Inside the cameo room at Bern's Steak House
If you head to South Tampa’s legendary Bern’s Steak House, you may find yourself at a crossroads of sorts. With one foot in the 1950’s and another in the present, you are immediately bombarded with the restaurant’s aesthetic- dark paneled with gilded chandeliers and an old school waitstaff serving french onion soup in pewter bowls. But you may also learn that your waiter worked on the Bern’s farm where your salad and organic vegetables were grown and that the chef ages his own beef and roasts his own regionally grown coffee. This is something that trendy locavore eateries pride themselves, yet Bern’s has been doing this for years. It is for this reason Bern’s is included on the Zest’s Best Florida Steakhouse list.
Diners flock to Bern’s because of its landmark status build on the quality of their steaks. The dry-aged, corn-fed U.S. Prime beef steaks are still the main attraction at Bern’s (62 hand-cut cuts worth), but lamb, veal, chicken and seafood are also on the menu. Sold by weight and thickness, steaks are prepared to perfection and the sauces and accompaniments are expertly executed. Impressive doesn’t begin describe their wine list (it includes some 6,500 selections). After dinner, a quick tour of the bustling kitchen, through the wine cellar to the uber cozy Dessert Room–complete with a request-taking piano player– is a required tradition. 1208 S. Howard Ave., Hyde Park, Tampa, FL, 33606. Tel: (813) 251-2421.
