Bern's Steak House is a steakrestaurant in the SoHo district of Tampa, Florida, founded in 1956. It is currently owned and operated by David Laxer, son of original owner Bern Laxer. It has a sister restaurant, Haven, which is famous for its large cheese collection from around the world. In 2013 Bern's opened a hotel across the street called The Epicurean. Located in the hotel is Bern's Fine Wine and Spirits. In 1996, Wine Spectator rated Bern's in a tie for the best steak house in the United States. Bern's has been a recipient of Wine Spectator's Grand Award since 1981. In 2009 Rachael Ray rated Bern's as the best restaurant in America, having beat out over a dozen top-rated steakhouses across the U.S. In 2010 industry magazine Nation's Restaurant News deemed Bern's a "Top 50 All-American icon." George W. Bush ate at Bern's twice during his presidency. Bern's Steak House is famous for not only its food, much of which is organic and grown especially for Bern's, but also for its massive wine list. Bern's has the largest wine list of any restaurant in the world. Diners can take a tour of the wine cellar as well as the kitchen at Bern's after their meal. Another notable feature of Bern's Steak House is that there is only one single window in the entire establishment, although it is not viewable by customers.
The farm
The restaurant has a farm in Town and Country. Server trainees work at the farm.
Kitchen Tour
Restaurant once kept live fish in tanks inside the kitchen but the fish tanks were removed before 2011 for logistical reasons.
Wine Cellar
Bern's boasts the largest private wine collection in the world of over 600,000 bottles. Bern's is one of three locations that annually host "Winefest", the second largest private fundraiser for charity in the Tampa Bay area, the first being "Taste of Tampa". In its cellars can be found depression-era Frenchred wine, pre-war Sauternes, and Madeira from the 17th century. A $30,000 bottle of Chateau Latour from 1947 was found in 2011. The tour feels like a drop into a deep basement but Florida has a shallow water table so this is not possible. The walls are covered with insulation made from newspaper to keep the temperature controlled. The entire collection has never been catalogued and staffers sometimes find surprises in the stacks. There are about 100,000 bottles in the cellar at the restaurant and another 500,000 in a building next door.
Harry Waugh Dessert Room
The establishment has a private dessert room upstairs with wine-barrel booths and a jukebox at each table.
