Fargo’s Steak House

A must visit when in Payson, especially if you’re staying at the nearby Majestic Motel (they provided a ½ off coupon for an appy.) We sat down at about 7:30 pm on a Sunday (they close at 8pm Sunday’s) but we were never rushed through our meal. Staff is excellent, attentive and accommodating. Steaks are very good as is the seafood and apps. Don’t miss this gem if you’re passing through or staying in Payson.

My husband and I walked in on Memorial Day weekend.(Sunday)at 7:57pm and they turned us away when they were at least half full. I am sad. We love there food too. We even told them it was our wedding anniversary and still no service. Get there at least a half hour before they close or they will turn you away!!! We went to Gerardo’s they will take you even if they are going to close in 5 minutes.

We’ve had good service, we’ve had horrible service. Once the cook threw our order in the trash, because (he/​she/​it) was frustrated with the amount of orders coming in! We waited for our food and after about an hour asked when we could expect to be served. Other times the service has been prompt. The décor is nice with some very strange pieces, such as a very large sumo wrestler statue. I have never understood how it fits in a small, western, town in the forested mountains of Arizona.
Menu is so so, has not changed in years.

Dinner turned into 2 hours of sitting and waiting… there was no wait when we got there. Walked right in and sat down. Then it all went down hill after that. I’m not sure what happened. The waitress never refilled our water cups until we chased her down and was like… ummm. can we get more water. Then she came back and filled one glass… there was 4 empty water glasses. The a ribs were delicious. The steak was flavorless.

I love this place, great food and great service. Seafood, steaks and pasta. Huge desserts too!

Our meal here was so tasty with good quality food. I had the Florentin Chicken and my baked potato was unusually good. Our service was great, also. A definite recommend.

We finally make it to Payson after a 30 minute drive from the Tonto Natural Bridge Park.
At this time, my Beloved has somewhat regained her strength, and yours truly is famished. It’s time to replenish lost calories!
Prior to us leaving the Park, I asked Dan, the Park Ranger, if he had any local recommendations for a great restaurant in Payson. He gave a resounding endorsement of Fargo’s Steak House, and provided precise directions.
I was so confident of the precision of his directions that I opted to not turn on my car’s GPS to find where this Steak House would be.
As we were disembarking from the car, my wife notices that the many clientele that were entering the restaurant seemed quite well dressed for dinner.
She stated that in comparison, we were both dusty from our journey up and down the mountain.
I assuaged her concerns by stating that although we may be dusty, we are quite stylish and color coordinated. A simple trip to the bathroom would solve the dust problem!
When we walked in, she immediately retreated to the Ladies’ bathroom, and I proceeded to engage the hostess to obtain a seat in this establishment.
Our server, Oliver, promptly greeted me at the table and provided our menus; as well as, taking our drink orders. It would be many more minutes before my wife finally arrives at our table.
It was dinner time, and the place was hopping with clientele.
This appears to be a fine dining establishment for the locals. The wait staff was very cordial and professional. And the décor of the place was subdued elegance.
The prolonged wait for my wife enabled me to survey the other couples in the various booths, and most everyone seemed dressed for the occasion.
Very nice!
Once my wife arrived, Oliver was spot on with his timing. She ordered the Signature House Steak with a Baked Potato and Mixed Vegetables for the sides.
I ordered the Salmon with Garden rice and Mixed Vegetables for the sides.
She had the House Salad, and I had the Chicken Tortilla Soup.
Her House Salad was well prepared with mixed greens, and homemade ranch dressing. She was commenting as to the richness of the dressing, and the freshness of the salad.
My Chicken Tortilla was quite tasty. The soup was nor overwhelmed by the Tortillas, and had a nice Tomato based flavor.
Her steak was absolutely delicious! The flavor was really allowed to seep in which means that they took the time to prepare this as was indicated in the menu.
However, my Salmon was a definite disappointment. Even with the Citrus sauce on it, it was one of the most flavorless Salmon’s I have had in awhile. I am not sure if it was its age in storage, but it definitely tasted more like a white fish than a Salmon. Devoid of the distinct flavor that Salmons are supposed to have!
I was thoroughly disappointed in my choice. I also wasn’t sure why I ordered a Salmon in a place that specializes in Steaks.
Oh well! Lesson learned.
In any case, the service, the atmosphere, and my wife’s steak earned the place 4 stars in our book — well worth the visit.

Food was awesome. Had a jalapeño burger protein style without cheese. The service was great and friendly. We got our food really fast. So there wasn’t a long wait time. The restaurant is clean and reasonably priced.

Best place to eat in Payson and one of my favorite restaurants anywhere. Great steaks, prime rib, burgers everything I had is good. Prices are fair for the quality of food and service.

We had dinner here last night and it is an average restaurant. Not great, not horrible.
We started with the broccoli soup and it was bland. Very thick, not much taste.
We had the black and bleu steak salad which was actually the highlight of the dinner. The steak was cooked to perfection. I suppose, therefore, that the steaks might be better than the rest of the food (it is a steakhouse after all)
We also had the mahi mahi which again was bland.
Like I said, a perfectly average restaurant.

Had dinner there last night. Had the NY strip and it was delicious as advertised. Wife had the spinach salad with chicken which was good also but she liked my steak better. Good atmosphere great steak.

Best in town. Enjoy their happy hour now and then but go there for a special dinner.

This is probably my favorite steak invasive. One of the better places to eat. in Payson. Nice atmosphere. Also a great place to watch sports.

It seems like far less than a coincidence that I would happen to end up tasting one the best steaks I’ve had in a long time with one of my best friends of all time. Even in a small town such as Payson, this place is where it’s at… with two turn tables and microphone (ok. not really).
Let’s begin with the most important thing as always: the food. Tonight, I ordered the filet. And let me tell you… the steak was seasoned to perfection! I honestly thought I heard harps playing in the background whenever I took my first bite of the filet. Char was perfect, and cooked medium just like I requested.
One interesting anecdote: on their menu, they mention how they cannot guarantee a well-​done steak. This is interesting, since it usually takes a long time to cook a steak well done. Not to mention the fact that doing so will only guarantee that your steak will taste like a shoe. In other words, by the time a steak has been cooked well done, it’s already been taken beyond the point of having any natural flavoring via the juices. But I digress.
The decorum was most intriguing. But I felt as if they couldn’t decide if they wanted to be business casual or a fine dining establishment. Awkward for my friend, but I assured her it didn’t matter… considering this is Payson. I’ll leave it at that.
The weird thing is when we first arrived at the restaurant, we had a really awkward time finding the front entrance. It wasn’t in the «front» at all (that is, the part facing the street). It’s in the middle. This makes it really inconvenient for first timers to enter the restaurant… especially if it’s dark. Like, picture the «open» sign being on the side that *should* have the front door… and the main entrance being on the complete opposite side of the building. Yeah, that’s their set up. Weird.
Overall, great food, great sides… even the lobster bisque tasted excellent! Could have used more lobster pieces but. I’m just nitpicking at this point. The building configuration is strange, but forgivable once you taste the food. I would definitely go back if I had more time to spend in this town (I’m just visiting a friend, as previously mentioned). I recommend trying any of the surf n’ turf combos. They have some really interesting ones.

Not a bad steakhouse at all. Service can be a bit slow even when they are not crowed (like the night we went). Overall the food was good, the cuts of meat were nice, those having fish seemed to enjoy the meal, and the prices are fairly decent considering a remote location.
Swing by for a try one night!

Nice bar service and selection. We were seated on time for our reservation and order taken right away with the specials clearly conveyed.
My sister in law and I both ordered the filet and for $ 31 I was expecting an exceptional piece of meat. I ordered it more well done than I usually do because they did not have a written scale on their menu what THEY believe is medium rare… which I have found a lot of steakhouses will do to ensure they grill it to order. Well, it came out rare so I asked to have it more done. The waitress was nice and took it away. It came back well done, dry and burnt on ¼ of the steak. They ruined a nice cut. I had to cut off the charred pieces and complained to the waitress. She apologized and the manager took off $ 6. Nice customer service.
The rest of my party enjoyed their meals, but for the price… wouldn’t say it was exceptional.

Highly recommend this place, drove by it a dozen times. All our food was great. I had the Coconut Crusted Salmon, it was perfect!

First time here, we pass by it every time we go up North. I had no idea such a delicious, upscale restaurant existed in Payson. Everyone enjoyed their meals, including the kids. I recommend the coconut crushed salmon, very good! Will be stopping by again.

Came in to try this place out. Pretty pricy wasn’t too impress with the food. Think they were going for something similar to the Keg feel but the food definitely wasn’t there. The was food was ok. But nothing to rave about so maybe next we try a ma and pa place around here. Service was very slow at the beginning but once are order was taken the service was on point.

Wow! These reviews are all over the map. One observation may help explain this. Fargo’s lunch menu is extensive and reasonably priced (most lunch sandwiches, wraps, burgers, and meal-​sized salads are in the $ 8-​$ 10 range and include one side dish). The dinner menu is much more limited with prices substantially higher than comparable genre restaurants (for example, a small fillet mignon is $ 31 and includes just one side dish). The differences in the variety of menu options and pricing for lunch and dinner probably explains some of the differences in customer expectations. If I am spending $ 8 for a full lunch I am fine with average food and service. If I am spending $ 31 for a small piece of beef with one measly side dish, average food and service is not going to cut it.
This review is for lunch only: My friend and I had the hot pastrami sandwich with onion rings and a dill pickle spear ($ 9). We also had iced tea ($ 2.50). The food was tasty, the tea tasted fresh-​brewed. Service was OK and the food arrived within an acceptable time frame. The décor reminded me of an Olive Garden with the one big room with a mix of booths and tables and chairs placed so close together that it is almost impossible to not knock into other diners. The noise level was quite loud considering that the restaurant was far from full. Parking is tight and most spots are quite far from the restaurant’s entrance for the mobility impaired. It is located in a complex of offices and the entrance is at the rear of the building.