The quoted "We grabbed the
8-oz Filet for $78. The filet was accompanied by a roasted tomato, and the steak itself was cooked to a perfect medium rare with a warm pink center....." comes from the
Disney Food Blog, which anyone who knows how to Google would quickly have discovered. And was indeed referring to the Bourbon Steak inside a 5 star resort in one of the most expensive counties in the U.S.
Shula's did not serve USDA prime beef. They tried to claim "better than prime" because it was "certified Angus beef", which has nothing to do with USDA grading requirements.
The center cut 8-oz Filet goes from a low of $57 in Delray Beach to a high of $78 in NYC and other "premium" locations. Why the variance? What the cost of real estate is for the restaurant, what the market will bear, cost of labor, etc.
I will eat at a Lonestar/Outback/Texas Roadhouse more often than I will at a high end steakhouse, but I won't pretend they are the same quality or experience. I think whoever said it, about the Mina restaurant being for those on expense accounts is pretty spot on. The times I ate at Shula's in WDW I was entertaining clients from a conference in WDW.
I am not likely to visit Bourbon steak unless a client wants to. Otherwise I will stick with the Yachtsman Steakhouse and Le Cellier Steakhouse.
As to Chops, it is good, even very good, but hardly top ten in the U.S. Maybe top ten in FL, but Bern's is the FL steakhouse that is consistently in the top ten lists, especially of independent steakhouses.