Tommy B’s Steakhouse & Grill

My wife and I decided to try Tommy B’s last week for date night. It was on a chilly Thursday night when we went. Since there wasn’t much activity in the restaurant due to the weather, we were seated promptly and were greeted with our server. She was friendly and polite, a plus. We ordered the crab cakes appetizer and we’re glad we did, they were wonderful. Even though the crab cakes were good, my wife couldn’t finish her’s, so she asked the server to wrap it for us to take home, in the end, the server forgot to include the cakes with our other leftovers. Bummer. My wife ordered the lobster bisque, I begged her for a bite, she obliged, and I’m glad she did. The bisque was super flavorful and decadent. For our entrees, the wife wanted the scallops and I got the fish and chips, both of our dishes lacked that certain something that says, wow I want more of that in my face pronto. Don’t get me wrong, the meal was good, just lacked that something special.

Went here for my wifes birthday which is in Dec. Being that time of year, I think we were the only ones there that weren’t having a christmas party. So we sat at the last table by the kitchen and it was a bit loud, but guessing its much quieter usually. I had the new york strip and my wife had the sea scallops, both were good, but nothing amazing. I definitely will be back to try again at a diff. time of year.

Great meal tonight the Pork Chop always very good but tonight I had the seafood linguine. However I asked for seafood on a bed of sautéed spinach w garlic. It was really fantastic.
And the mini burgers are one of the best in Valpo

I am sad to post this review, but feel obligated to do so. We have previously enjoyed Tommy B’s food and experience, but tonight’s experience put us over the top. It’s Chicago prices for Valparaiso food and poor service. We were sat immediately under a table with a flickering light that was very distracting. We placed drink orders and I order a Pumking. It was delivered in a 4 oz glass for $ 8.00. I sent it back and could not play $ 8.00 for 4 ounces. My wife and sister in law hated the lobster rolls which they used to love. The rolls were too tangy and smelled like vinegar. I got the spicy tuna and it was less then fresh. My brother received his food 20 minutes before the rest of the table so it would not get cold. Terrible service, terrible manners, terrible place. What happened? This place used to be awesome.
Sorry Tommy, but we won’t be back.

The atmosphere is good, service was good if young and somewhat inexperienced (still did great despite some sort of drunk painting class in the middle of the place). First thing that happened when we sat was the owner himself saying hello, except he was hammered drunk and berated his staff while telling us the wrong special.
We payed 8 dollars for some god awful mojitos and had the filet bites as an appetizer. If you like greasy, chewy, salty half-​battered meat with a side of tame, flavorless horseradish, there’s your dish.
I ordered the Philly roll and my fiancé had the stuffed chicken. Anyone who works in a kitchen will agree with this very, very simple rule.
You must refrigerate raw meat.
That’s a polite way of saying my sushi was warm. Warm. The cream cheese gushed like peanut butter and the fish tasted like a fish smells. That is a very bad thing. My fiancé didn’t like the chicken and we’d already been there for over an hour. The manager by the bar was staring at me for about a minute like he thought we’d dine and dash, so the leadership was either drunk or looking for problems and we just wanted to get out.
We left a good tip and left 90 dollars down on a meal that I’m currently trying not to throw up. It’ll probably have the same texture.

Great atmosphere all together. I had the sushi it was fast and it was a good portion. They also had a good wine selection. I would have rated it 5 stars however my service was a little slow. The owner came around and introduced himself which gave it that little touch of hospitality.

I was pretty excited that Valpo finally had a sushi place. Well not so much. I would say it was a good attempt but I can make better sushi at home. It’s one of my favorite foods so I may expect more than most but what I had there seemed similar to gas station or grocery store sushi.

Service was great. Food was ok kind of disappointed but the fact that the owner came around to every single table to introduce himself and ask how everything was is enough to have me give them a 2^nd chance! :)

My husband and I saw that they were open on Easter and decided to stop in. We were seated right away and our sever was attentive. We started with the crab cakes and they were delicious! We also had bacon wrapped scallops, ahi tuna, and desserts to die for! We will definitely be back.

We went to Tommy B’s tonight for dinner. It was my friends birthday and that was where she chose. I was nervous as I don’t think I’ve heard any good reviews up to this point. We had the crab cakes which were very crab-​filled and came with a delicious dipping sauce. The only complaint with them is that I found a piece of shell in mine. I had the prime rib which was good/​average, nothing to brag about. My husband had the ribeye, which he described as fatty, and just okay. The owner came around a greeted us, was very friendly and even bought the birthday girl a drink. Our major issue was the service. There were 4 couples in our party each on a separate check and the server could not keep straight who ordered what. It was over a full hour from the time he first presented us our checks until the time he finally had the charges sorted out and we left the establishment. He came back to the table twice and asked us to tell him who ordered what and who was together. We he then brought back the incorrect checks he handed us pens and told us to mark off what shouldn’t be on the bill and write in what should. Although we complied, I find this totally unacceptable in what seems to be trying to be portrayed as a fine dining restaurant. At that point, it was still another good 30 minutes before he came back to our table with the mostly corrected bills. I wanted to speak to the owner about the ordeal, but at the time he came back to our table at the end the server was hovering over us and him as if to prevent me complaining and it worked. I can’t say that I will ever return. It was quite an experience to say the least!

Was here for a private birthday party last week. Servers were very nice. The owner «B» was there and she was very warm and attentive. The food was excellent. The Coq au Vin was amazing – wish I could get that recipe – it was served with perfectly creamy mashed potatoes and perfectly cooked asparagus. We also had Crab Rangoon and Crab Cakes, both of which were very delicious. My compliments to the Executive Chef.

Possibly the worst restaurant in town. One of the most over-​priced restaurants I have ever visited. I eat out frequently and quite a bit in Valpo. This was horrible. My wife had the Chilean sea bass. It smelled and tasted like 3 week old tuna. We also had the spicy tuna roll sushi. Wow even worse; half the tuna was slate gray in color The other half was pink as is should have been. There was no siracha sauce on it as listed. It was warm and sushi should be chilled. Not cold but chilled. Gross. The kids Mac an cheese was no better than Kraft actually Kraft is better. The chicken fingers were soggy and had no flavor. Even the baked potato had no flavor.
The lobster bisque was good as were the filet bites.
Our waiter was very pleasant and efficient. But unfortunately I cannot return just solely on that fact.

Went here for dinner last night. The food was amazing. Great atmosphere. Server was super nice and tentative. Bacon wrapped scallops were delicious. Live music on Fridays is awesome. Highly recommend going here for a nice dinner on a Friday or Saturday night!

This place is a good addition to a town that needs more quality restaurants. Nice modern atmosphere and excellent service. There were a few bumps in the road on the night we visited, but our overall experience was very good. Started out with some crab cakes that were very good. Well cooked with plenty of crab and little filler. A mediocre ahi sushi roll followed. Not bad — just boring. (Not enough of the promised siracha.) The creamed corn side was excellent but the filet mignon I ordered was cold when it arrived. I’ve lately noticed that many chefs seem to let filets rest too long while preparing the rest of the order — and that seemed to be the case here. The cut of meat was of good quality — It just needed to be a bit warmer. My companions all enjoyed their meals (perch, sea bass and salmon) which came out very warm, so I’m hoping my experience was a fluke. Will definitely try this restaurant again when back in town sometime.

I’m not sure why this place is rated so low. My husband and I went last weekend and had a GREAT experience.
If you like moscow mules, I suggest you order one here. While they are not the best I have ever had, they are pretty good for Valpo. We ordered a shrimp appetizer with a sweet and spicy chili glaze. I will go back there for that! I wish it was an entrée because there were delicious! My husband and I split a full rack of ribs and some sushi. The ribs were such a surprise. I had somewhat low expectations and they were so damn good. The meat was so tender and I loved the sauce. My husband liked the meat, but he’s more of a vinegar based BBQ sauce guy, so he was so-​so on the sauce. The sushi was average, but I’m not a huge sushi person anyway, so take my review of sushi with a grain of salt.
We ordered the molten cake and bread pudding as dessert. As someone who lived in the south, I definitely have some suggestions to improve the bread pudding.
Overall, the décor was great. The restaurant had good lighting and was very clean. I do have to say the staff was incredibly nice. Our server was on top of drinks and food. Our water never got below half full before it was topped off. The chef/​cook came out and asked us about our ribs. The owner was hands down the best. He just walked around the restaurant with a glass of wine in his hand making sure everyone was happy and satisfied. It was a great place and definitely worth trying.

I think Tommy B’s current rating of 3 stars is low. I respectfully disagree with the reviewers that rated low.
I had a good time. Maybe since I went on a Tuesday night the service was better due to less customer demand. When I got there the place was less than half full but people kept steadily coming in. By the time I left I estimate the room was about 75% full. Also, it’s a small restaurant so I can see people waiting on the weekends (at least one reviewer complained about the wait). Look, you WANT to go to places that have customers. Beware of places that don’t!
Enough of that. I had a small fillet, asparagus, mashed potatoes, and a salad. It was good and priced appropriately.
Beer. Good list. I had an American pale ale from Three Floyds (semi-​local brewery). I almost gave Tommy B’s five stars due to their beer selection.
Atmosphere is great, I liked it a lot. It was Cozy, dark, modern.
I would dine at Tommy B’s again.

Average.
Had a pound of peel-​n-​eat shrimp. Good, but cooked a little too long, so kinda dry.
The sushi rolls were pretty good.
The service was good.
I ordered a NY strip mid rare. I was served a steak with a fat vein through the length of it and an internal color of pink to gray. When I asked for a new steak, I was informed that they were clean out of NY Strips, and they offered a filet in its place. (Read: they served a shitty Strip that was pushed aside all night until me). The filet was served up very, very rare. Almost obvious, as if they thought my read on the first steak was invalid. A $ 32 fail.
Lastly, The brussel sprouts w bacon are something to skip.
I wanted to like this place, but the problem seems to be lack of talent in the kitchen and a lack of standards that define fine dining.

This place always left something to be desired. so often that we don’t go anymore. The food has never been memorable, but we gave it one last shot & stopped in for a drink. The stench was apparent from the first step into the door. We sat at the bar closest to the door and the smell was worse.
We didn’t stay to order because the damp, musty odor was too strong. It may have been the peeling and torn carpet by the bar.
Everytime we stopped in, the young servers were at the end of the bar taking shots and sipping mixed drinks. I’d get drunk too if I worked there.
Bring back Paparazzi!

It was slow on a Sunday night. The service was ok but could have been more attentive especially since there was only a few other tables filled. The food was just ok. The California roll was good and the fried beef was good. The perch was not fishy but seemed a little overcooked or over saturated in the frying oil. Fries were way over cooked. Garlic mashed was very good. Menu is totally different from anything I found online. A bit over priced for the amount of food you get. I don’t think I would go back there again. And the waitresses were not quiet at all when dumping loads of dirty dishes into the bin.

I want to give this two stars but the service was horrendous. I travel often and I have become very patient. The one thing that is unacceptable is a table getting seated after me and served before me. Two tables were served prior to us even though we had been there long before them. We were out with a friend for his birthday and, after he yelled at the waiter twice, they gave us a piece of cake. That was nice.
The food is average fair. Nothing super special. I had the tuna steak which was okay, my wife had the Hawaiian chicken which she liked. The other couple had steaks and neither were cooked to there liking.
Overall I just can’t recommend Tommy B’s.