Restaurants
Steak Restaurant
I'm an unabashed carnivore. As much as I like the idea of vegetarianism, it's just too darn impractical for someone who loves red meat as much as I do.
Luckily for those rare occasions I'm not in the mood for a big bowl of pho or the small plates that litter trendier cards across the city there are places like Steak around to sate my prehistoric hunger for huge, primal, juicy slabs of meat.
Owners Charles and Muriel Shuchat, 20 year veterans of the hospitality and food services industry, know a thing or two about running a successful business. Charles was a former partner in the Le Biftheque franchise outlet that previously occupied Steak's current digs.
Now, never having been a fan of Le Biftheque--I always found their food sub-par compared with that other steakhouse chain--I was sceptical about what kind of experience I was in for. Fortunately, the space and the food is in good hands.
The couple've overseen every detail of the operation. Working from their strengths they've refined the space, working it over from its former franchise-y feel, having incorporated classic steakhouse signifiers like mood lighting, low chocolate leather club chairs in the lounge adjacent to the bar, and rich dark woods all with a slightly 40s vibe (heading for the men's room? Bogey'll show you the way) in keeping with the spirit of a steakhouse without feeling dated at all.
The evening starts off with a slight hiccup as the signature (and misleadingly named) 'Steak-tini' doesn't actually include any steak. Don't expect something savoury, akin to a Bloody Mary; it's actually a sweet cocktail with a few blueberries floating in a Chambord infused bath. Tasty enough, just not what you'd expect.
Things however, quickly get back on track with the apps. Make sure you bring a friend or two to tackle Steak's king-sized portions: they aren't kidding with the aptly named jumbo shrimp cocktail ($14.95 and a meal in itself) which finds 5 massively plump pink shrimp truly worthy of the name 'jumbo' (ah the sweet contradiction) straining the edges of martini glass filled with pungent, extra horseradish-y house made tomato cocktail sauce; it's about as classic as you can get and perfect for sharing. Sea-monsters get more appetizer play with the Scallops Rockafeller ($12.95). A twist on the classic oyster dish, this one finds two enormous, hockey-puck sized scallops grilled to perfection and bathed in lemony hollandaise--When not holding up this mammoth molluscs, you could almost convince me that leftover shells are used to house greek goddesses.
After all that you'd be forgiven for not having any room left over for the main but you'd definitely be disappointed. I had to Loosen my belt and tuck into the 12 oz New York Strip ($31.95). It's prime, 21 day aged and served perfectly rare as ordered and it's accompanied by a generous pile of crispy fries and some of the best sauteed garlic rappini I've ever had. The bitterness of the green and the pungent garlicky flavour offer the perfect contrast to the richness of the steak. You expect your steak to be good at a steakhouse but the fact that the sides are treated with such respect speaks volumes of how seriously the kitchen takes its craft.
I would go on and tell you about how tasty the Key Lime Pie or the Carol's NY Cheesecake were but unfortunately I lapsed into a meat induced coma before it arrived. Oh well, I guess I'll have to pace myself next time.
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http://www.flickr.com/photos/johansegen/381588148/
@Jeremy, all the cows that made up the menu were vegetarians and i care for them a great deal: the one i had was particularly delicious...
Ruth's Chris is really good too.