We went to Cowboy Star on a friday night with a group/reservation for 6. Although excited about the restaurant, and initially impressed with the ambiance, I was put off when they did not want to seat us until our whole group had arrived (we knew one of our group was going to be late and had advised them of such when making the reservation). Once we were seated, the staff was very nice. The waiter made a great wine recommendation: the 2005 Provenance Merlot (which I enjoyed so much that I looked for at Bevmo later and found it to cost only $5 more at the restaurant than we would pay there for a bottle). The sweet breads appetizer was the best appetizer. I had the pork special for dinner, which turned out more rare than I would have liked. Everyone else had steak, but 4 of the 6 people in our group had recently dined together at Vigilucci's in La Jolla, and generally felt the steaks were better there than at Cowboy Star. Nonetheless, because of the fun aesthetics, downtown nightlife appeal, good service, and better food than many places we've dined, I would recommend to almost anyone that they try it at least once! (I'd also love to get down there when the butcher shop is open because I'm sure their meat quality is outstanding!)
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