Aside from the wonderful meat, one of the nice things about Christy's is consistency; year after year, the food is always good.

The other, bless their generous steak-house hearts, is that you get your money's worth. Main courses come with a Caesar salad (for which they are famous), and potatoes, any way you want them, or rice or vegetables.

Service is impeccable and accommodating. The three separate dining rooms, all in red, give a feeling of intimacy, and the gentle, romantic recorded music doesn't hurt, either. Christy's is a steak house from central casting, proud to appear in any old-timey movies, sans the smoking.

Appetizers ($5.50 to $12.50) are kept simple, and range from potato skins to oysters Rockefeller (another blast from the past). Shrimp cocktail has a place of honor, as does the grilled portobello mushroom ($8.50). A large mushroom is sliced and served over a pleasant mixture of pickled onions, an unusual combination that didn't quite work. Caesar salad (included with all the entrees) can be had with or without anchovies. The lettuce is crisp and cold, a welcome interlude in an otherwise robust meal.

Fine, aged beef

The purpose of a steak house is, of course, to offer different cuts of beef, perfectly cooked, to satisfy certain primeval needs. At Christy's, the finest corn-fed Midwestern beef, aged for several weeks, is used. And other than the usual New York strip, filet and porterhouse, ($24.95 to $33.50) they also serve a sublime prime rib. Standard cut ($28.50), which is more than large enough at 16 ounces, and extra large, one full rib, ($32), at 24 ounces. Oh, my. Cooked exactly as ordered, ``medium'' is a glorious rosy pink with a darker half inch border.

Rib roasts, perhaps because we rarely see them in restaurant menus, and even more rarely cook them at home, hold a certain mystique. Rarer still to find one so well-prepared. The meat is flavorful and of good texture, a little firm, just to let you know that you are eating meat.

The filet (8 ounces at $26.95 and at $29.50 for 12 ounces), conversely, is so tender, the steak knife provided is barely necessary. As tender as it is, it is also tasty, surrounded by sauteed mushrooms. Indeed, quite a treat.

Fowl, fish dishes, too

Other non-beef selections ($20.95 to $35.50) include roast duck, sauteed grouper, salmon, breast of chicken, veal porcini, fried shrimp, lamb chops and a one pound lobster tail. Veal porcini ($22.50) consists of three generous pieces of veal served in a flavorful champagne and cream sauce, the porcini enhancing the dish with their own soothing texture.

Desserts ($5.50 to $8.50), are the usual Key lime pie, pecan pie and cheesecake, but also include a refreshing apple crumble, which had too much cinnamon the night of our visit, and a Baked Alaska for two. Now that was a lot of fun to eat.