The Market by The Meat Cellar - San Juan Capistrano, California

Shahbaz Salehi

We visited this past weekend and were intrigued by the unique butcher-to-table concept, where you can select your meat and they cook it for you. We tried the burger and the prime rib sandwich, and both were delicious! The service was prompt, and the portion sizes were very reasonable.

While my prime rib was served a bit cold, it didn’t detract from the overall experience, as both dishes were incredibly flavorful. Being a new restaurant, it's clear they're still refining their workflow, but definitely it is a great addition to the area as a restaurant, meat market, and fish market. They also have a small store where you can purchase meat and fish. Overall, I would definitely recommend checking it out!

Mary Ann Brady

I took my husband for his birthday dinner and we were thoroughly pleased with our choice. There were five of us and once the food arrived, everyone fell silent, with the only sound being murmurs of appreciation for the delicious cuisine. Although I am not typically a macaroni and cheese enthusiast, I would definitely order it again. The experience was truly amazing. Our table sampled a variety of dishes, including steak, ceviche, oysters, short ribs, salmon, and the fancy burger, and everything was perfect. The establishment has a casual ambiance, but the food was certainly not casual. It was of the highest quality. Having dined at numerous high-end restaurants, often dressing up and paying a premium, I have sometimes found the food to be disappointing. To me, the quality of the cuisine is far more important than the atmosphere. This will be our new place.

Franklin Zhou

Garlic bread was amazing.

Food materials were great, but the way it's composed both as menu items and on the plate could use work.

Fries were below average. Not fluffy, kinda soggy.

Place opened month and a half ago from this review so it might change.

Isaac Householder

The Market by The Meat Cellar is an outstanding find for anyone who appreciates truly high-quality food. We've visited twice, and every dish has been exceptional. Their perfectly cooked wagyu ribeye costs the same as what I paid for just the raw wagyu ribeye at a meat market in Newport Beach - that's incredible value for such premium quality. The shortrib poutine was amazing, and both the caesar salad and their premium burger lived up to the same high standards.

What sets them apart is their unwavering commitment to quality - I noticed a sign in their store (though surprisingly not on their website) that they exclusively cook with traditional fats like butter, olive oil, tallow, and lard instead of industrial seed oils, something incredibly rare in Orange County restaurants. The prices reflect their premium ingredients, but as someone familiar with quality meats and ingredients, I can say their pricing is more than fair for what you're getting.

The service has been outstanding on both our visits - the staff is genuinely friendly and attentive, making the whole experience even better. This place truly stands out for their dedication to proper cooking techniques and exceptional ingredients. Highly recommended!

Neda Abbasi

We recently dined at The Market by The Meat Cellar and had a very frustrating experience regarding a steak priced at $140 per pound. We ordered it, expecting a manageable portion, but the server failed to inform us that the steak was nearly 4 pounds. When the bill arrived, we were shocked to see a $530 charge.
We brought up the issue with the manager, who initially promised to speak with the owner and get back to us.
However, after following up multiple times, we were told that nothing could be done. This lack of transparency about portion sizes and pricing, combined with poor customer service in addressing our concerns, left us extremely disappointed.
We want to warn other customers to be cautious and ask detailed questions about menu items and portions before ordering, as this experience felt both unclear and unfair.
It's unfortunate because we expected better service and accountability from a restaurant of this caliber.

Kelsey Fazio

This pains me to write since I know this place is newer but it was not a great experience at all. The restaurant is cute, open, and a great vibe - the service (and candidly the food), however, was the opposite of this. My husband ordered a steak and Brussel sprouts, I ordered the burger medium rare. They were out of sprouts so the waiter brought mashed potatoes on the house (very kind of him). As for my burger, it was well done, the fries were completely inedible (cold, not salted at all), and they weren’t Parmesan truffle as advertised on the menu. I felt bad asking for the food to be remade, but it’s a $26 burger messed up on both the meal and the side. The server’s response was, “Uhh well the fryer is off so sorry can’t do anything.” He didn’t even try to do anything about the burger, he just disappeared and came back when my husband was done eating. I was starving so I begrudgingly ate the burger since there wasn’t another option food wise. At the End of the meal, the server apologised and took the burger off the bill, but it was a really sour experience. Nothing else to make it right or address this. I hope they work out their kinks because it’s a pretty pricey spot and I don’t know that I’d come back.

Larry Pappalardo

This was our second time at the restaurant. The first time was great, (we were excited to go back), the second time will probably be the last time. We had to sit outside in the cold, didn't even know there was an outside and they have way too few heat lights in the ceiling, we couldn't even feel one. Our steaks took an hour to get to us. I finally asked the waiter about it and then they showed up. We brought a bottle of caymus and were almost done before our steaks came. Our carrots were hard and almost seemingly not cooked. And all this in the freezing cold. If we had a heater over us, that part would have been fine but again, there wasn't one close enough so we sat there and finally ate with our jackets on all night. Skip this place, there are better restaurants in there and if you want a nice steak and you want to be comfortable, go to Flemings. Terribly disappointing.

Adam Traidman

Nice people and nice new building. We went during their fourth week. The restaurant was 20% full but the food took 30 min to come out. Very overpriced. Lunch for two was $140 with tip. Steak frites was tough meat and lukewarm warm soggy fries. I love salt but everything was overly salted. The onion and mushroom which came on the steak plate looked great but were raw in the middle. Salad came AFTER the entree and was low quality lettuce with so much cheese on top that it was difficult to eat - and I love cheese. The best dish was the mac and cheese. Overall extremely overpriced and sub par food. Plus you need to pay to park and this restaurant refuses to validate. Will not be coming back. Ever.