People have different ideas of what makes a good steak. Some prefer steak to smothered in some kind of sauce or melting blue cheese or perhaps both if it's a special occasion. Some people like the good old reliable Montreal Steak spice. Or perhaps just a naked steak seared on each side for approximately one minute so it's still blue and mooing in the middle. But no matter how the final presentation of the steak is, people just want a good steak.
My first steakhouse that week was to Gothams. I hadn't been to Gothams before so I was pretty darn excited to be treated to this steakhouse. I had heard many fabulous things about this place. The decor, the food, the overall experience. Well........it was good..... but quite frankly.....it wasn't how I had pictured it in my head. It wasn't really busy (granted it was a Monday night) so we sat in the lounge. I had pictured the room to be filled with men in suits smoking cigars, drinking a fabulous Bourbon or scotch, the air buzzing with conversation. But alas, no.
I knew I was going to another steakhouse later in the week so I had decided to stick with one cut of meat, the New York strip. Yum freakin' yum. So I had ordered that, medium rare. And that's exactly what I got. It was pretty tasty, but it was also $47 for 16oz (or 14oz, can't remember). Oh, and this isn't' the Keg, it's not like you get "sides". You have to order sides and pay for them separately. I think what made Gothams fun that night was because of the peeps that I was there with more than the food. Not sure if I would go back to tell you the truth.
Two nights later I had the pleasure of going to Black and Blue, a fabulous steakhouse on Alberni Street. Wow, now that place was happening, even for a Wednesday. I again had ordered the same size New York strip but I did add a tiny bit of blue cheese to my order. Can I just say....yum freakin' yum. But again, $47 and you had to get your sides separately. However, that being said, dear Lord they had the best creamed corn. Creamed corn with jalapenos. UM, YUM! At this point in my adventure if I had to pick between the two steakhouses, Black and Blue hands down. The price is the same but the quality of food (including the sides) and the atmosphere is better at Black and Blue.
Then came the last steakhouse......the one I was most excited about trying. The Brave Bull House of Steaks at the corner of Clark & Hastings. I have been driving past this place since I was a kid and after awhile it was added to my huge list of things to do. The only problem: finding people to go with me. This place doesn't exactly look like it would be a great place to eat, it's creepy. But after awhile I finally found two crazy enough friends to join me, Scott & Justin.
I had read a lot about this place over the years. It's run by the most lovely little Asian couple, Linda and her husband (his name slips my mind). She handles the front, he does the cooking. We got there and there were only a few other tables, the place was empty. However, every time someone would come in off the street, Linda would kindly turn them away explaining that they were full..... yes, there were many confused looking faces from these people that had to leave because the place was seriously empty.
I had ordered the same cut of meat, $14.95 and it came with your choice of soup or salad, a baked potato and veggies. You can tell that Linda's husband cooked our three steaks one at a time because of they were certainly not cooked exactly how we had asked, but it didn't matter. It wasn't necessarily for the food, it was for the overall experience and to meet Linda. She had come over to our table and spent quite a bit of time talking to us. I had told her that I had been wanting to come here since I was a kid and if it would be ok to have my picture taken with her..... she couldn't have been more delighted. So I got my picture taken with Linda and I will be taking her a copy because she wants to hang it on her wall. AWESOME!
So to conclude, I wouldn't go back to Gotham's. I would go back to Black and Blue, the food was amazing and so was the atmosphere. As for The Brave Bull, I had such an amazing first time there, I wouldn't want to risk ruining the memory with a second. :)
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