North Star Steakhouse - Topeka, Kansas North Star Steakhouse, on the north side of Topeka, Kansas, began as the North Star Supper Club in the 1940s. There is a bit of a prohibition era theme, though it is mainly reflected in the plain, windowless exterior, dark lighting and some menu items. The front restaurant and bar is so dark that is is hard to read the menu or take a photo of your food. If you prefer a little more light, request that they take you through the front room to the larger dinning room where the booths have lights over the tables. There is a small menu of $13 "prohibition cocktails." The only one I have tried is the Old Fashioned, which is described as Ezra Brooks Rye, house blended bitters, house made demerara (brown sugar) syrup, muddied fruit, and served over a large ice cube. Not bad, though the description was more exciting than the drink. Other prohibition cocktails include Armaretto Sour, Lady Songbird, Mint Julep, and Manhattan. So far we have tried the fried catfish, chicken fried steak, bone in pork chop and ribeye. The prices went up between March and June of 2024 but the meals I've had are still reasonably priced at $20.99, $21.99, $22.99 and $40.99. They come with rolls, salad and family style sides. The salads are fresh, chilled and have a generous covering of dressing. We have had fresh cut fries, hash browns, gravy, baked potato and broccoli, which are every side the North Star serves. They were all good and are served family style. They would have brought more if we requested. The gravy could use a little more seasoning and I found myself adding too much salt. The chicken fried steak also was less seasoned then I would have liked. Having the leftovers the next day, I discovered that I enjoyed it much more with hot sauce. The large pork chop comes heavily breaded and seared in vinegar. Much more breaded than we would chose. The 16 ounce ribeye was ordered with a $4.99 serving of onions, mushrooms and peppers and that was a nice addition. Although at first glance it looked like the outside of the steak was over cooked, my steak actually came medium as ordered, and I was quite happy with it. We had plenty of leftovers to take home with us. My most recent meal was a Saturday evening, when I had an early supper. Calling for a reservation just a little after 4 PM, I had to settle for a seat at the bar. I was the only one eating at the bar, but there was a steady stream of other people either picking up take out orders or having a drink while waiting for their tables. It felt like the staff knew and liked all of the other customers, but I felt welcome as well. My food was brought by servers, but the bartender supervised my meal. The only dessert I've tried is the Ooey Gooey Brownie, which at $13 seemed a little pricey compared to the $21.99 for my meal, Just after I first photographed the dessert, a server brought a martini glass filled with additional ice cream, saying that the bartender said I hadn't been brought enough ice cream on the plate. That isn't nuts on top of the brownie in the picture, but toffee. I ate all of the large dessert.
copyright 2024 by Keith Stokes |
