This unassuming Gatlinburg steakhouse is a favorite among locals
I made assumptions.ย Iโm not happy about it.ย Iโm not proud.ย Mistakes were made but we can all learn from them. After all, Iโm as human as anybody โฆ at least as far as you know. ย For years, coming the back way through Cosby into Gatlinburg, weโd drive past Alamo Steakhouse and the exterior was โฆ underwhelming.ย When it came time to pick a place for dinner, my friends, I always forgot about the Alamo. Listen, we donโt judge books โ nor restaurants โ by their covers. Some of my favorite places in the world are little hole-in-walls where the food is terrific.
But the Alamo wasnโt a hole-in-the-wall. Had it been a little nicer or a little more seedy, it would have grabbed my attention more.ย As it was, I assumed it was a low-rent Texas Roadhouse rip-off, a Sagebrush and nothing more.ย Well, you know what happens when you assume, right? Thatโs right. You miss out on a dang good steak.ย Note: As always, prices are in effect at the time the article was written.
Alamo location and ambiance
Every good review starts with information on location, background info and ambiance. The Alamo Steakhouse, currently has two locations, one in Gatlinburg and one in Pigeon Forge. Alamo ranks amongst the best of the Johnson family of restaurants. To learn more about the enterprise, click here.
I will admit, neither location is super easy to spot from the Parkway or from the Gatlinburg Strip. This makes them easy to miss. But they are right off the main road, which makes them conveniently located, as long as you know what youโre looking for. The inside of each restaurant is spacious with simple decor and plenty of booths. I find that itโs perfect for a variety of occasions from intimate dinners to big birthday parties and business meetings.
What to order at Alamo Steakhouse?
What should you get if you go to the Alamo Steakhouse? Well, obviously the steak but weโll get to that more in a moment.ย I grew up in Indiana where St. Elmoโs is the king of the steakhouses. There, they have what may well be the greatest shrimp cocktail in the world. And so I am conditioned โ when I go to steakhouses to order the shrimp cocktail in hopes that the sauce will be as mind-blowingly shockingly horse-radishy as what is served at Elmoโs.ย Itโs nostril-cleansing deliciousness. How do the Alamoโs shrimp cocktail and its sauce rate?ย Itโs not St. Elmoโs, but itโs darn good.ย
I can also recommend the Horseradish-Parmesan Prime Rib Strips and the Sombreros โ crab-stuffed mushroom caps โ if youโre considering appetizers. Texas Taters are also usually quite popular with my family and are around $12.
For the main course, they offer things that are not steak and while Iโm sure theyโre all very good, letโs be very clear. We do not go to the steakhouse to order chicken or seafood or salad unless those things happen to be offered as side items to go with your steak.ย Weโre here for steak.ย But which one?ย
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The best steaks at Alamo Steakhouse
At this level of steak, I donโt want a lot of frou-frou foodie business and so I find myself irritated by the Chefโs selection of Peppercorn NY Strip ($38) but will accept the Horseradish Crusted Filet ($40). The Rio Grande Rib Eye ($38) the Alamo New York Strip ($38) and the Filet Mignon ($40) are acceptable choices but the real steak connoisseurs will want the El Presidente Porterhouse ($45) or the 20-ounce ribeye simply known as โThe Steakโ ($45).
For me, the last is my favorite not because itโs significantly better than the other great steaks in its price range but because I get to order โThe Steakโ like Iโm John Wayne or something.ย Oh and donโt forget to order a sweet potato, french fries or rice pilaf for your side and a maybe serving of the asparagus with Hollandaise sauce.
If you must order something besides steak, there are a variety of other menu items available. The Chili Rubbed Pork Chops Dinner ($28) comes highly recommended. The San Antonio Chicken Dinner ($24) looks divine in all of its boneless breast, cheddar cheese and Monterey Jack cheese glory. The Santa Fe Chicken Dinner ($24) is also pretty popular.
If it was me and I wasnโt going to do a steak, Iโd go with the Crabbed Stuffed Shrimp for $29. As evidenced by the sombreros, Iโm a sucker for whenever they shove crab into something else.ย And if you go for lunch, you might want to try their Alamo Bacon & Cheese Steak Burger ($14) โ a huge burger with ground-fresh daily meat โ a suitable steak adjacent option.
For dessert, I would strongly consider another steak (mostly kidding), but if you must have something sweet, you canโt go wrong with the Chocolate Burrito for $8. Itโs basically a chocolate bar chimichanga rolled in cinnamon sugar and topped with vanilla ice cream.ย
Have you eaten at The Alamo Steakhouse? Did you also experience awesome food and good service? Let us know in the comments and on the socials!
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Me and my wife ate there4 years ago ,our food was72.oo. her steak was good mine left a greasy film in my mouth was not able to eat it ,staff did not a thing about it the sweet potato was the best I had. Would not go back
We were just there on January and loved it. We had excellent service and the food was superior in quality. The atmosphere was great too. The trifecta!
Awesome, awesome, awesome! The Steak medium rare and Alamos potatoes deep fried and loveableโฆ. paired with a nice red and call it a night! I have never been disappointed and go with the highest of expectations! *****
WE LOVE THE ALAMO !!!
We go every time we are in Gatlinburg.
WE LOVE THE BONE IN RIBEYE
Cowboy Ribeye !
The servers are always great and I leave 25% tip.
GOTTA LOVE IT
#STEAK
I live in Indiana at eat at Alamo in Gatlinburg every time I visit. The steaks are always awesome. Will be going again this year.
Almost has great food I get the gillet miguon always good food good service love it
We had a wedding dinner at the Alamo and it was wonderful. Heard that the fire destroyed the restaurant was very glad to hear it was rebuilt. Love the food and the atmosphere.
We ate at Almo steak house last time we were in town .We visit Gatlinburg 3 to 4 times a year .So we decided to try this place.worst steak ever for the money .My husband got the Rib Eye and I got the new York strip .it was small fatty .And service was slow .when we left said never go back so over price for the food.
We ate at Alamo on Dec. 19th and again in early February for the BOGO sale. In December I had the Porterhouse and it was great. In February I had the Steakburger which was awesome too. My wife had the Chili rubbed pork chops both times and loved them.
My wife and I love eaten at the Alamo. We live not far away and eat the off
The wife and i were there last christmas. Yes for us it was pricey but Dammm those steaks were good, useually go for the chain steak houses but we were suprised will go back next time in town.
It was awesome, the crab stuffed mushrooms, crab bisque and the steaks. Wonderful food.
I have eaten there several times since 2016 and the food has always been awesome! I would highly recommend trying this restaurant.
Visiting when they have the bogo is even better.
Went for my birthday this year and had a 15% off coupon. Waiter asked if we belonged to their loyalty program, which we didnโt. He signed us up so we wouldnโt need to use a coupon on any future visits, but we couldnโt get the 15% off on this visit as we werenโt in the system yet. Long story short, he still didnโt take our coupon so we ended up paying the full price. Seems like if we werenโt members yet, we should have been able to use our coupon. Wrote to the manager there at the Pigeon Forge restaurant but never heard back. I will say they do have good steaks, and the meal was delicious, even though we didnโt get our 15% discount.
The ALAMO IS MY FAMILIES ALL TIME FAV.8 OF US GO @ LEAST TWICE IN SUMMER & 2 OR 3 TIMES IN FALL & WINTER.HATS DOWN THE BEST.FROM JONESBOROUGH,TN.THE BANNERS
We love Alamo and go there each time we vacation in the Smokies. Perfect for date night. I have to disagree on the dessert recommendation, thoughโblackberry cobbler is definitely the way to go!
We enjoyed our steaks and the service. Went at night so it was very cold outside and only limited space to wait in foyer. It was too cold to wait outside but the good food made it worth while.
We ate there 2/10/22. Great steaks! Loved everything about Alamo Steak House. Good food and awesome service. Plan on going back every time we visit Gatlinburg.
Best food in Pigeon Forge. We eat there every time we go shopping there. Steaks are always done perfect, best service also.
We loved The Alamo Steakhouse! Great Food and great service, and reasonable price!
I live in Seymour and periodically pop over the 30 miles or so to enjoy thei good steaks. The grill chef really knows what heโs doing. And the little bottle of hot sauce/steak sauce is unbelieveable. I wish I had a pic to show you but I buy one each time I visit.
My husband Allen and I celebrated our 29th anniversary in pigeon forge. We new we wanted to eat at the Alamo. We go there waited about 45 min. Finally get seated and look at the menu. My favorite steak is GONE.Yes the top sirloin is gone. I had to have one of the others, which one I donโt remember. It was close to a sirloin according to our waiter. In my opinion it was awful. It wasnโt cooked correctly so I ate fries for my anniversary dinner. My husband ate his meal as quickly as he could. We pd our bill and left and he took me to pizza hut so I could have something to eat. The Alamo might be a great place to eat but not any longer for me.