Alexander’s Steakhouse

My mother-​in-​law, husband, my 8 month old twins, and I ate dinner here tonight. We had a very nice waitress who helped us get the twins in car seat slings (not every place has these). The food was fantastic– steaks were cooked perfectly. We all had a different steak cooked to a different temp and they were all perfect. Every time we go, the same gentleman comes and checks on us with the twins. We aren’t sure if he is the owner or manager. It is quite nerve racking taking out two babies, but he always makes us feel welcomed, asks us if we need anything, and engages with the babies. Many places seem annoyed with young ones, but we feel super welcome here. Thanks for the great welcome!

My wife took me to an Alexander’s years ago, and I wasn’t quite hip to the fact that I had to cook my own food. But after the all was said and done, it’s one of my favorite places to go. Being able to stand around the grill with family and friends, is a big part of the ambiance of this place. To round out the experience, they have an excellent protein selection! Something that would suit everyone. I’ve seen a lot of other posts about the prices here, but for me they are right in line with what they offer. Staff is friendly and knowledgable, and a relaxing atmosphere.

The steaks and her potato were very good. Delicious taste, good quality. And you pay for good steak prices, which is no biggie if you go to this place knowing that it’s an upscale priced steak place.
The service, though, was just at a perfunctory level of interaction — which is probably what led to them confusing her request for a lemon drop martini for a lemon drop shot. He did check back a few times during the meal, so we weren’t ignored, but we really didn’t feel like we were any more than the current table turn. The best example of the type of service came at the end of the night — the end of our evening was capped with him dropping off the tab with, «Total and sign.» No, «thank you», no «have a good night» — just, «Total and sign.»
For $ 77 pre-​tax, I expect a little more than what’s your order and «Total and sign.»

Wish they had a ½ star rating, I would have given Alexander’s a 3.5. To me the price of cook your own is a bit cashey. If it’s a group I think it’s a very good idea but to cook your own… Meh…not for me. Steaks are good quality, salad bar is well appointed and clean, but pricy for what you get.

Excellent steakhouse you can either cook it yourself over the charcoal grill or the cooks will cook it for you excellent choice for groups.

Meh… steak was ok, fatty and undercooked to my liking. The other person in my party ordered sword fish… over cooked, tough and really fishy tasting… usually it’s a mild flavored fish. Waiter was a pro though, pretty good but should have caught the swordfish thing. This was our first and last time as the bill was $ 70.00 (with tip) for two of the cheaper entrees and two sodas.
I wasn’t interested in grilling my own steak because I wasn’t interested in smelling like a smoke house, but many patrons were doing it!

I came here once and did the «grill your own steak» thing, and had a decent time. It’s relatively expensive for what you get though, as the quality of the steaks isn’t great.

Dined here recently while on business in the area. A larger group of 15 or my peeps went here for a co-​workers birthday dinner. The server had an attitude from the beginning when I asked her if we could have separate checks. She mumbled something under her breath and when I said «excuse me, I don’t I heard what you said» she gave me a dirty look and walked away. Most of up opted to NOT grill your own steak which you can do if you want to and the trip to the salad bar was very marginal, reminded me of Wendy’s salad bar. Nothing special, limited toppings. The steaks were just ok, again nothing special and pricey. We told the hostess AND server we were celebrating a birthday and she did nothing about it although there was a large party near us that they all sang and celebrated so I’m not sure if the separate check thing upset her heaven forbid. Overall a very «meh» experience and highly unlikely any of us on her next trip back there will dine there. Too many other good places with happy not crappy wait staff!

Great place to grill great steaks for yourself with your friends and not have to clean up afterwards! Did I mention great steaks?

My son enjoys coming to town at least twice if not three times a month to take us to Alexander’s. The previous visits have been great and the waitress wonderful. Bailey and Breonna (spelling may be incorrect)
Yesterday 6÷8÷2014 meal was not so great at all. We requested our steaks well done and they were rare. The steaks were sent back and one came back burnt and the other still not well done. Spoke with the manager and her attitude made the situation worse. Her demeanor and attitude was extremely rude and very unfriendly. As a manager I would have expected a much more pleasant and courteous attitude versus her saying that we wouldn’t get sick from eating a rare cooked steak. Whether we would get sick or not was not the point. I would think twice before going back anytime soon simply because of the manager attitude. Also the cook looked as if he walked in off the street and was hired on the spot. He was very unprofessional looking and one would have thought he was an average Joe guest cooking his own steak at the grill. The cook had on an old worn tee shirt and a pair of jeans. Not a good look. Also the staff smokes where guest can see them as we are entering and existing the restaurant which is also not a good look.

yeah, you pretty much supposed to cook your meat yourself. Makes for a good group experience though.

I thought the food was really good. Atmosphere is OK, kind of 70’s/80’s look, but I enjoyed cooking my own steak and the wait staff was really friendly. I would definately come back.

A good steak house.
You can either cook the steak yourself on one of their large charcoal grills — or they will cook it for you.
I had the Filet — and it was an excellent cut of meat. Cooked it medium and it melted in my mouth when I ate it.
Also tried and enjoyed their fried mushrooms.
It comes with a salad bar — a good, basic salad bar.

Subpar steak at high $$. Would not go here again. Steak had no flavor. Service average. When you go to a restaurant you want someone else to cook the meal. Here you cook it yourself.

All the ambience of a Ponderosa with the prices of a Ruth’s Chris. I had a filet shish kabob that was gristly, though well portioned. The baked potato was also on the large side, but what benefit is that if the taste is not there? And yet, the place was packed on a Sunday night. Go figure. On the odd chance that I happened on a bad cut of meat, I still will not go back primarily because I don’t see why one should pay so much for a meal you have to cook in an establishment that lacks character.

The salad bar and steak was great. not so happy with the service though. If you are getting the early-​bird special be sure to ask where to get it. Our ticket was also messed up and after one attempt to fix it, we just figured out the correct amount amongst our group of 4.
I think I would go back, but just for the food! And I will cook my steak for longer.

An excellent meal tonight. The staff was great, the prices we good and you can’t beat their meat! We were a group of three and were greeted at the door by the manager who has grown to know us as somewhat regulars.
The salad bar was stocked well and the selection of steaks were great!
I suggest this restaurant to everyone!

I’m from Bloomington-​Normal but recently returned to Alexander’s with my family while visiting. I wasn’t impressed at all. My family really loves this place and their steaks so I’ll give them that.
I ordered fish and it was rubbery and gross (I know… I’m at a steak house) but I still think a steak house can work harder at their other entrees. The salad bar is pretty impressive and the lettuce/​spinach was fresh.
Overall, I think I would choose somewhere else to eat if it was my choice.

It felt weird to stand around a large charcoal grill and cook my steak indoors. This was exactly what I did. You get seated and you have an option to grill your own steak or have the chef cook it for you, the catch is you will save $ 2 if you do it yourself.
First you go to the salad bar to get your greens, there were more than 30 items to choose from. Then you go to a large stand-​up refrigerator and pick your steak. There were around 8 different types of USDA choice steaks to choose from (1″ thick steaks), I choose the juiciest and most flavorsome one, the rib-​eye ($ 26). Next you pick the steak up and place it on the 8×5 charcoal table — Yes, if you stand there long enough you will get a heat rash. You have your choice of seasoning (pepper, garlic, salt, seasoned salt, herb and butter) to put on your steak. Now the fun begins, you can like I did drink my beer in one hand and flip my steak with the other, just like I was grilling outside. But here you are indoor and grilling with other «master» chefs — The grill is large enough to grill with ten other people.
I like my steak medium-​rare and after I some time my steak was ready to eat. With every order you get a stuffed potato, steak fries or chips. Or all of them, your choice.
The service was good and prompt — My drinks never was dry. I would suggest anyone who likes to cook their own steaks to come here. It was fun cooking with all my co-​workers.
The only problem with cooking the steak yourself is if you over– cook it — You can’t return it or exchange it for another one. So word of the wise, if you can’t cook — let them do it for you and pay full price ($ 28) for your perfectly cooked steak.

Driving up to this place, I was wondering what I was really getting into. It does not have a restaurant look to it. Walking in, it actually looked like a nice place. Sitting down, it became an ok place. It seems to be trying to create an identity but it is struggling to do so since the exterior, entry and dining room do not mesh.
We were in town on business so we decided we did not want to cook our own steaks. I ordered a petite 8 oz fillet, medium rare with a baked potato. The salad bar was nothing great. It was your basic salad bar. When our steaks came out, mine was way more rare then it should have been. I actually walked back up to the grill and asked them to put it back on. They brought me a different piece which was better until I got half way through it. Then it just got underdone again. I was not impressed! The baked potato was nothing special either. The only thing I really enjoyed were the sauteed mushrooms. Those were delicious!
Service was ok but they didn’t check on us much (thus why I took my own steak back up).
Overall, not really fond of this place.