IMC Answers!
We get a lot of questions from curious carnivorous about how IMC Steak House works and why we do some of the things we do. Like, do we have gluten free meals? And what is with the prices on our menu ending in weird numbers, like '27 cents', instead of just rounding up? Well, you have come to the right place for some answers!
Why do IMC Steak House prices end in weird numbers?
The Independent Meat Company (IMC) prices its produce according to movements in the Australian Cattle Market and Beef Market prices. So it makes sense for us to base our IMC Steak House prices on these and similar markets too. Up and down; to get best value and a fair price.
We made a straightforward formula that converts wholesale prices into restaurant prices and publish these prices straight to our menu. So if these formulas say a restaurant steak should be $29.37 then that is what it is on the menu! Pretty similar to how many Butcher Shops come to their prices that end in equally unusual numbers.
Can we cook your steak WELL DONE?
Absolutely! No worries at all. If you like your steak well done we are happy to cook it well done for you! As a matter of fact, some of our cuts are best suited cooked on the warmer side of medium.
Some restaurants don't like cooking steaks well done, for a couple of reasons. The most common being the challenge of cooking a thick cut both quickly AND not burning the outside to a crisp on a super hot commercial grill. This takes a lot of practice. Fortunately at the IMC Steak House we get a lot lot lot more practice than the average restaurant! So we are happy to play with fire and grill your steak to your liking!
The time it takes to cook a thick cut well done is something of a tricky issue for all restaurants. It can be hard to time meal delivery when one guest at a table orders a well done steak and it tends to hold up tables. But as long as you are happy to wait, we are happy to make it work!
PS: some restaurants get a bit elitists when it comes to how steaks should be cooked. It is good to suggest a doneness, as any good friend would, but some restaurants get a bit silly about it. IMC Steak House is your steak friend.
Gluten Free?
As a steak house, naturally gluten free* meals are our thing! Our signature "meal" of steak, choice of in-house made steak sauce, salad and loaded Idaho potato is naturally gluten free*. Our Huon Salmon with lemon butter sauce is also a naturally gluten free* meal option; as are our sides of beans, carrots, peas and mash potato.
*HOWEVER as there is a gluten cross contamination risk, we cannot guarantee that any product prepared at IMC Steak House is truly gluten free as we do not feel that we have the extensive procedures or training in place to do so – therefore our dishes may contain gluten.
We feel that very few restaurants have the ability to consistently produce ‘gluten free’ meals and that the terms ‘gluten free’ and ‘gluten friendly’ are misused in many cases; mostly due to a misunderstanding of the level of diligence that ‘gluten free’ actually requires. Which is why we do not advertise 'gluten free' or 'gluten friendly' on our menu.
If you are able to tolerate very small amounts of gluten then our naturally gluten free dishes, as listed above, may be suitable for you. If you suffer from Coeliac disease, gluten should be STRICTLY avoided at the parts per million (ppm) level and you should also avoid products with “may contain” statements even if you are asymptomatic – our meals may contain gluten. If you wish to strictly avoid gluten for any reason, you should not consume products prepared at IMC Steak House.
The Dietitians and Nutritionists at Alliance Rehabilitation in Townsville help us review our menu and better understand the needs of our guests. They are super helpful!
Vegetarian?
Well, umm, we might be the worst vegetarian restaurant in Townsville 😋 We don't have any vegetarian mains on the menu as such, but we are always happy to put together a few of our yummy veggie sides (carrots, beans, sweet potato fries, mash, minted peas etc) to make a meal. We try to make taking one for the team, when dragged to our steak house by friends or a significant other, as pleasant as possible (but still no token frozen veggie main on the menu!)
BYO to the IMC Steak House?
While we definitely appreciate the personal touch that BYO offers, the IMC Steak House is a licensed venue only so BYO is off the cards we are afraid. The IMC Steak House has cozy relationships with a number of excellent Australian wineries & vineyards and is fortunate to have the support of some great people who know a thing or two about wine. So we have a fine selection of wines to accompany our steaks and seafood!
Can I bring a BIRTHDAY CAKE!?!?
Yep, absolutely! We are happy for you to bring a birthday cake to IMC to celebrate a birthday. Just bring it up to the counter when you arrive and we will happily hold it until you are ready for it to be served, just let us know when you would like it brought back out! Don't forget!
PS: We don't charge cakeage (that's the fee a restaurant sometimes charges to serve your own cake to you).
PPS: Can we have a piece?
I order at the counter? Drinks at the bar?
Yep, that is right. At the IMC Steak House we take our orders at the counter and serve drinks at the bar. Of course we bring your meals to your table as they can be a bit tricky to carry, no table buzzers here! Why do we do things this way instead of the old "wait for the waiter" style?
- It saves some money which we pass on. Honest. And while our runners could probably take orders when not too busy, it is not a great idea as the absolute worst thing we could do is 'sometimes offer table service' as then no one would know what to expect.
- It makes service quicker as you don't have to wait for a waiter to notice that you need something, take the order and then have your order processed. Downside is you have to get up to make the order. Finishing your meal in the time it takes for a drink waiter to complete an order is never enjoyable. Sure, a zippy waiter will get your order quick but getting a zippy waiter every time is like winning the lotto.
- We actually want guests to come to the counter and bar so they can interact with someone who knows a thing or two about our produce. It is not so easy to get a lot of waiters who really know their stuff. This is not so helpful for guests who already know exactly what they want in advance but a lot lot of our guests are trying new things out.
- It reduces complaints. Hand on heart it reduces complaints. Why? Probably one less thing that can go really really wrong. One less step where your entire meal can get completely wrecked, such as when a waiter forgets your order. Or ignores you for the whole night. Getting up to the bar is inconvenient but not getting a drink at all is a catastrophe that some people actually prefer to avoid even with the occasional leg-stretch. As most restaurants offer table service we are the option for people who actually don't like being bugged all night long by a waiter wanting to upsell.
For now this system is working very very well and we do apologise if you would love to come to IMC except for the lack of table service.
42?
In the book (and now movie) 'The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy' by Douglas Adams, the "Answer to the Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe, and Everything" is calculated to be the number 42 by Deep Thought, a giant supercomputer, who took 7.5 million years to come up with the answer. However Deep Thought never worked out what the actual Ultimate Question is, it just found the answer... nobody knows the question. Yep, a highly amusing read!