THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, November 12, 1995 TAG: 9511090019
SECTION: FLAVOR PAGE: F4 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Restaurant Review
SOURCE: BY BROWN H. CARPENTER, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 75 lines
HAVING DINNER at the Longbranch Steakhouse and Saloon in Virginia Beach means experiencing a restaurant chain at its inception. It's a chain of two: the outlet just west of Pembroke Mall on Virginia Beach Boulevard and the original eatery in Burlington, N.C.
But owner Jerry Mazzurco has hired a marketing manager to sell franchises to those interested in entering the trendy beef market.
The Longbranch is medium-priced with a no-nonsense menu. It offers a dozen basic beef entrees, including prime ribs, with an average price of $13 or so. Nonsteak eaters can feast on chicken, pork chops, seafood and ribs.
The decor, like the food, is western: simple and unadorned. A bucket of roasted, in-the-shell peanuts is placed on each table and customers are free to toss the shells onto the floor.
Our party of two visited the Longbranch on a recent Saturday evening. The restaurant was filled with diners but not crowded. We were seated immediately, and the service was quick and courteous.
For an appetizer, we decided on Longbranch Chili ($1.95 a cup, $2.95 a bowl), definitely an Eastern version - hamburger and tomatoes - of this Texas specialty. But it was sufficiently fired up with jalapenos and topped with onions and shredded Cheddar cheese.
We ordered beef entrees: the beef kebab ($11.50) and an 8-ounce Delmonico ($10.50 - the 11-ounce cut is ($12.95).
Each steak is accompanied by a salad, a loaf of honey-baked bread and a choice of baked potato, sweet potato, french fries or rice pilaf.
We've noticed in other middle-priced steak restaurants, the regular cuts of beef can be more tasty than the more expensive filets. This was true also at the Longbranch.
The beef kebab consisted of chunks of filet mignon grilled on skewers with green peppers and tomatoes. The menu also promised mushrooms, but they were omitted from our skewers.
We ordered our steak medium-rare. But quickly cooking the shish kebab to that specification meant the vegetables were tepid and undercooked, particularly the onions.
The filet was tender but not very flavorful. The Delmonico came off the grill just the way we ordered it. When we return to the Longbranch, we'll stick to the tried-and-true ribeyes, T-bones and New York strips.
The menu should list the sauteed onions and mushroom side dishes - both hearty, inexpensive steak accompaniments - with the beef entrees. You don't notice them until you flip to the desserts.
When you nibble on peanuts between courses, it's easy to get full fast. So we had coffee for dessert, too stuffed for all the ice cream concoctions (95 cents to $2.95).
The Longbranch is kid-friendly. Burgers, ribs and other children's dishes are $3.50 each, including fries and drink. MEMO: Reviews of chain restaurants with stores in Hampton Roads are based on a
single, unannounced visit by a party of two or three, unless otherwise
noted. The Virginian-Pilot pays for the reviewer's meal and those of the
guests.
CHAIN REACTION
Longbranch Steakhouse and Saloon: 4752 Virginia Beach Blvd., Virginia
Beach. 499-4428.
Hours: 11 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. Sunday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to
11:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
Prices: entree salads from $6.50 to $6.95; steak and beef from $9.95
(chopped steak) to $19.95 (18-ounce prime rib); other dishes, $8.95 (two
of the chicken entrees) to $12.95 (baby-back ribs); and combos, $12.95
to $18.95.
Reservations: Accepted for parties of eight or more.
Smoking: limited to about 30 percent of the table space.
Owned by: Jerry Mazzurco of Burlington, N.C. by CNB