Steak is something I NEVER get tired of.
There are numerous steak houses in Manhattan, and while I adore a few, this one is on my top 5 in NYC. The Palm cannot hold a candle to this place, sorry to say.
Thee staff is friendly and warm- never snooty or standoff-ish. They make you feel at home. They offer to carve your meat for you, table side, should you so desire, suggest and describe in great detail the evening's specials or offer to help navigate the long wine list, including a page called "The Kitchen Sink", which is a little of every type of wine after you have read pages of specific regions and reds & whites.
This is a carnivore's heaven. In addition to the enormous, thick & juicy perfectly grilled porterhouses, cowboy rib eyes, bone in sirloins, and filet mignon's (the latter crusted with the best blue cheese or topped with crabmeat & asparagus- Oscar style) , they have lobster, whole roasted chicken carved table side, and so many other items.
The beautiful multi-level restaurant has several locations all over the country- but this one is my favorite. (Miami is my second favorite)
To start- the seafood tower is a show in itself- large chilled shiny red lobsters, oysters,
colossal -sized jumbo shrimp and huge chunks of lump crabmeat all nestled in tiered towers over crushed ice, numerous dipping sauces, and lots of slices of fresh lemon is of the highest quality and just so good.
The place is always a buzz- during the day for lunch, its a 'power-suit' scene with lots of regulars, but in the evening, (among the regulars), are tourists, locals, and the like, so the place is filled with a terrific vibe and all the people watching the many carts go sailing by to showcase what other diners have ordered, as there are so many possibilities.
While the "typical" order is a porterhouse steak for 2 or 3 or 4, steak, their world famous hash browns and creamed spinach (which are all wonderful) we choose to go the bone in sirloin route, with some fresh sauteed broccoli a ridiculously huge baked potato, (enough for two) which arrived accompanied by four silver bowls of "potato toppings"- sour cream, of course, fresh chives, fresh crisp pieces of bacon (not "bits" ) and mounds of shredded sharp cheddar cheese.
So, after a great ice cold crispy Caesar salad, (the way a salad should always be served- on chilled plates), and enjoying a wonderful bottle of wine, we had the jumbo shrimp cocktail with two dipping sauces, and then our dinner, which was outstanding.
Unfortunately, we were too full for dessert as they are all decadent, enormous and delicious.
I had just finished drinking the last few sips of my wine, when they sent over "on the house" 2 glasses of the house "RESERVE" for us to enjoy ,which was lovely.
I highly recommend Smith & Wollensky- I promise, you will not be disappointed!!!
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