The Barbed Rose is a good concept backed by talent and zeal to succeed but still in a painful learning stage.
Most impressive was the waiter who could relay every detail of every dish and did an outstanding job. Least impressive was the kitchen which somehow managed to deliver all four of our steaks and one baked potato at room temperature, yet the side dishes of grits, greens, etc. were blazing hot - of course they're served in a small iron skillet that's preheated. The wine list looked nothing like an establishment of this caliber should have but we were told that in 3 weeks they will have a revamped list. My advice would be to check their list on the website before you go.
For appetizers we tried the alligator bites, assortment of sausages, country fired oysters, and a side of shishito peppers. I didn't care for the alligator bites or most of the sausages. The sides of jalapenos, relish, garlic sauce, smoked ketchup, etc were a disappointment - they were just sliced jalapenos, just chopped pickles, and nothing impressed with flavor or creativity. The peppers were OK with the exception of one or two that weren't cooked long enough to remove their heat; the oysters were good mainly because of the thick smoked bacon.
Though the sides with the main course were hot, the corn and cheese grits were bland, and the (Kraft?) cheddar melted in lumps on top didn't enhance. It just wasn't good. However, the onion and chili rings were very good.
The steak was a good flavor and prepared OK: medium rare was on the rare side which is fine, but wouldn't you think a steakhouse would serve it hot off the grill? One slip maybe, but all four were that way.
In the end, we settled fairly and agreed to try again sometime but based on the first impression it might be a while.
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