Seafood Meets Steak at Tara’s SteakhouseThere will never be as many steakhouses as there are Italian or Chinese restaurants, but at the rate new steakhouses are opening and existing ones are expanding throughout the country, we will always be close to a good meat-and-potatoes dinner.

Tara, in Coconut Grove, is one of the newest. Opening quietly last November, Tara is the offspring of the seven-year-old restaurant of the same name in Marco Island. And, speaking of names, there really is a Tara. She is Tara Trevethan, the 25-year-old executive vice president of TGR Holdings, who has plans to dot the entire state with her steak and lobster houses. But don’t think of her as a high-powered desk jockey. Trevethan may, more often than not, be your waitress. She may roll up her sleeves and work in the kitchen. Or she may be your hostess for the evening.

At first glance the room says steakhouse, with dark walls with gold highlights, and butcher block tables. But there are lighter wood accents, a loft and a stage where musicians play on the weekends. Trevethan and her father designed the room and the workings of the restaurant. Her father died four weeks ago, but Trevethan carries on the tradition they set together remarkably well. As for the staff, “We’re an upscale restaurant, but we don’t like to button the top button,” says Trevethan. “We like to loosen it up and make people feel they’re at home. Our culture is hugging our customer.”

The appetizers and salads are a short list that will be expanding. The Steakhouse Wedge of Lettuce ($9) is topped with a homemade bleu cheese dressing and bleu cheese crumbles, as well as warm bits of bacon. Sweet Tomato& Onion ($5 for one, $9 for two) features large slices of fresh beefsteak tomatoes and sweet onions topped with bleu cheese crumbles and served with Tara’s own Shabang sauce. A blend of horseradish root, vinegar, honey and seasonings, the tangy sauce did put a bang into the tomatoes. The Jumbo Shrimp Cocktail ($14) is a necessity for a steakhouse and the six U-16 shrimp were perfectly steamed and served with the house cocktail sauce. Incidentally, all sauces and dressings are made in house from a family recipe. The Jumbo Stone Crab Claws (market price), brought in daily, are pre-cracked, sweet and meaty, served with a mustard sauce that could have benefited from a touch more mustard. The Jumbo Lump Crab Cake ($14), with its diced red and green peppers, red onions and spices, is seared to a golden brown and served on a vinaigrette-dressed bed of baby greens.

Fortunately the cake was big enough to share because everyone wanted a piece of this sweet, black fin crab house specialty. After our appetizers waiters appeared, squeezing lemon wedges into our palms and offering us warm towels. A nice touch. All Tara steaks are thick cuts from short loins, dry aged for three weeks to ensure tenderness and cut away from the bone before finishing. That’s because many menu items are for two, three or four people who might not want their steak prepared the same way. This gives the kitchen the opportunity to cook each dish to your desired temperature. Plates are then brought out sizzling to table and the dinner – including sides – is served French style, with servers plating every item at table. The very tender Porterhouse for One ($38) presented a 4- to 5-ounce filet on one side and a 12-ounce New York strip on the other, so we could get a taste of both tenderloin and sirloin. The Double Cut Lamb Chops ($32) are explosive with enough rich flavor that you will shake your head after tasting the proffered mint jelly. The two 8-ounce chops are also cut from the bone before serving. The Porterhouse of Veal ($37) is rubbed with garlic before broiling in one of Tara’s 1200-degree broilers and it is remarkable how it and the regular porterhouse can share so much and still remain unique in their flavors and textures. If you call Tara two days in advance, you can order a Jim Brady 15-pound lobster, with claws as long as your forearm. We went with a sweet and tender 3-pounder (market price), steamed, removed from the shell, sliced and replaced in the shell for presentation. The trick to a tender lobster is the environment. Put them in a tight tank and they get stressed and toughen up. Tara’s lobsters are kept in a spacious tank, fed by a biowheel that gives them nutrients. There are just so many sides you can eat when your plate is filled with pounds of meat. But the Garlic Mashed ($6) is over-the-top incredible, the Shoestring Onions ($6) are unbeatable and the Asparagus ($6) drizzled with lemon were deliciously al dente.

Desserts include a cheesecake flown in from Carnegie Deli ($10) with your choice of either raspberry or chocolate sauce topping, or perhaps your favorite liqueur. The Chocolate Mouse Cake ($8) combines light, dark, and white chocolate mouse and white chocolate chunks. The Pecan Tart ($8) is a treasure of ladyfingers and demi-glazed pear, smothered with pecans and served warm.

Tara has no interest in turning your table. Stay as long as you like. And when you leave, she will be there with a smile and warm goodbye.