Erie Cafe – “Cooler by the Lake”
In what was billed to be a triumphant return to the official start of steak night, it appears that at the conclusion of the dinner this evening there were more ends than beginnings.
Upon arrival I met the newest member of our group, J Cizzle, patiently awaiting the arrival of the group. He and I engaged in some light conversation and awaited the arrival of the rest of Chicago’s fine gentlemen. As host, I deemed it necessary to wear a tie, so that I could be easily identified as host gentleman of the group.
With everyone here for the 8pm dine, the usual piece of ass that is John Glick was missing and since he failed to notify the host, we were seated. The greeting from the waitstaff was so-so, as if they had not heard about this blog that I made sure to mention when making the reservation.
Glick finally arrived just before midnight and we began to pour through the appetizer options. After some baked clams that Daddy Gimms didn’t like, some grilled calamari and fried ravioli that was the toast, we moved on to wines and dinner. Personally I’d give the apps a 3/3, but then again, I ordered them.
The majority of participants ordered the usual bone-in ribeye, medium rare. Hans, as usual, was his cute self and ordered the filet. By my count he’s done that more than anyone in the rest of the group…combined.
Steaks arrived about 6″ thick and explicitly cooked, and were accompanied by, but not ordered, some roasted garlic and bearnaise sauce. Either that was a touch the waiter added to get mentioned on this blog, or he overhead us grumbling that the steaks were not seasoned nearly enough. Either way it did bring some relief.
Everyone finished their dinners in fair time, and the staff began to clear plates and I ordered dessert. Hans was not finished with his chewy steak and not happy with me jumping to desserts, but seeing as we were pushing a late night already I failed to care. Faux pas on my part.
At dessert we celebrated Holinger’s arrival from a previous dinner (way to schedule one on steak night dude), by cheering his 28th birthday; and as you would expect the story to go, he walked free to boot. Would have been nice to have him pay for a lot of the meal that he didn’t even get to enjoy.
All in all, it was a great night with the boys, but Erie Cafe just feels like it lacks a few things – including the ardency of a bustling Chicago steakhouse. Maybe that is the charm of it, but seeing as how this group likes to go big, I hope we can take this tame and lame shit out of the rotation for a while. 6/10.
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Being that it’s one of of my favorite “local” commercials of all time, showcasing the immortal Ron Lenzi, I was pretty interested in finally making an acquaintance of the Erie Cafe. I put the commercial in the category of unintentional comedy. I probably have to put a lot of the food in the same category as well.
I was the first to arrive. Most of the group showed up right on time. Except Glick obviously. Is there an official rule for what’s to happen when showing up after after the confirmed reservation time with no message to the host? Just wondered.
Service was decent. There wasn’t a whole lot of personality from our waiter. I get being subdued, and staying in the background. But how about anything to show me you’re interested in our business or your job?
This was my 2nd steak night. It was also the 2nd time I ordered a steak medium rare and got medium. But unlike last time at III Forks where the flavor of the steak more than made up for any mistake in temperature, the Erie Cafe wasn’t so lucky. Yes, the steaks were probably 4″ thick. That just made extra inches of not very flavorful steak. Now I guess I know why they decided to bring out all of the sauces. In my opinion, meat should be able to stand on it’s on. Keep the Béarnaise, roasted garlic, Montreal seasoning, whatever. It you can’t have a steak taste good on it’s on, go back to the drawing board. It’s not that difficult. Steak was a C-
The apps were average. The calamari was probably the best of the bunch. I think the ravioli had been sitting over a Sterno heater for a few hours. It was good, but you could tell not very fresh. Apps were a C.
Sides were actually pretty decent. But I really never met a fried or roasted potato I didn’t like. Throw some onions and peppers in there? Done and done. The creamed spinach was good, but too creamy. It was more like cream of spinach soup. Sides were a B.
I was actually a pretty big fan of the desserts. Hans wasn’t too enthralled as he was still finishing his pip-squeak sized steak when we cleared the plates and ordered them. But nevertheless, there’s no need to rush a man trough his meat. Let him enjoy it for christsake. Anyway, our bad. Tiramisu is always winner with me and this one did not disappoint. Desserts were a B+.
The night ended with Mr. Holingwa winning credit card roulette, as hosted by two sort of decent looking older ladies for the bar. Better than our waiter doing it I guess.
Part of what I like about a good steak house is the lack of options. Do a few things, and do them them really well. Erie Cafe does a few things, and in my opinion, hardly any of them well. Steak night has been around for about four years from what I understand. I could do without coming here for another four years.
I went really high on III Forks. I’ll go really low here.
5/10
Meh……
I think we knew what to expect from Erie Cafe. The nostalgia factor only carries so much weight. At some point the service and kitchen need to step up and step up Erie Café did not. Regardless, my wife and kid were out of town so it was going to be a good evening.
I arrived shortly after 7 about 6 beers deep to find Doc Cizzle and Scotty Markets having some cocktails. Scotch with a few rocks for me and I was well on my way to a hangover.
We were seated at a rather nondescript table and shortly there after Glick arrived….weird. Offering a simple menu with standard items across the board, they had better be packed with flavor – at least that was my wishful thinking.
A trait I have come to appreciate about the Steak House experience is the excellent service. I really appreciate the waiter that genuinely welcomes you, understands the audience and caters to the group appropriately. Erie Café was not giving out that kind of love. Limited wait staff interaction fostered a somewhat unwelcoming vibe.
Apps included some fishy baked clams, flavorful calamari and somewhat overcooked fried ravioli. The calamari was the top of the bunch with the balance of the apps classified as, shall we say, not good. Following apps I went with the standard bone in rib eye medium rare. The steak was probably the largest I have seen to date. While cooked to perfection the taste was unimpressive and relatively non-existent. It actually made the meat tough to chew and swallow. Hoping for a comeback on the side dishes, they proved to follow suit – vanilla.
I’m grateful for the Erie Café helping to get this glorious tradition started…. but not grateful enough to go back for a third time.
5.
Nothing better than stepping off a plane from Pittsburgh, going to dinner with immediate family + a cousin from Seattle, eating a full meal and then finishing off the evening by showing up to Steak Night with the fellas. Seriously, walking in to Erie and seeing a table of gentlemen just getting into their appetizers felt like I was officially home. And what a greeting: fellas, thanks for being so gracious; the waiters were also quick to turn up the table, add a setting and put one of every app in front of me. That’s when the wheels came off. The first thing I heard was Hans almost spitting his Oyster Rockefeller back onto the plate. Needless to say, I didn’t even bother trying mine. Calamari was nice, not great. Did I mention I had already eaten dinner?
Scotty crushed the wine order on 1 out of 2 – batting .500 ain’t bad I suppose.
The steaks came out to a lot of “oooo’s” and “ah’s” but, for the majority, that’s as far as it went. I was amazed at how well prepared the filet looked; the taste didn’t quite live up to the looks. That was a theme that permeated the night.
It is also something that does not apply to the fine gentlemen that make Steak Night what it is after 4+ years. I can’t imagine a finer group of fellows to spent a few hours with the first Thursday of every month. Thanks again, fellas, for making it so much more than just the steaks and cigars.
April 2007, are you kidding me, that is a long time and lot of red meat ago. I take pause to reflect on the time between our first visit to Erie Cafe and this one. I am keenly aware that we are a part of a very special tradition. Good food, good atmosphere and fine company make the first Thursday of each month an event not to be missed.
As for Erie Cafe – steaks as big as your head. That is all I can say. Honestly, I have never seen a piece of meat so big. But as they say about Texas, big does not always mean better. My steak was perfectly fine, but it did not blow my socks off.
Much of the banter of the evening surrounded the Alabama vs. LSU game. Much to my dismay, my Tide ended up on the wrong side of the debate.
Overall, I thought Erie Cafe did a nice job. Loved the apps, we were not rushed, the cost was fair, the Joe Torre books pulled on my Yankee heart strings and the heavy weight of history and the start of this tradition warmed my soul.
Scotty Markets – bravo. John Glick – your tardiness has grown tired. Rick Ray – it is time for a new job.
On to the next….
6/10
Guys, sorry to have missed the company, but am glad I missed the meal. Will do a better job of balancing calendar next time.
Sounds like mediocre fare but fantastic company. Would have enjoyed being there with all of you. I ate a steak at home alone in the dark and weeped.
Back to the scene of the crime, the location that spawned a transition unlike any other, no we are not talking about the Masters we are talking about the institution that is steak night. I missed the inaugural steak night so was interested in what Erie Café had to offer.
Erie Café is old school. There is a straight forward no nonsense menu, no goat cheese and sides with truffle sauce here.
The calamari and fried ravioli were good but not great. The good but not great would emerge as a theme for the night. The bone in ribeye was monstrous, resembling the old 96er and I did my best John Candy impersonation and attempted to finish it. Alas I didn’t eat the gristle and receive the free t-shirt. While there was nothing obviously wrong with the steak, nothing great about it either. The sides were disappointing.
I did cash in on my steak night survivor pool win and eat for free.
Not a bad meal but there are so many great steak places in this city that I would rather go before heading back to Erie Café.
“The dinner table is the center for the teaching and practicing not just of table manners but of conversation, consideration, tolerance, family feeling, and just about all the other accomplishments of polite society except the minuet.” -Judith Martin
I assume this to be a quote from a Martin family member since Scotty was raised with nothing but the finest of table manners. Not only was he courteous in waiting until all diners were finished with their meals, he proceeded to inquire as to which of his selected sides were their preference and offered a foot massage to round out the evening.
The softball sized filet mignon was cooked to a perfect warm red center and was not to be rushed by the ravenous carnivores of the group that by some act of human evolution can take down a porterhouse the size of my leg in the same amount of time. Overall the return to Erie Cafe was a success in my book. A throw back to the dinner that started it all, without the italian mob this time. The baked clam was just about the single nastiest thing that has crossed my palate of late, however I attribute this poor appetizer to Scotty’s ordering, not Erie Cafe. The calamari made up for the clams showing. Sides were adequate, however our server neglected to walk us through them which we all know is a poor move. The desserts went down well with what remained of my filet.
i give Erie a 7/10 and Scotty a 2/10. He only managed the 2 because of his stellar good looks and witty banter.
You can’t always choose a book by its cover. Unfortunately for Erie Cafe, this saying doesn’t necessarily reflect a good thing.
While the I enjoyed my medium rare that was actually medium rare, I failed when I went away from the filet and chose to become a sheep and order the t-bone. So, no, Hans is not the only one. I’m pretty positive I won’t order anything other than a filet from this day forward thanks to this experience.
Anyhow, I loved seeing the group as I had one of my most favorite dinners in recent memory. Everyone was in good form. We’ve got guys checking in on their wineries, fellas enjoying a weekend of “freedom” and everything else in between. All in all, dinner was down from my most fondest memories, but I wouldn’t change the atmosphere at the table at this dinner for any of the past. Kudos to group.