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When I first heard that a Longhorn Steakhouse location had gone into Sevierville, I wasn’t familiar with the brand, which actually boasts restaurants in some 30 states plus Puerto Rico. In fact, my first thought was that it might just be another run-of-the-mill, value-oriented family steakhouse chain a la Western Sizzlin. But I had heard glowing reports from friends who had tried it for themselves, and when I stopped by the area’s first Longhorn Steakhouse for a recent lunch outing, I realized that my preconceptions were indeed off the mark.

If it’s possible to create an upscale Western motif, Longhorn Steakhouse has succeeded. The furnishings and décor manage to blend tasteful elegance with the rustic essence of the old American West. It’s as if a Zane Grey novel exploded inside a Connors restaurant, and the result made a positive first impression.

I’ll start by scratching the surface of what I didn’t try, which included starters like Buffalo wings, spicy chicken wraps, shrimp and lobster chowder and ranch house chili. You can also get a nice variety of burgers and sandwiches as well as a number of specialty salads such as the Sonoma chicken salad, grilled salmon salad and the 7-Pepper Sirloin Salad. Non-steak entrees like grilled and fried shrimp, shrimp and crab gratin, chicken dishes and baby back ribs are available as well.

Of course, steaks are the stars of the culinary roundup at Longhorn, and you’ll find everything from a 16-ounce T-bone, Porterhouse and rib eye to a New York strip and a couple of steak-and-seafood combos.

I zeroed in on one of their specialties, Flo’s Filet, available in seven- and nine-ounce portions (I chose the lunch-sized seven-ouncer). All Longhorn steaks are fresh — never frozen — and they’re hand-cut, hand-seasoned and grilled to order. I could have gotten optional bacon wrapping for an extra buck but decided to pass.

Dinner steaks get a choice of two sides, but I got one selection with lunch. I picked sautéed mushrooms out of a side lineup that features steamed asparagus, sweet potato with cinnamon and butter, jalapeno cole slaw, rice pilaf and brandied cinnamon apples.

I think I made a good choice in Flo’s Filet. The seven-ounce size was enough to satisfy for a midday meal without being too heavy. The steak was thick and seasoned just enough to complement the beef’s natural flavors without overpowering them. I noticed a minimum of extraneous gristle, but you could tell the cut had just enough marbling to maintain moisture and flavor during the grilling process.

The sautéed mushrooms were delish, but they could have been served a little warmer. They were well above room temperature, but I generally like my ’shrooms served still sizzling from the pan. Otherwise, I give the meal high marks. I couldn’t resist trying the Chocolate Stampede for dessert. Two wedges of chocolate cake — made with six kinds of chocolate, including mousse and fudge icing — are accompanied by vanilla ice cream and real whipped cream. Designed for sharing, this is a behemoth of a dessert, and even though I got just a half order, I still couldn’t finish it off.

The service I received that day was topnotch, and I think Longhorn fills a nice price-point niche — when you want something fancier than a family steakhouse but don’t want to necessarily shell out the dough for a Fleming’s or a Ruth’s Chris. In fact, Sevierville no longer has its Connors, and I think Longhorn Steakhouse will fill that void nicely.