| Travel 50 years into the past to this country steak and burger restaurant |
Reviewer: Jason
Total Reviews: 1040
Reviewed: 2/24/2005
Rating: 7.5
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Like usual, if Terry and I dont have a place to eat, we wander around aimlessly hoping to find a restaurant to feed us. While driving down De Anza, we ran into a restaurant that time forgot...Longhorn Charcoal Pit. Specializing in steaks and burgers, this country looking restaurant has probably been around since the early 50s. From the wagonwheel lights of the 50s, to the silver dome lights from the 60s, to the present day burger fixing bar, this restaurant has been through decades of mixed decorations.
Whats even more unusual is the cocktail lounge thats attached to this restaurant. Grab a couple of drinks in the lounge and stumble over to the restaurant to grab a burger or steak. Im betting this was the hotspot back in the day and has settled for cool lunchspot for the adjacent high school.
For lunch I order the large cheeseburger
bun - I think it was a toasted french roll. Lightly toasted leaving the roof of my mouth intact. Great stuff.
beef - not too greasy, kinda crumbly. The quality of beef tasted one level above fast food joints. The restaurant sign says Charcoal and the burger had dark grill marks but couldnt taste that smokey flavor. The patty was large but not a problem for me to power it down. I was happy.
toppings - lettuce, tomatoes, onions, your average veggies you can get at the market. Fresh tasting but nothing gourmet. Fixing bars are great, you get to make it your way.
fries - Im guessing these are frozen ones you can get at costco? They werent too bad.
Longhorn Charcoal Pit deserves a lunch visit for their old school atmosphere, cheap prices, and texan sized portions. I think my next visit will have to be the Steer burger or steak.
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RETURN VISIT for Jason! 9/25/2006 - 8 Rating: If you think the Longhorn burger is good, wait until you try the thinly sliced rib eye steak sandwich. For $6-7 it's a great lunch deal. The meat is on the fatty side but what Rib Eye cut isn't? Even the the lady behind the counter commented it's the most popular item. It's a no brainer on what to order on your next visit....the steak sandwich. Try it! |
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Reviewer: Terry
Total Reviews: 739
Reviewed: 3/3/2005
Rating: 7.5
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Well I was a bit excited about going to Longhorn once I saw the place, with the cocktail lounge (sans windows) next to this 1950s-looking diner. Its quite a visual treat and just walking through the doors, you can smell the history. Chances are the menu has not changed much in the past half-century.
I decided to go with the Fish n Chips. The food arrived quickly and I was eager to dig in. I found the fries to be pretty good. They didn't look freshcut or anything particularly new or exciting, but they were quite tasty. The fish, however, was a disappointment. It tasted straight out of the frozen food section of the supermarket. The tartar sauce was equally unexciting. I had no problem finishing the food, but I was left at the end of the meal wanting.
If you're going to the Charcoal Pit, I would recommend you go for the burgers as it looked MUCH more appetizing and legit. I would probably return again to try the tuna melt. The breakfast menu looked quite impressive as well. And one day I want to make the walk between the restaurant and the cocktail lounge. There is a door that connects the two inside. Fab!
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Reviewer: DoctorJZ
Total Reviews: 32
Reviewed: 10/16/2005
Rating: 8
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Ok. Lonhorn. charcoal broiler. I just finnished a session at the 24hr fitness in the same center, and wanted some breakfast. longhorn to the rescue!
side note: the neighboring Longhorn Lounge cocktail bar is now the peacock lounge. which was formerly on homestead and blaney. which until it moved, was my main watering hole. man have i got some stories about the peacock.
anyhow, some other time for that.
the restaraunt and bar share an inside door. so you don't need to exit to go between them. the bar had sunday ticket on, and was full with rowdy out of town football fans. hooting and hollering. lonhorn had the regular fox game on.
longhorn is old-old school. think diner. but with a charcoal pit as well as the griddle. that is good news for fans of all things grilled.
but, i am a fan of breafasts, and it is still breakfast time on sunday. hmmmmm. biscuits and gravy, with a side of sausage....
pretty cheap. nothing special on the biscuits. boatloads of gravy. that is good. they put more than you could possibly use on the plate. the link sausage was good, too. longer and more proper looking than say, lenny's. the sausages had the casing knots on the ends, which to me seems more authentic. it tasted good.
i noticed that a cheesburger was only 3 or 4 bucks. with fries? i think?
scanning the menu, they had a lot of cool stuff. great fried football apps. i saw a plate of fries, though. the crinkle kind. bummer. they also have diner standards like a diet plate(hamburger patty with tomato and cottage cheese)
being next to my favorite bar (on monday nights, they are slow, and feature the greatest bartender of all time), and my gym(i have decided i really need to get back to pumping iron), i am sure i will return to try some items from the grill. the fixins for burgers are left on a condiment bar, so you get to build it your way! props for that!
and a nice touch, just in case i am getting too healthy at the gym, i'll be able to get something fried or grilled, or slathered in gravy, then drink myself into oblivion, immediately following my workout. there is also jakes pizza nearby. hmmmm 24hr fitness.....hmmmm i could spend all day and all night at this shopping center and never leave! they serve breakfast. lunch, dinner, they have showers. wow. this place has more stuff than my house!!
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Reviewer: ne00
Total Reviews: 187
Reviewed: 6/19/2008
Rating: 7.5
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Longhorn restaurant offers not only BBQ items but also great breakfast items. Upon walking you, they have an extensive menu and also their specials are placed on the chalk board. Order your meal at the front, pick a table to sit at and wait. The wait could be long and it was difficult to hear the person at the counter call out the number. There’s no television there so pretty much if you’re alone, bring something to read or just stare out the window at the passing cars.
Once my order was called for a double cheeseburger and fries (they include an extra side of fries which seems like comes from one of those pre frozen bags and deep fried to a crisp). The hamburger is huge and the condiments selection was even bigger. Think of it as the condiments selection at Fuddruckers.
Price is decent, it filled me up, it took a while to get my order and it was kind of a boring wait, but after that life was good once I received my order. Free fountain drink refills as well.
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Reviewer: takeru
Total Reviews: 31
Reviewed: 7/30/2009
Rating: 7.5
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The place is OLD SCHOOL. Walk in and it feels like you stepped into a time warp - 70s style dark wood paneling and brown naugahyde booths dominate the scene. You're also likely to be the youngest diner as this place is favored by the senior crowd.
As jason mentions above, the meal to order here is the steak sandwich. It's gone up to 8 bucks, but is still 100% legit ribeye goodness and comes w/ your choice of sides. At first glance, it looks like a huge slab of beef - much bigger than the roll it's served on. However the cut is pretty thin so it probably won't overwhelm your appetite.
The steak itself was tender, had a nice sear and good flavor and texture. I would definitely order again.
Don't come here if you're looking for veggies, but if you're in a meat and potatoes mood, longhorn could be just the ticket. |
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