Elite Steak-ation at LongHorn Steakhouse

Oh my goodness I’ve been such a slacker in reviewing between food comas. This steak dinner was fantastic!
I’ll admit, I wasn’t sure what to expect for steak night at Longhorn Steakhouse. I have had some so so experiences with this chain and was looking forward to hanging with the Elites, but not wild about the location choice. My mind has been changed, I was seriously mistaken. The Steak-​ation was a total hit from the apps to the dessert!
I ordered the wedge salad, the 18 ounce ribeye, and tried just about everything else. I will definitely be back here with friends or for a date night. The staff was super helpful and friendly, food was perfectly cooked, and the elites — as always — were a pleasure.
Big big thank you to Nikki for organizing such fun things for us! And to Tonya with Poprock for the perfect food lighting, and capturing everything beautifully. :)

Amazing food & amazing conversation made for the perfect Monday night. The small group setting was really awesome. It was a great opportunity to get some face time with fellow Charlotte Unilocal Elites. The team at LongHorn Steakhouse really outdid themselves for the Steak-​ation. Service was extremely attentive and took care of every need. David and his team deserve a huge shout out! Awesome job!
As always, a huge thanks to Nikki for making this event available to us.

What can I say that hasn’t already been said. Great crowd, extremely friendly staff, and more than enough food to go around. My local LongHorn is the Huntersville location, but I won’t hesitate to send others that way when they ask for advice on a reasonably priced steakhouse.
First of all, the elites! I love all the events, but when you just get a crew of top notch writers that take Unilocal seriously, you really get some great conversations going. Its kinda like an allstar game!
The staff, wow! They worked their arses off. Two extremely attentive servers for two tables of ten. No hiccups what-​so-​ever on service. Then also having two members of management delve a little deeper in the details, gave it that extra touch.
Then to the food and drinks, the reason we’re all here. I instantly ordered a NoDa Jam Session the second that I found out this chain restaurant actually sells local beers. Mad respect. Shortly there after, plenty of little fried bites kept coming. Everything was good, but the southwestern style shrimp were my favorites. Not that I havn’t had spicy fried shrimp before at many of places, it was just how it paired well with the peppers. The pretzel and sauces were great, corn fritters worthy of a higher end restaurant, and even the breaded chicken bites were something I’d order again.
For the salad, main course, and sides, we actually had to make some decisions. From the description our server gave, it sounded like the mixed green salad was pretty plain, so I went with the blue cheese wedge. Tons of blue cheese dressing that was quite tangy. Plenty of greens as well. Supposedly, its only $ 1.99 to add this salad to an entrée there. A ridiculous amount of food for $ 2.
As far as the steak choices went, I knew what I wanted right away. I’m not a huge sirloin fan, there is a time and place for a filet, but if a good bone-​in ribeye is a possibility in my life, then that is what I’m choosing. Cooked medium-​rare of course and a side of asparagus to match. I enjoyed my steak and the flavor was great, but the consistency of cooking was a little off. At least compared to the people around me. My bone looked like it was the same thickness as other peoples, but my cut of meat was a little thin. This lead to the steak being a little underdone at the bone, and a hair over towards the edge. No complaints, just something I noticed. I know its hard to get meat right by the bone to come to temp if the steak was just recently pulled from the chill. Asparagus was a great accompaniment. By this time, I knew I had to box these up though, as I wouldn’t be able to try desert otherwise.
All 3 deserts were tasty. A chocolate cake monstrosity with some awesome ice cream. A kind of deconstructed apple pie/​cobbler. Plus, a pumpkin themed lava cake with frosting. I’m not the biggest desert guy, but still felt the need to stuff my overly full belly.
All this was captured by the awesome Tonya P. at Poprock Photography and organized by the lovely Nikki M. What a great time. So glad I could make it out. Will see you again sometime soon LongHorn.

Wow. Seriously, wow. This was such a great night! Unilocal and Nikki, it was all I thought it would be and more!
This was such a great event, and also my first Elite only event! I loved how instead of name tags, Nikki let us be creative and make place cards with pretty chalk markers. Alright, I’m not the most artistic, but it was cool seeing other people’s colorful and creative place cards. I liked how we were nestled towards the back of LongHorn Steakhouse and we had two groups of tables as to create a more intimate atmosphere. I liked looking around at the different decorations scattered throughout the restaurant.
The staff was just wonderful during this event. Thank you David for the awesome information about LongHorn and also about the different meats. I loved all the information about the food that was being served to us. What was my favorite? The 18 oz ribeye that I got to eat! I was almost stuffed from the appetizers galore given to us and the salad before our entrée, but I wore a skirt so I could eat more and not feel so restricted. Had to pre-​plan!
Again, this was such a great event with an awesome atmosphere, great staff, and great people! Thank you so much Unilocal and our beautiful CM Nikki!

All I can say is: Y-​U-​M! Thank you for the very nice folks at the new LongHorn Steakhouse location in Matthews for hosting us and giving us a wonderful taste of their menu including some new items and seasonal items.
It was a great switch up to do name chalkboards instead of the usual name-​tags… Unfortunately, it was Monday and I had barely enough brain-​power to just write my name. Some creative elites were able to make super nice name placards. I was also not thinking, and had mine turned towards me to start with (probably cause I had to remind myself what my name is).
Our server Travis did an amazing job taking care of us and also explaining items on the menu. Super patient and the LongHorn managers did a great job of answering questions, even pulling out his own phone and providing a personal hot-​spot for those that were looking for wifi (I’m in data lock-​down for a couple more days).
Food: SO MANY STEAKS! Not only was the medium-​rare rib-​eye I had delicious, but the appetizers were definitely great to start the evening as well. My favorite were the pretzel bites with the beer cheese dipping sauces and bacon honey mustard sauce. The pretzel almost reminded me of a doughnut like quality and just really good to dip in the two sauces. The spicy chicken bites were also a highlight… watch the heat since it gives you a slow build, but a good one. SO MANY desserts too… I got to try a little bit of each since I was already bursting from the wedge salad (great portion size and tasty) and my steak. The pumpkin lava cake was super good with the cream cheese sauce on top was really rich. The chocolate cake was super chocolate-​y… and there was an apple dessert (basically a turnover with a scoop of ice-​cream on top) is a raspberry drizzle… so good.
Poprock got an amazing group shot of us as the dinner was completed. I was surprised I fit in the lens since I ate WAY too much.
Great catching up with some oldies and some newbies, trading some cruise experience stories and talking about some new spots to check out in Charlotte.
Always great to see Niki. A trooper, even after the Unilocaler party that was thrown a week ago. Thank you for being an awesome CM.

OMG! This was such an incredibly amazing time! When we walked in the managers were standing there waiting the greet us. I noticed they shook everyone’s hand and personally introduced themselves and walked us back to our table. An extremely nice and polite touch! When we were seated they came around and took our drink orders. I asked for nice glass of cab and the server recommended a great wine and then sold me on the larger pour. Not too hard of a sale there. The wine came and then the managers came to speak to our tables. This was a smaller event and was so nice to meet new people, and since I have only been to one other elite event, I don’t know too many other elites. The managers came to talk about their steaks, concept, and other menu items. It was so nice to see the passion that everyone had for Longhorn as a brand. I just loved seeing someone so engrossed and excited about their job!
For apps they brought shrimp, pretzel sticks with dipping sauces, chicken bites, and sweet corn fritters. The pretzel sticks were so amazing. They had the consistency of almost a doughnut. When the managers were talking about them they said they flash fried them for a few seconds before salting and serving them! An unhealthy choice but one that is more delicious than you can imagine! The cheese sauce that came with it was a Sam Adams beer cheese sauce. MMMMMM! For salad I had a blue cheese wedge, and it was phenomenal. I love blue cheese and you can certainly tell they make their own! I ordered the mushroom filet and it was so tender you could almost slice it with your fork. The pumpkin spice lava cake is a seasonal dessert and it was to die for. It has a cream cheese icing inside and on top that really make it just perfect. Its something I would not have ordered on my own but turns out it was my favorite dessert of the evening. One thing that really really impressed me was the managers that came from other stores. They even had a regional manager there! It made me feel like we were really important to them and that is always a great feeling. So a huge kudos to the entire management staff for that!
Overall this was so much fun. I had a blast meeting new people and making new friends. Thanks to Nikki for putting on such a fabulous time and for allowing me to be a part of it! Thanks to Longhorn for being such a gracious and wonderful host of the event!

I thoroughly enjoyed this amazing event. The managers were more than involved & the services was amazing. The experience overall was memorable from the moment I entered the doors, which were so kindly held open for me, until the moment I exited where the doors were again held open by individuals with smiling faces.
The only reason I can’t give 5 stars is because I’m naturally a Pescatarian (meat consist of seafood only) and there was no option for seafood for the main course. Fortunately for me I’m pregnant & was recently diagnosed with pregnancy anemia & was directed to incorporate meat such as red meat into my diet to increase my iron. With that being said the options were perfect however again if I was not pregnant it wouldn’t have worked out for me.
The appetizers included pretzels, shrimp with peppers fried, sweet & spicy chicken bites & my FAVORITE of the night the corn fritters (which I will definitely return to have again).
The salad options were the wedge & the mixed greens. I wasn’t impressed with my mixed greens salad it was just very basic nothing impressive, I make a better tasting mixed greens at home.
The main course I chose was the filet with wild mushrooms butterflied & cooked well. I was worried that it would be dry however with butterflying it the juices remained & it was very tasty with my grilled asparagus. Such a great main course (had a large amount left over).
The dessert sharing was awesome & after asking Chris (the Monroe manager) questions about the temperature of the dessert & learning that they were not served warm with ice cream, Chris decided to bring out a Apple Explosion which was AMAZING. I will be sure to go back & have that AGAIN.
Overall this was a great Monday night dinner party, I met some cool Elite & had some great conversations which ROCKS.

No alcohol? Two star Nikki, two star. I’m kidding.:-)
Another teriffic event with some amazing food. Nikki did a great job setting this event up and I thought the chalkboard name cards were really cool.
LongHorn was a terrific host and you could see their passion for meals that they serve. The new appetizers are delicious especially the corn fritters. I was almost full by the time my steak came out and I still had to find room for dessert. And boy am I glad I did. LongHorn serves up some decadent desserts. They were even kind enough to sample out a caramel apple dessert they had not planned on because of the dietary needs of one of the guests.
Overall LongerHorn was very generous with some delicious new foods and a few giveaways. It certainly left a favorable impression.

Good morning all!!! I have finally woken from my food coma after CRUSHING that 18oz rib eye…
Everyone has really summed up the night perfectly… from start to finish, everything was EXCELLENT… a HUGE thank you to NIKKI and all the work and preparation she put into this AMAZING event. This was my first ELITE event and I was happy that I finally got to meet some other elites in person — I look forward to seeing you all again soon.
I wont spend to much time on food, since EVERY food item that was presented to us was delicious. I didn’t get to try the corn fritters but from the sound of it, they are a smash hit. I will definitely be going back to try those. We also got a free appetizer card from management, which is greatly appreciated and will be going towards my corn fritters very soon… WINNING!
A BIG thank you to the Longhorn staff — Especially the managing partners that were there. As far as the service goes, the staff was top notch: From the minute you walk through the front door, to the minute we left.
Lastly, to the table who was rocking out with that birthday song, HAPPY BIRTHDAY once again lol…
As the most interesting man in the world would say… Keep Unilocal’n my friends!

This was a really awesome event! My HUGE 18oz Ribeye was cooked perfectly med-​rare and served with the best Potato and Leek Au Gratin I’ve ever had. The appetizers were all delicious but the big surprise for me was the Pretzel Sticks– seriously incredible! I am not a pretzel person so I almost skipped them but I could have easily scarfed down the entire basket… mmm delicious. I also really liked the Corn Fritters. Wild West Shrimp… Blue Ridge Wedge salad… Pumpkin Spice Lava Cake… Okay, pretty much everything!
The service was extremely attentive and knowledgeable. You can tell that everyone had a lot of passion for not only what they do, but for the Longhorn brand. The restaurant itself was kept up very well and they managed to take the cookie-​cutter chain feel out of the equation. I was VERY impressed by the entire experience and will definitely return.
It was also wonderful getting to know more Unilocal Elites. I love these small events because they kind of force you out of your +1 comfort zone, but you always leave feeling like you’ve made new friends and bonded over the experience. I completely credit Nikki for creating that vibe and putting so much thought into producing stellar events-you’re very much appreciated!
A BIG thank you to our CM Nikki, the fabulous Tonya P of Poprock, and the awesome folks at Longhorn :)

Two great Unilocal events in less than a week, with more to come? Unbelievable, but believe it.
Driving out to Matthews was worth it, as this Longhorn location was one of the nicer ones I’ve been to with the dimmer lighting and «longhorn» details around the entire restaurant. Their tasting menu was plentiful and they didn’t skimp out on any if there wasn’t enough for the table (including the appetizers and steak sauce).
The service and presentation was excellent tonight with the Operations managers and wait staff going all out to provide friendly interactions along with prodding us with any questions we may have. My biggest questions were if the portions were the same on any given day. The answers were «Yes, they are the same» and the price points were surprisingly a good value.
I’d recommend the Bleu Ridge Wedge salad for any bleu cheese lover and the corn fritters and pretzel sticks on apps.
I only hope the service we got this night will translate to all daily patrons!

The Steak-​ation (also stylized «Steak-​cation» and «Steakation» elsewhere!) descended upon the LongHorn Matthews, and it was impressive indeed. The restaurant itself is a thing to behold, having been remade from the bones of the old Hops location, and it is a nice looking spot for a drink, appetizer or a meal.
With open arms, the staff welcomed us, only slightly intimidating those — like myself — who have little to no decorating chops by providing chalkboard-​like name placards so we could identify ourselves, either to each other, or as myself and a few others found out, to ourselves. Seems you have to turn the cards around to let other people see them. Oh well.
After this minor faux pas, the food started rolling, first with apps (chicken, sweet corn fritters, pretzel sticks, shrimp), and then a salad course, and of course the bread.
Even though most were full by this point, everyone then was able to order up a steak of their very own, complete with a side dish (which many people seemed to smell and then box up), and then they served desert too: Some chocolate monstrosity, pumpkin spice cake and even an apple dumpling surprise, as if we had room for more.
One thing to be said about those folks at LongHorn — they go all out. Huge thanks for having the Charlotte Elite Crew out, and of course our McDimpletons for putting it all together, and our very own paparazzo from Poprock for capturing it all for posterity once again!

This was as good as it gets! All you have to do is look at the photos I’ve uploaded and it will be intuitively obvious why this event earned 5 stars! Huge shout out to our very lovely Community Manager Nikki, who did yet another 5 Star event!
The Managing Partners came out to greet us, and interacted with us all night. As much as a «steak guy» that I am, I didn’t realize what differentiated a Porterhouse from a T-​Bone. Now I know… a Porterhouse MUST have 33% Filet content. Both have Filet and NY Strip… but Porterhouses have MORE Filet. That’s it. Simple. David really took the time to explain the things they served us, and made sure we were all happy. And happy we were… well, at least me and my fellow Unilocalers at my table… can’t speak for everyone now… but I have a feeling that everyone was happy.
Also, If you didn’t know, this chain is part of the Capital Grille Restaurant high end chain, and you basically get the same steak for a lot less!
Superb wait staff took REALLY good care of us, and as most Unilocal Elites know, SERVICE can really make or break a place. And from what I saw, this LongHorn has GREAT service for sure!
My Ribeye was deliciously tender and flavorful, and cooked to perfection. But not everyone’s was. However, a couple of my fellow Unilocal Eliters returned their steaks because they were not done «medium rare.» So they asked for «black and blue» which is basically a quick sear to keep the inside effectively rare and the outside slightly charred. Haven’t had that in a while so I’m glad to know that this place knew what that was. It came out perfectly for them the second time. They said it was worth the extra wait so bravo!
Desserts were good too. Being «the wine guy» I had to get a couple of glasses of red to go with that delicious steak. A little more than usual but the pours were generous so no complaints.
And I attended with my new friend Marco, who recently became a Unilocal Elite and this was his first Elite event, so I was happy to be part of his first experience.
Overall a tremendous time, great food and superb service! Definitely will come back in the future! Highly recommended!

Awesome! I tend to say it a lot these days and I figured out why. I have awesome Unilocal events to look forward to! Nikki is (yes) awesome! Thank you and great job on anotber great event.
The first thing I noticed stepping inside was how nicw the décor was. I have family in Dallas, and have been on a long horn, but this place really felt like I was in Texas. And the first person to greet me had a big smile. How nice is that. Oh, how about the manager personally assisting me to the Unilocal table in the back. Awesome.
Then there were the wonderful faces of the Unilocal Charlotte Elite Squad! And I was one of them. It was a great feeling to be one of them. Yes, tonight was my first. And it was great. Awesome.
David Blankenship, the managing partner, also greeted me with big smiles. Little did I know that I was gonna hug that man later when he announced that I won a gift card. Oh, yeah, I’m coming back. He was, yiu guessed it, awesome!
Now the real review — FOOD. Let me tell ya. The name says it all. It’s a Longhorn «Steakhouse.» And the steak was fantastic! I didn’t know it was family with Capital Grille, nor that they make the same steaks. I personally love Capital Grille. And Longhirn Steakhouse was just as good! But only at a more affordable price. Awesome!
Will I order appetizers? Will I order drinks? Yes! The calamari, and my jack & coke were all really good. Oh, the blue ridge wedge salad was really good too. I didn’t think the chocolate cake was extraordinary. But hey, it’s a steak house… with a huge longhorn hung up on the wall!