[Restaurant Review
Binion's -- Value, excess and history with a view
By ScoopLV
They simply don't make 'em like Binion's Ranch Steakhouse anymore. Except for the smoking ban, this is a restaurant that keeps the beat of swingin' Las Vegas. The portions here aren't just big, they're too big. Low fat? Not a chance. Nouveaux? No way. This is an outpost of the real deal that has managed to thrive despite the corporate takeover of the strip.
An evening at Binion's isn't just a meal, it's an experience. Diners enter the restaurant via elevator after walking past the always-busy poker tables on Fremont Street. If you want to include the Fremont Street Experience in your evening, see it first before dining at the Ranch. You will be too stuffed to enjoy the light show afterward.
After a trip up to the top in a glass elevator, the doors open to reveal a burgundy dining room. The decor is dominated by velvet. The seats are big and comfortable. The tables are spaced farther apart than most restaurants on the strip. There is no music playing. Who needs it? Conversations are low and the lights are dim. Best of all, every table is a great table. Every seat has a fabulous view of the city lights.
Nina and I spend the better part of an hour talking with the Maitre’D, David Schandorff. Schandorff has worked at Binion’s for 38 years. To put that in perspective, Richard Nixon had just been elected when Schandorff started. And Schandorff isn’t an exception. Our waiter, Bill Cornell, has worked there for more than 20 years. The grill chef, Larry, has made the gigantic steaks for more than a decade.
Many people make the Ranch a tradition on their annual or semi-annual trips to Las Vegas. They can count on seeing the same people time after time. They can also usually count on being recognized when they call to make a reservation. Schandorff is good with names.
Service isn’t merely friendly, it’s genuine. Benny Binion no longer runs the show, but his philosophy of “good food, good whiskey, good gamble” is alive and well. That philosophy keeps everyone coming back—locals, visitors, and celebrities. Everyone who was anyone has dined here, going all the way back to Betty Grable.
After settling in, Nina and I look over the menu—with one exception, it’s all the classics. Schandorff warns us that nobody leaves the Ranch Steakhouse hungry. Nobody.
We start out with an order of Oysters Rockefeller and a Chicken-Fried Lobster.
Chicken-Fried Lobster?
Yes, as made famous on Food Network’s “Hungry Detective,” Binion’s serves a chicken-fried lobster.
This is a big tail—I would estimate one-and-a-half pounds. It’s flown in from Australia, pressed, breaded, and fried. The source of the dish, Schandorff says, is a rodeo star who came in after the national championships and asked for a chicken-fried lobster. With a “we aim to please” attitude, the chef made one, and then everyone started asking for it. It is now the signature dish of the restaurant.
Revenge may be a dish best served cold. Lobster is a dish best served fried.
The tail arrives looking like the world’s biggest fried shrimp. It’s topped with dill sprigs and served with drawn butter and sauce choron. As rich as this dish is, butter is a bit too much for us, but the sauce choron (despite being essentially hollandaise) is a nice touch. The texture is wonderful, and the breading seals in moisture. This dish works for the same reason deep-fried turkey does. It’s unexpected. It’s a twist on a classic. It also proves that nearly anything can be improved by deep frying.
The Oysters Rockefeller are excellent as well. This is a classic dish, prepared in the classic style. The bacon is smoky. The oysters are buttery, and seasoned with just a touch of paprika. It’s like curling up with a book I’ve read dozens of times—it’s still a fun journey to a known destination.
Moving on to soup, Nina has the Lobster Bisque and I sample the French Onion Soup.
Nina’s bisque is very rich, very thick. It is also chock full of lobster bits (some pieces are the size of gumballs). The soup packs a slightly spicy finish and is absolutely flush with saffron flavor.
My onion soup is different, with a lighter broth, onions that look like onions, and an herb flavor shining through with rosemary. It is also less salty than any onion soup I’ve had. This is not at all a bad thing, just a slight twist. Of course, the crock is covered with a thick layer of gruyere.
And then... the Prime Rib arrives. Dear Lord. I ordered the “normal” cut, not the Binion’s cut. I would like to meet the person who could polish off the Binion’s cut in one sitting. Strike that. I don’t think I’d want to meet that person, not in a dark alley, at least.
There is no way I could eat even half of this prime rib. There is no way Nina and I could eat even half of it. What we will bring home weighs almost two pounds. (After I have a few slices for breakfast, I will still have more than one and a half pounds of prime rib sitting in my refrigerator.)
But is that enough? Oh, no. The prime rib is served with fettucini alfredo and fresh carrots sautéed in dill. This meal will take me three days to finish.
And the quality? Five star.
This is USDA Prime beef, hand selected, aged 21 days, and cooked over mesquite. This prime rib is fork tender. The meat is wonderfully charred on the outside and perfectly rosy in the middle. And then there is the horseradish sauce. With the extravagance factor, I should have tried a bit before dunking a good-sized hunk of char in. It gives me a massive case of “wasabi sinuses.” Then Bill tells me I am eating the “mild” version. I just have to try the “atomic.” It brings tears to my eyes. Again, extravagant.
The alfredo is yet another example of "too much of a good thing is wonderful." It contains too much butter and too much garlic and too many calories—and it is absolutely delicious. Once again, classic dish, classic preparation, classic presentation.
But wait, there’s more. Nina has the rib eye.
Just a little bit of parsley and a mountain of garlic mashed potatoes accompany her steak. The steak is perfectly tender, perfectly seasoned, and weighs in at a full pound. Big hunks of roasted garlic dance around the creamy potatoes, which are mashed with butter (a lot of it) and cream (a lot of that, too).
The Ranch Steakhouse serves an ever-changing variety of desserts. I take Bill’s word for it that they are all too big, too decadent, and that the Surgeon General would certainly not approve.
Now for the surprise ending—our outrageous, “Old Vegas,” over-the-top, extravagant beef and lobster feast is the least expensive dinner we’ve eaten since moving here. No glass of wine costs more than nine dollars. Most of the bottles are in the $50 range. And if you bring your own, it’s only a $10 corkage fee. Beers and cocktails are similarly large, high-quality, and value priced.
Any restaurant can serve up giant portions for their patrons. There are also scads of restaurants in this town that are light on your wallet. Furthermore, you can find plenty of restaurants in Las Vegas that serve up an excellent prime-beef steak. Binion’s Ranch Steak House is all three. There is the added bonus that the restaurant has a great view and is run by native Las Vegans who have seen it all.
This is the place to bring your friends and family when they visit. This is the place for visitors to see a piece of the Las Vegas that, these days, only exists in classic movies.
Bring a big appetite.
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