Donovan’s Steak & Chop House

5 stars on food and Captain Jay!!! Love! We celebrated our anniversary dinner tonight and were greeted with Rose petals on the table and a free crème brûlée. The dinner would not have been complete without impeccable service from Captain Jay!!! (Gilles)

Donovan’s steakhouse is one of my favorite places to go to now! As you turn into the lot, you are forced to valet park. It’s complimentary. When you walk in, there are dark wood tables and such. All the waiters and bus boys are in suits. My advice for anyone that wants to go here is dress up! Wear a suit or something nice! No tee shirts, flip flops, or shorts! It is highly frowned upon to walk into a restaurant like Donovan’s with inappropriate clothing. I had the New York strip 12 oz, seafood chowder (this is to die for), and a fruit bowl. The New York was not something to do die for but it does hit all your taste buds. The chowder was SO good. Get that! The fruit bowl is healthy dessert if you want to start eating better. The service was excellent and I wouldn’t ask for better. Dominick’s steakhouse and Donovan’s are equal in pricing and ambience. Donovan’s is quieter while Dominick’s is loud. I would definitely come back to this place any day!

I tell you what. I love steakhouses and my family does too. My son got a new suit and my daughter got some really nice dresses for Christmas and this was a great excuse to try Donovan’s. Dress up and eat good.
All the parking here is free valet. As we walked in it was fairly dark with dark wood finish. Very nice ambience.
Before I could sit down the waiter took the bottle of water at our table and pour a glass for me (as you can tell I was a little late for dinner). We started off with their hot loaf of bread and it was so good. Nice and warm. Soft on the inside and crispy on the outside. Add the butter and boy was that good.
Anyhow, we started off our meal with the fried calamari. Lightly battered with a tarter sauce. I really enjoyed the calamari. It was so good. Everyone at our table agreed that it was really good. We always order calamari so figuring out the good from the bad is easy for us. Next everyone at our table ordered the seafood chowder but me. My entrée that I ordered was so big that I didn’t think I could handle it but once everyone ate their chowder they were raving about it. So it got a few bites and man was that good. Lots of seafood at the bottoms of the cup. Got a nice piece of fish. Outstanding.
I ordered the 16oz ribeye with Au Gratin potatoes and it came with sweet peas, carrot, and squash. Ribeye was so good perfectly cooked. So juicy. So tender. Melt in your mouth goodness. One of the best ribeye’s I’ve had. The Au Gratin potatoes was so good too. Not too much cheese. Potatoes were cooked perfectly. Not under cooked at all. Man was that good. Of course the veggies were so good. I would say this was a great meal. This meal was so good I even ate to flower on top of my potatoes. No taste but now I can say I’ve eaten a flower. Hahaha
My wife had the Sea Bass with bok choy. She gave me a bite and it was so flaky. So moist. Cooked perfectly. Very nice.
My mom and daughter got some special for two people where they get an appetizer, entrée, and dessert. So they got the seafood chowder, some type of steak with shrimp scampi, and they got a crème brûlée and New York style cheesecake. They loved it all. I got a taste of their crème brûlée and it was so big. Crispy on the top but nice and creamy inside. I thought it was really good.
Service was outstanding. We had a bottle of water at our table always but if our cups were half way filled then they would make sure our cups were filled. A few of us had iced teas and every time it was empty and new cup of ice was at our table right away. They even kept track of my wife’s hot tea and made sure her hot water pot was ok. Cleaned off our dirty dishes and every time someone went to the bathroom they rolled up their napkin on the table.
Speaking about the bathrooms. Nice and clean. Instead of paper towels. They had rolled up white towels to dry your hands. They also had mouth wash with tiny cups for your breath. Wow. Really nice.
So we had a really great meal. Great food. Exceptional service. Nice ambience. This is a really good steakhouse and really expensive. One of the top steakhouses in my books. Outstanding and of course we’ll be back

Disappointing. I thought we were going to an old line steak house. It was old. It had steak. Food was barely warm and Bernaise was starting to curdle. More limited menu than appeared on the website. We were seated in an unappealing side room with mediocre seating and no ambiance. New Year’s Eve and if it was sparkling it was listed as champagne. The full bottles of Moet and Veuve were three times more than AJ’s and 50% more than at any other restaurant. I ordered a ¼ split and my husband had to open it because the waiter couldn’t. For the price go to Mastro’s or Domonick’s. We had the apple tart for desert – best part of the meal.

Very happy with this steakhouse. Our first visit was a great one. The price matches the environment and the food quality. Solid service, almost too much service but that isn’t really a bad thing when you are well taken care of. We will be back soon

We just left. Amazing. Absolutely perfectly cooked salmon and delicious shrimp. Waiters were absolutely awesome and attentive. Atmosphere was very relaxed and decorated beautifully for Christmas. I think it will be my annual holiday treat!

I came here for a business meeting with some people who already came here in the past.
The establishment feels like a steakhouse, dimm lighting, dark woods and white tables cloths and waiters in black suits. Service was very good and responsive, 4 stars for that.
We split the bacon wrapped scallops (4 per serving), lamb chops (4 per serving) and the crab cakes (2 per serving). Lamb were delicious, cooked perfectly and served with a nice ranch sauce. Scallops were overlooked, thank God there was bacon on them. And the crab cakes where ok, nothing special with some baby greens and 2 sauces.
For dinner they had specials and we geared towards them. One was 3 small filets topped with crab meat in a hollandaise sauce and served with asparagus, they said it was delicious. I had the 20oz bone-​in NY strip, that too was a special. It’s still a 16oz maybe more strip, but a little more flavor. I ordered it medium rare, but it was more on the rare side. It had a good flavor and crust to it. The side dishes of mixed vegetables come with the steak, which is nice, but they were under seasoned and under cook, basically raw. We also ordered a side of sautéed mushrooms and same there, under cooked and not seasoned. Not too impressed.
The wine selection was very pricey, lowest bottle was around 65 dollars, by the glass was over 10.
This is a pricey place, and frankly I’ve had much better steaks that were more tender and cheaper elsewhere. Total bill for 4 people with a dessert and a couple drinks was $ 575. Too bad, as this place had potential when we walked in. The nice thing it has complimentary valet and we got free bottled water on the way out! The most expensive bottled water I’ve paid for.

I attended a fantastic medical conference here and the staff at Donovan’s EXCELLENT. I also enjoyed the rich dark woods of this restaurant. However, I don’t understand how this place is extremely overhyped! I chose the prefix menu of the 8oz filet minion with sides of mashed potatoes and other veggie sides. Unfortunately, the food overall was Extremely BLAND. My filet was cooked as requested but it had NO flavor, it wasn’t seasoned and the mashed potatoes didn’t at all seem fresh. The «chopped salad» was made with iceberg lettuce, it isn’t even a mix green salad. It only consisted of the iceberg and onion with a couple of croutons, NO other vegetables. I’m completely underwhelmed over this «steakhouse»?? The good news is this was a sponsored dinner, but I could not imagine paying for what was served and unsure if I would try it out again. I hear this place is very popular due to it being on «Camelback» and the celebrities dine here, but excuse me… why are they returning if the food just isn’t tasty? That’s not something that would draw me in anyways with it being celebrity or celebrity-​like status. I had wonderful dinners at a much lower priced steakhouse at the local casino with upscale ambiance and delicious meals at a fraction of the price. Although, I would possibly not think of Donovan’s for dinner, I am sure I will return for another medical conference and hopefully a turn around experience to update my below average review. Unsure what to do with the Donovan gift cards unless they have a sistering restaurant to try out.

In a world of top flight steak houses, Donovan’s is remarkable. Fantastic steak, wonderful crab cakes, fresh vegetables and perfect service.

Simply incredible. Service is top notch as is the menu. The night I went in it was busy, even early, but the food still came out in a reasonable amount of time. My steak was slightly undercooked, but not enough to send back. Ambiance is upscale even though you can dress fairly casual. They say biz casual but honestly, I saw a few people in shorts & Hawaiian shirts
Go figure in a resort town :)

First time to Donovan’s. My girlfriend we’re excited to see what they had to offer. We started off with the seafood tower, the 10oz Australian lobster tail split in half did not disappoint, the 1LB King crab legs was also fresh and delicious, however the 6 Oysters On the half shell seemed to be dried out (they had been shucked what seems to be hours ahead of time) our waiter Augustine, was extremely attentive and because of the oyster disappointment the chef offered Free dessert.
The steaks, mine the 20oz NY Bone in which Augustine recommended was freaking amazing and cooked to perfection. My girlfriend had the 8oz fillet also cooked to perfection.

Celebrated our 20^th anniversary dinner at Donovan’s. Our server Sarah Backer was amazing! She’s was friendly and made us feel very comfortable. Also, very knowledgable in wine and food selections. From the moment we step inside, we were greeted with happy anniversary salutations by all the staff. Our food was phenomenal! They took at picture of us and gave it to us in a little frame. We were served a happy anniversary dessert of crème brûlée with the happy anniversary written in chocolate. All the staff made it a special dinner for my us. We’ll be back soon!

Wow. VERY very good!
If you’ve never been here, definitely plan on doing so. You’ll be attended by the most attentive and professional wait staff I’ve ever encountered.
Everything here is top-​notch. Your food will be cooked exactly to your specification without fail.
I got the veal chop, my brother and father got the NY, and my son got the salmon. The salmon was tastier than that of Bluewater Grill, and the steaks were far better than Morton’s. The salads and sides were given the same level of attention that the steaks were.
Yes, everything is a la carte, and this place is pricey. The portion sizes are very generous, and you’ll have trouble leaving room for dessert.
I’m looking forward to another visit on my next trip to Phoenix.

Donovan’s. Nice restaurant, overwhelming service, overpriced food. Most of our meal tasted great, the problems were in the subtleties. The rack of lamb our table got was a little too rare and really chewy, the carrots were essentially raw, and the veal chop was loaded with fat. The service was good but we had three servers for our table which made it sort of awkward and they were pretty heavy on the up selling.
Overall, good meal, we had a nice double date, but seriously not worth the wildly expensive price.

My peppercorn filet was delicious! My husband’s porterhouse was overcooked. When they realized this I appreciate that they offered to get him a new one, the replacement was cooked properly but a grisly, fatty piece of meat. I know it costs them to replace a meal but it’s not our fault we expected a $ 70 steak to be cooked right. They shouldn’t have offered to replace his steak if it was going to be with an inferior one.
The servers were all nice but felt like they were hovering more than I cared for. Overall I wouldn’t return. It wasn’t worth the money and a steakhouse replacing an improperly cooked steak with just a bad one isn’t acceptable no matter how many glasses of free wine you offer. That’s not what I’m there for.

The ambiance is relaxing, yet refined.
The service is always good. The steak was good, although not cooked to the correct temperature which is surprising for a steakhouse. I would recommend ordering for a lesser cook than what you normally order. I typically order medium, but at donovan’s would get medium rare. The side dish menu was somewhat limited, but we chose the creamed spinach and asparagus, both were good. Of course, you have to try the crème brûlée — Yum!

Everything about our evening was wonderful.
Let me start by saying that I’ve been to a number of steakhouses in my lifetime. I’ve been to the chains (Morton’s, Ruth’s Chris, El Gaucho) and I’ve been to the local spots. What separates this place from the others is the service. Many of the chain restaurants (or any establishment that calls themselves «fine dining» typically train the servers to drool all over you. In other words, they fawn and fuss and hover and dote. Not at Donovan’s. The servers were attentive, there when you needed them, and appropriately helpful. They stayed in the background most of the time but were quite probably reading body language from across the room, so that the moment you were perceived to need something, they appeared.
I had a glass of cabernet from Paso Robles that paired beautifully with my 10 oz. filet mignon. The steak was cooked perfectly to my liking. My server made sure I had the same expectation of «medium» as the restaurant did. It came out just right. my only complaint about my entrée was that the potatoes au gratin was too tiny. I wanted more! Heck, I coulda eaten a whole tray of it! It was the best I’ve ever had. Creamy, soft potatoes inside, and a nice crispy, salty/​cheesy layer on top.
My dining companion ordered the crab cake appetizer for her entrée. It was good. There were huge chunks of crab and it was pan fried, not deep fried. Thank goodness.
The Brussels Sprouts side dish was good — the perfect amount of crunch to softness ratio. I could even taste the natural flavor of the vegetable — it was oiled and seasoned with bacon bits, but the Brussels Sprouts still maintained their flavor. They were fresh.
The coffee was STRONG. I’d give 5 stars for that! :)
And finally, for desert we ordered their house-​made oreo ice cream cake. It was good but way too much oreo. Next time I’d go for the chocolate mousse or crème brûlée.
Overall, this was a really lovely meal. Great service, top notch steak, and a relaxing vibe. They do have valet. Next time I’m in Phoenix, I’m making a reservation.

New Year’s Eve … Fail.
It was clear the wait staff was eager to get you in and out of there to accommodate all the reservations. Yet, when it actually came to service it was less than … and certainly not worth 20%. {still tipped 20% but wasn’t happy about it}
It was disappointing they had a limited menu and not willing to make any additional accommodations. Recommendation for Donovans: Make sure to inform people while they are making a reservation.
Now for the actual food review …
Crab Cake — Had better for the price
Baked Potato — Good
NY Strip — Good, even better the next day with breakfast
Crème Brulee — Good … but definitely NOT award winning
Cocktails — Perfection, bartender has a heavy poor to your benefit
Would I come here again? Nope. There are better options in town. Sorry Donovan’s, times have changed for the Camelback area. And if I am gonna spend $ 250 for a steak dinner for two … It needs to be worth the calories!

We hosted a birthday dinner here. Service was top notch. We had a primary waiter and his assistant. They were brilliant.
What I loved about them most of all is once they found out we were US Army Veterans who had served in Afghanistan and Iraq, they gave us a $ 50 credit. How wonderful is that? They thanked us for our service. Remarkable. Always will go back, forever.

I soooo wanted to make this place a regular tradition, but I’m so torn now! First and foremost, the service in this establishment is truly spectacular. You will get taken care of from the get-​go. I think the first time I was in though, I got a little extra care and was a little disappointed when I didn’t have the same experience the second time around.
On my very first visit to Donovan’s, a pleasant gentleman walked right up to the car, opened the door for me and held my hand to help me get out. He then walked my guy and I over to the restaurant’s entrance and opened the door for us. Great experience right from the beginning. This time, I went in a couple days ahead of time to make the reservation. No one out front. No one to greet me. No worries. I can park my own car and open my own doors. Then when we actually went in for our reservation, we didn’t get that special attention we got on our very first visit. Kind of a let down, but not a huge deal. Our server was indeed spectacular, as they always are here!
I’ve learned that the food is a hit or miss. Twice I’ve had the same dinners: wedge salad and the chicken entrée (there’s only one). Both times were completely different. On this most recent visit, there were very few blue cheese crumbles on the wedge — the first time around I was in blue cheese heaven! Not a huge crisis, but the further and further I cut into the wedge, the grosser it got. It was yellow, not green. Probably shouldn’t have been sent out of the kitchen in the first place. Not good lettuce. Tasted dirty. The wedge salad is one of my favorite things on earth, but for the first time ever, I couldn’t finish it.
The chicken is free-​range and organic. Great! But this piece I got wasn’t trimmed at all. It was covered in a layer of fat. Maybe this is the new normal? Chewy chicken? Plus it was served with some weird sauce that I’m pretty sure was supposed to be blended together. Instead it was a dish full of cooked veggies with a layer of fat floating on top. Wasn’t like that the last time I had it. I was too grossed out to finish my entrée. Thankfully, my guy let me have a few bites of his steak, so I was happy.
I’m not sure if we’ll return here. So many similar places in the neighborhood. For entrees that average $ 50 to $ 75, I held them up to the same standards as I had on the very first visit. They could’ve had an off night, but it was a very special day for me and I was not impressed.