Well Fed On the Town

I’m not sure if it’s the missionary style appearance, the tolling of the bells or the chanting that first made me go “huh?” when I walked up to Brother Sebastian’s. Wait, I’m lying, it was the chanting.

A loudspeaker setup was playing a looped tape of Monks chanting as I approached the large, wide, dark double wooden doors of Brother Sebastian’s Steakhouse. I will admit, my first thought was that the theatrics were a bit, well…cheesy.

However, once I was in those large double doors, what lay beyond never ceased to impress me. The dark, quiet atmosphere; soft, high-backed cushioned chairs; walls lined with art and books; and dark wood accents and subdued elegance were something of a shock, especially with what I had prepared myself for after hearing the chanting.

In a city with numerous USDA Prime Steakhouses, the USDA Choice offerings at Brother Sebastian’s would seem to have a disadvantage, especially when you consider that they are not much less expensive.

So again, I did not expect much from them when I ordered the Stuffed New York Strip steak, served with a Hollandaise sauce and stuffed with crab and shrimp. Without the stuffing the steak would have been…well, excellent. It was quite possibly the most flavorful (flavourful as my friend Jules would say) and tender New York Strip steak I have ever had the pleasure of enjoying. It was clear that I was in beef country, because I have had USDA Prime strips that weren’t as good as this Choice strip. With the stuffing and Hollandaise sauce though, well, it was even better.

Having grown up in Texas, I love a good salad bar. But more and more they are a dying breed with restaurants pushing out uninspired house salads or gigantic specialty salads. Brother Sebastian’s keeps that lost element alive with a great salad bar featuring every offering you would want to accompany your house salad, Caesar salad, Spinach Salad or whichever type salad you decide to make yourself.

Furthermore, their menu offerings stray a bit farther afield from steak than do most steakhouses with Beef Stroganoff, Chicken Cordon Bleu and Rock Cornish Game Hen on the menu.

Billing themselves as Omaha’s most romantic restaurant, they also boast of having the best slow roasted Prime Rib in Omaha. Now, I have never had their Prime Rib, but consider this. The only two times I underestimated them, I discovered, to my pleasure, that I was very, very wrong to have done so. In every way they exceeded my expectations.

Top all of this off with a mean dessert selection, a more than acceptable wine list and one of the best, most informative restaurant websites I have ever had the pleasure to have browsed and you have a complete package…chanting and all.

Quality, it’s their “mission”.

Brother Sebastian’s Restaurant
1350 South 119th Street
Omaha, NE 68144
(402)330-0300

Photo from Brother Sebastian’s website.