A secret spice blend. Six different kinds of chocolate. And a lot of cheese and bacon. These
are just some of LongHorn's kitchen secrets that keep customers coming back.
Texas Roadhouse feels kind of like a honky-tonk Saturday night. Outback
Steakhouse delivers an Americanized version of Australia to your backyard. But LongHorn
Steakhouse is all about cowboys. Ever since its founding in 1981 in Atlanta,
Georgia, this cowboy-themed restaurant offers customers a Wild West experience in a casual
dining atmosphere — and that, obviously, includes serving up steaks diners can't get enough of.
What is it about those steaks that make them so popular that people give the chain such rave
reviews? While LongHorn doesn't have an exclusive, in-store butcher shop like Texas Roadhouse does,
there is something they put on the steaks that helps to give them their trademark flavor.
In a Reddit "Ask Me Anything" thread started by a user who claimed to be an employee,
the purported employee revealed a peek behind the curtain for how LongHorn makes its steaks.
The process seems to involve a select blend of seasonings and spices. The Redditor wrote,
"LongHorn's has a trio of seasonings that we typically use that really embolden the
flavor of pretty much everything we have on the menu. I'm not sure what
the make up of the seasonings are as they come pre-packaged off the truck,
but most everything gets a healthy seasoning before hitting the grill."
Though the exact makeup of the spice blend seems to be a LongHorn trade secret,
you can buy the steakhouse chain's seasoning blend from Amazon and Walmart. It wouldn't
hurt to give these spices a try on your own steaks to see how close they come in taste.
"Mmm, Dad, what is this special seasoning?"
“Oh, a little of this, a little of that.”
Although LongHorn Steakhouse is known for steaks, that doesn't mean that its sides don't deserve
attention too. One of the chain's notable sides other than the baked potatoes, salads, and soups
is the Steakhouse Mac & Cheese. One individual took to the subreddit MimicRecipes in search
of a recipe for it. Fortunately for that user, another user who also claimed to be an employee
of the restaurant chain for four years was able to give the recipe for the mac and cheese.
According to that Redditor, the Steakhouse Mac & Cheese includes cavatappi pasta; butter; flour;
half-and-half; a combination of Gruyère, Cheddar, Parmesan, and Fontina cheeses;
paprika; bacon; and panko breadcrumbs. The Redditor's recipe matches up with
Mashed's own recipe for LongHorn macaroni and cheese, adding to their credibility.
LongHorn's Mac & Cheese was a big hit with Fast Food Menu Price,
which described it as "cheesy and creamy, but not too heavy," and "a perfect side dish."
With all of this talk about steaks and side dishes, it's only right to also talk about
the dessert selection at LongHorn. The most notable example of LongHorn's impressive
dessert selection is the Chocolate Stampede. Think of it as a very moist,
very rich cake served with vanilla ice cream and chocolate sauce. What really makes it stand out,
however, is that it supposedly contains up to six kinds of chocolate.
"That's a lot of chocolate."
Someone on the Baking subreddit attempted to make the Chocolate Stampede for themselves,
and seemingly verified that there are indeed a half-dozen different types of chocolate in
this dish. Although they were seemingly successful, they called it a "labor of
love," reporting that it used 14 eggs and six different kinds of chocolate to make it.
The six kinds of chocolate could refer to the different parts of the cake itself such as the
mousse, the ganache, and the sauce. It may not be totally accurate to the Chocolate Stampede,
sure, but it seems to be a perfectly good substitute in all due respects.