Black Angus, San Diego, CA

After a long and tiring hike, I was on the way back to the hotel when I passed the Black Angus. I decided I wanted STEAK! I made an illegal right turn and pulled into the parking lot. This location was on Friar’s Road just east of I-15.

I think that this restaurant used to be called Stuart Anderson’s Black Angus, as it looks like others of that chainlet. Maybe Agent Smith got a Mr. Anderson finally.

I was seated and got some iced tea. Very good iced tea. I ordered the T-Bone, medium, with some sauteed mushrooms, and with Baked Potato soup and mac and cheese for the sides. I told the server I was in no hurry, as I wanted to read my USA Today, and work the puzzles.

The soup was excellent. It comes “loaded” with sour cream and stuff, I asked for it to be taken off, and went with a bit of bacon and cheese. Really, really, really good. I was having my soup and working the puzzles when it went rapidly downhill.

The steak showed up. It didn’t look right; there was no juice on the platter. I cut into it, it was 100% gray all the way through. The tenderloin was a brick. I lifted it up, and the bottom was burned uniformly black; I would have needed a Sawzall to cut it. That steak had been put on the hottest part of the fire, something heavy put on it, and it was left to die. I actually tasted a bite, and darn near spit it out. It was like rubber, except rubber tastes better.

I got the servers attention, and quietly said that I would like to get a steak that was medium. She immediately agreed that it was bad and took it away. I told her again that I was NOT in a hurry.

A couple minutes later, a manager brought a replacement. Too short, I thought. I checked the steak – it was now medium… rare. I asked the manager to please have the cook put it back on the fire for just a minute more, and NOT repeat NOT to brick it. He did, and came back about two minutes later, and the steak was now perfect. A bonus – it was also a Porterhouse, so I got upgraded from a 16-oz steak to a 24-oz. And it was really good, that perfect pink in the middle. The tenderloin was just over fork tender, and wonderful.

My check was $30.97. The service was OK.

One amusing thing, I got one of those survey requests on the check. I took it, and there wasn’t a question to ask if you LIKED the experience or if there were any problems. So the next time I go to a Black Angus, free dessert!

The sides were mushrooms (comp’d now), very good. Also, mac and cheese. It was in a white cheese, with a white cheese crust on top. Not a lot of flavor, but not bad either.

The bread served with the meal was really good, a dark grain that produced a bread with a lot of texture, that really took butter well!

Tags: Black Angus, CA, Restaurants, San Diego