Dining Old School: A Review of Bern's Steak House in Tampa

It’s set in a strip mall, but once you’re inside you’ll forget about that.

Last month, as a very late Christmas present, Michael and I treated his sisters to a lovely dinner at Bern’s Steak House in Tampa, Florida. It was our second visit to the famed steakhouse and we were so glad to share in their delight at their very first Bern’s experience.

Built in the 1950s in a portion of a strip mall, Bern’s has grown to house the world’s largest wine collection in a restaurant (who would have thought?). The interior is old-school and over-the-top with dark red and wood interiors, golden accents, and lots of paintings. The opulence from days past is part of the restaurant’s charm, even though the darkness doesn’t lend itself to great photos, as you’ll soon see.

Although the front entryway can get quite congested with parties waiting to be seated, from the moment you arrive at your table the service is impeccable. Our server explained that only 1.5 out of every 10 servers make it through their extensive training program and that it can take years for servers to begin serving diners.

Of course, when you visit Bern’s, what you’re really there for is a great meal. They always suggest choosing a larger steak for the group rather than smaller individual steaks, and each comes with a French onion soup, house salad, vegetables, and crispy onions. We chose a 30-oz Chateaubriand for the four of us, and we still had food remaining on our plates after all was said and done.

A bowl of French Onion Soup on a table — French Onion Soup accompanies all steak entrees

A plate of steak and vegetables — This large hunk is just one-fourth of our steak…

If you can manage to climb out of your chair after your meal, the Bern’s staff will gladly take you on a tour of their very large and very busy kitchen. It’s incredibly fascinating to see the staff hard at work at their stations cutting steaks, frying onions, chopping vegetables, crafting soups, pulling shots of espresso – and most impressively – not bumping into each other or the guests. As you might expect after decades of service, the team has it all down pat.

Following a walk through the kitchen, the tour leads to the wine “cellar.” It’s nearly impossible to have any sort of underground space in Florida because of the low elevation, so the wine storage is just located down a short ramp. The portion of the wine collection we saw was only a fraction of what Bern’s truly has on hand (many more bottles are located across the street), however, we did manage to catch a glimpse of bottles totaling $10,000 and up. They even allowed Suzy to climb the ladder, which we did not expect!

If you desire (and, I promise you do), you can book a table upstairs at the Harry Waugh Dessert Room. The dessert room is a newer addition to the space and opened in the 1980s, with over forty semi-private booths set in wine holding tanks. The dessert menu is almost overwhelming, although I trust you’ll manage to complete the task.

Dessert wines and spirits are available, along with many different types of cakes, ice creams, cheesecakes, mousses, and the like. Each booth is equipped with a phone and speaker, and songs can be made by request to the pianist (though nothing will beat the time that Michael and I went and we turned the music on just in time to hear Montell Jordan’s “This Is How We Do It” play. How romantic).

In any case, I think a visit to the dessert room is the sweetest way to end this opulently wonderful (and at times almost absurd) experience.

Chocolate desserts at Bern's — The theme of the night? *Decadence*

TIPS FOR VISITING BERN’S STEAKHOUSE

Parking at Bern’s

Unless you’re staying across the street at the Epicurean Hotel (which I highly recommend!), you’ll need to arrive at Bern’s by car. Parking is valet-only, at a reasonable $8, but if you’re worried about the timing of it all, you’ll find rideshare services are plentiful in the Tampa area.

Bern’s Steak House Dress Code

As a destination, Florida is overall a pretty casual place – and the recommended attire at Bern’s Steak House is business casual to semi-formal. The restaurant asks that diners refrain from wearing t-shirts, sneakers, flip-flops, baseball caps, shorts, or distressed clothing. Though you won’t be turned away if you choose to wear any of these items, you may be seated in the lounge rather than in the formal dining room.

Michael’s sisters and I opted for black dresses and Michael added a jacket to his button-down and khakis, and I think we all felt comfortable in our choices. We could have stepped it up if we felt like it, but it was such a treat to focus on the food and conversation rather than what we were wearing.

How much does Bern’s cost?

Helpfully, Bern’s publishes its menu online now, so you can get a sense of your total cost before making the reservation. To save, it helps to have dining companion(s) who have a similar palate, as you can share a larger entree rather than paying more for multiple smaller ones. While wine isn’t always a cost-effective beverage choice, the restaurant’s extensive wine list features options at many price points (even comfortable ones!). Ask your server for guidance, and share something new together.

As you’re tallying up your anticipated bill, note that a 12% service charge will be added to your check for the service team.

FINAL THOUGHTS ON DINING AT BERN’S

I always like to ask the question “Will I be back?” And for Bern’s, the answer is absolutely (since writing this post, I have returned once more – I probably would dined several more times since then, had we not moved to Charlotte).

But you know, it’s funny, because on all of my visits, I saw people who must have been “regulars.” To me, Bern’s isn’t a place I would want to visit regularly. All budget considerations aside, when you visit a place like this too often, it tends to lose its charm – and isn’t that kind of the whole point?

Looking for more? You may enjoy these other Florida guides:

Where are some of your favorite places to take your loved ones?

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A Taste of History: A Review of Bern’s Steak House in Tampa, Florida