McMahon’s Prime Steakhouse

Took my parents here for their 43^rd wedding anniversary. The service was excellent, food fantastic, and my parents loved it. The best part; our waiter bringing out a special desert on the house to celebrate their anniversary. Really appreciated everything this restaurant did to make there Night a special one.

Lovely place. The waiter was so nice, he even offered to make me homemade ginger ale! Shrimp cocktail. Yummy! Petit filet mignonette perfect. Very nice experience with my hubby. His oysters on the half shell ans flat iron steak was tender and juicy. Loved it!

Just had our anniversary dinner here and it was just perfect. Very nice atmosphere, fantastic food and great waiters! The atmosphere was intimate and cozy. There was a party happening in the bar and we were not bothered by the sound at all in the enclosed dinning room. The food was AMAZING– very rich and perfect flavors. The waiters were on top of things from the moment we sat down. He was very knowledgable in the menu and perfect pairings. His recommendations made the experience perfect.

This restaurant was great. The steak was very tasty, and there was great variety of wine and beer. We sat in the piano room. Love the piano guy! He provided a nice ambiance. I recommend this place a try.

Was really hoping the Easter Brunch would match some of my earlier dinner experiences. It did not.
Take a group of five and the consensus was that the food quality and selection were both below par.
My suggestion, raise the price $ 10 to $ 20 and make it a much better experience so that I might consider coming back.
Old saying, do it right or don’t do it at all.

Ok so I have been here before. Enjoy the happy hour. Tonight, however it was aweful. The server Erin awesome, everything else horrible. Food cold, uncoordinated, too much time between drinks etc etc AWEFUL. The owner sat right there oblivious. I will return but hopefully they are better able to handle a crowd. tonight 2 thumbs down

Overall, I love the vibe of this place, and the food and service were top notch. My only complaint was that we came in for a late dinner (9:00 pm) on a Thursday evening and the two piano players were SO loud I couldn’t hear our waiter over them. Luckily, they packed it in a short time later (perhaps because I told the waiter I couldn’t hear him over them) and the rest of our visit was lovely. We had the Oysters Rockefeller, which were right up there with the best I’ve ever had, and the Flatiron Steak with sautéed button mushrooms and a baked potato. Very satisfying meal in a fab setting.

I am hesitant to write this review as it was obvious that our waiter was new and thrown into the deep end of the pool. He was unfamiliar with wines and the menu.
He was EXTREMELY polite and trying very hard. But he needed a shadow.
We were a party of 7 and had several foreign visitors at a business meal.
Well the picture I include will sum it up. Our Barrossa Valley Syrah was opened with a cork screw. Except it was a screw top, sending shards of metal into the wine.
When this was pointed out there was no offer to replace it. It was simply poured. We were without silverware for portions of the meal and the service was awkward.
I will not return which is a shame because I love The Ott steak accompaniment. But what good is a steak without a good wine sin aluminum.

Read as 3.49. It would have been difficult to live up to the expectations raised by Jennifer P’s imaginative and well written review and McMahon’s didn’t. We had dinner here last night. We were greeted warmly and seated at a 4-​top in the piano lounge. There was an exuberant gathering in one of the other rooms, we assume a wedding dinner from the attire of the guests we saw wandering around, including some unattended children who grew rowdier as the evening progressed. I felt sorry for the restaurant staff who had to contend w/​them in the evident absence of parental supervision.
We had been prepared by some of the snarkier reviews for old school dowdiness, but the décor was attractive, particularly the wine storage area by the bar visible through the glass as you enter the restaurant. The chairs are wide, padded and very comfortable and the booths looked spacious and comfortable as well, upholstered in an understated patterned fabric. We were given menus and the wine list. Sunday nights bottles of wine are 50% off, but I can’t drink a bottle alone, so I ordered a Bombay Sapphire martini. I looked over the menu and didn’t see the ugly steak several reviewers had mentioned. When I asked our waiter about it he was dismissive, saying it had been taken off the menu, that it was tough, always tough, though that wasn’t the impression I had gained from the reviews.
Alan and I decided to order the fried calamari to start after verifying that it came w/​tentacles. We also ordered an iceberg wedge salad to split, w/​the bacon on the side so Alan could avoid its salt. We both ordered the flatiron steak. Two sides come w/​each steak. I ordered the mushroom caps sauteed in red wine and garlic and the Brussels sprouts, while Alan ordered the asparagus w/​the hollandaise on the side and the Tumbleweed onions, which were thinly cut, breaded w/​seasoned flour and fried. The calamari and salads arrived simultaneously. The calamari was fried w/​sliced onions and lemons, w/​a chipotle aioli and a marinara sauce on the side. The portion was large, but everything was clumped together, so it was difficult to distinguish the components. There may have been tentacles. I couldn’t tell. The rings I tasted were somewhat overdone. The lemon and onion added a nice touch and the breading was tasty and crisp, though quite brown. The wedge salad was classically tasty and we appreciated it coming split. We would have appreciated them coming sequentially rather than together, particularly since there was a very long delay before our mains arrived. We had had some of their fresh warm bread and our server, who checked in w/​us a couple of times to say our meals were on the way, offered us more bread, which we declined. It may be that the kitchen was thrown off its game by the large party in back, but the meal was not well paced.
Finally our mains arrived, the steaks both cooked medium rare as requested. The mushrooms were tasty, albeit a little overwhelmed by the sauce. The Brussels sprouts were terrific. The asparagus were the very thin ones and they were lovely as well. Alan really liked the onions. I didn’t taste them. We like flatiron steaks and these were good. We didn’t have room for dessert after all that food. Service was correct and distant, although our host came around to check in on us. Over all, it was a decent dinner that hovered between 3 and 4 stars.

We were so disappointed. Prices are very high; poor value. Six people had steaks, one was good — the filet. Others were horrible cuts of meat. The bone in sirloin which was hard sold by the waiter was terrible. Avoid this place at all costs. Pun intended.

We went to McMahons for our anniversary dinner several years ago and the food and service were amazing. We went for lunch and it was mediocre. Not mediocre for a «nice» restaurant, mediocre for any restaurant. We both had their lunch special of grilled pork chops with a «cherry-​apple chutney», tumbleweed onions and mac n’cheese. First, the chutney was apples and cranberries… which were not sweetened, and the apples did not set off the cranberries well. The flavor of the chutney was bitter and «off» and bland. The pork chops had no flavor, as if they were grilled with no seasoning whatsoever. The mac n cheese was ho-​hum. The best part of the meal was the tumbleweed onions.
The service was poor. Our server was friendly enough, but it was obvious that we were not her priority. We didn’t see her for the standard «how is everything?» check up a little while after receiving our food, and she there was a huge lull between each visit: we waited with empty plates for a long time before she came to offer dessert, waiting for a long time for dessert, then waited a long time after finishing dessert before receiving the check. The check sat on our table to be processed for a while before another server noticed and offered to run the credit card for us. Our server did not come to say goodbye and thank us. For an elite restaurant, the service was very poor. Luckily, the price was great so we didn’t have too much remorse, but I think we’ll go somewhere else next time we want a nice lunch.

This is the cigar lounge where Tony Soprano, Don Draper and The Most Interesting Man in the World come together to negotiate handshake business deals over Tracy’s Carpaccio and Old-​Fashioneds. Men are still men… chiseled, top-​shelf– whiskey-​drinking archetypes of masculinity. Snapshots of local and national icons — one-​time customers — adorn the walls. Warren Beatty welcomes me as I enter the women’s restroom. This is my favorite date night spot Tucson. What can I say? I like my men manly.
Happy Hour, which runs from 3:00 PM to 7:00 PM every day, offers $ 6 featured cocktails and appetizers. A full dinner menu is available, and the service is prompt, professional and friendly. Show up on a Wednesday, and they may have an invitation-​only poker tournament going out on the patio. I’m pretty sure the only requirement to get an invitation is «don’t be an a**hole.»
The food is reminiscent of better times, when flavor was emphasized over salubrity. Even though McMahons is a steakhouse, they have a variety of seafood options — still drenched in buttery unhealthy deliciousness. On my last visit, I tried the pan –seared rainbow trout and it was fantastic — perfectly prepared, teeming with tomato buerre blanc and slightly crisp asparagus.
Don’t listen to those E-​cigarette-​smoking hipsters complaining about the outdated look. Don’t heed the comparisons to Ruth’s Chris. McMahons isn’t trying to be those places. They relish in the fact that they are a local reflection of the halcyon days of the three-​martini lunch. Why meddle with perfection?

Ate here for dinner last week while taking our son to college. From the previous reviews, I was expecting out of date décor, but we thought the place was very up to date. We sat in the piano lounge, but after dinner I wandered around a bit and counted at least three dining rooms, two outdoor patios, a bar area, and got a tour of the huge windy wine cellar with the secret room in it.
Our service was incredible, our food was amazing, and we left as big fans that can’t wait to go again. I had the «ugly steak» which was very tender and unique, I’ll have to ask our local butcher what they call that cut here. Large wine list.

We come to McMahon’s about twice a year on special occasions because we’ve come to delight in their superb service and phenomenal food. Therefore this past Friday we were anticipating another wonderful evening but came away disappointed. To wit: The service was spotty, our waiter seemed detached; we had to remind him to take our wine order, dessert menus were never offered (we had to ask for them) and then we had to remind him that our son had an ice cream coming with the children’s menu, and then the desserts were not brought out at the same time. My baked potato was very overdone, my wife’s steak was only lukewarm, and my Rib-​eye Delmonico, although a very nice cut, was not superb as we’ve come to expect (and certainly not a good value for the $ 50 I paid for it).
All said, we will have to seriously consider going elsewhere for that next special occasion.

I swear to God Don Draper was sitting at the next booth trying to sell Marlboro on how to get market share back from the E a Cigarette crowd. This place feels that old.
Now, don’t misunderstand, I love that about this place. I just don’t get the weird shaped plates and generally under seasoned meat. Also, they love butter, which in Draper’s time was all the rage, but now in the health conscious 21^st century, it just doesn’t work.
Interested in time travel? Come to McMahons!

It’s been two years since we’ve been here and I figured I would provide an updated review based on our last experience.
The experience was amazing, simply said. Excellent, attentive service. Savory, well-​prepared food. Things came out promptly. The waiter was observant of our needs. The atmosphere was calm and relaxing. We sat in the piano lounge and the music was perfect in volume and style. We came here for a modest birthday celebration on a Monday night. We had reservations and were seated in a nice large booth for two. We ordered Beef Wellingtons as an app, filet kabobs and sea bass, both of which were on the summer budget menu, for the entrees. The Wellingtons melted in your mouth. The filets were savory, and smokey. The sea bass was very good. We now want to come back, and I think we’ve been converted. Thanks, McMahon’s, for a wonderful time.

We had originally booked our 10 year wedding anniversary at another restaurant over on the west side, but after reading the terrible Unilocal reviews of this other restaurant — switched to McMahon’s. We had been there twice before and really enjoyed it: once before we moved to Tucson in February 2004 and once again in the summer of 2008 with friends. Not sure why it takes us so long to get back here as it is truly an outstanding restaurant!
The service — outstanding! Brian was our server and he was incredibly attentive, but not too attentive. We also had two other staff come by, two different managers I believe, to check on us. One just to see how our meal was AND bring us a specially prepared dessert, the other to address an issue. Either way — they REALLY take care of you here.
The food — delicious! So we started with the firecracker shrimp app. It was incredibly delicious with just the right kick. We each ordered a salad (Field Greens and a McMahons Salad)…it is hard to really mess up a salad and I am not really one to rave about a salad but what I will say is try their ‘house ranch” it is spicy and really gives lettuce/​veggies that extra stand out. My husband ordered the Ugly steak with asparagus and seasonal veggies, I ordered the Petite Filet (Oscar style) plate. Both had lovely presentation. My husbands meal was fantastic — I head a bite of the Ugly steak and was amazed at how delicious, juicy and tender it was! It was cooked (medium) PERFECTLY. SO glad we ordered it based off of recommendations here and on Unilocal. My Petite Filet meal… the smaller portion of sides you get with this were wonderful… spinach, house potatoes, onion haystack and corn off the cob. Super fresh, carefully prepared. My steak was an issue — I ordered medium and it actually was served to me well done. Based on another recent review, I would imagine that they may need some retraining in the kitchen. BUT I did not send it back, although they offered to take it back. It was a really good cut of meat so despite it being well done, as opposed to my requested medium — it was very flavorful and still very tender. The food extravaganza was topped off by them serving us two complimentary and beautifully presented desserts: Crème Brulee (flavor of the day was Oreo) and Champagne Fried Strawberries. While both were delectable — the Champagne Fried Strawberries were OFF THE CHARTS! You must try these if you go. Also the female manager was so sweet and made us another dessert that was new on the menu — a Banana’s Foster type dessert where the bananas were wrapped in an egg roll paper. I can’t decide which was better the bananas or strawberry dessert — so I recommend trying both!
The value and ambiance — wonderful. I looked at three other restaurants; Five Palms, Sullivans and Flemings. The value here at McMahons edges them out, as you are not paying for everything a la carte when you get certain meals and their prices seem more reasonable to me for portion size (I have been to Flemings and Sullivans). The ambiance here is really beautiful and I love their dining room lighting. They are a pretty good sized restaurant and have a full bar area and a cigar patio.
The entire experience was fabulous — we are definitely going back and not waiting as long to do so!

McMahon’s used to be the best steakhouse in Tucson. Years ago. The food and service were impeccable. Now, the steaks taste like choice grade and the service is akin to what you might find at an Outback Steakhouse. I don’t mean to sound snobby, but I expect a certain level of service when I dine at a «prime» steakhouse. As another reviewer mentioned, the upselling is ridiculous! We used to be regulars, but no longer. The entire place needs to be refurbished and they need to find the kind of servers they had 15 years ago. Quite frankly, I’m surprised that this place is still open. If you want a nice, prime steak dinner there are much better options in town. (I have to add, we haven’t eaten here in a while, so my review is based on past experiences. From what I’ve heard and read, things haven’t changed.)

Its just okay. Its very old school steak house. Down to the chairs you sit in.
Sometimes, I wish places would update and help themselves. But I suppose there is something to be said about «classic». But really, who eats like a 30 oz steak in this day and age? A proper serving is 5 – 6 ozs. I want a good steak, but I do not want to pay to have half of a cow put on my plate of which could feed an entire family of six. I love red meat. But in limited portions please. The petite serving helped, but it ended up being slightly overcooked. And I would have loved fish, but cedar plank salmon is less than inspiring. Again, this is where an update would be helpful.
Rant over.
Our server was good. My martini with blue cheese olives was fantastic. And the food was decent. I don’t know that I would be back unless with another group celebrating something.

The cure for what ails you. Smoke at McMahon’s Prime Steakhouse was exactly what was needed after a personally emotional day. After driving to a new wine bar around the corner and finding it closed for dinner on this particular Tuesday night we thought we’d try the bar/​patio at McMahon’s for happy hour. Excellent decision if I do say so.
We sat outside in the spacious and comfortable brick patio and chose a nice high top with a good view of the goings on. The HH menu is incredible — plenty of $ 5 selections along with $ 5 big pour glasses of house wine. Other beverages are $ 1 off. The house red is a nice mellow red and when they say big pour, they don’t lie. We had the escargot and the beef carpaccio, both were delicious. Escargot was tender, garlicy and cheesy and served with a nice garlic/​cheese bread to sop up the juice. The carpaccio was served with cheese sprinkled over top and sides of red onion, capers and diced hard boiled egg and flavorful crostini. We didn’t select the $ 5 burger but holy cow, what a deal! We saw plenty of them going by. We were joined by another who ordered shrimp cocktail and oysters on the half shell along with a Stella. Nice.
Nice crowd here and it was good to see Bob McMahon out in the patio enjoying dinner with his friends at a large table. The cigar selection was very inviting and B enjoyed a nice Rocky Patel «Edge» at the end of our meal. The patio is so open and spacious that the cigar smoke isn’t a problem. It just lends itself to the overall atmosphere. I’m a fan of Smoke at McMahon’s. So is my pocketbook.