For most people, John Howie Steak is more of a special occasion type of place. We are no different. For a celebration, we popped in and basically ordered without paying attention to prices. It actually wasn't that bad; the prices are comparable to the other steak houses we've visited. One thing to note is that 20% service charge is added to every check. Our service was attentive, par to many of the other high-end places. Because we went on a quiet weekday without the roar of a business group of dinners nearby (why do they always go to steak houses?), our service was extra attentive. Our eyes readily met those of someone available. Their décor is steakhouse upscale. We had a comfortable 4-person table so we can sit next to each other. The Food: House Baked Bread, $6 - 4.5 Stars Menu: Whipped European butter, sea salt This is a good variety for $6. I've paid more for half a loaf. Seared Foie Gras, $31 - 4 Stars Menu: Caramelized Honeycrisp apple, purple onion, green cabbage, guanciale, aged sherry vinegar, toasted pine nuts and madeira honey I have a weakness for seared foie gras. Their dish has two good size foie gras in that pile mixed with many veggies. I do wish the dish doesn't present itself as being so oily. Good, but could have been great. Atlantic Lobster Tails, $112 - 4 Stars Menu: Two 9oz tails, cream cherry butter, lemon, butter sauce Yes, I do make this at home. Costco has them much cheaper, blah, blah. But I can't quite sear them as well. I am paying for workmanship! Rib Eye Steak, $89 - 4 Stars Menu: 16 oz, Omaha, Nebraska, Grilled over Mesquite Coals, 28 Day Custom-Aged USDA Prime Beef Another we can make this at home for less, but they really do it better. No complaints. Char Roasted Broccoli, $15 - 4.5 Stars Menu: Preserved lemon, caper, and red chilies I definitely can't char broccoli like this. This is an excellent side! White Chocolate Coconut Cream Pie, $15 - 4.5 Stars Menu: Chef John Howie's famous recipe Chef John vs Chef Tom - who do we like better? I honestly can't tell. They are both dramatic in presentation and flavorful. This one is a gorgeous snowy mountain. Flourless Semisweet Chocolate Volcano Cake, $14 - 4.5 Stars Menu: Warm caramel, dark chocolate ganache, vanilla creme, shaved white chocolate I was so full by now, but this was free with celebration. Yay! I found room to eat some, and it's delicious! Our parting dessert were three house made donut bites. They also went home, and they were still delicious the next day.

John Howie is indeed an experience that you must have at least once in your life. The service is top tier! The food is not only delicious but beautifully prepared and presented. I love the fact that they operate intentionally to curate the perfect dining experience. It is a great atmosphere for a romantic evening for a special occasion or if you would like to impress someone. The owner/manager visited our table and was very friendly! As was the server and host. I look forward to more dining experiences here. I especially look forward to having the roasted bone marrow again!

Had a business dinner here on May 28. 5 stars all the way. Our server was a dream. Wonderful attitude, knowledgeable, kind and funny. A couple people ordered apps and sides for the table. I had a little bit of mashed potatoes, fried Brussel sprouts, and a deviled egg. I had a wedge salad which was really good. I ordered the Australian wagyu ribeye which was perfect. The only thing I didn't like was a mocktail with lime that was super tart. The amuse bouche was a bright way to start. The complimentary strawberry pie bite at the end was refreshing. I took a coconut pie to go and it was pure heaven. The table also had crab cakes, oysters, broccoli and bread. 5 others had steaks, 1 had salmon and 1 had halibut. Everyone raved about the food for days. Setting reservations online was easy. If you self-park, they validate for you. Extensive wine and whiskey list. Halal steak is available. I had an upset stomach and emailed the restaurant the next day in case there was an issue. No one else had any problems so I updated the restaurant. They mailed me a gift card anyway to thank me for coming in and letting them know.

If I could tell John Howie one thing, it's that I've been here a handful of times and the food is always delicious, and their service is inconsistent. Keep the service top notch like you do on holidays, and it would be highly recommend. On Mother's Day, they rolled out the red carpet and the service and food was amazing. (It's the everyday that is inconsistent.) Food is delicious- flavorful, generous portions, top notch. This is a steakhouse with limited non-meat options. Love their breadbasket and sides - beechers Mac and cheese, lobster mashed potatoes, broccoli, truffle fries. Crab cakes are fresh and delicious, medium sized, great for sharing. The table side Caesar salad is the best! I enjoyed their love letter cocktail as it wasn't too sweet, perfect for me. Our server was knowledge and helped me decide. Hubs loved his dirty martini and the Murray and Noe. We really wanted the crème brûlée but were too full to order. However, we were pleasantly surprised as I mentioned we had celebrated a birthday the day before and our server proactively brought out a complimentary chocolate dessert to go. Very thoughtful!

Every time I go to John Howie there are absolutely no regrets and I walk away super happy and full with my food baby. Parking: Shared retail parking for the building (there is an entrance along each side of the building (but double check to make sure you're not going into Residential entrance) Pet friendly: No Family friendly: Yes in the dining area, not the bar area FOOD: 1. Korean bbq amuse Buche (Korean bbq with eggplant) Complimentary: 5 Stars - Unexpected addition and so happy as I went into our dinner starving. One bite that was very flavorful and kind of wish this was an actual menu item so I could have more. 2. Fresh Shucked Oyster (1/2 dozen oyster on the half shell, classic cocktail sauce, champagne mignonette, lemon) $28: 4 Stars - I love myself fresh oyster and this did not disappoint. The oyster was a little bit sweet, a little bit briny and the only thing I probably didn't really like was we were never told what type of oysters we were eating. From order to when it arrive at our table we didn't get any information. 3. Tableside for Two: American Wagyu Beef "Long Bone" Rib Eye (Mesquite-grilled 40oz, roasted vegetables, roasted bone marrow, bordelaise) $240: 4.75 Stars - This was THE reason I came here for our date night. The roasted vegetables had great char but not burnt, the bone marrow was so flavorful and not greasy even though its all fat, and the beef... OMG so good. The marbling gave it the flavor, the grill gave it that slight smoke... I don't even know what else to stay about it as its was just so delicious. The only negative about this whole dish was the bordelaise. I absolutely did not like this. I love sauce but I usually eat my steaks pretty simple as I don't like anything masking the beef taste. 4. Bourbon Cherry Bread Pudding (Bourbon soaked tart cherries, caramelized pear, cracked hazelnuts, warm spices, whipped cream glaze, Makers Mark Ice cream) $15: 3 Stars - I'm sure someone else would rate this a lot higher but I'm not a fan of cooked fruit. I will say the exterior texture of the pudding (where the bread touches the ramekin) is great cause its crispy but not burnt which is good texture contract from the interior where its moist and squishy (I know squishy is probably not the best word for food). The ice cream was tasty but I did not taste any of the Makers Mark. 5. Flourless Semisweet Chocolate Volcano Cake (Warm caramel, dark chocolate ganache, vanilla crème, shaved white chocolate) $14: 10 STARS! I assumed this was going to be a lava cake and I'm sure there was a reason they didn't call it a lava cake but it was pretty much a lava cake (which is the term most people are familiar with and invokes an image of what it is). This thing should probably be shared with between 4 people especially after the entrée but you know what, I powered through ate the whole thing. In my defense... my husband had a couple of bites. The warm, gooey, center was soooo luscious. Just order this is all I can say. 6. Key Lime Pie Mignardise, Complimentary: 4 Star - I love getting more food lol. Very good but best Key lime pie is still from Joe's Stone Crab. But this is a close runner up. MENU/RESTAURANT: Visited a few times in their dining room and a few times in their bar area for Happy Hour. Either location you will get amazing service and food. Great restaurant for date night or just a hang out with friends. Picture a stereotypical steakhouse but elegant (but the view is not going to be great just because its downtown Bellevue). The menu is pretty standard and leans slightly to Asian influences on a few items but nothing too crazy that takes away from the steakhouse's meat, meat, meat. SERVICE: From the moment you arrive to when you leave, the restaurant strive for a white glove service experience but its just a step below. Its all small nick picky items but you will not regret coming here.

Had my birthday celebration here with a fairly big group. The food was 3.5 stars but the service was 5 stars. Natasha was our server- she is AMAZING. She went above and beyond to cater to our needs, from last min additional guests, serving cakes we brought to splitting complicated checks. She remembered all 15 of our orders!? I felt grateful that she was very accommodating and continue to put on a smile for us! We had lots of food. So I m only highlighting a few. The truffle fries were excellent. It is a big order and you only need one for party of 4-5. The lobster mashed potatoes were very tasty too. Also a large portion, could be shared by 4-5. My crab cakes were good but didn't care too much of the 'Thai' sweet and sour chili sauce. I'd either reduced the sauce or have it on the side. The complimentary meringue lemon pie was a nice touch and the Birthday chocolate lava cake was delish! Would order the cake if it was on the menu. Overall, we had such a great time and the built in 20% service charge was well worth it.

I have been here a few times and each occasion has been just perfect. John Howie is an outstanding steak restaurant, perhaps the best in the Seattle area. Service is always top notch and the atmosphere is elegant. Perfect choice for special events or anything. They have a large, outstanding wine list on a tablet. They did not have my first choice bottle, but we found and excellent red after that. A couple people had mixed drinks and really enjoyed them. For appetizers, we had crab cakes and the bread. The crab cakes were incredible, with nice chunks of crab and a really good sauce. The bread was really good--absolutely worth getting even just for the whipped butter. I have also had the bacon in the past and it is an absolute decadent treat. For the main course, I split the chateaubriand. This is absolutely worth it. They make the sauce table-side and it is to die for. Then the roasted vegetables are a great complement (although there could be more). But the star was the steak, just an ideal cut of meat that was cooked to medium rare and seasoned wonderfully. I also tried a filet and ribeye and both of those were fantastic also. For sides, we had asparagus, broccoli, Mac and cheese, and truffle fries (we had a party of five). There is great care taken even for the sides. The asparagus was cooked just right with a premier Hollandaise sauce. The broccoli was charred and delicious. Then this might have been the best mac and cheese I ever had. Since we were celebrating a birthday, they brought a cake that was good. Then I also tried the volcano cake that was yet one more great items. It is not cheap, but definitely worth a visit.