Where's the beef?

tmac9wr

tmac9wr

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czsz said:
Outback Steakhouse has seen sales decline for the past two years, Applebee?s sales have been down three years in a row and The Cheesecake Factory?s sales were off 8 percent last year, Perkins said. Applebee?s opened at the rear of the Prudential Center but closed after 18 months, he noted.

?If you?re planning to open a restaurant in Boston you need a celebrity chef, a killer concept like the Parish Caf? or the Rattlesnake Bar & Grill, or to be a recognized brand,? Perkins said.
Click to expand...

Actually, as the first paragraph shows, it's the "recognized brands" that are the failing ones...perhaps because people don't move into/visit the city to eat at suburban chain outlets?
Click to expand...

Maybe a new chain restaurant would get a good reception here...there's a restaurant called Texas de Brazil that's been growing recently in the US. I think they've got a total of 13 locations in the US, so it's not exactly a huge chain, but it's growing. I went to the one in Denver, and it's absolutely delicious. It's a different style of restaurant that I've ever been to and I think it's the type of place that could see some success in Boston.
 
^Ever feel like someone's tapping into your thoughts? On the walk from the garage to work this morning I was thinking about the Texas De Brazil in Aruba. My cousin and I liked it so much that we wanted to open something of the sort in Boston...drunk talk at the time, but with serious intentions. The cousin I was with has run a restaurant in town w/his father for the past 12 yrs. and has been contemplating a second place. Time has past since the trip, but for whatever reason I was running the thought through my mind just before I read your post...the race is on.
 
"Exclusive" chains that people actually do eat at in cities (Cheesecake Factory, P.F. Chang's) might be even worse than Chili's or the Olive Garden...in that they weaken the individual uniqueness of cities, and thrive on doing so.

I don't know if Texas de Brazil is one of those...in fact, I've been to Aruba but didn't see one there. What's it like.
 
Just to be clear; my thinking was for something along the lines of a Texas De Brazil, not a chain or franchise.
The one in Aruba was incredible b/c.. it was in Aruba. I went there unintentionally the first night I was there. We waited for our table in a wine bar that had a mariachi band with soft couches, love-seats and little tables. There were floor to ceiling windows that were open and big ceiling fans; it just had a real exotic feel to it. It was dark; deep burgundy colors and though I've never been, it reminded me of how I pictured Tia Juana as described in Seabiscuit. You got the feeling everything, everyone was for sale.

There is a buffet with different pasta salads, cheeses, olives, vegetables and the like. You fill your plate as you like and then there are servers walking around with skewers of lamb, beef, etc., and you get a card that is red on one side and green on the other. If you want more you simply leave the green side up, if not...the red.
It was all very good quality.
My girlfriend tells me that there is a similar place in Cambridge/Somerville.
 
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never been to a texas de brazil restaurant, but its my understanding that its a brazilian bbq/grill joint (meat on swords brought to your table)... of which there are plenty in the boston area.
 
"of which there are plenty in the boston area."
I've heard of one or two..where are the rest?
 
Greenfield is in Allston. Its on Brighton Ave going west before you cross Harvard Ave.

Ive never been.


Plug: if you want good Brazilian food for cheap, try Cafe Belo. Its a chain, with the biggest one also being in Allston. Its right after Harvard Ave on Brighton Ave and shares a parking lot with a large pharmacy

Theyre a buffet, and you pay for what you eat, by weight.

I never pay more than 10$ for a good amount of meat and extras.
 
...

okay, so maybe there aren't 'plenty', but a couple of years ago, there was one in allston, and at least two in cambridge... i dunno the names....
 
Aside from the ones jass mentioned, there's at least one or two more in Allston. Cafe Brazil or something?

Also, I'm pretty sure there's a popular place in Waltham, maybe even several.
 
There's a bunch on the South Shore/ South Coast as there is a heavy Portuguese Speaking/ Brazilian Population. Brazilian Grille, Adega, Cinderellas to name a few. Also, in the immediate area you forgot Valadras, Ponto de Encontro, and Midwest Grille- Churrascaria.

In anycase there's a good representation. I dislike chains as much as the next guy. as it is, Boston needs a GREAT non-chain steakhouse. If there's one that i don't know about, let me know, but after being in Lincoln, NE and Indianapolis, Indiana I am hooked.
 
^Midwest Grille is the one that I hear the most about; mixed reviews at best. If I were only to try two of them...forgetting the south shore places, which would you suggest?
 
Boston can't really compete with Midwestern cities' steakhouses; they have the obvious edge, being closer to the herds. This city's comparative advantage lies, and always will lie, in seafood.
 
Yeah, czsz- i agree to an extent, but it doesn't mean we can't do better than what we have. Las Vegas does alright with seafood and it's pretty far (although not too far) from the coast. And i feel that beef products travel better than seafood. I have no experience in the transport of perishable foods and am going purely on a hunch, but i bet Boston can do better than it is. New York has some fantastic steak houses and geographically it's not too far. Granted, it is New York, but i doubt Boston has reached it's potential in terms of steak houses.

Will Boston rival Indianapolis, Omaha or Denver for best steakhouse? No. But it can do a lot better and that's one culinary improvement I'd love to see here.

As far as those Brazilian places go, Midwest Grille is nice. Not perfect, but nice.

What does this have to do with Hynes? I don't know. But it's been on my mind for a while. Sorry, Vanshnook.
 
Re: Hynes renovation

We've got decent steakhouses, but I've never seen a tapas bar in Boston, apart from the Middle East, and that's the only one I know of.
 
Re: Hynes renovation

There is the BarLola in the basement of the Vendome on Comm Ave. Also one (I forget the name...it is ok) around the corner from the Stop and Shop in Allston/Brighton. Don't park at the supermarket or you'll get towed.
 
Re: Hynes renovation

Thanks for the hint, I'll check it out.
 
Re: Hynes renovation

We now have a tapas bar in Boston. The Estragon just opened at the corner of Harrison Avenue and East Brookline Street in the South End. Nice place too. They will have a small outdoor set up in a week or so as well.
 
Re: Hynes renovation

Where do you all live? It seems very few readers / commenters actually live in Boston.

There are three, maybe four tapas restaurants. Estragon and Toro in the South End and Tapeo on Newbury St, and another one I think, called Ruby's.
 
Re: Hynes renovation

Boston, but I guess I'm just not as deep into the tapas scene.
 
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