Tag Archives: aged

Filet Mignon, Midtown East, NY Strip, Rib Eye, Steakhouse Reviews

Morton’s NYC

November 1, 2014 Johnny Prime 1 Comment

Morton’s overall score: 86

Morton’s was one of my top three favorite steakhouses in NYC, but things have changed since I started reviewing so many places.

EDITS IN ITALICS from updated review, 11/1/14

Flavor: 9

I’ve been to Morton’s twice, and both times I was extremely pleased with the flavor. They seem to cherish the meat, and they know just how to prepare it to maximize and enhance the natural flavor of the beef. I’ve tried the rib eye, the NY strip, and the filet. I think my wife liked the filet Oskar, an interesting preparation of the filet.

Here are some shots of the 22oz Chicago bone-in rib eye – perfectly cooked, very juicy. The only issue was that there was a bit of bleed-out, and the steak had a wet appearance, as if not seared hot enough or rubbed with enough spice to form a crust.

Choice of Cuts & Quality Available: 9

The main four cuts (strip, filet, porterhouse, and ribeye) are all represented on the basic menu, however they really only offer those four in terms of beef, varying them slightly in size to accomodate different appetites (double cut, single cut, petit cuts). Other meats are represented, like lamb, but no other types of beef. Only the ribeye and the porterhouse are offered on the bone (though their website pictures a bone-in “Kansas City” steak, which is another name for a NY Strip). This is common, since strips and filets are usually separated from the bone in order to serve them as individual cuts. I haven’t been here enough to assess whether they offer specials often, or vary the cuts. However I am giving it a high rating because the quality of the meats offered is exceptional, and everything is prime grade.

I noticed on this visit that they had a short rib to offer as well. Nice showing!

Portion Size & Plating: 8

The portions are average in size, but the great thing is that there is something from each cut of meat to suit every size appetite. Plating is basic – nothing fancy.

Price: 10

Both times my wife and I have gone to Morton’s it was during an awesome promotional period where they were offering a $50/pp prix fix menu. Portion size for the entrees and appetizers were the same as normal menu items; I think there was just a slight surcharge for the filet or the lobster, which is reasonable, and we were limited slightly on which desserts and appetizers we could choose from. Well worth the money for this kind of quality and flavor.

This visit they offered a $35 three course price fix menu. What a steal! The filet was only 6oz, but it was deliciously cilantro-ish in flavor. I liked it (had a bite of someone’s).

Bar: 9

Morton’s has a really nice big bar. This is the kind of swanky, old-school place to go for some sazeracs, slow gin fizzes, and pimm’s cups. It harks back to 1920’s elegance. I don’t recall if there are TVs, but if so, this is the kind of place to go watch the Belmont Stakes if you can’t get out to the track.

Situated along the sidewalk, the bar/lounge area is great for people watching as well. They even offer some happy hour and late night food and drink discounts. One of these days I will make it over there to try a burger at the bar. They also mix a great martini and stuff their olives with blue cheese:

Specials and Other Meats: 8

Other than beef, Morton’s really only offers lamb and chicken. This is normal for steakhouses, since the main focus is on red meat. Morton’s strikes me as the kind of place, however, that could execute a good double cut pork chop as well, perhaps roasted or boiled with whole fresh cherry peppers; something robust and bold. They offer specials off-menu with regularity as well.

Apps, Sides & Desserts: 8

For appetizers, Morton’s offers typical steakhouse style shellfish items. We had bacon wrapped scallops, which were fine, but not amazing (the scallops were cooked properly, but the bacon wasn’t crispy enough for my liking). We enjoyed the shrimp alexander, however. The crabcake was above average, and I vaguely recall my wife trying the 5-onion soup and liking it very much. Sides and desserts were average to above average. We were slightly limited in what we could choose since we were eating off of a prix fix menu, so I have not deducted points based on an incomplete review. I would imagine the Oysters Rockefeller are wonderful.

On this visit we tried the escargot to share. They were great, buttery yet light, and no funky taste – better than the ones I tried at Les Halles downtown.

Next up was my “salad” of sliced beefsteak tomatoes and blue cheese. Part crumble and part dressing, this was a nice way to open up the meal:

My wife had a cup of the five onion soup with her $35 price fix deal. I tried thinking of five different onions in my head but not sure if shallot counts as an onion. This was great, by the way. Really flavorful but not too salty like many onion soups can be. Deftly prepared.

Here’s a shot of the Caesar salad that came with our cousin’s $35 price fix – nice touch with the shaved cheese on top:

The price fix entrees came as a composed dish with a small side as well. My wife chose the horseradish garlic mashed potato item, but I didnt like it so much. I didn’t taste any horseradish, and the texture wasn’t creamy enough.

However the side I ordered was sautéed spinach with button mushrooms. I originally wanted to try the creamed spinach again, but they were out! WHAT?!??! We surmised that it must be a pre-prepared item of some kind, or they simply ran out of the right cheese and cream. Bummer. But this was really good anyway.

For dessert I tried some of the ladies’ price fix items. Key lime pie was creamy and smooth with no bitter aftertaste, on a great graham cracker crust. The mousse was nice too, but I’ve had better.

Seafood Selection: 9

I’ve never tried Morton’s seafood entrees, but they offer salmon, sea bass, and a few basic variations of both lobster and shrimp.

I tried a bite of my wife’s salmon entree and I was blown away by how good it was, so I bumped the score up a bit here. It was a perfect medium rare, very flavorful and juicy, and a great portion size for the $35 price fix.

Service: 9

The staff at Morton’s are trained to display sample cuts of beef to every table before patrons order their meals. While you are snacking on the delicious onion rolls in the basket of table breads, the waiters will come by and explain each cut of beef, physically pointing at the meats under plastic wrap on a display platter. Drink refills and general attentiveness was great, as expected. Occasionally my wife and I will make birthday or anniversary reservations online, and, if you tell Morton’s it is your birthday or anniversary, they will do something special. On out first visit, for an anniversary, they had a photographer come by and snap our photo, which they then gave to us in a cardboard “Morton’s” frame. On the second trip, also for an anniversary (a year later), they printed a special menu with our names on top, and gave us a complimentary cake dessert.

The bread basket switched to a large loaf of warm onion bread, with a line of soft creamy butter. Also, there was no longer a display plate of the steaks. I liked that bit of service professionalism. Oh well.

Ambiance: 7

Morton’s definitely has a 1920’s feel to it when you step inside. It is set up with a large, high-ceiling, art-deco inspired dining room on the main floor, which features the impressive bar. In the rear there is a stairway to a smaller elevated dining room that overlooks the main dining room. Walls in both areas contain authentic photos of famous people who have eaten there. The crowd is a mix of tourists, businessmen, and Manhattanites. Bathrooms, flatware, and silverware are clean, and the music is a mix of jazz and typical dinner music.

While the layout is still the same, the photos are gone now and were replaced by a trippy, squiggly, semi-modern wall paper. I liked the old decor a bit better so took a point away here on the re-review. In any event it is still a very cool space.

MORTON’S
551 5th Ave.
New York, NY 10017

Full Points for Flavor, Italian, Nolita/Soho, NY Strip, Rib Eye, Steakhouse Reviews

Costata

October 20, 2014 Johnny Prime Leave a comment

Costata overall score: 94

NOTE: THIS JOINT IS NOW CLOSED!!! Very unfortunate…

Ever since this joint opened I’ve been itching to try it out. As an eye-talian WOP, I was intrigued by the idea of an Italian steak joint. After the great meal at Quality Italian, I figured this place would be up to snuff as well. We had a generous gift card to knock the bill down too. Check out the results:

Flavor: 10

I ordered the boneless rib eye, however when the entrees came out, they delivered me a bone-in strip. Doh! I was gearing up for a rough experience, so my wife and I started digging into her lamb chops to get started. The manager, Adele, came over to the table with the strip in hand and said, basically, that since it was already cooked, we could just have both. WHAT!?!??! I felt so terrible, not to mention I am trying to count calories on a new diet. But how could I resist? I accepted the gift of beef and started chowing on the strip while waiting for the rib eye. The flavor was incredible. I got halfway through the strip and had to hold myself back to save room for the rib eye. But when the rib eye came out, it was like next level shit. Perfectly cooked. And the lamb was pretty incredible too. I hold back from a full score of 10 here simply because there was some gristle type fat that was too rugged to eat, but for the most part the fat was very melty and jelly-ish, even on the edge of the strip, which really surprised me.

Check this beast out – I went back for a second time and we ordered the rib eye for two. This was an easy 10.

Choice of Cuts & Quality Available: 10

You seriously can’t miss here. They have filet, strip and rib eye for one, but they also have porterhouse, rib eye and strip for two. Quality here is all prime and aged, so you are in good hands no matter what you choose to stuff down your esophagus.

Portion Size & Plating: 10

Portions are all sizable here. My wife and I sat at the bar in order to take advantage of some smaller sized items at a cheaper price (see below under bar and apps) and even those were a good size. So when you are ordering off the regular menu as opposed to the bar menu, you are getting king-sized shit. As for the cuts, the boneless rib eye is 18oz, the bone-in strip is 18oz, the boneless strip is 12oz, and the filet is 10oz. Then you have the big guns. Strip for two is 36oz, porterhouse for two is 40oz, and rib eye for two is 44oz. Even the lamb chops are 14oz. Big shit. Plating is nice – steaks come with a grilled lemon and some useless greens.

Price: 10

We had a gift card AND we took advantage of some happy hour pricing at the bar, so we did well. below is the bill before knocking off the gift card money. As you can see we ordered a lot of shit, and we were not charged for that mistaken bone-in strip.

William Price II

Bar: 10

This place has two bars: a small one near the entrance, just past the host station and stairway, and a larger one upstairs at the front of the dining room. Both are well stocked with interesting spirits and potions for concocting ass-kicking cocktails. We tried a bunch of stuff. Alex, the bartender downstairs, was really sociable and he mixed a great drink. Although it’s a small spot, I could definitely see myself hanging here after work for a drink and a bite – especially when the happy hour menu has so many great drinks and food items for half price. That, along with Alex, made me give the bar a full 10 points despite its small size.

Specials and Other Meats: 8

There was nothing on special/off the menu, but the menu did have veal, lamb and chicken by way of alterna-meats. The lamb was perfect by the way.

Apps, Sides & Desserts: 9

We tried LOTS of shit here due to the convenience of the bar menu. I’ll start with what we sampled at the bar.

First was half a dozen oysters for only $9 – all from the east coast. Three were from CT (naked cowboy) and the other three from RI (east beach blonde). Both delicious, though I preferred the naked cowboys from CT.

the oysters blondes on left cowboys on right — the oysters
blondes on left
cowboys on right

Next was the trio of crudo for $12. We picked amberjack (delicate, but with a little kick of chili and shallot), fluke (a little tougher to chew, but clean/crisp, and topped with caviar), and the scallop (soft and buttery, with a great truffle puree beneath).

trio of crudo top - scallop mid - fluke bottom - jack — trio of crudo
top – scallop
mid – fluke
bottom – jack

Then a steak tartare. Yes – this was only $11 on the bar menu. It’s like a full-sized app! It was diced a bit too large for my liking, as some pieces remained chewy, but it was packed with earthy flavor due to the mushroom cream at the bottom. This was served with a little plate of cheese chips as well.

At the table we tried an app sized portion of the garganelli pasta with speck and radicchio. It was creamy and savory – really nice. Slightly salty due to the speck, but I think they managed just fine.

Then an order of octopus with pork belly. The octopus was perfectly cooked, and the skinny end had a really great char across the suction cups that really gave it a nice flavor. However, the bed of orange rind relish underneath was too bitter for my liking.

On the side, we had the creamed spinach, of course. it was very creamy, but not overly heavy or salty. They topped it with some crispy onion too. Very nice.

For dessert, we tried a trio of sorbets: blood orange, grapefruit campari, and pear. Each tasted very much like the fruit, but a bit too bitter on the back end for the grapefruit.

sorbets (for my wife's bday) — sorbets (for my wife’s bday)

On a second visit we dove into a nice romaine lettuce salad with crispy anchovies, very nicely dressed, and with shaved cheese on top:

We also had an app sized bowl of spaghetti with clams (Little Necks and razors) in a garlicky butter sauce:

On the side we tried the crispy artichokes. Very good, well cut so as not to include the woody bits of leaf, and the heart texture was just right. However, a dipping sauce would be a nice added touch for this.

Seafood Selection: 9

There’s a great deal of seafood on the menu. Caviar selections, many different crudos, five different kinds of oysters, sea bass, langostines, lobster, and some innovative apps as well. Something a little more manly would have rounded out the score here to a 10 – like maybe a swordfish steak done in a new/unique way.

Service: 10

Everyone here was incredible. Our waitress, Amber, was wonderful. I felt really bad when the wrong item came out to the table (strip instead of rib eye), and for a second I almost considered just sticking with the strip.. but I HAVE to try rib eye to rate a steakhouse fairly. When they said we could keep the strip anyway, I was blown away. What an incredible attitude to have towards customers! There was no way my wife and I were going to finish all that meat, so we ended up giving our leftovers to a hungry war veteran who was begging for FOOD, not money, on the subway. I figured it was only fair to give away what I did not pay for. The people at Costata, I’m sure, will be happy to know that the misfire of the strip ended up helping someone in need. When someone is asking for food, you KNOW they are not trying to scam. I hope she (the veteran) enjoys the wonderful meal we gave her. I’d say it was about 14oz-16oz of strip and rib eye, plus nearly a full sized side of creamed spinach. OH – I have to mention the table breads here too – they served rosemary flavored focaccia bread with a small dish of garlicky lard instead of butter – SWEET!

The second visit came with a nice little goodbye baggie of popcorn:

Ambiance: 8

They didn’t change the layout much from when this place was Fiamma. I think they could have benefited from throwing some booths in rather than just tables. It was very nice though, and they were playing great music (classic rock and oldies).

Burgers, Midtown West, Restaurant Reviews, Rib Eye, Steakhouse Reviews

Ted’s Montana Grill

September 27, 2014 Johnny Prime Leave a comment

I’ve been eyeballing this place for a while since I work nearby. I’ve been here before for some happy hour staples like $5 nachos (big), $5 sliders (4 of them), and $4 beers (Yeungling). Today I was determined to try the burger out.

I started with an order of salt and pepper onion rings.

These things were excellent – perfectly crispy, no grease, and a really nice horseradish dipping sauce that I ended up using for my fries as well.

Speaking of which, the fries were nice and golden brown, natural skin-on slices, crispy, and well seasoned.

As for the burger, it was a good size. A little sunder-seasoned, and it had an odd flavor profile to it. At first I thought it was maybe aged, or perhaps they gave me bison instead of beef. But it wasn’t a gamey flavor. Not sure how to describe it other than different. not necessarily BAD; just unexpected, perhaps?

Anyway – it was nice and patriotic with the flag toothpick. It came with bacon, cheddar, grilled onions, lettuce, tomato, pickles and raw onion. Check the cut:

The pic makes it look a little overdone, but it was a proper medium.

Another thing I like about tho splice is the dish of pickles they give at the bar. Half sours, bright green, thick slices, very delicious. I put these on my burger instead of the bread and butters that came on my plate.

For dessert we did some ice cream and cookies. One cookie was chocolate chip, the other was chocolate chocolate chip. Nice and simple, but good.

Lastly, here’s a shot of my friend’s vagina meal – grilled chicken with guac on a whole wheat bun. Looks good; just like a wet snatch.

Anyhow – keep an eye out for a proper steakhouse review of this place, as I plan to come back soon and try their 14oz rib eye, along with a salad and dessert for just $29 (ask for the theater menu). Great fucking deal, if you ask me!

UPDATE – full-on steakhouse review below:

Ted’s Montana Grill overall score: 73

My wife and I came in for the “theater menu” deal: $29 (now $35) for three courses. Not a bad price. Check the verdict below.

Flavor: 6
My first bite of the beef rib eye was a nine, but it went downhill from there. The steak was nicely cooked and all, but the meat was a bit tough, a bit over-salted and wet. When I say wet, I mean there were small puddles of grease on the top of the steak. Also when I say tough, I mean the grain of the meat was tight and a little difficult to chew. While it did have a decent flavor, I had to drop the score because of these things. There was also a good deal of gristle on the cut, and a shitload of bleed-out once I got down on it. If it weren’t for that and the gristle I might have scored this a seven.

Choice of Cuts & Quality Available: 7
Here, they do not offer a porterhouse, and no cuts large enough for two. there is a filet, a NY strip, a rib eye, and a “steak frites” strip, which they say is a center cut strip. There is only one size of each offering, though to their credit they do offer each as a choice of either beef or bison. If it weren’t for that diversity of choice, I might have dropped this to a five or six. Speaking of choice, I think that’s what they’re rocking here in terms of quality.

Portion Size & Plating: 8
For the price, the portions are pretty good. If I had to guess I’d say my steak was 12-14oz. The soup was a good size, as was the salad and other items for the theater menu pricing. Very fair considering this joint is nestled in the heart of skyrocket rent central.

Price: 8
If you’re not a food snob or a steak expert, this place is perfect for casual dining. The prices are super fair. For six courses and two espressos the bill came to $86 with tax and tip included.

Bar: 9
The bar here is a blast. They have a great happy hour menu with good drink specials and snack food. You can’t people-watch so well into the street, but it is definitely a lively and fun place to go after work. I’d certainly come here for the happy hour often. In fact I’ve done so twice before; good nachos and sliders, excellent onion rings, great free pickle slices, and cheap draft beer. If you never come here for steak, that’d be fine, as long as you stop in once for the happy hour. Grab a pint and some sliders or nachos and you will be satisfied. In fact, that is my firm recommendation to anyone thinking of coming here: stick to the bar.

Specials and Other Meats: 7
There’s really just chicken and ribs, aside from the bison and beef. And there are no specials, as the menu is pretty much more like an elevated and refined Outback or Fridays type of deal.

Apps, Sides & Desserts: 6
My salad was really basic: romaine, croutons and dressing. Not much else to say about it.

The New England clam chowder was nice and thick, and quite flavorful. Almost kind of like a sauce… which got me thinking… New England Clam Chowder Spaghetti… Look out for a recipe one of these days…

Desserts were pretty basic, and in retrospect I think the “adult shakes” are probably the most appealing thing in the dessert department.

I had a fudge brownie sundae (one of two options on the theater menu). The brownie was a little hard but the ice cream was good (because it is made by Haagen Dazs).

My wife had the cheesecake. Pretty good actually, except for the berry sauce on it that had a sort of processed, “from a squeeze bottle” kind of flavor to it.

Seafood Selection: 6
There’s a cedar plank salmon on the theater menu, which looked nice, but my wife went with the crab cakes. These were actually really nice. A little crisp texture on the outside, good quality lump crab meat, and the addition of guacamole made for a really refreshing bite. They also offer trout and a catch of the day, but no shellfish, raw items or anything like that.

Service: 8
Service was fine. It did feel a little rushed, like our guy wanted to take our plates early with each course. Also the hot sauce was snatched from our table without asking if we were still using it. Bummer, because I was using it with my fries.

Ambiance: 8
I actually like the feel of this place. It’s warm and inviting, there is always a decent crowd of people having a good time, and the walls have bison heads on them. Love it.

TED’S MONTANA GRILL
110 W. 51st St.
New York, NY 10020

Flash Deals, Queens, Rib Eye, Steakhouse Reviews

S Prime Steakhouse

September 25, 2014 Johnny Prime Leave a comment

S Prime overall score: 88

My wife found a Groupon deal for this joint: $50 gets you $100. They had a nice menu, and now that we’re in the city again, the trip to Queens to check the place out was no worse than heading downtown after work. Nice easy subway ride on the R train.

Flavor: 9
I had the 60-day dry aged signature rib eye, of course. It was fucking great. Some of the fat wasn’t as soft and jelly-ish as I like, so that’s why I took a point (I had some scraps left). Otherwise this place is spot on, perfectly cooked, perfect temperature, no bleed out, nicely rested, juicy as a pair of titties in an early 90’s rap video.

Choice of Cuts & Quality Available: 10
All the beef is dry aged in house, and prime. I was impressed with the beef here, and there was a great selection to choose from.

Portion Size & Plating: 9
Portions here are pretty big. As you can see from the images, you get a good deal of shit for your buck here. Plating is elegant and refined but not over the top fancy. At 28oz, the rib eye is a nice manly size, though it did feel a bit smaller than 28oz when it came out. Typically that is the weight before cooking and sometimes even before aging, so there is expected weight loss during those processes.

Price: 8
The prices here are pretty high for Queens, but the quality offsets that damage. Also, with their long-running Groupon deal, there is really no excuse not to come try this place out. Don’t let the pricey steaks deter you. Our bill for two came to $228 (not including the oysters and 2 drinks at the bar), minus $100 for the Groupon. Not bad.

Bar: 10
There’s an absolutely awesome happy hour deal here. Dollar oysters and half price drinks and bar bites. The bar is big too, and it was already pretty full at 6:00pm when I arrived. They even have extra seating at high tables nearby, and a narrow bar along the windows. By time we were finishing our meal, the place was packed. Seems like a good scene. Anyway, we ordered up a few drinks and a dozen oysters before sitting for dinner. Total steal! Also worth noting here: HUGE wine selection, and beautiful displays of wine, for those of you who are wine freaks.

Specials and Other Meats: 9
The other meats offered here are chicken, veal, and lamb. A very solid showing. They even have a cajun rub that they offer on their steaks, which is interesting. Our waiter also told us about some specials that were not on the menu, like a stuffed broiled lobster (my wife almost got it), and a berry cobbler dessert.

Apps, Sides & Desserts: 8
We started with the agave braised pork belly, which was huge and delicious. The outer skin was perfectly crispy too.

Then we dove into a trio of tartares: tuna, scallop, and beef. All were good, but we liked the tuna the best:

On the side we had parmesan herb fries, which were tasty but could have benefitted from a bit more crispiness.

The fries went really well with the steak sauce, which was finally a refreshing step away from heavy tomato based sauces that other steak joints push on you:

We also tried the creamed spinach. Our waiter talked us away from sautéed spinach and toward this dish because it had a nice bread crumb crumble on top. I wasn’t crazy about it. The texture of the spinach was a little too watery for my taste. Kinda wish we had stuck with the sautéed spinach order instead, but it’s all good.

For dessert we split a slice of key lime pie. This was the only item that I thought was over priced. It was a bit small for $10, and we’ve had better key lime pie elsewhere.

Seafood Selection: 9
There’s a great selection of seafood items. Aside from minimum 2-pound lobbies, they also rock a whole roasted branzino, salmon, tuna, and scallop entrees. And you can’t really beat dollar oysters at happy hour. We also tried the tuna and scallop tartare apps too, which were really good. My wife’s entree was a broiled lobster, which she loved. I only took a point here because one or two of the oysters were sub-par, but at a dollar a pop, who cares?

Service: 9
When we sat down, the restaurant was largely empty, but we were put at a small table right next to another couple. That kinda stinks. I guess we could have asked for a different spot, but I don’t like being an annoying customer. Other than that, service was excellent, our waiter was perfect, and the manager was really polite and even waited on us when we were sitting at the bar along the windows before dinner. Oh yeah – the bread. There was a nice selection to choose from: pumpernickel, pretzel, seven grain, and more. The only issue is they were not warm and toasty, but the soft, whipped butter was delicious.

They also brought out some nice, warm manchego cheese with honey drizzled over the top as a little snack. Very nice.

Ambiance: 7
The space is very “Queens,” if that makes any sense. It was clearly a garage or some sort of wide open space that was converted into a restaurant. That’s great! I liked the lighting, the seating, the layout, etc. It had a nice upstairs and a beautiful stairway leading up. I think there was just a slight clash between modern and traditional that didn’t fit the space, and it also felt like it could be a club, despite the awesome 80’s music they had playing (nice!). Otherwise it is beautiful inside, and the bathrooms and kitchen are super clean. I know this next thing is a little nit-picky, but our table was massively wobbly. We had to shove a wad of doily underneath to balance it out a little better. We’ve had a string of bad wobbles lately at recent restaurants, so I figured I’d mention it here just because.

S PRIME
35-15 36th St.
Long Island City, NY 11106

Burgers, Filet Mignon, Midtown West, NY Strip, Other Cuts, Porterhouse, Press Reviews, Rib Eye, Steakhouse Reviews

Del Frisco’s Grille

September 19, 2014 Johnny Prime 2 Comments

Del Frisco’s Grille overall score: 82

Flavor: 9 (downgraded to 8 after subsequent visits)

True to the Del Frisco’s brand, the steaks here really pack a donkey-punch of flavor. I went with the standard rib eye, which is boneless and comes in at around 16oz. of crisped goodness. It was cooked perfectly, had tons of soft, flavorful, edible fat, and it was juicy. The only down side was that it was a bit on the thin side for my liking. About one inch thick… I mean thin… What am I at fucking Applebees? But hey – it WAS delicious. And I was actually surprised they were able to get a good sear and crust on it without overcooking. Impressive skills from the chef. My wife had a trio of filets (on special). Each was wrapped in applewood smoked bacon and then topped; one was Oscar style (crab meat + Hollandaise), one was mushroom & red wine reduction, and the last was fois gras (best one because it added some much needed fat into the filet). And now I will take this time to rant about something that happened with the trio… Only one bite of one steak succesfully merged the bacon with the meat in proper cooking temps. The problem is with the method… wrapping shit in bacon…. People … I love bacon just like any other trendy asshole with a bacon themed t-shirt who posts bacon-related crap on Facebook … but there is a time and place to use it. The idea behind wrapping shit in bacon is to impart fat into something, and/or give things a smoky flavor. This is great – a wonderful concept… but it needs to be executed properly – EXACTLY – for it to be a success. Inevitably the bacon wrapping problem boils down to one of two things: EITHER (1) your meat is overcooked because you need to make sure the bacon is fully cooked before you serve it… so prolonged cooking time overcooks the star of the plate, which is the filet… OR (2) you undercook the bacon, leaving it rubbery, so that the steak is not overcooked. But then you end up serving disgusting half-cooked bacon, which is a health hazard if not just an incredibly shitty thing to do to bacon. Please… Unless you are among the ranks of fucking Thomas or Hubert Keller, then you need to go fuck yourself if you are wrapping good meat with bacon. And if you are either of them, I would hope you are wrapping meat with caul fat rather than bacon, since it essentially melts into the meat. If it MUST be done, then please half-cook the bacon first BEFORE wrapping the meat, and while the meat is cooking you can spoon some bacon grease over the top to make sure the flavor is imparted into the meat. /endrant

Choice of Cuts & Quality Available: 8

The MEAT selection here is pretty much the same as the Double Eagle location around the block (seafood and other meats selection varies). They offer an upgraded version of each type of meat as a special; a boneless strip and a bone-in strip (16oz vs 22oz), and a boneless rib eye and a bone-in rib eye (same ounces as the strips). They had a great selection of filets: small (8oz), medium (12oz), and bone-in large (special) at 16oz. They also had a trio of filets on special (4oz each). All around this is pretty good. No porterhouse, so I had to take an extra point.

Portion Size & Plating: 8

My steak was 16oz, boneless. That’s a good-sized slab of meat – a little on the small side if you have a good pair of balls swinging between your thighs – but it’s still a pound of flesh, and not as small as the one at Dylan Prime. They had a broad range of sizes. Filets came in 8, 12, and 16oz portions, and even 4oz in the trio plate. Strips were either 16 or 22oz, and same with the rib eyes. Plating was basic: beef + plate.

Price: 7

Prices here range from $37 for the pussy filet to $60 for the manlier upgraded cuts of steak. My regular menu rib eye was $42. That’s a pretty good price for a pound of perfectly cooked meat, however, the other items were a bit too pricey ($16 for 5 shrimp, $5 a piece for lamb sliders, etc). At the Double Eagle, it seems more worth it for the higher prices – maybe because of the atmosphere. See below and make your own judgments.

Bar: 10

The bar here is pretty cool, and definitely a good place to hang out after work if you work in midtown. It butts up close to the windows that look out into the Rockefeller Center area. I imagine it gets a good crowd in nice weather when the patio seating is available. They also have a nice fiery oven for cooking the flatbreads and pizzas right next to the bar, so you can sit there and watch the flames. The martini was made just right to boot – and $3 cheaper than at their other establishment around the block.

Specials and Other Meats: 8

As I said earlier, on special there were lots of meats. A strip, a rib eye, a filet, and a trio of filets (pictured below – they came with asparagus as well). This isn’t really the kind of place for “other meats,” and I guess to that end it isn’t really a proper “steakhouse” either. They have sandwiches on the menu, and some plated dishes that take on the alternative meats like chicken, veal, beef short rib, and lamb (app).

Apps, Sides & Desserts: 7 (updated to 8 after subsequent visits)

No shellfish here (oysters/clams). We started with an order of cocktail shrimp and the lamb sliders. The shrimp were good, almost peppery, but there were only 5 for the whopping $16 price tag … and they weren’t that big: their small size didn’t match their large price. They did come with a nice dipping sauce that was some sort of horseradish, cream-based thingy. The lamb sliders were tasty and potent. They came topped with arugula, roasted red pepper, tzatziki sauce and goat cheese. I enjoyed them so the hefty $15 price tag for three wasn’t as bad as the shrimp. For sides we had Parmesan & sea salt fries and truffled mac & cheese. Both sides were too salty. The mac & cheese was unbearably salty, but the truffle taste was really good. I just wish they held back with the salt. The fries were more doable – they had some nice chopped up herbs on them too. For dessert we had nutella bread pudding. This was hands down the best dish of the night. Crispy coating, juicy middle, incredible flavor, topped with coffee ice cream… man… I will go back just for that.

Seafood Selection: 7

They offer salmon, tuna & sole by way of “the sea” here. No lobster, no oysters or clams. A shame, but at least they have the famous and delicious Del Frisco’s crab cake. Stick with that and you are set. But, again, you probably aren’t coming here for a full-on steakhouse experience. It’s not that kind of place.

Service: 10

The service was good. No real complaints. There was very little interaction as it was a busy time. Unlike traditional steakhouses, here you won’t get a basket of bread with your water or drinks (unless they forgot about that). Hmm… maybe they did forget… because they also forgot to bring sugar out for my Cappuccino.

Ambiance: 8

As I said above, it isn’t a typical steakhouse setting. It’s more of a concept restaurant. It’s a lot like a gangbang – you go in and out, it’s loud, busy, social, lots of people coming, there is use of a back door entrance, etc… That’s fine, but I have judging standards to which I need to stay true. This isn’t some subjective bullshit like sexual harassment in the workplace or The Beatles vs The Stones. This is truth. Okay then – onward…The wait staff are all dressed nicely but not traditionally in suits or jackets. They have both men and women taking orders and serving. The decor was modern, and the vibe is loud, happy hour, after work crowd chaos. It’s definitely not the same class of restaurant as other places I’ve rated, mainly because the Del Frisco’s “Grille” brand is marketed toward a more casual and social dining atmosphere. If you want a more sit-down and take-your-time kind of place, then go to the Double Eagle around the block. The bathrooms are nice though – four single user rooms with a dim, clean and modern look. I was almost tempted to have King Richard the Turd usurp the coveted Porcelain Throne and squat over The Tepid Pool to unleash a reign of brown terror the likes of which Manhattan has never seen… but I refrained from that conquest.

cross section of a rib eye: left side is the fat cap, right side is the "roast" side, as I like to call it. — cross section of a rib eye: left side is the fat cap, right side is the “roast” side, as I like to call it.

UPDATE: 09/19/14

Check this out… My buddy got this email from Del Frisco’s Grille about a crazy burger & beer deal. The details were as follows: double cheeseburger, fries, and any pint of beer for only $17.50! Needless to say, we jumped at the opportunity.

I am a big fan of the Del Frisco’s brand, and despite not giving this location as much accolades as the Double Eagle site, one of the best in the world, I am still a loyal patron. I’ve heard great things about their burgers in particular.

Here’s the burgerporn:

Verdict: the meat was cooked properly, well seasoned, and had a nice ratio of cheese to meat. The tomato was nice and cold, contrasting with the hot burger and cheese. Downside: it was a bit bread, as the bun was big, but on the positive side there was no dog or flopping of the bottom due to burger grease. I liked it a lot.

I chose the parmesan sea salt fries. They were really flavorful, but a bit limp. Perhaps another session in the deep frier would take them to the next level.

Okay so all’s well, right? Wrong. The bill came and, to our surprise, we were being charged way more than $17.50 each! As it turns out, the NYC location is apparently an exception to the $17.50 deal. The price is supposed to be $24.50. Now, this all makes perfect sense in hindsight, as the regular price for a burger is something like $18.50 WITHOUT the beer. Also NYC rents are astronomical. It only makes sense that they would have to charge more for the food here. We asked Chad, the manager, if they’d still honor it, being my friend had actually received TWO emails with the $17.50 price. There was no way around it. Chad explained that the price could not be altered. He told us that he didn’t have a button on the register to change the price of the burger. We were a bit upset, but I reassured him that I DID like the burger. When I pulled out my card to present it to him, as I do at the end of every meal, he suddenly remembered the “oh shit, it’s Johnny Prime” button on the register. “We can adjust the price of the beer,” he said. Well, hey, that works for us! “You were in here before,” he remembered. “Yes, for steaks,” I answered. Chad even remembered where my wife and I sat! Wow! Anyway, he had a new, adjusted bill printed up, in which we were not charged for the beer.

My buddy pays close attention to these sorts of things, still pointing out that we were over-charged by $2 from what the ad said as we were walking home. I don’t really blame him, because that $17.50 price was really the whole reason we even went. There was no limitation on the email, and no exclusion of NYC in the fine print of the ad. But I also really didn’t care and wouldn’t have minded; I’ve paid some hefty bills in my day, and as long as the food is good, I am generally fine with it. But in keeping with the stellar service of the Del Frisco’s brand, Chad earned the Grille another point for service to make it a full 10. This location really can’t compare with the Double Eagle, but at least now I know I will definitely be coming back at some point to try some more items off the dinner menu. Chad: we humbly thank you for making it right on the $17.50 issue. You’re a stand-up gentleman.

UPDATE: 7/18/17

I went back for an influencer event and got to try (and re-try) lots of stuff.

The Porterhouse: 9/10

This was awesome. It had a good pepper crust, nicely cooked, and both the strip side and filet side were both tender and juicy. My only issue is that it seemed kinda small.

The NY Strip: 9/10

This and the porterhouse were both on point. Really great job cooking this bad boy.

The Rib Eye: 8/10

This suffered slightly because it was over-salted (you can actually see a track of it along the left side of the cut in the photos below). Despite what looks like a lot of inedible fat on this baby, it was all really soft beef jelly.

The Tenderloin: 7/10

This bone-in “filet” was just a bit blah in comparison to the other three cuts we tried. It was cooked nicely and it was tender, however it just fell flat and lacked the character that the others had.

All of the other sides, apps and desserts we tried were good.

Pizza

Tuna Tacos

Shrimp Cocktail

Philly Cheese Egg Rolls

Lemon Cake; Creme Brulee Cheesecake; Coconut Cream Pie

Also not pictured: creamed spinach with bacon, mac and cheese, and the burger again. The creamed spinach went nicely with the mac and cheese, together in one bite. The salt from the creamed spinach added what was lacking in the mac. Given how much I enjoyed all these sides, apps and desserts on this visit, I added a point to the score. However with an average new steak rating of 8.25, I had to round down and lower the flavor score from 9 to 8. In the end, the total score is still the same at 82.

By the way – this filet mignon burger is fucking incredible. ew addition to the menu.

Prime rib was 8/10

DEL FRISCO’S GRILLE
50 Rockefeller Plaza
New York, NY 10020

Filet Mignon, Full Points for Flavor, Midtown East, Porterhouse, Press Reviews, Rib Eye, Steakhouse Reviews

Angus Club

August 23, 2014 Johnny Prime 7 Comments

Angus Club overall score: 96*

UPDATE: THIS JOINT IS NOW CLOSED

Tonight I had a crazy press dinner at the newly opened Angus Club Steakhouse in midtown, on 55th and Lex. Despite it being a free press meal, I’ve popped this write-up into my traditional steakhouse review format, complete with 100 point scoring system and everything. I’m committed.

Flavor: 10
We had what was probably one of the best porterhouse steaks I have ever eaten. I am usually a rib eye man, but this was good enough to make me reconsider my religion. The 35-day aging process really adds a ton of flavor to the meat, without getting overly gamey and barn-yardish.

Also a 10/10 is their “bone in filet mignon” (tenderloin).

Choice of Cuts & Quality Available: 10
Everything here is prime, aged 30-35 days in house, certified black angus quality meat. Eddie, the chef, hand picks the cuts from the meat supplier (Masters) in Hunts Point. You can rest assured that you are in good hands here. One “bone” to pick: some outlier meat cuts would be a great addition, perhaps as daily specials, such as flank, skirt, or perhaps a hanger.

Portion Size & Plating: 10
Portion sizes are great, and the decorative plating is nice without going overboard. You have a 14oz filet, which is beefy, and 22oz rib eyes and/or strips (bone-in). This is a great size, especially considering that the meat is well-aged (aging reduces the weight, as meat fat fibers break down and subsume into the muscle tissue, causing increased tenderness and flavor). The porterhouse for two, if I had to render a guess, would be about 42oz, bone-in. Not too bad, and every ounce edible, fat and all.

Price: 10
I was given the wonderful opportunity to eat for free this night, as part of a press dinner, but I wouldn’t complain even if I was paying. At $48 for a 22oz rib eye in the heart of Manhattan’s prime real estate area, and with a restaurant this size (tremendous), I’d say that this is a bargain.

Bar: 8
There was a nice happy hour crowd here despite the bar being off-street and somewhat small. There is a larger bar downstairs, but it kinda gets lost in the shuffle. A featured bar, in my opinion, should be along the window on the main floor, to attract passers-by and entice them in for a meal. The bar did have incredible homemade potato chips though; crisp, salty, and textured. They mixed a great, crisp, smooth martini as well. Nicely done.

Specials and Other Meats: 9
We weren’t offered any particular specials for the press dinner, but the menu does offer other meats such as veal and lamb. These are solid additions to a traditional steakhouse menu.

Apps, Sides & Desserts: 10
We had some crab cakes to start. They were crispy on the outside, and meaty/juicy on the inside. A fairly generous portion size too: two little pucks of goodness, which nearly doubles the great and famous Del Frisco’s portion size.

Next we had a nice, classic iceberg wedge salad, with mighty chunks of bacon and a hearty blue cheese dressing. Delicious and refreshing.

On the side we had “creamless” creamed spinach, which was miraculously creamy despite not using cream. It was a perfect cut to the savory meat. Slather that shit on your meat and chomp away!

We also indulged in some truffle oil mushrooms as well. Nice and earthy.

Last, we had the angus home fries. These were crispy on the outside, and soft/fluffy on the inside. Lots of flavor and nuance in these little morsels. I had lots of fun eating them, and you will too.

For dessert we tried two items. First was the coconut tiramisu. This was really light, airy, delicate, and packed with flavor. Wonderful.

Then we had the key lime pie. This was the star for me. I love a nice tart dessert. This was creamy and sour without being overwhelming. Just to my liking.

The bacon here is one of my top five in all of NYC.

Also the bone marrow app is amazing.

Seafood Selection: 9
There’s lots to choose from here by way of the sea. Unfortunately I didn’t get to try anything aside from the crab cakes, so I can only give it my baseline score of 8 (now 9). Based on how well prepared the other items are, though, I would wager that these guys know what they’re doing when it comes to seafood as well. Don’t be shy – go ahead and try something. And I might add that the steak sauce here is absolutely perfect for seafood. It has a nice acidic horseradish tang that is reminiscent of very good cocktail sauce.

Tuna tartare – excellent. Jumping the score up to a 9/10.

Also dollar oysters at happy hour from 4-7pm.

Service: 10
Outstanding is the word that best describes the service here. If you have the good fortune to come here on a day when all four owners/partners are around (usually most days), then you will be treated with the utmost respect. Pure class.

They all met years ago while working together at Benjamin Steakhouse. In time it was only natural for them to strike out on their own venture. This place just opened in February and they seem to be off to a great start. I got to meet them all, but the two partners of note were Eddie, the executive chef, and Margent, the wine director and front of the house, with whom I spoke at length. Our waiter and bus boy, if I recall, was named Ray. He too was magnificent, always ready with a fresh glass of wine or a new pour of water.

Also, the bread came quick and was good. Here’s a shot of it:

Ambiance: 10
This place is really nicely decorated. The walls are elegantly and artfully done up with weathered, reclaimed barn wood, to create a warm and inviting vibe. They used a well-known decorator who is famous for setting up the private homes of millionaires around the city, so nothing is stale or out of fashion. It is contemporary and sophisticated, yet also art deco-inspired. The restaurant seats 40 people upstairs, and 76 downstairs, where there are a host of private rooms that give a nod back to the old school traditional steakhouse culture.

There’s even a cool rendition of a bull or steer made from scraps of wood on the stairs as you go down to the large dining room.

Once downstairs, there’s the chef room:

The cork room (walls make of cork decor):

The leather room (walls padded with elegant deep red-brown leather):

And the oak room, which abuts the main lower dining area and can be closed off from the main downstairs dining room to form a separate party area:

There’s also a great temperature controlled wine cellar, complete with an old, non-functional decorative wooden wine press, just like the kind my grandfather used to squeeze every last drop of juice from the stems and skins of grapes. They feature lots of California wines, though the selection is very international.

One last thing I noticed was that the bathroom smells really great. Just thought I’d mention that. I was once told that sometimes you can judge the cleanliness of a kitchen by the cleanliness of the patrons’ bathroom. Not sure if there’s any truth to that, but this shitter was spotless.

On a second visit, the management hooked me and my wife up with a free meal. I couldn’t believe it! We tried some new stuff, so I have some things to write about.

First was the steak tartare. This was really different from other tartare dishes I’ve had. It was substantial. I hate to say meaty, since it is made of meat, but that’s what it was. It’s made from prime aged beef, and not just the typical filet cut.

My wife had the bacon app. It was a big slab of delicious:

For dinner, my wife had the seafood platter. It was good, but it felt like it may have needed a few extra pieces; perhaps two more of each: shrimp, oysters, clams.

For me, I had the mother fucker of all rib eyes. This was one of the most perfectly cooked, perfectly seasoned, juicy, tasty, and absolutely insane cuts of meat I have ever eaten. Let the pictures do the talking. Amazing.

I popped another three points onto the score. I think after a third visit, when I try a strip or a filet, this place could go sky high. What an amazing dinner.

ANGUS CLUB
135 E. 55th St.
New York, NY 10022

Filet Mignon, Full Points for Flavor, Italian, Midtown West, NY Strip, Parms, Porterhouse, Rib Eye, Steakhouse Reviews

Quality Italian

August 21, 2014 Johnny Prime 5 Comments

Quality Italian overall score: 96

Flavor: 10

When you’ve eaten as much steak as I have, it takes a lot to achieve memorable, lasting impressions of a meal. QI delivered in spades. This was by far the best regular menu item steak I have ever had. I say “regular menu item” because, of course, when I dropped $94 on a 32oz wagyu rib eye at Del Frisco’s I got a better steak. But for $46??? Holy shitbags my friends… It’s $10 cheaper than most rival restaurants, and for that price you get the most delicious tomahawk style rib chop you will ever sink your teeth into. And it’s a nice big 28oz fucker to boot.

Juicy all the way through, from fat cap to bone. Perfectly cooked pink all the way through. Soft, tender meat even in the roast portion. The fat was delicious – not too oily or greasy, and all of it soft and edible. Seasoning was just right – not too salty to the point where you get the meat sweats afterward (hate that). Simply put: the thing is fucking fantastic. But not only is the steak incredible; everything else is too. My wife had the lemon chicken (pic below in “other meats” section); it was a generous portion size and really tender and juicy – even in the huge tit area (large breast) where things can tend to dry out. Apps, sides and desserts were some of the best I’ve ever had as well. Read on, assholes.

Choice of Cuts & Quality Available: 10

Everything is prime and aged, and they cover every type of cut possible. They even offer some steaks for two, and a bunch of different types of filets for assholes who eat filets. Every base is covered, and then some.

Portion Size & Plating: 10

The plating was amazing here, just like it was at their sister restaurants Quality Meats and Maloney & Porcelli (Smith & Wollensky not so much). Little touches like herbs for garnish, interesting little porcelain cups filled with coarse salt, mortar and pestle containers for the fresh sauces, and just the way the food was decorated as well – not just slapped on the plate but artfully done. Portion sizes were all very healthy – healthy meaning big – not healthy meaning pussy-sized small dishes for losers on diets. The tartare was the size of a big burger. The sunchokes were two potatoes worth. The pasta side was enough for two no problem. The steak was huge, and the chicken was, I think, a half chicken (thigh, drum, wing, tit, still articulated).

Price: 9

I was a little surprised that the bill only came to $175 and change. For what we had, I was expecting over $200. Everything is extremely fair in price, especially when you take into consideration the PRIME real estate they have. Right on 6th avenue, overlooking the street, and just below the park. Are you fucking kidding? And steaks are still under $50 each??? Wow.

Bar: 10

There are two bars to mention here. First you are met with a really nice little bistro style open air/semi-outdoor bar at the front door. Great place to hang out for some negroni on tap, or house made white peach bellinis (also on tap) and watch the people whiz by on their way home from work.

Upstairs there is a big bar at the top of the steps. Nicely decorated, modern, sleek, but not pretentious. They make great drinks. My martini was perfect, and was garnished with the best olives (castelvetranos). My wife had a great drink called “the midtown,” which was made with bourbon, vermouth, sour cherry, orange peel, and burnt sugar. Nice ice cubes too for those who care (you know who you are).

half drunk martini and "the midtown" — half drunk martini and “the midtown”

Specials and Other Meats: 10

The waiter read off some delicious sounding off-menu specials, and highlighted a few featured menu items that were considered house specialties. One dish they have already become instantly famous for is the chicken parm. It is pounded flat onto a pizza dish and topped with sauce and cheese, then baked. It seriously looks like a pizza. I might have to go back to try this. Anyway they have all kinds of meat on tap here. Beef (of course), chicken, veal, pork, lamb. Everything is covered. One thing to note here – truffles on demand. What? Yes. You can have them come over and tick off a few shavings of truffles on anything your little heart desires (for a fee, of course). Fucking brilliant idea. Below is the lemon chicken dish I described above:

Apps, Sides & Desserts: 10

We started off with the steak tartare and the grilled octopus saltimbocca. Both were fucking incredible. I liked the tartare at Quality Meats better, but it was still really great here. Underneath the patty of chopped beef there was a little pool of mushroom aioli, which was really great when you folded it into the meat and mixed it all up (with a squeeze of lemon too). They even had some shaved cheese on top for a salty crunch. The octopus was perfect. They swapped garbanzos (chic peas) for the cannolinis. I think this is a common thing in Italian food culture, because whenever my mom ran out of cannolinis she used garbanzos for our pasta fagioli. Either bean is fine. Both are great.

For sides we had sunchokes (a delicious cross between potato and artichoke, with an amazing little dipping aioli), and porterhouse filled agnolotti (little football shaped pasta dumplings/packages) with a brown butter sauce. Also amazing. They don’t offer creamed spinach here, but they did offer sautéed spinach. I was too excited for the sunchokes though, so I didn’t try it.

For dessert we shared a watermelon, lime, strawberry and basil sorbet. It was so fucking good. Very aromatic from the basil, and they even crystallized and sugarified some basil to sprinkle on top and garnish. Really interesting flavors.

So many of the other desserts looked good too. It was so hard to choose. They even had a cannoli cart rolling around where you could have them make and fill cannolis for you with whatever flavors you want. This place takes steakhouse dining to a whole new level.

Seafood Selection: 8

Other than the octo, we didn’t have any seafood. They had some nice sounding fish entrees like grilled branzino, etc. And they offered 4 different types of oysters on special (Montauk, Rhode Island, and two west coasters), a nice seafood tower, and some interesting shrimp based pastas. Next trip I will have to delve deeper into the seafood menu.

Service: 10

John was hands down the best waiter I’ve ever had – even better than the young guy at Keen’s that I was so impressed with. I instantly felt like I had known John forever. He was warm, funny, very nice, natural, and extremely knowledgeable on the menu. He knew it in and out, and he knew just where to go and what to suggest when we had follow-up questions. The management was the same way – all very welcoming and friendly. I had the opportunity to meet a bunch of people on the floor. Scott, Roger, and Mike: thank you for making me feel like such a celebrity! My wife was beaming when we left – we had such a great time and you really made our special night memorable. I only wish we had a little more time to spare. We would have loved to take Roger up on his offer to hang out at the bar for a while and have some after dinner drinks. Hopefully next time! Other awesome things to mention in the service department: fresh hot garlic bread. Bread like that makes me wish I had 4 hands (One for each lump, just like how Benny wished he had 3 hands – one for each tit – in the movie Total Recall).

For larger tables, they have this bigger bread dish:

Also; Kate, the sauce specialist. She made the steak sauce table side, mixing up concoctions of raisin molasses puree, fresh tomato, oregano, and other herbs/spices. It was like watching a wizard make a potion. She stirred it up nice in a mortar and pestle, and boom – we had the most delicious and fresh steak sauce in town. We put it on everything we ate, and even took some home with us.

Ambiance: 9

I love the simple, bare and elegant look here. They really made the best of the space. I think a few more booth type seats might be nice to add, but the concept here is a little more open anyway, so it might not fit right to have big private type booths jammed in there. The views out the windows are great. I didn’t expect to like a second floor dining room this much. The lighting was cool and interesting: glass balls held in a clamp or vice; very industrial, but not the meat-locker type of look that Quality Meats has. Even the shitter was nice, with its beautiful arched wooden doors. It smelled like the inside of a Yankee Candle store. You would never know that people shit and piss in there – very clean and pretty. For a second floor joint, tho splice is pretty dynamite.

UPDATE

I came back about a year later and really put the hurt on some bone-in strip, filet, and chicken parm. Check out the pics. This place still holds up really well after a year.

Thank you Roger and Gaetano for putting up another amazing meal!

We started with an order of prosciutto, and also ricotta cheese with honey, pine nuts and pear. Really fucking simple and delicious.

Next came the chicken parm. Holy fuckbags, this is some blow-your-mind shit. They pound out and chop the chicken into the shape of a pizza and then cover it with sauce and cheese. It’s amazing.

They also offer a brunch version of this baby with eggs and bacon on top. Super tasty.

Speaking of brunch, carbonara pasta!!!

We ordered only the side of mushrooms, but the house sent out some kale carbonara and spaghetti squash too! All were amazing. The mushrooms were a blend of four different types; very earthy and fresh. The kale was really great. This dish beats creamed spinach any day.

I had the bone-in strip. Really juicy and perfectly cooked. I ate every bite like a fat bastard.

The filet stole the show though. My buddy got it with this dumpling that was filled with melted gorgonzola. Perfect!

I almost forgot – the house sent out a free bottle of wine too. WOW!

Some more food porn from a third visit. Man the shit is always on point at this joint.

Doughnuts:

Veal osso buco for two:

Pappardelle:

Porterhouse for two:

Mushrooms and peppers with the steak:

One night my wife and I came here and really just focused on the pasta. Here’s a shitty photo of the really great bucatini with clams (cockles):

The pasta was cooked perfectly and had a really amazing flavor, with a generous heaping of saffron sprinkled on top.

We had a side of artichoke mac and cheese. Really great texture from the bread crumbs on top, and gratuitous amounts of delicious artichoke brewing beneath the surface.

On special was a garganelli pasta (similar to a rigatoni or ziti shape) with pork shoulder and guanciale (cured pork jowls). So fucking good.

They really execute this stuff like no other place. I think my favorite pasta dishes all come from Quality Italian (like the pappardelle that you get with the veal shank, pictured above – fucking amazing).

That night we had the smores ice cream dessert. Burnt marshmallow flavored ice cream and a tart filled with brownie? Yes please!

The drink selection is always on point too. My wife ordered a tricolor margarita. Check out the ice cube, layered with different colored margarita ingredients, so that when it melts you’r just getting more margarita, instead of water:

And I was able to try some really nice beer that I’ve never seen before:

After this non-steak visit, I put this place into a tie with its sister restaurant, Quality Meats. They top the leaderboard right now.

UPDATE 2/20/16

This place is truly amazing. I inserted a few updated photos above, but here is a look at their “bone-in filet” – a really nice piece of tenderloin that’s still attached to the vertebra.

It was cooked very nicely and was super tender and juicy, yet retained a great charred flavor from the grill.

My wife tried the balsamic lacquered filet, which is service with a marrow bone filled with fried hazelnuts and marrow. Delicious as well, and cooked similarly perfect.

I’ve thoroughly enjoyed every cut of beef available here, and a few specials and steak alternatives as well. I can guarantee you will have a great meal here. My most recent waiter, Michael, and the manager Gaetano, really made us feel like royalty here. A few more shots of the incredible food here.

Corn brûlée:

Sauteed spinach:

Fries:

Assorted gelato: ferraro rocher, coffee and nuts, and blood orange creamsicle.

A beautiful lemon tart:

Apple strudel thing:

Tartufo for two (big enough for four):

QUALITY ITALIAN
57 W. 57th St.
New York, NY 10019

Flash Deals, Full Points for Flavor, Midtown East, Other Cuts, Porterhouse, Press Reviews, Rib Eye, Steakhouse Reviews

212 Steakhouse

August 2, 2014 Johnny Prime 3 Comments

212 Steakhouse overall score: 87

212 Steakhouse is relatively new on the steakhouse scene. It seems like they are offering some pretty amazing deals via Living Social to draw business and to introduce people to real-deal kobe beef, imported from Japan. This place is the only joint that’s actually certified by the Japanese Kobe Beef Marketing and Distribution Promotion Association on America’s east coast.

So the deal is for about $90 (my wife got it for about $70). You get one appetizer to share, up to $30 value. You get two glasses of wine (one each) and two 4oz pieces of steak, either strip loin or rib eye. It may seem like very little, size-wise, but there is no waste, and tremendous flavor. Right now 212 is offering 60-80% off the regular price for this steak. At a regular price of $45/oz, these pieces at $15/oz are a steal.

When I first walked in and sat at the bar, I was greeted warmly by the bartender, who mixed up a great martini for me. Soon afterward I noticed the chef was out on the floor, having his staff taste the souffle he just made in the back. Christos, the chef, is a really friendly and outgoing guy. His heritage is Greek, and he’s spent almost 20 years in the kitchens around New York, with even a little international experience in Brazil. He’s the kind of chef that always tries changing recipes to make a dish better, never serves something he thinks is bad, and is constantly looking to learn and improve his trade.

I’m going to do my best to fit the review of this place into my cookie-cutter review format, but in reality this place breaks the mold. The quality is so high off the charts here that it almost makes me want to reassess all my other 10-point scores for flavor and quality. Real kobe is just incredible. Okay so here we go…

Flavor: 10 (now an average of 8 after below update)
Easily some of the very best steak I’ve ever had and will ever have in my life. You can taste the flavor of the meat more in the strip loin, and you can taste the flavor of the fat more in the rib eye. I think both my wife and I preferred the strip. Typically I will pick the rib eye because I enjoy the fat flavor more, and there tends to be better marbling in the rib eye. But with meat like kobe, there is plenty of good, melty, intra-muscular fat and marbling in the strip cuts as well. Listen, assholes… The point is this: you can’t go wrong either way. Just look at this shit! Strip 10/10, rib eye 9/10.

More from another visit (strip, tenderloin [10/10] and rib eye).

Choice of Cuts & Quality Available: 10
You have a choice of Japanese kobe, US kobe, US wagyu or Japanese wagyu. The cuts are either rib eye, tenderloin, strip, or skirt. Most items are offered by the ounce, so, for the most part, you can tailor your steak to your appetite. While they don’t have the full gamut of cuts you find at traditional steakhouses, the quality here is so high that I would be remiss to give nothing less than full points here.

Portion Size & Plating: 9
Portions are pretty much DIY, so if you’re willing to spend to get more, then you’ll be a happy camper. The pre-set size cuts are 8oz, 10oz or 12oz, which is pretty standard for the high quality meat game, and they’re typically boneless as well. Otherwise you’re looking at a minimum of 4oz on the Japanese meats. And before you freak out about the bone being taken out, ask yourself if you’ve ever tried meat like this before. The bone is not needed when there is so much flavor in the beef and you can literally melt the marbling with the warmth in your finger! The plating for the beef is really nice, on slate plates. But don’t run your knife across the plate or you might get the chills. EEEEEEK!

Price: 10
I have to give a 10 here because we felt like we got such an amazing deal. If you’re going to blow your budget on a steak meal then this might be the right place to do it. It’s not a traditional steakhouse atmosphere, so know that going into the transaction. What you are coming here for is once-in-a-lifetime steak. And since they are still running mega-discounts on their menu right now, both as a walk in and via the Living Social deal, I suggest you high-tail your asses over there ASAP to take advantage of these prices. They have every justification to charge double. Believe me; it’s worth every bite. Not only that but they seemingly knocked some items off our bill as well, like the desserts. That said, the minimum 4oz order will run you $60, and that’s at the super-duper-blowout-sale price. The normal price is $45/oz, muthafucka! Let’s put it in yet another way: Had we paid full price for this meal, it would have cost us about $460. Even the discounted price, as you see below, was still over $200. We paid just about $150 I think, with tax and tip included.

Bar: 8
The bar is nice, so don’t get me wrong here with the lower score. They were out of Beefeater gin, which isn’t a big deal. My martini was $13, which is fair for NYC (yet also crazy when you think about what a bottle of gin costs). I just prefer a bar that sits close to the street, with an open feel and views. It’s nicely decorated, the bartender is excellent and friendly, and there’s lots of high quality booze and wine to match the high quality beef. It’s just not exactly a happening spot. The great thing is that they serve kalamata olives at the bar as a free snack. Awesome.

Specials and Other Meats: 7
What you see is what you get, as far as the menu goes. Christos told me that he likes to make a few special items from time to time, like scallops, but that the menu is pretty strictly adhered to by the big boss man. As far as other meats go, well, it’s either beef or seafood, my friends. Deal with it.

New to the menu is some lamb. 7/10.

Apps, Sides & Desserts: 9 (now 8 after below update)
We had baked parmesan polenta fries, which were light, crispy, and surprisingly flavorful.

The grilled octopus app was highly recommended by all the staff, including Christos. It was soft, tender and really flavorful with a classic Mediterranean profile. The liquid that it was served in (oil and lemon, with capers, peppers and herbs) took away some of that nice grilled char that I love so much, but the liquid was perfect for dipping bread in afterward.

For dessert we had espresso chocolate chip coffee ice cream and creme brulee. These were both really good, both texture-wise and flavor-wise. But we will definitely be coming back for the chocolate souffle, which is one of Christos’ specialty items.

Seafood Selection: 9
There’s lots to choose from here, including a highly diverse menu of whole cooked fish. We will definitely be back to try the mussels, which, along with the octopus, are seafood dishes of particular note and considered signature items by the staff. But the whole fish plates sound amazing, and so did the various raw items on the cold apps menu. Until then, I can only judge this category based on the octopus, which was just shy of absolutely amazing.

Service: 10
Our waiter, Glenn, was very attentive and kind. He recommended a great Italian wine to go with our meal, and we really enjoyed it (Tuscany Bolgheri Elisabeta-Aulo Rosso IGT 2009).

Christos is, simply put, a highly valuable asset. He’s as good in the front of the house as he is in the back. He kept coming to our table for each course to make sure we enjoyed everything, and he was a delight to talk to. We truly felt like honored guests. The staff even made some special bread slices to serve up just for us at the start of the meal, toasted with olive oil, oregano, smoked salt and lemon. Regular bread and plain butter is absolute shit after you’ve tasted something like this.

Ambiance: 8
They’ve done the absolute best they could with the space they have. The decor is very classy, dark woods, elegant fixtures. It’s done very well. It won’t compare to some of the mega-giganto steakhouses elsewhere in midtown, but you’re primarily here for the food. So stop looking around the room and focus on your amazing plate of the world’s best beef.

UPDATE 8/2/17

I went back with a Groupon (paid $18, got $60 to spend) and a friend to try out their Australian wagyu porterhouse. Well, I should say we started with 4oz of Kobe strip loin, which was just as excellent as I remembered from my last visit. 10/10. Natural buttery flavor, lean enough to still taste like beef, and every bit of fat completely edible.

The porterhouse was really nice, but something was lacking. The menu said it was dry aged, but we really only tasted it on a few bits that were on the edges and had a good char.

The cook temp was slightly more than medium rare (which is what we ordered) and more towards the medium side.

We enjoyed it, and ate every last bit of it.

However, I think the issue with this cut is the method of preparation. We both felt that the filet side had more flavor than the strip side, which is odd and backwards. Only a few bits of the strip side were better, along the outside edge. That ridge of fat was very tender and edible, which was a nice change. 8/10.

I also tried their dry aged Australian Wagyu rib eye for two (36oz) when I went for complimentary a press meal.

It lacked a little bit of aged flavor, and was slightly overcooked. Still really tasty though, so 7/10.

On another visit, I had the USDA strip steak. Also a 7/10.

We also tried the creamed spinach, which was a bit too soupy on the bottom as compared to the crisp on top. The cheese crisp on top basically slid off in one piece and underneath was like a spinach stew. It had nice flavor but I wasn’t happy with the consistency. Dessert was just okay. I had a mandarin soufflé but to me it was more like orange flavored ice cream. I’ve taken the apps, sides and desserts score down to an 8.

The seafood platter for two contains three items: warm octopus salad, a half lobster cocktail, and eight oysters. Not too bad for $55.

We also sampled their pasta, which was incredible. This is the strozzapreti with wagyu beef bolognese sauce. A must try.

212 STEAKHOUSE
316 E. 53rd St.
New York, NY 10022

Carcass Club/Beast Feast, East Village, Fusion, Non-Steakhouse Steaks, Other, Restaurant Reviews

Momofuku Ssam Bar Large Format Rib Eye

June 29, 2014 Johnny Prime Leave a comment

After reading this Eater article, and adding to the comments, I decided I needed to go do this gigantic rib eye at Momofuku Ssam Bar. I went with my wife and two friends from Tabelog. We rocked it. Check out the pics and details below.

We started out with what we thought was a complimentary plate of sardines on toast with fermented chic peas and pickled hearts of palm. Why did we think it was complimentary, you ask? Because (1) we didn’t fucking order it, and (2) the fucking waiter told us that he brought it out to us because he wanted us to try his favorite item. I’m not gonna complain any more than dropping two F-bombs, but needless to say I was a little confused and pissed when I saw the bill and realized we were charged for it (after leaving and already paying, mind you). The app was great. Salty, juicy, earthy, “umami,” and all that good shit. But there was plenty of meat, potatoes and greens to go around with the rib eye special that we didn’t need an app. Now, the waiter was great and all, but a surprise charge like this, couched in “freebie” behavior, is kinda fucked up. Okay that’s three F-bombs now. Readers: make sure you check out the coolness of what Momofuku did in response to this review, which I updated at the very bottom. All is right and well.

I’ll leave the meat for last… aside from dessert, of course. The art of anticipation…

Next was the bowl of perfectly fried french fries. Delicious. They came with a nice, smokey bacon ketchup too. Crispy outside, mashed potatoes inside. Mmmmm.

Then a massive Caesar salad with brown butter croutons. Crisp and refreshing.

Okay now for the blowout. This is a 107oz hunk of GODmeat. Dry aged for 50 days, originally hailing from the Niman farm in California, this cut of rib contains the outer fat slabs as well as what you normally get with a traditional cut of rib eye + fat cap.

Here are some before shots of a slightly smaller cut (not ours):

It was cooked to a perfect medium rare, allowed to cool, and then sliced and plated on a thick cutting board. Some of the fat was the gristled kind, but much of it was the edible, meat bubblegum kind. Savory beef jelly. Awesome.

It was served with four sauces: the bacon ketchup mentioned earlier, a bernaise sauce, a red wine + shallot marmalade, and rendered steak fat + brown butter and herbs.

Also, four bundles of roasted garlic cloves, so soft that you could smear the garlic on your steak like creamy mashed potatoes or some shit.

Was all this enough? Nope. Of course not. I’m a former fat guy. So we followed up with some dessert.

First was a popcorn cake. Instead of sifting flower in the pre-baking process, they sifted popcorn. It was really unique, and served with a little side bowl of strawberry jam to spread across each forkfull. All I can say is that you should get it if you go here.

And finally we had the Thai tea pie. This cold dessert had the unique characteristic flavor of Thai tea with an added tangy tamarind sauce and some sort of chocolatey, tea-infused puffed rice kinda thing on top. Nice.

So that’s all. Great fucking meal, aside from the fact that I was charged for something that we didn’t order. On the slightly brighter side of things, however, it looks as though they forgot to charge us for our third beer. So we were still overcharged, but only by $9 instead of $15.

UPDATE!!! The management over at Ssam Bar saw this review and made good on their mishap. Good people as well as good food! An honest mistake that stemmed from a desire to provide top notch customer service. And 100% classy that they reached out to me. See below:

MOMOFUKU SSAM BAR
207 2nd Ave.
New York, NY 10003

East Village, Korean, NY Strip, Rib Eye, Steakhouse Reviews

Prime & Beyond

June 24, 2014 Johnny Prime 6 Comments

Prime & Beyond overall score: 74

NOTE: THIS JOINT IS NOW CLOSED!

People who plan to go here should realize and appreciate the fact that this is primarily a meat house, so the menu is limited on purpose. It is NOT meant to be a massive, traditional steakhouse with a never-ending menu and a gigantic, full-staffed kitchen. What they are doing here is focused and directed, purposeful and deliberate. Think ramen menu (limited, small) as opposed to diner menu (everything but the kitchen sink). So as a caveat, low scores in some of these categories really mean nothing when you think about it. Flavor is the big essential here, and they did a great job in that category. My wife and I came here for a secret $50 deal and to cash in some OpenTable rewards. The deal, running through the end of the month, is for a glass of wine, a soup or salad, a choice of app, and a wet or dry aged strip steak. Essentially you get the wine, soup/salad and app for free, since $50 is the regular cost for just the steak.

Flavor: 8
My bone-in rib eye was under-seasoned and unevenly seasoned (some parts had the needed salt, others were flat on taste). However it was very evenly cooked; quite impressive, actually. The scallion and anchovy sauce added that necessary salt back into the bite. Use it. I expected the fat to be broken down more from the 9 week aging on mine. It definitely had some waste. By itself the rib eye was a 7 out of 10, but the rating here jumps up because of the strip.

The strip was nicely seasoned. And similar with the perfectly even cook job. The strip was a juicy wet-aged boneless cut that had been aging at least 20 days. You can definitely can tell the difference. It was better than the rib eye (9/10). The strip portion was a little thin, but since it was part of the $50 price fix it was to be expected.

Both steaks a little under (these were somewhere between rare and medium rare, closer to rare) but I was expecting that from the minions at yelp.

Choice of Cuts & Quality Available: 10
You have a lot to choose from here, both in the single cut steak section and the steak for two section. Kevin took me to the aging room downstairs and showed me all the goodies through the glass. Before they cook your meat, they will bring out a plate with your cuts to show you the superb marbling. The dry aged selections are a 50 day minimum in the aging process. The steak I had was at 9 weeks. For wet-aged, the minimum is 20 days. They have all the essential cuts and then some. Bravo.

Portion Size & Plating: 9
Portions are good here, considering how much is lost during the lengthy aging process. My rib eye was 20oz, bone-in.

Price: 9
As I mentioned above, we had some OpenTable cash AND took advantage of a special deal, so the price was right for us on this trip. The steak prices are average and on par with other competitors, and the appetizers are fairly large portions, but you are in a very different kind of atmosphere here, so you have to take that into consideration for your own pricing judgment. When you see the ambiance section you’ll understand.

Bar: 5
This is not a proper bar, but it really doesn’t matter for what this place is about. They only offer wine, beer (bottles and taps) and soju. Good enough. I couldn’t have a martini, but this is the kind of environment where it’s not needed. The bar is small, with room for only 4 people, but it is close to windows and the steps up to street level.

Specials and Other Meats: 6
The menu is pretty much beef-centric with the exception of the apps, which offer some great pork selections. They have kalbi and bulgolgi, and a really delicious looking “burger rice” item that I may have to come back for some day soon.

Apps, Sides & Desserts: 9
The apps here are strong. We had a bunch of shit.

The bacon was perfectly roasted, then cut up and served with a spice salt.

The yuzu dressing salad was very refreshing and properly dressed.

The butternut squash soup was flavorful and not too thick and filling, though I was sort of taken back that it was being served in the summer.

The Wagyu salami was incredibly soft and spicy. There was a LOT of it too, for only $8. I would almost prefer this to be available per slice as opposed to a large app size order of 8 slices. It was too much, almost. Maybe they should make it $1/slice?

The pork soo yook is essentially braised pork belly in a sweet, tangy, and spicy BBQ sauce. So soft and delicious. The sauce was a little too sweet and too salty, but still really yummy. It came with braised carrots and peppers, as well as some crispy chip things to add texture. The mixed greens on the side went perfect with the excess sauce used as a dressing.

Dessert was called “the planetarium.” It was milk choc mousse with a pear filling. Pretty good. Not overly sweet but I definitely had to chug water to calm down the taste buds.

Seafood Selection: 2
Unfortunately there’s only scallops and crab cake on the app menu. But please recall what I said above in the introductory paragraph. That said, perhaps some shellfish or octopus could make their way onto the menu in some prominent form. Korean cuisine is known for excellence in preparing those great items.

Service: 9
Our experience here was great. Nathan was a great waiter, very attentive, and with great suggestions. And Kevin was very helpful and informative when he took me down to see the aging room.

Ambiance: 7
This has the feel of a small neighborhood restaurant. It’s clean, white interior and painted bricks make the dark brown tables and chairs pop. The old timey 1930s and 1940s music was great too.

PRIME & BEYOND
90 E. 10th St.
New York, NY 10003

Morton’s overall score: 86

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Costata overall score: 94

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Ted’s Montana Grill overall score: 73

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S Prime overall score: 88

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Del Frisco’s Grille overall score: 82

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Angus Club overall score: 96*

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Quality Italian overall score: 96

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212 Steakhouse overall score: 87

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Prime & Beyond overall score: 74

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