Rating: 2.50 cows
Australians have a reputation for knowing a thing or two about meat. Yes, we know that Outback isn't really Australian, but it's actually [pretty good] for a budget steakhouse. Also, outside of an Australian Wagyu it's the closest we'd gotten to an Aussie experience until we arrived at Meat District Co.
Hailing from Down Under, Meat District Co's first stateside establishment arrived not too long ago in Pasadena, California. It's laid back and casual which is probably what you'd expect, though they do not feature the words "shrimp" and "barbie" in the same sentence, thank goodness.
The good thing about a place without a lot of pretense is you get right down to business. Pouring over the menu we pondered our choices until we saw one item that grabbed us and just wouldn't let go. The MDC Platter was a monstrosity. It came with a NY strip, 2 racks of ribs, and two “Hooks” which were chunks of meat and vegetables. It was a fierce debate on whether to go traditional and get our own personal steak, or indulge our animalistic tendencies with a smorgasbord of meat laid out before us. We compromised. Sort of. We ordered the MDC Platter and another rib eye to boot.
Most of the time when you get a lot of meat for a ridiculously low price (the MDC Platter itself was the same price as a single steak at Alexander's, you end up full, but not necessarily satisfied. Meat District Co was no exception here. All of the meat was cooked more than we'd like, and it was fairly tough to boot. Steak sauce, that spicy bastard, once again helped us get through this meal.
We skipped out on dessert and took some time to walk around downtown Pasadena to get that peristalsis going. Sometimes you just want to move on to what's next. Sorry, Meat District Co. Hooroo!