text: Longhorn's motto is \"Welcome to the West\" but they seem to be more of an east coast chain that has just recently started expanding out this way. This particular location still has that new-restaurant smell on it (even though the carpets were pretty dirty - it looks like this location is popular with families that have a lot of messy kids).  All the decor and finishings looked very new. They have a contemporary feel with nice hardwood and slate tile everywhere but then they throw on a heaping load of western inspired kitch. The atmosphere left us expecting more of a west Texas, mesquite grill but really I would categorize their menu as more of a typical Midwestern steakhouse.\n\nWe started off with a bad first impression since the hostess gave us a fob and asked us to wait in the bar for a table for about 15 minutes. I didn't understand why it would take that long since I could see several empty tables from where we were standing. I got the distinct impression that they were hoping we would wander into the bar and spend more money but since we instead chose to hover around the hostess stand our actual wait was only about 7 minutes. Other than that, the service we received here was very good. Our waitress was really sweet and friendly and very attentive. If only the food had been better, this might become one of our regular spots. My salad was mostly wilted iceberg lettuce and I really didn't eat much of it. My husband's Caesar was a little better but still sub-par. We both ordered steak, assuming that was their specialty. Hubby got the porterhouse which came swimming in melted butter. The mashed potatoes had been likewise shaped into a volcano mound with butter overflowing out of it. It grossed me out just to look at it. He of course ate it all but I just don't know why it needed that much butter since a good porterhouse is well marbled and should have plenty of fat already in the meat. For my entree, I ordered the 7oz fillet. This too had butter all over it but no other seasoning whatsoever. It was very tender but almost too much so. I know you are thinking how can a steak be too tender but it just really affected the texture in my mouth in an unpleasant way. The steak turned to mush after a few bites. They must use a meat tenderizing powder or else they pound the crap out of it with a mallet before cooking. Since the steak was so flavorless, I don't think the tenderness came from the quality of the beef at all. My side dish was the sweet potato bites and in contrast these were pretty darn good. I could have skipped the steak and salad and just eaten a whole plateful of those. Still, I have had sweet potato tots at a sports bar that were equally delicious so I think that is just my love of sweet potatoes talking and not really a selling point for the quality of the food at Longhorn.\n\nI do like the fact that this place offers a good variety of food. There are many options for side dishes and you can add on additional ones at a reasonable price. Also, they have chicken, ribs, and pork chops in addition to the steak. But I would rather go to Firebirds and pay a little more for a meal I know I will love if I am in the mood for this type of food.