Just because it’s family owned and operated doesn’t mean this is some low level dive. This restaurant is big and polished. The waiting area features a brick fireplace and leather arm chairs to ease away the worries of the day before your dinner. The comfort keeps coming when you sit at one of the large booths and the warmth of leather seating prepares you for the meal ahead.
The menu covers both surf and turf, both on the appetizers as well as the entrees. Appetizers cover favorites such as shrimp cocktail, Shrimp de Jonghe, and our choice, the Filet Mignon kabobs. Tender filet mignon is marinated in garlic, olive oil, then grilled, and served on a warm pita. The kabobs were wonderfully tender and bursting with garlic flavor, truly a wonderful way to start the evening.
An interesting offering at the charhouse is the option of making any steak, chop, or fish “Al Forno”. What this means is that the particular item is topped with fresh garlic, butter-herbed breadcrumbs and fontinella cheese. Apparently too good to resist, my dinner guests all decide on the rib eye “Al Forno”. While I, wanting to be different, decide on the steak and lobster minus the “Al Forno”.
When you’re at a high end restaurant, your steaks are generally a la carte. “Charlie’s Charhouse” is nestled just a notch below, which means your meal is accompanied by a soup/salad and your choice of potato. While the rest of my party decides on the salad I again decide to be different and try the soup. The salads are your standard iceberg offerings that are neither exciting nor offensive. My soup however was a lovely blend of shredded chicken and rice in a warm tomato broth.
Our dinners arrive and the rib eye’s look great! My wife generously slices me off a piece of the “Al Forno” and it is wonderful! The steak is prepared medium and is very tender, but the star is the explosion of flavor the “Al Forno” delivers. Garlic is the dominant flavor here but the creaminess of the cheese and the crispness of the bread crumbs make the texture a delight on your palate. Did I make a mistake by not getting my steak prepared this way? I sure did. My steak was actually a bit of a disappointment. The flavor of my prime sirloin was fairly pleasing, but the texture was not. My steak was clearly not grilled but rather baked. Steaks are meant to be grilled and they are meant to have a crust. In addition to the steak my meal came with two small 3oz lobster tails and some warm melted butter. The lobster had nice flavor and the slightly firm texture was spot on.
Dessert here is not nearly as complete as the rest of the menu; ice cream and cake pretty much sum it up. We decide on the carrot cake which is sized large enough to share but not so large that one person couldn’t handle it. The cake is very moist but overly sweet. Carmel is drizzled atop a cake that is already layered with a very sugary icing. If you have a super sweet tooth than this is the cake for you, but you better call your dentist they next day.
One minor drawback to the night was our less than passionate service. While our waitress was friendly, she lacked any sort of energy and never came by to check on us during our meal. Final bill with tip for the four of us was just under $200. Overall “Charlie’s Charhouse” offers very good food, comfortable seating, and lethargic service for a slightly upscale price. Rating ** and 1/2 out of ****.
Location
1180 W. Devon
Elk Grove Village, IL
847-923-5000
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