halls chophouse

i made reservations for my boyfriends surprise birthday dinner on a wednesday. every year he wants the ice cream cake from baskin robbins. i picked it up with special candles and dropped it off athall'sthe day before after being reassured the cake would be fine. we arrived the next day for our reservation and after we finished eating i asked the waiter to bring out the cake. he said something happened and the cake was being fixed. i wasn't told anything until i asked about it. when they came out with the cake the candles where arranged on three slices of cake from there and not the cake i bought. he doesn't even like cake. they brought out the melted disaster of a cake to us after. my boyfriend and i are extremely disappointed about the cake and lack of communication fromhall'sstaff. i've left two messages for management and have not yet been called back. we have celebrated every birthday here until now.

i ratedhall'sa 4.0 out of 5.0building reminded me of earlier dining establishment's in the 70's. well maintained though, not run down. hostess was very pleasant. live music playing jazz (well played), and a loud buzz of conversation everywhere. the good: steak had a great flavor, was tender. one of the better steaks i have ever had.  appetizers and sides were excellent. attentive wait staff were all friendly and knowledgeable, from the time i entered, until the moment i left. spicy shrimp with small pepper salad (very good). fried green tomato's (great, and i do not like tomato's!). cream corn (very good). lobster mac and cheese (very good). whiskey bread pudding (very good). the bad: steak was underdone to my preference. we were asked to cut into it and check, but i dislike sending food back as i like mine medium rare, and it has a small window to get it right.  i ordered medium rare and my steak was rare, but i can handle that, just not my preference. i would expect a $59 steak to be cooked as desired, however. interior was cold and loud. conversation was loud and the music, while very well played, was a bit loud for my preference. toward night fall, i got cold. this is a normal problem in charleston where the days are 80+ in october and then fall to 60 at night. the place was packed and perhaps i was under the vent. the ugly: parking! nothall'sfault, but you better be willing to walk two blocks to get there from a parking garage, or pay $10 to park in a private lot just around the corner, assuming they have a space.  if the gods of parking are kind, you might find a parallel parking space out front. on my visit, the gods were angry with me.

from the moment we walked in this place was buzzing around with people enjoying cocktails and servers smiling and saying hello to everyone. even bill hall stopped by to introduce himself to us (about 8 times actually).hall'schophouse had a warm classy jazz feeling to it with people of all ages hanging out at the bar and by the live band by the front door. we came in on a tuesday night with a reservation for six.hall'schophouse was filled to the brim with people eating and drinking and enjoying the music. standing room only from the moment we walked in. we only had to wait a few minutes before being seated upstairs in a small room which was packed full of people. the table was a half circle booth which made it very hard for all six people to cram into it and even harder to hear everyone. although it wasn't ideal i will admit that there weren't any other options at the time. the only tables that could handle six or more people were already taken up by other guests. this room was very old world with beautiful pictures and low lighting. we could still hear a slight echo of tunes coming from the band downstairs. oysters rockefeller athall'schophouse in charleston, sc once we were seated we were immediately given water and the wine list. the six of us decided to order a few appetizers to share and reviewed the rest of the menu. the waitress knew the menu extremely well and her suggestion on the appetizers was perfect. she told us about their amazing crab cakes and oysters rockefeller so we order a couple for the table. the crab cakes were filled with crab and flavor and could easily have been the best i've ever tasted. it was my first time trying oysters rockefeller and i didn't know what to expect. the hollandaise sauce and spinach made the oysters rockefeller very creamy and the bread crumbs added the perfect amount of crunch. great choices to begin our meal. porter house

best food i have ever had. me and a friend were visiting charleston and decided to tryhall'supon recommendation. as we walked in, the owner greeted and shook our hands, introducing himself. the hostess quickly found us a seat, as we had no reservation. the chicken and duck plates were nothing less than amazing... this has to be the best food i have ever eaten. i would recommend this splendid, upscale, delicious restaurant to anyone!

fabulous filet mignon. my wife and i had the pleasure to visit charleston recently and decided we wanted a steak dinner. we chose halls chophouse for the online reputation and comments posted on the foodie sites. let me say we were not disappointed. i would venture to say this was, without a doubt, the absolute best filet i have experienced since i last dined at the ritz carlton in buckhead, ga. my filet was cooked to perfection, along with my choice of a side of nicely prepared and tasty butter (lima) beans, a daily side special, instead of the routine baked potato. thehall'schop salad was also delicious and nicely done with a touch of bacon and buttermilk dressing. our handler, jordan, was well versed in southern hospitality while at the same time very well traveled and, as it turns out, somewhat of a homie. my wife, a midwesterner, opted for the lighter bar menu's filet steak martini, very nicely presented with delicious mashed potatoes in a tasty peppercorn brandy sauce. no question if you are on king street in the historic downtown area of charleston and desire a steak, you'll do no better than halls, guaranteed by none other than the door greeter himself, billy hall. great place that will see a repeat when we're in town. definitely put this one on your list.

top shelf experience!. i cannot say enough great things abouthall'schophouse. this is my 10th or 11th time eating there and i am treated like a celebrity each time i go. the hall family checks on you throughout your meal to make sure everything is up to your satisfaction. for brunch today, we had john as our server and he was incredible! we were spoiled with all the attention. thank you so much, john! we also had about 5 other people checking on and serving us. (i apologize that i didn't get their names, but they were fabulous, too!) devon gave us the names of other "hidden gem" restaurants/pubs in the area to check out, with amazing descriptions of each. we even had the chance to talk with a school of the arts student who was volunteering athall'sfor community service hours. being a teacher myself, the fact that the hall family reaches out to schools in the area, impressed me to no end! i recommendhall'shands down for any occasion-especially if you want to wow your guests. their hospitality, service, and menu is unmatched in charleston.

family owner narcissism, money oriented, service poor, chain steakhouse like outback at morton's prices. when we first entered we were aggressively greeted by the owners which are brothers. tone down the greeting! we were seated at a booth which was nice and the table was moved out so we could sit down. our server was jon and he really disappointed. the service we received was nothing like the high quality, team oriented approach of the peninsula grill. when i asked for a1 sauce jon said we don't carry that here but i can run across the street to get it. i could tell he really didn't want to get it. hall family, just buy a bottle of a1 or heinz 57 for those customers that want it. after all, we are the ones paying $100 a head for supper. she crab soup was very good but light on crab meat, we split that. we also split a fullhall'schopped salad which was nothing special. the seasonal salads at longhorn are much better. the salads we had at peninsula grill were outstanding so we expected the same here. we ordered the porterhouse to split cooked medium with a loaded baked potato and asparagus with bearnaise sauce. the steak was not trimmed properly (fat on the side and tendons) and was not cooked right. the outside was burned which gave the steak a carbon taste. potato was nothing special again chain steakhouse quality at an $8 side price. i have to admit the asparagus with sauce was very good but this is a steakhouse so you come for the steak. i had the 434 pineapple martini which was very good but the second one was not good something with grey goose and champagne. flaming caramel cake was again nothing special and we had to pay $15 for a pot of french press coffee. go for the coconut cake at the peninsula grill. we asked for a less expensive regularly brewed coffee but the server seemed put out about making a regular pot. french press coffee was good but $15 for a pot of coffee? finally, our server jon was constantly trying to take our steak, etc before we were done without asking us. is he trying to turn over the table quickly? this place seems just money oriented and quite honestly family owner narcissism.

here is the dishonest and incompetent cap off of the night. jon our server first gave us our check and it was very low so i noticed our $68 porterhouse steak and $8 sides were left off. i got the busy server's attention and said to him i'd be glad to have a free steak but he might want to consider adding the steak to our check. when the check came he added a $85 dry aged porterhouse to the bill which we never ordered! the $85 porterhouse is not even on the menu! what is this bait and switch! totally dishonest. we spoke to the manager devin and he offered to take the entire steak off the check which i did not disagree with. when the server and management saw we had a poor experience there was a lot of insincere and phony posterior kissing.

overall, this a chain type steakhouse like longhorn that is trying to be a morton's or ruth's chris with a lot of window dressing. it does not deliver. i truly do not understand how they got to be number 1 on trip advisor in charleston, sc. i would not recommend for a romantic dinner as you are always speaking to a hall family member and it is loud inside.

my suggestions to management: 1. buy a $5 box of equal and keep it on hand for customers that want it, 2. buy a bottle of a1 and heinz 57 for $4 each and have them on hand for customers that want them, 3. enroll server in humility training, 4. change beef supplier, that was not good quality beef!, 4. brothers, it is not necessary to accost every patron at the front door, let your food and service speak for itself, 5. revamp your chopped salad recipe, 6. retrain back of house how to cook a steak.

simply the best.hall'sis my favorite restaurant in the entire country. i live in california and make sure when i am ever in the area to go there. they food is incredible but the hospitality is even better. they always make you feel welcome and the servers are amazing. i recommend the seafood app and filet or new york. we also tried brunch for the first time which blew our minds it was simply delicious.hall'sis must try, you will thank yourself. pepper jack cheese grits are out of this world!!!

beyond superb. as an anniversary gift, our daughter and son-in-law arranged for us to have dinner athall'schop house on saturday, oct 19th. the ambiance of the evening began with a gracious greeting at the door by one of the owners. the service was impeccable, the atmosphere romantic, and the food beyond superb. we like our steak well done, a curse to most chefs. our meat was not at all pink and still succulent. it is very unusual to find a restaurant can deliver a large piece of beef well cook to perfection. the lobster mac and cheese was luscious. the presentation of the head lettuce salad looked as good as it tasted. the personal touch of the greeting by the owner, the impeccable service, and the delicious food is a winning combination. it seems like everyone that works there love their job and their contentment is apparent. we can certainly recommend this restaurant without any hesitation.

love it.hall'sis awesome!!! billy & tommy are the best. the wait staff and chefs are the best. they have the best food ever.

kindest service anywhere.hall'sis a good steakhouse, but the servers and owners really make it worth the visit. my wife and i, tourists in charleston at the time, came tohall'sbefore a spoleto concert. our sever made sure our food came out of the kitchen in a timely fashion, yet in no way did the dining experience feel rushed. one of the owners paid a visit to our table to make sure we were happy and completely taken care of. after dinner, we got about 3 steps out the door when the other owner hurried after us to wish us a wonderful evening. he even offered to help us find other attractions and restaurants for the rest of our visit to charleston.

excellent on all counts. over the years i have been fortunate enough to have eaten some of the very best steakhouses in the us andhall'sranks right up there with them all. the food was excellent but it's the service and the overall dining experience that truly elevates this restaurant. my wife and i experienced it in a recent saturday night visit and we found it to be singularly outstanding.

i'd read some reviews ofhall'swhich poked fun at the attention diners receive from the hall family. one reviewer also complained about poor service and how his water glass went unfilled for a half an hour. having eaten athall'si find those criticisms to be ludicrous.

first, let's talk about the family thing. unless you are a millionaire or some kind of local luminary you've probably been to high end restaurants where you may have been treated well but not anywhere near as well as the fat cat regulars. not an intolerable situation for sure, but in some small way your experience is diminished at least a touch by the knowledge that while they're happy you came to their restaurant, they're a whole lot happier the big shots over at table two are back again for another big check.

hall's no doubt gets its share of big bucks regulars. but you never notice because --from what i experienced-- they treat everyone exceptionally well from start to finish. we were met by one of the owner's sons...warmly greeted to be sure and when told we were celebrating an anniversary he congratulated us. after being seated and while starting to give our cocktail order, the same hall son reappeared with two flutes of champagne. nice touch. during the course of the meal we were served by 4 or 5 various people...all smiling and accommodating and all encouraging us to take our time and savor the evening. we started with two house cocktails....a 434 cirtrusy delight for me and a negroni for my wife. both were excellent and --as we rarely do -- reordered another round. for starters i had the house chopped salad --fresh and full of flavor--and my wife the bacon steak, which was also very good but in hindsight probably a bit heavy (lean as it was) for a starter. for main course, my wife opted for the lamb chops (sourced from a chicago supplier) and she loved every bite. i went for the 16 oz. wet aged ny strip, which was as good as any steak i've ever had and cooked as ordered. for sides we enjoyed broccolini, baked sweet potato and spinach. the sides are family-sized portions and all hit the mark. given all the calories elsewhere we opted to ignore the bread, which seemed like a good choice since the contents of the basket didn't appear to be anything special. there were plenty of wines by the glass at a range of prices and we each found one we liked. my wife a cabernet and myself a malbec.

as the plates were cleared our server --a lovely young woman named sarah who has been withhall'ssince they opened two years ago-- encouraged us to order dessert which would be on the house. so we shared a house signature bread pudding and cleaned the plate. we also each had an espresso martini --actually two each. .

as good as all this food and drink was, it was the service and atmosphere that won us over. my seat faced the long length of the upstairs dining room and at one point icounted 14 visible staff working the room of about 15 to 18 tables. plus, there were others working out of view. one woman's sole job was to walk the room, water pitcher in hand. that previous reviewer's comment that he/she waited 30 minutes to have water refilled seems preposterous. and the pace of service was not in the least bit rushed. during dessert the owner's son stopped by again and asked me if i had tasted any of my wife's lamb chops, which i of course did. we enjoyed a brief and casual conversation talking about menu items from peter luger's, gene and georgetti and the like. his presence was not the least bit intrusive or over the top, as one or two reviewers have commented. i dislike places where the manager or owner breezes by and --with body turned 90 degrees away from you-- gives you the perfunctory "everything ok here?". i also have no use for the opposite end of the spectrum; when the boss camps out at the end of your table and won't quit talking. myhall'sexperience was nothing like either of those. they simply get it right. and that warmth and non-oppressive congeniality continued right through to our exit out the front door. as we left i chuckled as i saw the owner shaking hands with incoming patrons because i remember one reviewer criticizing that behavior because it's "unsanitary". spare me, please.

my only mild negatives would be a nothing-special bread basket and a hefty (but well worth it) price structure.

so, yes, count me among the fans of hall's. i suppose it's inevitable that they could have a bad night every now and then, but it would have to be a major exception. i think one has to be unreasonably picky or perhaps a faux-sophisticate in order to have problem's with hall's. we will definitely be back to charleston. we'll hit snob and high cotton and a few others, too, but the one we'll most look forward to will be hall's.

superb sunday afternoon.hall'swas outstanding! steven, brian and billy were knowledgeable, welcoming and excited and it showed throughout our service. the atmosphere was wonderful and the food was nothing short of magnificent. just wonderful!

the favorite!. nightlyhall'sserves and experience not found elsewhere in the city. spot on service with first class food selections. very rarely do i find a place that seems both as welcoming during the first experience as it is for veterans.
looking for relaxed formal setting with service and culinary skill that never disappoints, halls should be first on your list.

best steak in charleston. outstanding! by far, one of the best places to eat in town. the food is great. from the family style sides to the dry aged steaks, everything on the menu has been great on multiple visits. besides the food, the service is awesome. from the second you walk in the doors (where you will be likely met by tommy, bill or the rest of the hall family) to the minute you leave,hall'stakes care of its customers like they are family. always inviting, attentive and eager to serve.hall'sis a must for anyone seeking for a great dining experience in charleston.