Restaurant Honesty - Big Surprise, this one

So I was at an Albuquerque restaurant last week, dining with friends who live there. A bit of an upscale place - for Albuquerque - and we are going to drink red wine. I see Prime Rib on the menu and, being somewhat conscientious about the beef I eat, I ask where it was from.

The waitress mentioned Harris Ranch, but said she would check for sure. I seriously considered ordering Harris Ranch - even if it wasn't truly prime, as Prime rib is almost never prime beef. When our waitress reappears, I get the one word answer I did not want to hear. Sysco.

Honesty is the best policy. I ordered Salmon and tipped her well.

[Jenise]

But where was the salmon from? Not the Rio Grande....

[Robin Garr]

Just for the record, "prime rib" has nothing to do with USDA prime graded beef. It's simply a commercial term, unregulated, for beef rib roast.

I'm one of those (apparently few) who have never cared for "Prime Rib". Seems there is so much variation in what that means in a restaurant, and what eventually comes out on the plate, that I've almost always studiously avoided it.

I often get the least of "beef" flavor out of what prime rib I've had. It's usually fairly unflavorable and dominated by a texturally soft and fatty/greasy flavor that has little to no resemblance to steak cuts.

That said, I admit that I haven't had any prime rib for a long time now.

(And Bernie, I would have been in sad shape had I been with you that night: I also rarely order salmon in restaurants, simply because most times the salmon has been put o the menu as a sorta standard 'fallback' fish item. It's actually fairly rare to find exceptional salmon on lists anymore---especially with the farm raised and Atlantic salmon that is more and more ending up on restaurant tables. Spoiled by the Pacific West Coast once again.)

You're not alone, Hoke. I'm not fond of prime rib, either, whether in a restaurant or cooked at home. I just don't like the cut.

[Jenise]

I'm one of those (apparently few) who have never cared for "Prime Rib". Seems there is so much variation in what that means in a restaurant, and what eventually comes out on the plate, that I've almost always studiously avoided it.

My do we differ on this. I just ADORE prime rib, and prefer it--especially with a good jus--to steak. Now some restaurants don't do it as well as others, but that goes for almost everything one orders in restaurants, doesn't it? A good restaurant that has it on the menu all the time and who invests in an above average quality of beef--say, a Chart House--typically does it very well (which includes having the kitchen equipment to hold it well too so that you also get precisely the degree of doneness you ask for). In fact, for me, at the kind of restaurant that has it on the menu all the time it's usually one of the best and most consistent things they do.

I'm one of those (apparently few) who have never cared for "Prime Rib". Seems there is so much variation in what that means in a restaurant, and what eventually comes out on the plate, that I've almost always studiously avoided it.

My do we differ on this. I just ADORE prime rib, and prefer it--especially with a good jus--to steak. Now some restaurants don't do it as well as others, but that goes for almost everything one orders in restaurants, doesn't it? A good restaurant that has it on the menu all the time and who invests in an above average quality of beef--say, a Chart House--typically does it very well (which includes having the kitchen equipment to hold it well too so that you also get precisely the degree of doneness you ask for). In fact, for me, at the kind of restaurant that has it on the menu all the time it's usually one of the best and most consistent things they do.

Well, heck, wanta meet me at the Sizzler?

[Jenise]

Well, heck, wanta meet me at the Sizzler?

My favorite, how did you know?