Sign of the Beefcarver

nothing special just good simple food nothing fancy…

Growing up in Oakland county for the majority of my life, often I would drive past this place and seeing the chubby man’s face on the sign filled me a subtle sense of horror and curiosity. Thirty one years later I decided to give it a spin.
The ambiance and décor is simple but comforting. Soft lighting, spacious interior with the thermostat set a little higher. The staff here is what stood out the most to my girlfriend and I. The guys at the beef carving station all had smiles and were extremely polite and hospitable. Even when we were seated we had staff not even designated to our table asking us if everything was okay, and if we were enjoying ourselves. The amount of care they put in to customer attention was mind boggling and very refreshing.
The food was pretty good. The beef was probably the most notable as you would assume it to be, having it in the title to the restaurant. Very moist, tender and juicy. The side dishes like the mac and cheese, potatoes and green beans were not bad, but were very soft and were lacking salt.
I understand this is a popular place for the seniors so I wasn’t surprised or upset by the soft food void of sodium. But adding salt isn’t hard, and this place won me over with it’s customer service. I’m glad I gave it a try!

would give 5 stars but parking lot is a cluster fuck. No other words for it.
Other than that. The beef is amazing. Good old comfort food. And the dudes doing the carving are funny and sweet. It’s not fancy or romantic, the place is jammed with seniors and some really crabby people but I dig it. It’s not cheap either. But I love the free beets and nose bleed horseradish.

Not fancy just good food. While you’re eating your plate gets cold… Just ask for warm up. She brought my half eaten plate of food piping hot. Not sure if warming multiple customer’s food is considered safe practice. But I’m okay with that and I’m germ conscious. Drink refills free. They ask you. You do not need to ask for refills. Cleanliness is not perfect but I’m okay with their food cleanliness this place has been around for many years. It could use some redecorating and refinishing but I’m not complaining… It’s still a great place with great home style dinners.

Came here for lunch. Had the Thanksgiving turkey with mashed potatoes, stuffing, cranberry, and gravy. The food was great. The turkey was moist and tender and the gravy was the best I’ve ever had. The cozy rustic atmosphere was quaint and the staff was super nice. Only spent $ 6.81 ! What a deal !

Neat atmosphere with old tools on the walls. I was with someone who said he used to go to this specific location 40 years ago! Great service, very friendly people! The food was nothing special, but it was not bad. A decent amount of food for the price.

This place is a gem. I love the whole experience you get when you step in the door. Try the stuffed chicken and roast beef. I didn’t care for the carrot cake. Not calorie worthy.

I don’t think this place is being fairly treated by the spoiled Birmingham /​Royal Oak Unilocaler crowd. It’s not a four star restaurant so why compare it like one?
If you have the choice between this place and ANY fast food or coney diner, Beefcarver wins hands down.
The service is always friendly and accommodating. I like being able walk up and pick what I want, which is a good variety. I have gone many times and not had one bad experience; more than I can say for most places.
It might be full of old people but the atmosphere is happy, and I would rather eat next to a pleasant old couple than a table of screaming kids!
I will say however that the interior needs a remodel. I like the warm wood tones but with the right upgrades it could keep that and not look like we stepped through the Wayback machine to get in.

Okay, so the scrod tasted delicious but the «tartar sauce» they gave me with it was slightly hard on top and a darker color from sitting out all day. The salad looked a solid day out in open air old but hey, the brussel sprouts with no seasoning or taste were fresh. I didn’t say anything at dinner as to not spoil the mood and upset out of town guests but I am genuinely disgusted and am starting to feel nauseous. I had very low exceptions since I have eaten here before but I would not have served my plate to a dog. Seriously. Should not be in business.

This is one of those places that after you eat you wonder — how is the place still in business.
I went because I had a coupon and my friend said he want to eat some roast beef. He enjoyed his out-​of-​a-​can green beans, out-​of-​a-​bag salad, under-​seasoned roast beef and bland mashed potatoes. I think the place is still in business because it is an inexpensive place for older folks to hang out and eat, and it is a place where you won’t find a lot of children. They actually do have a nice array of choices, but the food taste is much to be desired. I am glad I dined here because I can now say I have dined at the Sign of the Beefcarver twice in 30 years. It is probably great for the older folks’ diets because the food is so very bland. If you like bland, this is the place to be. If you have any kind of taste buds, keep driving north of Woodward.

Took my wife and daughter here for an early dinner, therefore we didn’t have to stand in line. My daughter and myself had the roast beef which is our favorite. My wife had the scrod, which she said was dry. The beef was excellent with plenty of gravy. Almost too much gravy as it was hard to find the slice of beef to cut. The mashed potatoes don’t have much flavor. The tossed salad had a small frozen tomato in it and their salad dressings were very watery. We all enjoy their rolls and deserts. I’ve been coming to the Beefcarver since I was a kid and still enjoy coming at least once a year. It’s not great enough to be coming more often than that.

I took a walk in here to poke and sniff around a few weeks ago to see what it was about. The word beef in the diner’s title is mostly what sparked my curiosity. With all due respect to the elders of this nation, to me this joint appeared to be an overpriced school cafeteria for senior citizens. Bland looking roast beef or turkey with gravy, pah-​tatas (a few typical variations of them like mashed and roasted), cranberry sauce, plain mac & cheese, rolls and rolls, steamed veggies etc. More rolls. All the food items were mass-​made in warmed trays. Like a school cafeteria.
No thanks, I have a handful of White friends whose grandparents would gladly have me over for Thanksgiving at no charge. It did not look appealing to me to pay for a meal here. On the other hand, I am sure this would be commissary heaven for the many incarcerated fellers out there.

Came here with a bud in honor of our dear grandparents who ate here all the time. The roast beef was passable. The mashed potatoes were lumpy and the gravy was pretty bitter. Like the scorched the bones they used to make their stock from. Or maybe the gravy just burned. We were in here at 3pm and they were about a quarter full and we must have been the youngest in there buy at least 20 years. Also the place is kept really warm. It was like 75 or 80 in there. But given that their core clientel seems to be 65 and older, thats understandable. The chocolate cake was really good though. In a twisted way it was nostalgic to come here, but I probably will not be a regular… at least not until I’m collecting social security.

This is an interesting place. Some things can be quite good, dare I say, delicious. Others can be quite disappointing. My daughter loves their roast beef and chocolate cake. For those two items, there is not much better than the Beefcarver for the price. The beef is tender, thinly sliced and tasty. There is nothing like seeing fresh slices carved off a darn near whole side of beef and the au jus is classic and well paired with the roast beef. The sides can be very dull and lacking in flavor, which kind of puts a damper on my enthusiasm for the beef. Some daily specials can be good as well, such as the enchilada I had today. It was not authentic, but if you are looking for saucy, cheesy and savory, it fits the bill quite nicely. The 1950’s recipe style chocolate cake is also very good with excellent frosting. It is perfect with a glass of cold milk. This place is so cool that it has its own cult following. Yes, the cult may be the Lawrence Welk crowd… but those folks think it’s a pretty «wunnerful» place :)

The place is definitely a throw back. The comments about the older crowd are spot on. The cafeteria-​style set-​up is interesting, but the food is honestly really boring. I hate salt, but I found myself sprinkling salt on the roast beef. If this place is polarizing, you can guess which side of the fence I am on.

Love this place! Been having great meals here since I was a kid. I’m never disappointed!

This place is what it is, ya know? Either you love it or you hate it. I happen to love it; I always leave full and content.
Who eats here? Old people, young people taking their grandparents out for dinner, people who recently had their teeth pulled out, and people on holiday from the U.K. My grandmother loves the Beefcarver. I use her as an excuse to dine here as friends that are my age will not step foot into this place.
I have actually been coming here since I was a kid. I use to come with my grandparents and parents when it was still called Sign of the Beefeater. On one occasion, I recall my dad proclaiming that he was never going to return here. He stated that seeing the old people drool when they ate made him lose his appetite. Dad had a week stomach. Despite his criticisms, I developed a fondness for the place.
The interior is littered with antique tools from the Revolutionary War period. There are no booths. The furniture consists of simple wooden tables and unpadded, wooden chairs. I recommend that you sit near the fireplace for ambiance; however, these seats fill up fast with geriatrics’ that are chilly. As others noted, it is cafeteria style. Yet, they have servers who carry your tray to your table, clear your plates, and re-​fill your beverages.
Speaking of beverages, do not count on getting a pint of Guinness here. They do not sell beer, wine, or liquor. They have Coke products. Have an orange Fanta or try their wonderful coffee. I learned to enjoy coffee at this place. They use Cadillac coffee, which, is brewed in giant industrial urns.
The food is the direct opposite of haute cuisine. It is so uninspired and plain that it is actually refreshing and unique. I always get a salad, a plate of roast beef, and some Brussels sprouts. The always tender beef is sliced off the largest roast I have ever seen. I suspect the veggies come in big giant cans from a place like GFS.
Some of their desserts, like their cream pies, are homemade. Other desserts, like their fruit pies, appear to be Chef Pierre frozen pies. I recommend trying their homemade, baked, apple dumplings or raisin pudding for something different.
It is imperative to make a stop at the pickle and beet bar (yes, they have a pickle and beet bar), which oddly always has an inordinate number of bottles of Worcestershire sauce. Presumably, the sauce is for the people visiting from the U.K. I always enjoy their horseradish. I put loads of it on my beef. It is great!
All jokes aside, despite only eating here once or twice a year, I truly like the Beefcarver. They consistently provide a decent, fulfilling meal. Everything is a la carte, yet it is not unreasonably expensive to eat here. The service is always fast. I am saddened that there are only a couple locations left.

My grandma tends to get into grooves where she gets obsessed with certain places for long periods of time. Right now, her obsession is The Avenue. When I was in high school, it was Sign of the Beefcarver. That could have been because we got coupons in the mail, but she really seemed to love the place, too.
It was cafeteria style, geared toward people getting a «square» meal. So, you could choose a meat, choose, a vegetable, choose a dessert, etc. And, the menu rotated, so on different days they had different choices available.
I wasn’t terrible, at least the first few times, but the food wasn’t really that great (some was worse than others, depending on the day) and after a while I really started to hate our regular trips here.

I took my hungry grandfather here the other day. It is a sad little place. The comparisons to retirement home food are apt. It made me sad to see my grandfather eat «round steak.» I nibbled on a watery iceberg salad and was telling myself that there is no way I’ll let him eat here again. For what he paid, he could get something better at a real restaurant. Right out of Dickens…

The food is honestly like eating water-​zero flavor. A nice hybrid of a hospital and a retirement community food (I think). Maybe this is practice for getting to either place. I didn’t check but I’ll bet all the sugar packages were missing off each table.
On the plus side you never really know just how bad something is until you experience it. I wish I could say it was neat or cool or interesting just to check out once, but I can’t say that… I guess the true high point was orange jello.