✔ Updated · new recipe with step photos
This steakhouse loaded baked potato has a crackly salted skin, a fluffy middle and all the toppings: butter, sour cream, cheddar, bacon and chives. It's the potato that sat next to every prime rib.
How Do You Make a Steakhouse Loaded Baked Potato? (Quick Answer)
Scrub and dry 4 russets, poke them, rub with oil and roll in coarse salt. Bake directly on the rack at 425°F for 50 to 60 minutes, until 205°F inside. Split, fluff with butter, salt and pepper, top with cheddar and bacon, melt 3 to 5 minutes, then add sour cream and chives.
At a glance
The one tip that matters: No foil. Wrapping steams the skin soft. Oil, coarse salt and bare oven racks give you the crisp, salty steakhouse skin.
Why You'll Love This Loaded Baked Potato
- Steakhouse skin crackly, salty and good enough to eat on its own.
- Fluffy inside baked to 205°F, never gummy.
- Fully loaded butter, sour cream, cheddar, bacon and chives.
- Hands-off an hour in the oven while you cook the steak.
- A meal by itself add chili or pulled pork and dinner's done.
The Steakhouse Baked Potato
In the seventies and eighties, a steakhouse dinner meant a big cut of beef, a trip to the salad bar and a baked potato with everything on it. Steak and Ale, famous for its herb-roasted prime rib, was one of the places families went for exactly that night out.
This is how I make that potato at home: a salt-crusted skin, a fluffy middle and every topping.
Can you still get the steakhouse dinner? A new Steak and Ale opened in Burnsville, Minnesota, in 2024, years after the original chain closed in 2008. For everyone else, the steakhouse plate is a home project, and this potato is half of it.
Ingredient Notes
Exact amounts are in the recipe card below.
- Russet potatoes: large, about 10 to 12 ounces each.
- Coarse salt: kosher salt sticks to the oiled skin and makes it crackle.
- Bacon: cooked crisp and crumbled.
- Sharp cheddar: shred it yourself for a smoother melt.
- Sour cream and chives: cool and fresh on top.
Step-by-Step Photos
Here's how it comes together. Exact amounts, times and temperatures are in the recipe card below.
Tips for Success
- Russets only. Their dry, starchy flesh bakes up fluffy. Waxy potatoes turn dense and creamy instead.
- Dry skin, crisp skin. Pat the scrubbed potatoes completely dry before oiling, or the skin steams.
- Skip the foil. Foil traps steam and you get a soft, wrinkly skin. Bake them bare on the rack.
- Check the inside. A thermometer reading 205°F to 210°F means fluffy. Under 200°F and it's still waxy in the middle.
- Open it hot. Split and fluff the potato as soon as it comes out, so the steam escapes instead of turning the inside gluey.
- Season the inside. A pinch of salt and pepper on the fluffy middle before the toppings makes the whole thing taste better.
Steakhouse Loaded Baked Potato
4
potatoes10
minutes1
hour520
kcal1
hour10
minutesA steakhouse-style loaded baked potato: russets rubbed with oil and coarse salt, baked at 425°F until the skin is crisp and the inside reaches 205°F, then split, fluffed and loaded with butter, sour cream, cheddar, bacon and chives. Serves 4.
Ingredients
- For the Potatoes
4 large russet potatoes (10 to 12 oz each)
1 tablespoon olive or vegetable oil
1 tablespoon coarse kosher salt
- To Load
6 slices bacon
4 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup sour cream
1 cup sharp cheddar, shredded
2 tablespoons chives or green onions, sliced
to taste salt and black pepper
Directions
- Bake
- Heat the oven to 425°F. Scrub the potatoes, dry them well and poke each one 6 to 8 times with a fork.
- Rub the potatoes with oil and roll them in coarse salt. Set them directly on the oven rack, with a sheet pan on the rack below.
- Bake for 50 to 60 minutes, until the skin is crisp and a thermometer in the center reads 205°F to 210°F.
- Load
- While they bake, cook the bacon until crisp, drain and crumble it.
- Split each potato lengthwise, push the ends toward the middle to open it, and fluff the inside with a fork. Add a tablespoon of butter, salt and pepper.
- Top with cheddar and bacon. Return to the oven for 3 to 5 minutes to melt the cheese, then finish with sour cream and chives.
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What to Serve With It
Make it a full steakhouse night with my slow-roasted prime rib and a crisp salad. For more ideas, see what goes with a steak in my guide to what to serve with steak.
More Potato Favorites
If you love the loaded toppings, try my TGI Fridays potato skins or browse my potato side dishes.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long do you bake a potato at 425°F?
About 50 to 60 minutes for a large 10 to 12 ounce russet, until the center reads 205°F to 210°F and the skin is crisp.
Should I wrap baked potatoes in foil?
Not for a steakhouse potato. Foil steams the skin soft. Oil, coarse salt and the bare oven rack give you a crisp, salty skin.
Can I make a loaded baked potato in the air fryer?
Yes. Oil and salt the potatoes, then air fry at 400°F for 40 to 45 minutes, turning halfway, until the inside reaches 205°F.
Can I bake potatoes ahead?
Yes. Bake them up to 2 days ahead and refrigerate. Reheat whole at 400°F for 20 to 25 minutes until the center reaches 165°F, then load them.
What goes with a loaded baked potato?
Prime rib or a grilled steak, a big salad and green beans. It also turns into dinner with chili or pulled pork on top.
Why is my baked potato gummy?
It was underbaked or cut open too late. Bake to 205°F and split it right away to let the steam out.
