the Delmonico steak and the NY strip. All of which are delicious. Unlike my initial experience, the steaks have been cooked as ordered. If you haven't tried Walter's, you really should. If you have tried them, you should go back!

This was our first time here. Parking is difficult, the sign on the door says parking is available at the library on 8th St. For appetizers we had stuffed mushrooms and shrimp cocktail. The shrimp were firm, fresh, and nice sized. The mushrooms were stuffed with crabmeat. They were a bit small. Tasty but not exceptional. My filet mignon was remarkably tender. There was not much by way of seasoning, but that's ok because the meat spoke for itself. I recommend adding the side of skillet mushrooms which were delicious and complimented the steak wonderfully. Another in our party ordered the filet. She ordered medium well. When it first came out, it was medium rare at best. After sending it back, it came our medium. After sending it back a second time, it was medium well. I understand that filet usually isn't served medium well. But regardless, this is a steakhouse. It shouldn't take three tries to get it medium well. The third in our party ordered the prime rib. Very tender and tasty. As for dessert, the bananas foster were perfect and delicious. The creme brulee was also very good. Service was attentive and friendly. Overall, I...