Oregon – Szabo’s Steakhouse & Seafood
Friday night I arrived in Newport, Oregon with a couple of goals in mind: get into a yurt and grab a bite to eat while watching the Mariners’ game. While waiting to see if I was going to accomplish the first goal I took a quick look around town to find a place to take care of the second. I noticed a nice, big sign advertising "60 MLB Games each Week!" on this one place and decided it looked like the type of place that I was looking for – a bordering on dive, sports bar! It was called Szabo’s Steakhouse & Seafood. The name sounded fancy but the building was one of those nice, weathered coast sort of places.
I entered and was a little worried. The bar looked right – a group of regulars were gathered at one end, drinking Bud on draft and watching various TVs while chewing the fat – but the booths looked almost too nice! :-) I decided it would do and found a seat near a large TV with the Mariners – Sox game.
I ordered a Diet Coke (I’d had enough wine for the day!) and checked out the game while perusing the menu. I ordered a cheeseburger and substituted salad for fries. (Trying to make up for earlier indulgences!) All the servers were very friendly, although I was a little absorbed in the game (M’s were down, dang it!). I tried to read what was on the back of their shirts – it was a definition for Szabo. Something about "Hungarian for family…" but the definition was too long and I couldn’t get to the rest of it.
My burger arrived and it was the perfect bar burger! A toasty bun, "special sauce", lettuce, onions, a slice of green tomato (the only bad part), a big slice of Tillamook Medium Cheddar cheese melted on a medium hamburger patty. The salad was another story – what was I thinking?? I’m sure the fries would have been great. :-)
I finished up and as I was leaving (I was on the early side for a Friday night) the place was starting to fill, mostly with locals, it seemed. I think it’s the kind of place where most of the customers are regulars. The kind of place you feel at home.
Szabo’s Steakhouse & Seafood
5188 Lucky Gap St
Newport, OR 97365
541-574-0100
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Culinary Fool 
Sometimes, there is just nothing better than a well cooked burger, and so few places make a really good one.
Hi C.F.:Knowing perfectly well that you wouldn’t sleep until the great szabo mystery is solved, I contacted my friend Peter Szabo in Hungary. I asked if it was, in fact, true that “szabo” means “family”…and whether there was more to it than that?His response:“You were misled… :)Szabó means tailor. Family is ‘család’ in Hungarian and not a frequent name.”So there! Perhaps the message on the back of the waitstaff’s shirts was, “Don’t try the family.” In which case, they really meant to say, “Don’t try the család.”But of course, you found that out the hard way. Next time, order the fries.Sal
Hey Danno!You are SO right! My very favorite, of course, is when I barbeque (techically "grill") them myself. Yum! Might be a good weekend to do that! :-) Thanks for your research, Sal!What would I do without your international circle of friends? :-) I\’ve been tossing and turning for nights! Now that I know the real meaning, I\’m thinking it actually said "Hungarian for a family that\’s a cut above"….get it?… And (except the salad). Actually what this all tells me I that I\’m a little dumber than I thought. I mean really, a salad instead of fries? ~ B