BERNS STEAK HOUSE       √√√√√

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BERNS Steak House   TAMPA, FLORIDA

This is a place that deserves a five star for longevity. Lately for some reason has I detect a change slightly in nuance and I can't quite put my finger on it.  We will review them after the first of the year and see if I can figure out what they changed and I suspect as with all things and rumors, it involves, head chef's, policies and temperament.

BEEF IS THE TICKET HERE:
I have eaten there since 1967. Known for it aged beef and the largest wine collection mere mortals are entitled to, bring your credit card if you can spell Rothchild. 

SteakChart2007.jpg

They will take you on a tour of the wine cellar, and another place to visit is the desert room.  When ordering the hand cut steaks at BERNS use the chart above.  When ordering deserts use the last exam your Internist did on sugar and insulin levels. Their new deserts are to die for.

NOT A MEAT EATER - VARIETY IS OFFERED
They also offer Chicken, Lobster and Duck in a multitude of variation and styles.

THE DETAILS

The 

impeccable attention to detail is noticed, your steak is hand cut, prepared and broiled precisely to your liking. This is a standard most places would go by if they could.  Their vegetables are organically grown on their own farms or purchased locally. Their main competition in Tampa comes from other prime houses like Ruth Cris, Charley's, Schuller's and the Outbacks new edition called Flemings.  To me it's Bern's vs. Ruth Cris.  One difference is the way they age their meat.  Bern's dry-ages their beef and Ruth Cris wet-ages theirs. Both are superb methods and have their advantages. 

Longevity and legacy is the hallmark of this establishment. Bern's was opened in 1956 by Bern Laxer, and now the torch is carried by his son David Laxer. Their dinner guests are both locals and event partakers and it's not unusual to see a cornucopia of celebrities in the political, sports and entertainment arena. Including me. I have eaten there at least fifty times. For that my picture should be on the wall.  Only the post office makes that claim today. But I could be on every one.

The other unique thing about Bern's is in it's wine cellar. It is huge by both local and international standards.  The wine guide book is to fine wining as the Visa card is to Paris Hiltons monthly trysts and drug adventures.  It is a delight to read if you have about a year. The have a huge inventory. Not confirmed, probably classified, but the numbers are staggering.  I think they own more wine than France, probably in the high hundred of thousands of bottles on site and in a warehouse. No body would store that much in one place. A fire would really get you whining.

For me it's a shoot-off, both BERNS and RUTH CRIS do a superb job and are both five stars. A friends recent comments thought the attention was better at CRIS, warmer than some of the waiter's at BERN'S and the food a few percentage points better. Hey, I go there to eat and have a good time, I handle waiter problems with the size of the tip and if the foods not right I complain.  Never had to in forty years so maybe he's just picky.

Bon Appétit

They served the most delicious Chocolate Cream Cheese pie in the world and the recipe was a secret for many years till I decided we were going to take it apart in our lab. So we kidnapped one of the Chef's and threatened to take her apart if she didn't tell us the secret. Go to the Jacobs Food Court, what we found out was interesting and simple to do.  And Mom had said thats how they did it. Good enough for me.