OT: Where did you eat the best steak of your life?

Submitted by DonBrownIsAStr… on June 16th, 2020 at 9:57 PM

I'll start. Bones in Atlanta during the 2013 Final Four.

Broken Brilliance

June 16th, 2020 at 10:04 PM ^

Indianapolis is home to Charles Mulligan's Steakhouse, the best damn steakhouse in the damn state. I have taken a picture of every steak I've ever eaten there. June 2004: Porterhouse, medium rare, Bearnaise sauce. January 2000: They call this one, The Enforcer. February '96: The steak ribeye. The Whiskey: Lagavulin 16. The lady next to me? A bitch.

IRL though? My own house. I grill Ribeyes and ny strips and my wife makes homemade zip sauce, mushrooms, and carmelized onions on the side with either garlic mashed taters or truffle fries. Montreal steak seasoning is our favorite additive.

Close second goes to the many free filet minons that I received at my college banquet job (the inn at St John's in Plymouth).

Blue_by_U

June 16th, 2020 at 10:07 PM ^

at home...know a guy who runs a cattle/hog farm, their local butcher knows how to prep meat. Cooked properly it can't be touched by any restaurant. All animals are tested for hormones etc...you get caught you are done supplying. Grass-fed, raised right, so delicious.

xtramelanin

June 16th, 2020 at 10:33 PM ^

my place.  per blue_by_u, we raise grass fed beef.  no hormones, no vaccines, no GMO feed.  

for restaurants, i'd say a couple i've had at ruth's chris.  very nice for that genre of beef.  

getsome

June 16th, 2020 at 10:51 PM ^

same.  enjoyed many great meals at an old teammates family farm in texas.  hes also shipped me beef which ive prepared though didnt taste quite as good.  

as far as restaurants, luger nyc is tough to beat 

s1105615

June 16th, 2020 at 10:09 PM ^

Harry & Izzie’s in downtown Indianapolis (sister restaurant of St Elmo’s and not far from Ruth Chris).  It was a dry aged tomahawk ribeye.  It was a transcendent experience.

drz1111

June 16th, 2020 at 10:10 PM ^

Most steakhouse steaks are going to be commodity beef, even prime and dry-aged.  Meat that doesn't come from the main supply chain but is sourced from farms that focus on quality can be much, much better.

So let me recommend what is (among foodie types) universally regarded as the best butcher in the country:  Flannery Beef out in CA.   HIs "CA Reserve" is sourced locally, dry-aged 30 days, and is generally fucking amazing.

He also will make you custom burger blends and sometimes, as specials, will sell longer-aged beef (45 day! 60 day!) though for my palate I agree with him that the 30 day is the best balance of dry aged funk and regular beefiness.

My favorite is the Jorge Cut, which is a bone-in ribeye with extra rib cap.  But everything is amazing.

The best steaks I've ordered from Flannery are the best steaks I've ever had in my life.  Can't recommend him more highly.  And I live in NYC and have had Lobels and Fleischer's steaks many times, to say nothing of Lugers, Wolfgangs, Sparks, etc. 

othernel

June 16th, 2020 at 10:49 PM ^

Live 3 blocks from Lugars. Amazing steak, but the rest of the experience is just so overrated for what you get. If I'm going to spend $70+ on a cut of steak, I want some atmosphere, and service to go with it.

If you're ever back in the area, St. Anselm is my recommendation and it really delivers, though it is tiny.

 

 

drz1111

June 16th, 2020 at 11:07 PM ^

Yes, they're getting local stuff from the Hudson Valley.

If you current live in W-burg then I doubt you've lived there for long enough to have gone to Lugers when it was at its peak, but 20-30 years ago it was every bit as good as its reputation or better, and the atmosphere was old new york.  I remember going there for a break-fast Yom Kippur meal (don't judge, we weren't feeling smoked fish) and we were seated next to a table of Gambino guys who paid for their meal (remember, no CCs at Lugers) by peeling $100s off of a thick roll and it was just about the most Alpha thing i have ever seen. 

OSUMC Wolverine

June 16th, 2020 at 10:15 PM ^

At the Black Angus at Lake Buena Vista at Disneyworld six years ago.  It was a 48oz Porterhouse ordered it medium rare. 2.5in thick, still cool in middle, very spicy/peppery.  Was wonderful--in large part because of how rare much of it was and I love spicy food. Ive had a few $100+ steaks over the years at more expensive locations, but none compare to my $29 three pounder at Black Angus.

Rubberband

June 16th, 2020 at 10:27 PM ^

My house, 8 to 10 Times  a year.  I have been dry aging beef for the past 6 years and I have a a  whole cooking process that begins with a 700 degree sear.  I find 35 to 45 days to be the sweet spot, I once aged a rib roll for 110 days and it was a little on the funky side but it was still tasty.

I love Morton's, Ruth's Chris,  St. Elmos...etc but I can't afford to be a regular so I did my homework and learned to age and prepare steaks properly.   Besides, my homebrew beer pairs well with steak.

MileHighWolverine

June 16th, 2020 at 10:27 PM ^

Home....just discovered the joy of "reverse searing"...put the steak in the oven until it hits 120 degrees internal temp and the sear the outside at high heat until you get a nice crust. 1 to 2 minutes max. Best steak I've ever had.

 

Mgotri

June 17th, 2020 at 7:33 AM ^

Sous vide makes wonderful streak and meat in general because it’s very hard to overcook. The problem I have with the method its that it’s a lot of investment for a cooking method that is really only useful in a handful of situations, and most of the time it is a prep stage prior to finishing with a stove/etc. 

It’s also nice for reheating food without overcooking, poached eggs, custards, and basically anything that is tricky because of the over cooking risk.  

lawlright

June 17th, 2020 at 9:31 AM ^

This is what I was going to reply with. Best steak I ever had - the ones I cook. Seriously, after dialing in my sous vide cooking, it's hard to find a steak I like better. Hell, recently I picked up 3 ribeye pack from Costco, made 3 ribeyes cooked (seasoned really) 3 different ways and made my girls taste and pick which was which - all three were incredible. 

MGoStretch

June 17th, 2020 at 3:17 PM ^

Agreed so much. A sous vide water circulator isn’t terribly pricey and all you need is that and a large pot.  It’s almost impossible to mess em up and you can dial it in to the perfect doneness. Two or three inch filets? No problem, uniformly medium rare.  Best steak I ever had was a 1.5” thick prime ribeye I bought after passing the peds heme/onc boards. Three hours in the sous vide bath, and then seared on a screaming hot cast iron pan. That’s the steak I named my son after.

Commie_High96

June 16th, 2020 at 10:28 PM ^

Tie between Keen’s in NYC and the Erie Cafe in Chicago.  If you haven’t been to Keen’s...go and eat a steak in the same room Teddy Roosevelt used to.

if you want a mind blowing home steak. Make a rub out of well ground coffee, salt, brown sugar, cumin paprika and ground pepper.  Rub on a ribeye and grill to Med rare.

MFanWM

June 16th, 2020 at 10:37 PM ^

I spent seven years in Omaha and between Omaha.  Between Omaha, Lincoln, Kanas City and a dozen places there are enough steak houses with the benefit of having some of the best beef farms anywhere on the planet very local that you can argue and come up with a few top 10 lists.

Brother Sebastains, Omaha Prime, Mahogany Prime, 801 Chophouse, Hereford House, Piermonts - all pretty high end, and then there are a number of great hole in the wall places with great steak - The Drover, Farmer Browns, Around the Bend (anyplace known for the Testicle Festival - you have to have a few beers and give it a try), and the always good Gorats where you may get a chance to catch up with Warren Buffet.

All have different takes, but all were very good.

RockinLoud

June 17th, 2020 at 9:21 AM ^

Lived in Omaha for a number of years as well. The Drover was my top choice. Can't beat that whiskey marinade. All of the other places seemed overpriced, except maybe Brother Sebastians, they weren't too bad.

The Grey Plume has Waygu beef, but I never got the chance to go there before moving.

Toasted Yosties

June 17th, 2020 at 2:23 PM ^

There was char, but it wasn’t overly charred, and it was cooked to have some. It was medium-rare on the inside. I think we wrapped it in aluminum and then unwrapped it at a certain point. The fat was solid but bursts into liquid when you bite it. I’m no steak connoisseur, but that’s how I like it. I honestly had no idea it was going to be so good.

The sauce is ridiculous. If you like your steaks without a topper, I’d make it for a noodle dish:  https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ree-drummond/rib-eye-steak-with-onion-blue-cheese-sauce-recipe-2109229.amp

 

M Go Cue

June 16th, 2020 at 10:50 PM ^

Nice call on Bones.  Their corn pudding is incredible too.

Cooked up some American Wagyu filets from Snake River Farms with two giant lobsters last summer.  The brother in law brought the surf and I brought the turf.  Holy smokes it was good.  I think we started a new yearly tradition.