Bay Area Eats: Alexander's Steakhouse

I've been hearing about Alexander's in Cupertino since they opened a long while back. My brother has always been ranting and raving about this steakhouse with a Japanese twist that claims to be the only restaurant in California that dry ages their own beef on-site for 28 days. But with their steaks starting around $40, I (or rather my budget) have never got around to checking out the place. However, celebrating a couple birthdays gave enough reason to make a reservation. I apologize for the fuzzy pictures; there wasn't much lighting in the restaurant.

The meal started out with an amuse bouche, which the waiter described as meaning "happy mouth". I didn't feel like correcting him, but found it slightly amusing. I forget what it was, but something with cheese. For starters, we ordered the shishito peppers, hamachi shots and seared scallops. I didn't like the peppers too much. They seemed to lack flavor and felt a bit greasy with the flash frying. The hamachi shots were refreshing and light with a nice truffled ponzu sauce. The scallops were perfectly cooked; my only regret was that there weren't more.

After the starters, our server brought out a palate cleansing sorbet. I think it was strawberry flavored?

Like many high-end steakhouses, all of Alexander's steaks are a la carte. We picked a few side dishes to share, though they weren't too memorable. The truffled mac 'n cheese was a bit too rich for my tastes.  I ordered the 6 oz. filet, which was perfectly cooked (rare). The redder the better, right? Apparently you can also order your steaks bleu here. However, I prefer my steaks to be warm in the center.

Unfortunately two of the porterhouse steaks ordered were completely overcooked. There is a jarring difference between a rare steak and a medium/medium-well done steak. Sadly the two weren't the former. The replacement steaks were perfectly cooked, though hardly a consolation as no one likes to wait for their food while others eat.

However, our server covered lost ground by bringing out an array of desserts on the house. For the birthdays, they served a simple chocolate cake. Though moist, the cake portion wasn't too impressive. Instead of a ganache or glaze, the mousse was topped with a tempered layer of chocolate, which made cutting into the cake very difficult. Glaze, people, glaze!

The second dessert was the same cake base, with a raspberry namelaka center, covered with a dome of valrhona chocolate. The point of this dessert was to pour hot raspberry sauce over the dome to melt it. It was a bit messy looking as the chocolate didn't melt consistently. After further inspection, the chocolate dome had varying thicknesses, i.e. was unevenly coated.

The last dessert, and my favorite, was a chocolate souffle. Generally I don't care so much for souffles. Their reputation is a bit too inflated if you ask me, and my expectations usually collapse after too many mediocre souffles. Okay, well there's some failed souffle puns for you. The server overheard my sister in law mentioning how we prefer chocolate, and asked the kitchen to make a chocolate souffle instead of their standard raspberry. The souffle was served with tiny chocolate macarons (a bit too dry), mini chocolate madeleines (WAY too dry), and creme anglaise to be drizzled into the souffle. The creme anglaise was AMAZINGLY thick! I've never come across creme anglaise so thick, considering they don't use any starch (yes, I asked). Their yolk ratio must have been very high. Super tasty.

The meal ended with cloyingly sweet cotton candy. I think it was grape or blueberry, though the flavor was reminiscent of the cough syrup I had as a child. Kudos for providing something sweet for those who don't order dessert.

Aside from the overcooked steak, which in my book is completely unacceptable at a steakhouse, the meal was flavorful and filling. It also didn't hurt to have some perks from my brother knowing some of the staff there.

Alexander's Steakhouse
10330 North Wolfe Road
Cupertino, CA 95104
Tel: 408 446 2222