What Outback Steakhouse's Menu Really Looks Like In Australia
Outback Steakhouse builds their entire identity – the one thing that sets them apart from Texas Roadhouse, LongHorn Steakhouse, Logan's Roadhouse, or any other casual steakhouse chain – around an "Australian" theme. While it seems like the whole shtick would collapse if one of these restaurants actually opened up in Australia itself, the Australians must have some sense of humor since there are actually 8 different Outback locations throughout the country/continent (countinent?). Of course, maybe that shouldn't come as such a great surprise, since, after all, there are 18 different Texas Roadhouse locations in the state of Texas.
When you compare the menus of Outback USA and Outback Australia, one thing stands out right away: no cutesy "Aussie-isms" on the latter. No Kookaburra Wings, no Aussie Cheese Fries, no Grilled Shrimp on the Barbie. Instead, the latter offers Classic Wings, Cheese Chips (chips, as you may be aware, being a British/Commonwealth term for what we call fries), and Volcano Calamari & Prawns (prawns being shrimp, calamari, and volcano a sriracha aioli sauce rather than a molten chocolate filling). There's also no Drover's Ribs and Chicken or Grilled Chicken on the Barbie, although Australian Outbacks do have Alice Springs Chicken – and yes, they also have Bloomin Onions.
Do Australian Outbacks offer different menu items?
For the most part, Outback Down Under is still the same steakhouse it is here in the U.S. A. Names aside, the menu offerings are actually pretty similar, but there are, however, a few differences between the two. In Australia, the "Appetisers" (not "Aussie-tizers" – and no, the "s" isn't a typo, it's just more British spelling) include an antipasto board of sliced meats and cheeses. They also have fried mushrooms called "Bushies" (one of their few forays into cutesy naming conventions), but their menu does not feature mac & cheese bites, as mac-and-cheesifying everything seems to be more of an American obsession.
Australian Outbacks also offer seven different types of steak as opposed to the mere four available in the U.S., and their add-ons are also more extensive, ranging beyond shrimp to include calamari, onions, mushrooms, and both pork and beef ribs. They also offer a steak-topped entree salad, something that doesn't appear on the U.S. menu.
What else does Outback Australia have that we don't?
On beyond steak, Australian Outbacks also feature lamb chops, something the U.S. ones don't do. They also, surprisingly, have a much larger selection of sandwiches and burgers (aren't those supposed to be America's national food?), with several chicken options, a plant-based burger, and something called the "Big Bugga" burger that's topped with beetroot. Their menu also features a number of different pasta entrees not found in the U.S. Nothing too different about the sides, except they offer coleslaw and "Fried Smashed Potatoes" while we've got chicken tortilla soup
Finally, when it comes to desserts, they're beating us there, too. Current U.S. Outback offerings run to either carrot cake or cheesecake (raspberry, chocolate, or caramel-topped), but Australia's got not only caramel cheesecake, but also pavlova (this fancy cake consists of meringue with ice cream and fruit), Cinnamon Oblivion (ice cream, cinnamon apples, caramel sauce, and pecans), and – how fair is this? – they're still offering the famous Chocolate Thunder (though without the "Down Under" tag) that seems to have disappeared from U.S. Outback menus! Guess you really do have to go Down Under to get a taste of it now.