Outback Steakhouse
Lexington Park, MD
Price:$$$	Decor: Family style steak house
Summary: "good but unremarkable"
(2.5 crabs out of 5)

Karen-Been to the bubble of Texas that is Lone Star, and had your fill of steerhorns and cowboy spurs? Well fear not, the ethnic diversity of Rt. 235's steak houses is not to be underestimated. Just dismount your horse and jump in the pocket of the nearest kangarooewwwwell, leap on the back at least and sproing on over to the hippest restaurant east of Perkin's. I was sorely disappointed, however, on the night we went, by the lack of a hearty "G'day mate" from our hostess, who in her bob haircut and cardigan set looked absolutely nothing like Crocodile Dundee. On the plus side, she informed us that we could be seated right away (unlike the rest of the suckers waiting) in the bar area, if we could snag a spot and didn't mind sitting in the Stinky Section (or Smoking, as some say). Spotting a table and zeroing in like bounty hunters, we ran to the table. And then realized we had been duped. Apparently the waiters for that particularly section are special-ordered from Austrailia itself, and as such the order for our drinks took about 8 hours, give or take a few. In the spare time waiting we checked out the menu. Never have I seen such an intriguing dish listed as "Grilled Shrimp on the Barbie," which I avoided if only because of the possibly impressionable children seated ten feet away. The bar next to us had much to look at, with top lighting falling on displayed glasses and Australian-type effects all around: slightly more snazzy than Lone Star.
Finally our Bloomin' Onion arrived, complete with its legendary efficient use of fried batter on every bit of surface area possible. Prepared for the mild and sweet taste of Lone Star's fried onion, I dug right in, to the severe distress of my tastebuds. Be prepared: this onion is smoking and hugely vast. The only method of handling it that I can recommend is to go the route of Indian food: follow spicy with sweet and cool and you can't go wrong. My companion's sweet alcoholic beverage did the trick, which was in her words a "fruity flavorful event," complete with Outback's special $2 addition of shots floating on the top.
Then came the salads. Now mind you, I don't expect much from my salad. I'd even go so far as to say I'm quite comfortable with sliced Iceberg and a slathering of dressing. These salads, however, looked as though someone had stood with a ball of limp shredded leaves some distance from the bowl and hurled the mound in. The leaves neither filled the bowl nor could escape a soggy aftertaste. That and the smells from the Stinky Section around us were beginning to deflate our enthusiasm.
Just when I was beginning to think if I hurled my boomerang into the kitchen area it might emerge with our steaks on the top, the food arrived. My Outback special speak (ordered, of course, because of the large colored box around it in the menu) was good, but unremarkable and a tad disappointing. It was flat and homogenous, and all one color, but lacked a certain smack of juiciness. Lone Star seems to have a bit more variation in each bite, with some very good and some not so good. The fries were crispy on the outside, soft on the inside and smooshy when they needed to be, rating much higher. For the whole shebang I came out $20 poorer than I walked in; probably to be expected for steak and appetizer.
Possible disclaimer: I and others I have known have been to Outbacks (and Lone Star's) before where the steak was juicy and just soft enough. It may very well be a gamble: you may have to send it back to be cooked more, you may get a tough piece of gristle. But it's probably worth it for the moments when you can enjoy the steakhouse fun and chew on some fine beef.

Reviewed for the PointNews Fall 1999

Paul- Personally I think this is the best steak you can get at a midlevel chain like this. I mean compared to Ruth Chris or the Prime rib this stuff sucks, but with in this universe I think this is a fine place to get a steak.

Added on July 2001