Gotham Steakhouse & Cocktail Bar...

On Tuesday I went to Vancouver's premiere steakhouse Gotham Steakhouse & Cocktail Bar! Although it's my favorite steakhouse, I don't regularly attend, if you haven't figured out why already, you'll see why by the end of my post.

The occasion was a simple night out with my sister and a family friend. We arrived just after our reservation time, roughly 7:40pm. I dropped the ladies off and went to park the car.

Gotham is an upscale steakhouse located downtown on Seymour near Dunsmuir. Although it's billed as fine-dining I haven't heard of any cases whereby people have complained/been rejected for dressing down. In fact, the table that was next to us (seating roughly 10) were dressed down (jeans, hoodies, etc). Our party of 3 were dressed more formally :)

When I arrived I had to pass my credit card over to the host :P our guest was very insistant on flipping the bill.

One of the first things you'll notice attending Gotham is the service, it's impeccable... AND it begins even before you step through the doors. The valet approaches your car to open the doors and if you're not driving, he opens the doors for you (whether he's inside or outside). The hostess makes eye contact before you reach her and politely offers to take your coat... she was probably thinking I'm a nut because I was wearing my trench coat and I turned her down :p

I was led to our table where our waiter took over. As I sat down, he unfolded my napkin and placed it in my lap. We were presented with our menus (a simple 1 page menu) and the wine list (bound with a leather cover). As soon as he saw that I was settled in, our waiter asked if I would like a drink. I ordered my Guinness and was good to go.

The 3 of us chatted for awhile at the same time looking over our menus and discussing our options. During that time our waiter came back to ensure we understood everything on the menu. He was very knowledgable and explained everything / answered all our questions.

All of Gotham's beef is Grade A Alberta beef. It is aged up to 35 days. He also explained to us that since there is an issue with spinach right now none of the spinach dishes are available. He also pointed out that the first 3 steak in the Entrees (Porterhouse, Bone-in New York, New York) are all 23-24oz steaks, WOW! He even explained the cuts of the steak, the fact that they all still contain deposits of fat, and that the New York Strip still contains a strip of bone in it 'to add flavor'.

Our waiter took our orders and we continued our conversation.

I love the atmosphere at Gothams. The lighting is very dim, perfect for a nice romantic dinner. There is a main floor, a patio on the side (with fireplace) and a dining area upstairs. To get to the washroom you have to take a stroll to the back and then down a spiral staircse. Yes, as you can imagine, the washrooms are impressive! More importantly, they're clean ;)

Our appetizers came first:

Gotham Tossed salad for the ladies (single order). They even took the time to split the salad evenly on to separate plates.

Beef Tenderloin Carpaccio for myself...


Blackened Ahi Tuna cajun style & Roasted Prime Rib of Beef...


Steak and Lobster (Filet)... in the background you can see the sides I ordered as well. Fresh Asparagus & Spiced Sauteed Mushrooms...


The food was delicious, well worth the price paid... we took our time eating & chatting, our drinks were always topped up... when we stepped away from the table to go to relieve ourselves our waiter would come over, fold the napkin neatly and place it on the table! How's THAT for service? ;) By the time we were done everything (me finishing last as usual) we continued chatting... we were offered the dessert menu, but were all too stuffed to even look at it.

The only 1 mistake that our waiter made was a very small one. He brought me the bill w/o swiping my card first :p No biggie ;)

Here's the damage :P


Could have been worse, right? Hehe.

If you haven't gone there yet, you should... Gotham's is an experience you won't soon forget! I know I won't.. especially since it was Hallowe'en night and towards the end of the night a woman in a skimpy pink nurse's outfit came sauntering in to use the facilities! Our family friend said, "Wow... you can see her panties"! That's how short her skirt was... sorry guys, no pic! :D