I'm not familiar with any of the Brazilian steak houses other than Texas de Brazil. But if you're looking for actual steak, I don't believe they have that. I love the place. I love the variety of cuts of meat. I love the quantities. I love the different spice profiles. But if you're the type that wants to see a huge slab of meat on your plate, you won't find it there.

DutchMuse wrote:RPM Italian: Don't laugh. Their dry aged steaks (Rib steak, porterhouse for 2) is perhaps the best steak in Chicago. Dry aged for a minimum of 28 days, they source it from a top butcher in The Bronx (I think Luger has a connection with the supplier, too). Some of the best I've had.

Has anyone else tried this? $118 seems a bit pricey. Is it worth it?

sdbond wrote:DH does love to grill, and I get prime rib-eyes from Devon Avenue Meats here in Park Ridge for $11.98/pound that we cook up on any given Saturday night that he doesn't have a gig playing drums. Vince the butcher is "da bomb," as the kids like to say.

Do you happen to know if local butchers like your favorite, Zier's, and mine, Devon Avenue Meats, obtain their beef from the same distributors, much like the restaurants?

Zier's is dry aged Prime of a high quality and pricey. Your decision whether it's worth it. Devon Avenue Meats is not dry aged and their Prime cuts (rib eye and top sirloin, I believe everything else is Choice) do not look to be high grade Prime. I do like the beefy flavor of the Devon Avenue Meat's Choice Porterhouse cut in particular though the strip section can still be a tad grainy even with decent marbling.

You would have to be frugal in ordering to keep it under $200 for 2 people at any of the major player steak houses with drinks, sides, tax and tip.

As others have said, the most ambrosial beef in town is at Primehouse, but if the budget won't reach, you can still have a good meal.

Harry Caray's has "Italian" in the name but also "Steakhouse." They're one of the few places in town where you can get prime dry-aged, wet-aged and grass-fed beef, and they have a lot of options, so you can bring the overall dinner price down by, say, sharing a steak and another less expensive entree.

Carmichael's serves high-end choice rather than prime steaks, which brings the price down. They're still tasty steaks. If it's a nice night, Carmichael's has a great patio.

I had a nice meal recently at Beelow's Steakhouse in Lake Zurich. I was pleased to find out the manager is Bob Vorachek, who used to be at Don Roth's Blackhawk. The beef isn't prime, but it's very good.

I will second the recommendations for Las Tablas and Tango Sur, though, for even less-expensive options, just so you're aware that the meat will not be as high quality as the top places serve. I like steak in all of its forms, from high- to low-end, and I've enjoyed meals at both.

Harry Caray's
http://www.harrycarays.com
River North, Lombard, Rosemont

Carmichael's Chicago Steak House
http://www.carmichaelsteakhouse.com
1052 W Monroe St.
Chicago, IL 60607
(312) 433-0025

Beelow's Steakhouse
http://beelows.com
763 S. Rand Road
Lake Zurich, IL 60047
(847) 540-0600

"Do you happen to know if local butchers like your favorite, Zier's, and mine, Devon Avenue Meats, obtain their beef from the same distributors, much like the restaurants?"

Restaurants that serve steak are of two kinds, Those that purchase Primals and age themselves and those that purchase from food suppliers in portion size. The portion size cuts can range from cuts put together mechanically, pierced with needles and /or added chemicals in the form of tenderizers/seasonings.
I only go to a steak house that ages thier own primals in house. All the rest is suspect.
Ziers and Joseph's Fine meat dry age thier own steaks. Either will provide you with a steak of the quality of Burke's. Now whether you can get the nice char that Burke's can get is up to you.-Dick

budrichard wrote:"Do you happen to know if local butchers like your favorite, Zier's, and mine, Devon Avenue Meats, obtain their beef from the same distributors, much like the restaurants?"

Restaurants that serve steak are of two kinds, Those that purchase Primals and age themselves and those that purchase from food suppliers in portion size. The portion size cuts can range from cuts put together mechanically, pierced with needles and /or added chemicals in the form of tenderizers/seasonings.
I only go to a steak house that ages thier own primals in house. All the rest is suspect.
Ziers and Joseph's Fine meat dry age thier own steaks. Either will provide you with a steak of the quality of Burke's. Now whether you can get the nice char that Burke's can get is up to you.-Dick

That's hardly true, but what the hey. Just walk the cooler section of Restaurant Depot. Also, you're discounting the fact that a segment of restaurants these days, buys whole animals and then breaks them down. Skeptical? Go to the bathroom at Publican Quality Meats.

sdbond wrote:I have yet to figure out a good way to fix leftover steak that results in anything close to what was had for dinner the night before.

Well, your problem is that you're expecting it to resemble what you had the night before. Better to erase last night's dinner from your memory and try something new.

I was always partial to my Mom's solution. She'd slice the steak into relatively thin strips, make up a garlic butter then warm the steak in the garlic butter. The whole mixture was put atop some toasted bread for a delicious open-face sandwich.

I wanted to thank everyone for providing such good information and opinions to help me choose my husband's birthday dinner restaurant. After much thought, it did seem like David Burke's was the way to go, and it turned out to be an excellent choice.

Service was top-notch; I can highly recommend Ron. He did a very good job of "steering" me to a steak selection that I would most enjoy. (I was considering a sirloin, only because the menu included the word "smoky," but based on his description of the differences in taste, went with a 40-day aged rib-eye, as did Keith, who polished off every bit of his.)

I knew going in I wouldn't be able to come close to finishing anything I ordered, so I didn't inquire as to portion size (which was large). Upthread, chgoeditor gave me a good idea about how to treat the leftovers, so I will probably try his mom's method, along with slipping a bite or two to Dooley, our golden retriever.

The total tab was more than I had hoped to spend on a night out, but about what I expected after perusing the menu online.

I would say the only thing about the whole night that we didn't care for, and that we wondered about, was the "house" music that was piped in. Since neither one of us cares for that style of music, we would have preferred some other type of ambient sound to accompany our meal.

Overall, a great place for a splurge, that we would return to.

Sharon

Very happy to hear it worked out so well. When you don't get out as often as you'd like, you'd like to make those occasions when you do go out for a big splurge worthwhile. A couple perhaps lesser known reasons I love David Burke's: 1) those popovers . . . I'm simply addicted, and 2) their desserts . . . particularly daily specials and ice creams, which are far better than desserts at most steakhouses (assuming you can get to dessert). As for Chgoeditor's leftover approach, I must say it sounds really good . . . I just need to meet a steak I can't finish.

Glad to read that it worked out!
I go to Burke's for the steak, period.-Dick

BR wrote:Very happy to hear it worked out so well. When you don't get out as often as you'd like, you'd like to make those occasions when you do go out for a big splurge worthwhile. A couple perhaps lesser known reasons I love David Burke's: 1) those popovers . . . I'm simply addicted, and 2) their desserts . . . particularly daily specials and ice creams, which are far better than desserts at most steakhouses (assuming you can get to dessert). As for Chgoeditor's leftover approach, I must say it sounds really good . . . I just need to meet a steak I can't finish.

BR.
You are absolutely right about the popovers and the desserts! These days, my appetite is quite small, so I have to pace myself carefully if I'm to enjoy all parts of the meal. Therefore, I eat a few bites of whichever course or treat has been presented, then wait a few minutes to decide if it should be allowed to occupy more space. I was enjoying the popover very much, and felt like it was definitely "worthy," but decided if I ate the whole thing, I'd never get to the main course, what with salad and appetizer still to come.

My husband's not usually big on sweets, so we often share dessert; I was surprised when he ordered one in addition to mine. He had the foie gras creme brulee and declared it beyond good. There were a ton of component parts to it that I can't recall, but he said it was unlike any creme brulee he'd ever had before.

My chocolate 'n caramel dessert also had lots going on, but was delicious. In addition to the appetite thing, my sweet tooth has pretty much disappeared, so I surprised myself when this one appealed. I thought it would be tres rich, but that turned out not to be the case. Would have liked to bring home what was left of that in addition to the steak, if it were possible!

Sharon

T Comp wrote:

sdbond wrote:DH does love to grill, and I get prime rib-eyes from Devon Avenue Meats here in Park Ridge for $11.98/pound that we cook up on any given Saturday night that he doesn't have a gig playing drums. Vince the butcher is "da bomb," as the kids like to say.

Do you happen to know if local butchers like your favorite, Zier's, and mine, Devon Avenue Meats, obtain their beef from the same distributors, much like the restaurants?

Zier's is dry aged Prime of a high quality and pricey. Your decision whether it's worth it. Devon Avenue Meats is not dry aged and their Prime cuts (rib eye and top sirloin, I believe everything else is Choice) do not look to be high grade Prime. I do like the beefy flavor of the Devon Avenue Meat's Choice Porterhouse cut in particular though the strip section can still be a tad grainy even with decent marbling.

You would have to be frugal in ordering to keep it under $200 for 2 people at any of the major player steak houses with drinks, sides, tax and tip.

Thanks, T Comp, for the added information. I will definitely have to give Zier's a try. Vince is so incredibly helpful, along with just being a nice individual, that I'm pretty loyal to Devon Avenue Meats, so if that store (800 Devon, Park Ridge, inside Morningfield's) is convenient to anyone reading along, I would say it is worth checking out. I do stick with the prime rib-eyes there.

Sharon

sdbond wrote:Thanks, T Comp, for the added information. I will definitely have to give Zier's a try. Vince is so incredibly helpful, along with just being a nice individual, that I'm pretty loyal to Devon Avenue Meats, so if that store (800 Devon, Park Ridge, inside Morningfield's) is convenient to anyone reading along, I would say it is worth checking out. I do stick with the prime rib-eyes there.

Sharon

Sharon, Since your a Devon Avenue Meat's fan I thought you'd enjoy Gary's photos of a Porterhouse and Rib Eye from 2007. viewtopic.php?f=16&t=15539&p=153009&hilit=devon+avenue+meats#p153009 I brought in the picture of the Porterhouse to Vince and Bob and they got a kick out of it and remembered Gary (who doesn't ) when he was ordering the Porterhouse.

They are great guys and still get my business (especially their air chilled chicken) but for my buck there is some competition from other purveyors with Choice graded meat recently appearing of very high quality or as I like to call it Choice in Prime clothing. There has been speculation that the recent decisions of Wal Mart and Kroger to carry and heavily market Choice, which is low Choice, has increased the availability of high Choice for others. I don't know if that's true or not but had some really good looking and tasting Choice steaks from several different retailers lately. Anyone else notice Choice in Prime clothng lately?

sdbond wrote:

Eric wrote:Golden Steer?

Not being familiar with this restaurant, my first thought was that this was the name of a chain we had in Chapel Hill, back when I was in college -- for $1.99 on Monday nights, you could get a meal comprised of a trip to the massive salad bar, a gigantic baked potato and a steak of unknown origins. We would stuff ourselves, then roll out the door and finish off the night with a trip to Swenson's Ice Cream Factory for a cone.

Thanks for letting me take a trip down memory lane, circa 1977, Eric!

I went to Golden Steer's website, and of course read reviews here; it looks like a fun destination with good steaks served at reasonable prices, so it's definitely on the list for consideration. Thank you for the recommendation.

Sharon

Their Friday/Saturday special of Roast Prime Rib for $24 is a great value and huge! With all the fixin's.

T Comp wrote:

sdbond wrote:Thanks, T Comp, for the added information. I will definitely have to give Zier's a try. Vince is so incredibly helpful, along with just being a nice individual, that I'm pretty loyal to Devon Avenue Meats, so if that store (800 Devon, Park Ridge, inside Morningfield's) is convenient to anyone reading along, I would say it is worth checking out. I do stick with the prime rib-eyes there.

Sharon

Sharon, Since your a Devon Avenue Meat's fan I thought you'd enjoy Gary's photos of a Porterhouse and Rib Eye from 2007. viewtopic.php?f=16&t=15539&p=153009&hilit=devon+avenue+meats#p153009 I brought in the picture of the Porterhouse to Vince and Bob and they got a kick out of it and remembered Gary (who doesn't ) when he was ordering the Porterhouse.

They are great guys and still get my business (especially their air chilled chicken) but for my buck there is some competition from other purveyors with Choice graded meat recently appearing of very high quality or as I like to call it Choice in Prime clothing. There has been speculation that the recent decisions of Wal Mart and Kroger to carry and heavily market Choice, which is low Choice, has increased the availability of high Choice for others. I don't know if that's true or not but had some really good looking and tasting Choice steaks from several different retailers lately. Anyone else notice Choice in Prime clothng lately?

T Comp,

I remember that picture! Quite impressive!

While I'm not positive, and I keep forgetting to ask, I think Bob must have retired. The only name I see associated with the business anymore is Vince's. I do miss Bob's "what'll it be, kiddo?" question on every visit. They are so busy these days that it will almost make you dizzy when you step up to the counter, there are so many people bustling around back there, filling orders!

(I also wonder if the uptick in business has anything to do with the closing of the other meat market in Park Ridge, Kelly's. Can't quite recall when that happened. I do remember DH telling me about it, since he and the owner are in the same service club.)

Your theory about "choice in prime" clothing is interesting; I haven't purchased choice-grade meat in forever, so hope others will chime in. After having the dry-aged beef at David Burke's, I do intend to try out Zier's so Keith can give them a whirl on the grill.

Sharon

Panther in the Den wrote:

sdbond wrote:

Eric wrote:Golden Steer?

Not being familiar with this restaurant, my first thought was that this was the name of a chain we had in Chapel Hill, back when I was in college -- for $1.99 on Monday nights, you could get a meal comprised of a trip to the massive salad bar, a gigantic baked potato and a steak of unknown origins. We would stuff ourselves, then roll out the door and finish off the night with a trip to Swenson's Ice Cream Factory for a cone.

Thanks for letting me take a trip down memory lane, circa 1977, Eric!

I went to Golden Steer's website, and of course read reviews here; it looks like a fun destination with good steaks served at reasonable prices, so it's definitely on the list for consideration. Thank you for the recommendation.

Sharon

Their Friday/Saturday special of Roast Prime Rib for $24 is a great value and huge! With all the fixin's.

That is definitely a deal worth checking out! We never seem to get out that way in our travels; we need to expand our dining horizons!

sdbond wrote:. . .I do intend to try out Zier's so Keith can give them a whirl on the grill.

I think you'll be very pleased. If you give them call in advance, they'll be happy to put something aside or even get something started for you. For example, a while back, I had a few weeks of lead time before a dinner party I was hosting and asked Dave if he'd start dry-aging a rib roast for me. He was happy to do so and by the time the party rolled around, that roast had been aged for about 35 days. Needless to say, it was spectacular. Their dry-aged beef is not inexpensive but given the stellar quality, I still consider it to be a solid value.

I'm glad it worked out for you at Burke's. I've never been to Chicago Cut but I've been to just about every other Chicago steakhouse and for me, Burke's has the best beef of all of them.

=R=

ronnie_suburban wrote:

sdbond wrote:. . .I do intend to try out Zier's so Keith can give them a whirl on the grill.

I think you'll be very pleased. If you give them call in advance, they'll be happy to put something aside or even get something started for you. For example, a while back, I had a few weeks of lead time before a dinner party I was hosting and asked Dave if he'd start dry-aging a rib roast for me. He was happy to do so and by the time the party rolled around, that roast had been aged for about 35 days. Needless to say, it was spectacular. Their dry-aged beef is not inexpensive but given the stellar quality, I still consider it to be a solid value.

I'm glad it worked out for you at Burke's. I've never been to Chicago Cut but I've been to just about every other Chicago steakhouse and for me, Burke's has the best beef of all of them.

=R=

Hmm ... that's a great idea, Ronnie. Saturday is our usual "steak night" at home, but DH now plays world percussion/drums in two different bands, so his Saturday evenings are booked pretty solid for the foreseeable future. But, your suggestion means I can definitely plan ahead for one of his rare free weekends. Of course, I suppose we could change our grilling habits, but that would just be ... strange.

And yes, Burke's was definitely a hit. Getting ready to enjoy my leftovers right now, using chgoeditor's suggestion for preparation.

chgoeditor wrote:

sdbond wrote:I have yet to figure out a good way to fix leftover steak that results in anything close to what was had for dinner the night before.

Well, your problem is that you're expecting it to resemble what you had the night before. Better to erase last night's dinner from your memory and try something new.

I was always partial to my Mom's solution. She'd slice the steak into relatively thin strips, make up a garlic butter then warm the steak in the garlic butter. The whole mixture was put atop some toasted bread for a delicious open-face sandwich.

chgoeditor,

I have to tell you, your Mom's solution is the bee's knees! So simple, yet so delicious! This is definitely going to be my go-to preparation for leftover steak from now on. I did perhaps gild the lily, though -- as I was reaching for the butter in the fridge, I spied a container of "skillet bacon jam," which to-date I had only tried on biscuits. "Hmm ... " I thought; "I wonder ..." So what the heck -- I added a spoonful to the saute pan along with the butter and garlic. It contributed just the right amount of smoky bacon flavor to the enterprise, which I enjoyed with mashed potatoes, since I forgot the part about serving the warmed steak on toasted bread.

Thanks for the suggestion!

Sharon

sdbond wrote:

chgoeditor wrote:

sdbond wrote:I have yet to figure out a good way to fix leftover steak that results in anything close to what was had for dinner the night before.

Well, your problem is that you're expecting it to resemble what you had the night before. Better to erase last night's dinner from your memory and try something new.

I was always partial to my Mom's solution. She'd slice the steak into relatively thin strips, make up a garlic butter then warm the steak in the garlic butter. The whole mixture was put atop some toasted bread for a delicious open-face sandwich.

chgoeditor,

I have to tell you, your Mom's solution is the bee's knees! So simple, yet so delicious! This is definitely going to be my go-to preparation for leftover steak from now on. I did perhaps gild the lily, though -- as I was reaching for the butter in the fridge, I spied a container of "skillet bacon jam," which to-date I had only tried on biscuits. "Hmm ... " I thought; "I wonder ..." So what the heck -- I added a spoonful to the saute pan along with the butter and garlic. It contributed just the right amount of smoky bacon flavor to the enterprise, which I enjoyed with mashed potatoes, since I forgot the part about serving the warmed steak on toasted bread.

Thanks for the suggestion!

Sharon

You're welcome...I'll let her know you liked it! And your addition sounds like an awesome addition. Is that something you made yourself or bought?

You're welcome...I'll let her know you liked it! And your addition sounds like an awesome addition. Is that something you made yourself or bought?[/quote]

The bacon "jam" was actually something I purchased via a website (Gilt Taste, I think). It's from a company in Seattle that operates food trucks and a restaurant. I did think the flavor skewed a bit sweet when spread on a biscuit. It was tastier to my mind when used with the steak, as noted above; this morning, I had it with scrambled eggs and liked it very much.

If you're interested, their website is http://www.skilletbaconjam.com.

I really dislike leftover steak it never tastes good in my opinion left over. Another sollution is to cut it up into strips and make fajitas out of it. I did that last time I had steak leftovers and it was great. Cut the steak into strips and saute or rather heat up in a pan with green peppers and onions. Put into a tortilla with some salsa and any other condiments and away you go.

Han wrote:

DutchMuse wrote:RPM Italian: Don't laugh. Their dry aged steaks (Rib steak, porterhouse for 2) is perhaps the best steak in Chicago. Dry aged for a minimum of 28 days, they source it from a top butcher in The Bronx (I think Luger has a connection with the supplier, too). Some of the best I've had.

Has anyone else tried this? $118 seems a bit pricey. Is it worth it?

I'm going again tonight. Yes, I believe its worth it. You should try it; I promise you won't be disappointed.

After the fact, it was as good as ever. Paired with a magnum of 2008 Tignanello. They source it from NYC from the same butcher as supplies Peter Luger's.

Just to note, RPM Steak is coming in 2013....the steak will be sourced from the same purveyor that RPM Italian uses (and as Luger's uses).

Its my understanding the women owner inspects each primal at Peter Lugers.
Just sourcing your beef from the same purveyor is not a guaranttee of final quality on your plate.
Each carcass is different, aging is different and the actual cooking technique. Lugers has it down and so has David Burke and the purveyor is not that much of a factor.-Dick

Of course your comments are correct (as we know)...but have you tried the porterhouse at RPM Italian? Curious what your personal take on it is.

".but have you tried the porterhouse at RPM Italian? "

Not yet but I have put this on my short list. I will get three of us together to try on Sunday because they open at 3pm. Wisconsin is only about 70 miles or so away but its the variability of the Edens and Kennedy that makes for an interesting ride. I have found that if the Kennedy is backed up, that Elston makes a good alternative. My wife and had Saturday evening Lyric tickets for a couple of decades and got quite used to using alternative routes. I do prefer lunch time in Chicago and that's mostly when we go to eat now in Chicago.-Dick