Why We Love Ted’s Montana Grill

My absolute favorite part of blogging is getting to try new things. And when trying new things means an invite to a complimentary dinner at the newly opened Ted’s Montana Grill in Hartford, Connecticut… I am in!

Hubby and I enjoyed our first dinner experience at Ted’s Montana Grill last Friday – and it being just the two of us on a rare date night made the experience that much more exciting!

The decor is simple and casual with checkered cloth napkins, papered tabletops, and a buffalo greeting you when you enter the main dining area.

We started with Bison Nachos – a delicious pile of chips and cheese and crumbled bison meat in a not-too-spicy sauce. Just what you’d expect of a nacho dish, but with that bison twist.

The fresh hand-squeezed (daily!) lemonade was crisp and oh-so-refreshing!

Fun Fact: Ted’s Montana Grill uses paper straws for sustainibility… in fact, because of this, their company actually SAVED the paper straw company from closing!

Side salads to start are a good option and very generous- I ended up wrapping up half of Ted’s Chopped (a bit mild on the dressing but big on oniony zing! Plus, artichoke hearts, my favorite).

For dinner, hubby ordered the Bison Strip Steak, and I had my favorite: Ribeye (they happened to have some smaller princess cuts available!).

Fun Fact: Bison is served more ways at Ted’s Montana Grill than in any other restaurant!

Here’s what I loved to discover about Ted’s Montana Grill restaurants. All their food is brought in fresh daily or every other day. That is FRESH. The beef and bison comes from actual ranches in the U.S. owned by Ted Turner himself. All the meat served is USDA Choice Select (that’s the top 5% of quality beef!). Isn’t it great to know so much about the food you’re about to eat?

I am extremely picky about meat flavor and texture. Our steaks were perfectly medium rare (hot pink), and so tender and flavorful I didn’t even need to season at all! I tried a bit of the bison steak, and it’s very tasty. I thought it would be “gamier” like venison, but not true – think of it as a “deeper” beef flavor. And tender-tender-tender!

For sides, I got the garlic mashed, but honestly when I saw hubby’s loaded baked potato, kinda wished I’d ordered that!

Dessert was a milkshake and a towering strawberry shortcake… I was still wanting more when we got back home!

Oh, and as a parent? I was thrilled to see a robust kids’ menu – instead of typical pre-fab, fried food, Ted’s offers sliders, steak, and even a salmon dish! Plus, kids get a coloring sheet and Wiki sticks to play with while they wait. We are bringing the boys back here!

Fun Fact: Ted’s Montana Grill was voted Best Gluten Free Restaurant by About.com!

For my Connecticut friends, the Hartford location we dined at is now open. For everyone else, find a Ted’s Montana Grill near you for a delicious steak and a lovely night out!

Thanks to Ted’s Montana Grill for providing dinner for this review. All opinions are my own.