Alexander's Steakhouse

Cupertino, CA

Alexander's Steakhouse is located in Cupertino CA, across the street from Vallco mall, where I had my wedding reception. My parents have lived in the small city of Cupertino for the past five years and always heard about the luxury steakhouse. The general contractor who build my childhood home was at the helm of building Alexander's and although my parents had walked the layout during construction, they never had the opportunity to enjoy the food.  So for my dad's 60th birthday, we took the family out for a steak celebration.

The entrance and meat display is much more lavish than just the steak counter as you enter the restaurant. There are racks of meat to the ceiling being aged behind a clear glass wall lining the kitchen. As you walk further in, you can see the kitchen and a large staff of twenty to thirty employees. The establishment itself is quite large, with a luxe waiting area, fancy bar and various dining rooms. We sat in the back at a large cozy booth and a hand full of decisions.

Steak counter

The bread offerings featured sourdough, wheat and a cheese-it like multigrain cracker.

Breads

We started off with the popular hamachi shots. A nice start and beautiful presentation. Pretty much your standard flavors with a surprising element of heat. 

Hamachi shots

Next up were the Ika fries, a nice play off the classic fried calamari appetizer, Bro-Co's fav. The squid was tender and well battered, again pretty standard flavors, but a nice presentation.

Ika Fries

Another popular favorite, the popcorn crab was a crowd pleaser, mainly because it was all crab. No filler or breadcrumbs like crab cakes, literally lightly battered, freshly fried crab meat. Between the five of us, we struggled to finish this dish since it was so bountiful. But at $22, I guess you'd like to get a lot of meat.

Popcorn Crab

Between the appetizers and our mains, we received an intermezzo, a raspberry icy pallet cleanser.

Internezzo

It'd be hard for me to describe every flavor/texture of each steak, so I'll summarize. We ordered four steaks and four sides. My dad had the F1 Austrialian Waygu filet. I wanted to get him the trio with a small order of Japanese, Austrailian waygu and American New York cuts, but there's an embargo on Japanese beef making the supply in short supply and high demand. My mom went with the New York, I had the Bone in Rib eye and Chu-Toro had the T bone. My parents who would rather go to Costco than spend $125 on a steak enjoyed themselves tremendously, and thought the quality of the meat was superb. Here's what I recall. The filet was good, but cannot touch Japanese Waygu, and I guess if you're going to spend $125 on a 10 ounce steak, you want it to be pretty damn amazing. The 8 ounce Japanese waygu in comparison was $225 for a 8 ounce portion at Alexander's. Two years ago during my visit to Wolfgang Puck's Cut, my Japanese Waygu was $160, just to give you an idea of steak inflation. I don't remember eating my mom's New York, although she seemed to like it.  

New York

Australian Waygu Filet and Potato Puree

Creamed Spinach

My Bone in Rib Eye was visually gorgeous, but overall the flavors were disappointing. The meat itself was not as sweet or tender as I would have expected and the mixture of sauces on my plate really distracted me from the meat. I think that's probably the intent though, as most steaks are offered with a contemporary flair with heavy sauces probably to distract from the solid but not exceptional meat quality. I guess I'd expect to come to a fancy steakhouse and expect the steak to continue to be the star. At Cut, everyone's steak arrived on a white plate, with only natural juices aligning the dish.

Rib Eye

The best steak of the evening in my mind was Chu-Toro's T-Bone, which came simply prepared with a large slice of butter, a grilled meyer lemon and an accompaniment of sea salts, grey, pink and truffle. The meat was allowed to standout for itself, and the additions were provided for your discretion. She originally intended to order the Prime Rib which they were out of, and the waiter recommended the T-bone.

T-Bone

The side dishes were as heavy as the steaks which made fighting to finish them a tough challenge. We went with the lobster truffle mac and cheese, ie a heart attack waiting to happen, saffron risotto and cheesy baked potatoes with bacon. I'm getting sick just reliving it. They were all very heavy, rich calorie accumulators. Nothing stood out as must have, but all would be an enjoyable single bite.

Lobster Mac and Cheese

Saffron Risotto and Potatoes

Of course, its not a party without dessert, but we were so grossed out and stuffed that I couldn't take anymore pictures. Bro-co had a chocolate sphere and my mom went with the bread pudding. Both were well made and large, but neither very memorable. They also gave my dad a complimentary birthday bite, a small chocolate ganache/cake, piling on the richness for good measure. The best dessert was the cotton candy that they give you with your bill, fun and unique. 

Here's the good and bad of Alexander's. It's expensive. The staff was really friendly and accommodating. It's expensive. The ambiance is inviting despite its luxe layout and decor. It's steaks aren't really that great and its expensive. Overall, the food is solid with flavors you would expect, nothing spectacular, nothing special and not really worth going back to. Did I have a great time? Yup, it was a really fun night and my family really enjoyed it. I'll take that memory with me and take them to another restaurant next time.

Rating 6/10

September 18th, 2010