Creative seasonings for inferior cuts of beef. Bulk purchases. Microwaved Lobster?!
How can Outback Steakhouse offer so much food for such good prices?
Keep watching to learn the what, the why, and the how behind the barbie at Outback Steakhouse!
Cuts of beef come in different grades that measure its quality, but what's the difference between
Choice beef and Prime beef? Prime beef comes from young cattle and contains a higher level
of marbling, which is a thin web of fat that extends throughout the cut of beef.
Only about 3% of beef in the U.S. is graded as Prime,
which makes it more expensive. Choice beef is still tender, high-quality beef,
but it's known to have a little less marbling than Prime graded beef.
Outback Steakhouse is one of the top purchasers of beef in the United States.
They also claim the title of the largest retailer of Choice beef in the country. In fact,
by purchasing Choice steak in bulk instead of the more expensive Prime beef, Outback saves money.
"In the Outback, fire doesn't just create heat. It creates flavor."
This allows the company to pass those savings down to consumers on its menu.
Sure, you could splurge on a pricier Prime cut of steak at a more extravagant restaurant,
but, at the end of the day, sometimes you just want a decent steak for a solid deal.
And when you want a solid deal? That's exactly Outback's niche in the market.
Outback Steakhouse has become famous for its "Bloomin' Onion" appetizer — and rightfully
so. Not only is it delicious, but the sheer size of it is truly something to behold.
For those of you who have missed out on this legendary appetizer thus far, here's the deal.
Gigantic onions are cut into petals, fried golden brown, fanned out on an appetizer
plate like an edible flower, and paired with a tangy dipping sauce. It is estimated that each
onion has about 200 petals and Outback orders over 14 million pounds of onions per year.
By ordering its onions in massive quantities, Outback is saving money. And as many savvy
shoppers are aware, buying items in bulk almost always results in a cheaper price per unit.
Considering that Outback flies through so many onions to feed the fans of its "Bloomin' Onion,"
buying them in bulk is a great way to reduce costs and keep up with demand.
Who would've thought that a bulbous root vegetable could have so much appeal?
For many of us, pasta is the ultimate comfort food. Simple and filling, there's nothing
quite like a nourishing bowl of hot noodles bathed in a nice sauce made from scratch.
And for some, a trip to grandma's house might have us thinking…
"I hope she made lots-a spaghetti!"
However, Outback Steakhouse isn't your Italian grandmother's house. The restaurant chain isn't
exactly well-known for its pasta dishes — and maybe there's a good reason for that.
Outback only features one pasta dish on its menu — the Queensland Chicken and
Shrimp Pasta. It comes with Fettuccine in Alfredo sauce. Most of the time,
you can't really go wrong with Fettuccine Alfredo. It's creamy, cheesy, and super satisfying.
According to a previous Outback Steakhouse employee, however, you may want to steer clear
of this dish. The restaurant used to make the pasta sauce from scratch and cook it all in a pan,
but now, it outsources the sauce and warms everything up in the microwave.
There's no doubt that this change was motivated to cut costs and keep prices cheap.
Considering it takes more time and labor to cook a sauce from scratch for every
order than it does to use a pre-made sauce that's nuked in the microwave.
There's no doubt that the pandemic has had a profound effect on the restaurant industry.
According to Forbes, it accelerated the appetite for curbside pickup options at restaurants.
And that trend is probably here to stay. Outback Steakhouse has picked
up on this trend and recognizes its potential for the company.
"Everything I never knew I needed, you know?"
Christopher Meyer, executive vice president of Bloomin Brands,
says that catering to an increased demand for curbside pickup is good
for the company's profitability. This is because there are fewer service labor costs.
Meyer adds that curbside pickup is, quote, "leading the way" with Outback's sales
off-premises. A part of the way Outback is improving its curbside pickup process
is through its updated app. Gail Seanor, Outback's vice president of digital innovation,
says that the company is looking at ways to include curbside pickup through its app.
It already provides diners with new perks, like being able to join the waitlist or pay directly
from the table. By giving customers more digital options and working to improve curbside pickup,
Outback is cutting back labor costs. It also helps the restaurant keep it's menu affordable.
Lobster is the undisputed king of crustaceans.
[Grunting, whooping]
What they may lack in humility, they make up for
in deliciousness! It's hard to beat dunking a juicy tail or a fresh pair
of tender claws in some perfectly melted garlic butter with a squeeze of fresh lemon.
Part of the beauty of lobster is that not only is it tasty and moist,
but it's actually pretty easy to cook, too. All you really need to do is boil
or steam them until they turn bright red and make sure you don't overcook them.
If you're lucky enough to live by the coast, you can even scoop up a bucket of seawater
in which to boil them. As that helps the lobster retain its natural oceanic brininess.
The last thing you'd expect when you go out to a restaurant to enjoy a nice lobster dinner
is for a microwave to be involved. Yet that's exactly how an alleged cook at
Outback Steakhouse prepared lobster tails in a video posted on TikTok.
To be honest, no one's really expecting Outback to go the extra mile and use fresh
seawater or anything. But it's still kind of uncool to just zap lobsters in the microwave.
It's highly possible that this was just an isolated incident.
One thing's for sure, it doesn't get much easier than using a microwave.
And there's no denying it saves some time and labor, which can keep prices a little cheaper.
You can't really go wrong with a French onion soup. Topped with a
slice of baguette and some cheese and then broiled until lightly browned and bubbly.
French onion soup strikes a perfect balance of flavor and texture.
Every spoonful of French onion soup is hearty and deeply satisfying. Though
you may have to resist the urge to do a spit-take when you realize that there's
a possibility that Outback Steakhouse's French onion soup isn't made from scratch.
According to an alleged former employee of Outback Steakhouse on Reddit, the French onion soup base
comes frozen and pre-made. As the cook tells it, all the kitchen does is add water and warm it up.
For the sake of consistent efficiency, it would make sense for a chain restaurant like
Outback to use a pre-made soup. That way there's no chance for deviations in flavor.
There's also no doubt that using a pre-made soup streamlines the cooking process.
Allowing workers to whip up batches much faster, which is good for business and keeps prices low.
Caesar salad is always a wonderful compliment to steak. Creamy, tangy, and garlicky, every forkful
of Caesar salad is crisp, tasty, and refreshing. If you've ever had Caesar salad dressing made from
scratch, then you know there is no comparison between fresh dressing and the premade stuff.
The fresh stuff wins by a landslide in terms of flavor and consistency. Yet apparently it
seems that Outback Steakhouse might cut some corners with its Caesar dressing. Opting to use
the premade stuff instead, according to a cook on Reddit who claims to be a former employee.
Truth be told, using pre-made salad dressing is fairly commonplace. Especially among big,
successful restaurant chains like Outback. It's fair to say that using pre-made salad
dressing saves some extra time in the kitchen. Considering that making it from
scratch is a bit more labor-intensive than just pouring it out of a bottle.
Tuna is not only delicious, but it's also a healthy form of lean protein that's loaded
with vitamins, minerals, and omega-3 fatty acids. For diners looking for a
healthier option on Outback's beef-heavy menu, the seared ahi tuna is a blessing.
The same alleged Outback employee on Reddit who claimed the restaurant uses pre-made
Caesar dressing had another confession. They claimed that Outback's tuna is frozen.
While that may not create a noticeable difference in taste,
it certainly helps Outback stretch out the expiration date of the product for much longer.
According to the USDA, frozen raw fish can stay good anywhere from three to eight
months in a freezer. Using frozen tuna helps Outback get more bang for its buck
by ensuring that the fish lasts longer and nothing goes to waste.
And that translates into more affordable prices on Outback's menu.
Buying pre-mixed seasoning blends is an effective way to cut down on the
amount of time it takes for cooks to prepare food in the kitchen.
Using a pre-mixed seasoning blend completely removes the measuring process from the equation.
Allowing cooks the convenience of shaking seasonings straight from a bottle. Rather
than having to measure out batches of different spices to create a seasoning blend from scratch.
It appears that Outback Steakhouse may have smartly decided to go this route for
its legendary horseradish dipping sauce that goes along with its Bloomin' Onion appetizer.
According to a former Outback Steakhouse employee, the house seasoning is pre-mixed.
"You don't mind do you?"
"No, no, no, no, no!"
The blend is made up of salt, paprika, black pepper, onion powder, and cayenne pepper.
That house seasoning blend is then mixed into mayonnaise, milk, horseradish, and hot sauce.
If you've ever tried Outback's Bloomin' Onion sauce, then you know how irresistibly tasty it is.
Using a pre-mixed seasoning blend allows Outback's cooks to make the dipping sauce faster.
Speed is important considering that Outback sells an impressive
14 million orders of Bloomin' Onions every year.
Every menu needs a little something for the kiddos
and Outback made a good choice by putting fried chicken tenders on its kids menu.
Chicken tenders are always a crowd-pleaser and they're also quite simple to make.
With just a little seasoned flour and eggs or buttermilk,
you can have some crispy and juicy chicken tenders in no time. That's why it's a bit
surprising that Outback Steakhouse might use frozen chicken tenders.
The good news is that even when chicken tenders are frozen, they still usually taste pretty good.
And definitely much better than chicken nuggets, which tend to be way more spongy and processed.
That said, anyone who's ever made fried chicken from scratch knows that it's a bit messy and
time-consuming. Using pre-made chicken tenders would allow the cooks at Outback to sidestep
hand-breading them. Saving time and money, as well as helping keep the price more affordable.
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