This was our 3rd visit to BI over the last 3 years- always chosen by the family members we were visiting. Maybe by Merced standards, the BI is a great steakhouse. It may be an institution. However, as frequent travelers, we have not found the...BI to be even average or ok. Each time our cuts of beef (prime rib, tenderloin and the coffee-marinated) needed the sharpest knife in the kitchen to cut. Not once were our cuts cooked to order. For a steakhouse I was surprised at the small selections of red wines by the glass. Not a malbec to be had. In Merced, I've had better beef cuts at Applebees- hardly a famed or fine dining restaurant.More