Grill 23 vs Abe & Louies for steak?

[cperryfranz]

Hi,

I'm taking my husband out for his 40th birthday on Sat. night. He loves steak. I have not been to either of these restaurants. Which do you all prefer?

Thanks,
Carolann

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Grill 23 & Bar
161 Berkeley Street, Boston, MA 02116

Abe & Louie's
793 Boylston St, Boston, MA 02116

[carneyvore]

Both are very good and very loud--I give A&L points for their martinis and cheese wedge in the bar, but Grill 23 has a surer hand on non-steak entrees. I would recommend Moooo, which is very good and has a funkier decor.

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Grill 23 & Bar
161 Berkeley Street, Boston, MA 02116

[treb]

A&L has a great swordfish chop.

[9lives]

yeah! bone in sword..like a kama...and from the same part of the fish... great dish

[C. Hamster]

Grill 23, definitely

Abe and Louie's absolutely has a chain feel to it. The Oak Room is very stuffy to me. Moo is terrific. Smith and Wollensky not terrific. The Palm, just ok. Morton's food is good and so is their service but who wants to eat in a basement?

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Grill 23 & Bar
161 Berkeley Street, Boston, MA 02116

Oak Room
138 St. James Avenue, Boston, MA 02116

[observor]

60 dollars sure is a lot to pay for a steak at a place with a chain-like feel to it. I've also heard A&L is loud.

[9lives]

A & L is loud; steak house lively loud...but NOTHING COMPARED TO GRILL 23..:)

[trueblu]

The steak at Grill23 is good, but the atmosphere is so loud, it's not my sort of place for a celebration. Not been to A&L, so can't comment, but many on the board are detractors, and at those prices, and with very decent other options, can't be bothered to independently verify.

XV Beacon and Oak room are v. good imo.

tb

[Jolyon Helterman]

Upstairs dining room at Grill 23 has a much more peaceful vibe than downstairs.

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Grill 23 & Bar
161 Berkeley Street, Boston, MA 02116

[rlove]

Not even in the same ballpark.

Choose Grill 23: Better atmosphere, better steaks, superior wine list, and not a BBRG mass-appeal chain.

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Grill 23 & Bar
161 Berkeley Street, Boston, MA 02116

[T.Clark]

Of the two choices I'd Choose 23. It was quite busy and loud with conventioneers last time in. But good.

Not on your list but I went to Capital a few months back. We were shopping close by and went in around 5:30 on a wed night. We sat at the bar planning on a couple cocktails first, then we were going into dining room. We ended up staying at the bar for dinner and I gotta tell you we had a blast. Two youngish bartenders made our night. I've never had a "fun" time at what I thought would be a stoggy steak house.

[gramercyfoodie]

I'd skip both and head to Mooo. I am not a big fan of Grill 23 or A&L but think mooo is fantastic...!

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Mooo
15 Beacon St., Boston, MA 02108

Grill 23 & Bar
161 Berkeley Street, Boston, MA 02116

[MC Slim JB]

I've never gotten the appeal of Abe & Louie's: it has an unfortunate BBRG flavor to it.

Grill 23 is my favorite of the luxury steakhouses in town, a category I'm admittedly bored with, but it has the best prime boutique-producer beef, and offers dry-aged ribeyes and NY strips, which I love. Some excellent (non-craft) bartending, too. It can get painfully loud, however.

http://mcslimjb.blogspot.com/

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Grill 23 & Bar
161 Berkeley Street, Boston, MA 02116

Abe & Louie's
793 Boylston St, Boston, MA 02116

[cperryfranz]

What is BBRG flavor?

[MC Slim JB]

Back Bay Restaurant Group. They also operate Papa Razzi, Joe's American Bar & Grill, Charley's Eating & Drinking Saloon, Atlantic Fish, and the Coach Grill. There's a whiff of national casual-dining chain at these places that rubs me wrong.

http://mcslimjb.blogspot.com/

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Coach Grill
55 Boston Post Rd, Wayland, MA 01778

[treb]

Glorified 99's, if I'm correct, which they own.

[Gabatta]

Really? News to me.

I am no huge fan of BBRG, however 'glorified 99s' is probably a bit unfair.

To the OP, of the 2 you pose I would choose G23.

[treb]

The owners of Charlie's owns the 99's.

[mgcmonkey]

O'Charley's owns 99..no relation to Charleys, which is owned by BBRG.

[cannedmilkandfruitypebbles]

We are regulars at the Coach Grill for buisness dinners. Not sure I've ever had anything better than average.

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Coach Grill
55 Boston Post Rd, Wayland, MA 01778

[9lives]

Grill 23 was always my choice if I wanted to take a client or date that I didn't want to talk to...or 8-10guys downstairs..: Oak room was quiet and elegant. Best combo was a steak at Mortons brought to the Oak Roam for consumption.....never did it but always thought so..:)

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Grill 23 & Bar
161 Berkeley Street, Boston, MA 02116

[cstr]

Both are great choices, I prefer A&L, nice selections great atmosphere.