Nuvo Readers Love Famous Steak

Ack! My eyes! It's the annual Nuvo Dining Guide and as usual, the reader picks (which they've reprinted from last month's "Best Of..." guide) are enough to make my eyes bleed. St. Elmo's wins in three categories? Come on, people. If you only spend the money to go to one fine-dining restaurant a year, please don't waste it on St. Elmo's. Seemingly the only high-end restaurant Nuvo readers patronize, St. Elmo's swept best upscale restaurant, best steak house, and best wait staff. Please. Better steak? Ruth's Chris. Better space? Mo's. Better service? Capitol Grille. Wacky experience? Fogo! Don't get me wrong, they've built a great brand and the tourists have to eat somewhere. But is St. Elmo's, and its overflow little brother Harry and Izzy's, the best we have to offer? Not by a long shot.

I supposed we should be content that the Oceanaire has finally displaced Red Lobster as the reader choice for "best seafood".

Morton's Recipe Contest

Think you've got a great steakhouse recipe? Enter it in the Morton's Guest Prime Recipe Contest and win a spot in Morton's next cookbook. (Random House will publish in 2009.) The winner gets a trip to Chicago and dinner with Klause Fritsch, co-founder of the chain with Arnie Morton 30 years ago. Entry forms and instructions online. Deadline is June 2.

St. Elmo Makes Top 100 Highest Grossing Independents List

Restaurants and Institutions magazine just released their top 100 list, and while restaurants in the Top 10 are solidly in the $20-30 million range, check out our own St. Elmo Steakhouse at number 47 -- with a reported gross of $13,449,305. (Up from the $11.3 million reported in 2005 by the IBJ in their top grossing city restaurant rankings.) Some other stats on St. Elmo?

’07 sales: $13,449,305

Avg. dinner check: $74.08

Meals served: 181,550

Seats: 320 dining; 40 bar

Other notables on the top 100 list:
#6 -- DC's Old Ebbit Grill ($22,851,237 with an average dinner check of $24.00, and 800,000 meals served -- that's some turn! Also, 152 years old.)

#7 -- Gibson's Bar Steakhouse in Chicago ($20,846,253, with an average check of $35.95) Gibson's in Rosemont makes #22 on the list. Hugo's Frog Bar and Fish House (Gibson's version of Harry and Izzy's for overflow) makes #31 on the list.

#45 -- The Grand Central Oyster Bar in all it's cheesy, 70s glory -- and still a great meal.

#62 -- Shaw's Crab House in Chicago clocks in at $12.5 million

#69 -- Harry Caray's Restaurant in Chicago at $12.2 million.

and both Montgomery Inn at the Boathouse and the Montgomery Inn in Cincinnati clock in at 81 and 100 respectively making them to top two grossing rib joints in the US.

If you're looking for quality over quantity, then check out San Pelligino's annual Top 50 Best Restaurants in the World list. El Bulli and Fat Duck top the list with the French Laundry and Per Se coming in at 5 and 6. Other US restaurants named to the top 50 list were Jean Georges at 17, Le Bernardin at 20, Chicago's Alinea at 21, Chez Panisse at 37, Charlie Trotter's at 38, and Daniel at 41. A few US restaurants also made teh bottom 50 -- still good -- including Nobu New York (ranked 52), Masa (ranked 54), WD-50 (ranked 63), and the US L'Atelier Joel Robuchon (ranked 85). (The US-MGM Robuchon outpost also makes the top 10 but is listed differently, as if MGM is its own country. Full list is here. Makes for great travel planning! (all via Gut Check)

Girls Eating Steak!

You've got to love the NY Times Style section, who today, has a great article on trendy, meat eating girls! Guys, do you love your girls to love steak? Girls, when you go on a date, do you just want to order a nice rib eye instead of that chintzy salad? Well, you're not alone. Woman eating like real people is finally back in style!

So, chow down on that date. Enjoy that big, caloric burger. And just be your confident, meat-eating self! I am woman! Hear me chew! On the other hand, the trend for men is away from big heavy meat. Real men, apparently, eat their vegetables:

What about when the tables, so to speak, are reversed? Can a man order a juicy New York strip on the first date and make a good impression? Gentlemen, be careful. Real men, it seems, must eat kale.

“When a guy sits down and eats something fatty and big, you wonder if they eat like that all the time,” said Brice Gaillard, a freelance design writer. “It crosses my mind they’ll probably die early.”

(Thanks to re-formed vegetarian Christine from My Plate of Yours for the pointer this morning!)

Three Latest and Best

Hey, kids, I know I've been scarce around here lately but it's not been for a lack of food coverage. It's been because of too much! I'll be able to say more later, but in the meantime, here's my version of simplicity, the summer three latest and best!

Coconut Shrimp at Ruth's Chris: Shrimp at a steakhouse you say? Well, hey, I love happy hour menus. My current fave comes crispy and sweet with orange marmalade. Mmmmm.

The Bitch is Back: Sure, I broke up with Pizza Hut for a while miffed over my lost order, but when a relationship is that good, you just can't stay way. You, yes you, thin crust, you are my true romance.

Steak at a Kitchen Table: In my recent travels (or travails, whichever you prefer), I've been lucky enough to be welcomed into the home of some of the best beef producers in the state. I've had some fantastic steaks but I have to give special props to Diana Fischer, wife of Dave Fischer of Fischer Farms. (Fischer is arguably the state's top small producer of natural, corn-finished beef served locally at The Oceanaire and Elements.) Diana made us the most simple and delicious lunch this week and it was one of the best steaks I've had in a year. So good and cooked so perfectly that the back of my mouth is watering again as I type. I couldn't leave her out of this week's Three Latest and Best.

Two-Minute Warning: Dear Harry and Izzy's, I know we didn't go out very many times -- three or four dates, but it's time to decide whether or not to take our relationship to the next level. Frankly, I'm just not that interested. I never really felt like you were trying to make an effort to win me over. Maybe you did really try, but the honest truth? You're boring. Sorry, there, I said it. Your food is merely average and your bar scene is dull. You can say it's me and maybe it is. I'm a party girl who just likes to relax with a good meal sometimes and not get charged extra when your bartender offers to put pomegranate in my cocktail. But your food doesn't excite me and I need to be excited. I'm sure you won't be at any loss for other regular girlfriends. I wish you the best of luck, but I think I'm over you. Maybe we can just be friends. Call me for drinks sometime. I'll be at Mo's.

Kobe. Kobe! KOBE!

Hey, kids, if you like Kobe beef (and I know you do), stop by Joe's Butcher Shop on Main Street in Carmel for a free cookout on Saturday from 11 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. Owner Joe Lazzara be grilling mini American Kobe burgers from Joseph Decuis' own northern Indiana Waygu herd, plus Indianapolis' own King David Dogs. Joe has Kobe steaks in the store now as well as King David Dogs if you're stocking up for the weekend.

Clean Out the Refrigerator Stew

Organics, Slow Food, and Local Eating: The March 12 edition of TIME magazine covers eating local, what they call better than organic. (Thanks to Scott Hutcheson for the pointer.)

Fighting the Good Fight in Indiana Wine: Jeff, over at the The Good Grape, talks about the battle a state-wide group -- Vinsense -- faces in promoting open out-of-state wine shipping for all consumers. But they have a good start. Helping consumers get wine directly, with or without the help of distributors, is a topic we know he's passionate about. More at The Good Grape.

Food of the Week: OK, Trader Joe's, it's official. You are evil! You are evil for putting those dark chocolate covered pretzels out there for me to buy. They should be illegal. At least my hips think they should be illegal. Maybe my hips should be illegal.

The Issue with Steakhouses: Frank Bruni at the NY Times has the same issue with steakhouses that many of us do here. While they may be popular, very few do everything well. Considering that two of the three worst dining experiences I've had in the past week involve steakhouses, I can't say I disagree. Service, drinks, steak, seafood? What are the trade-offs? Bruni from Diner's Journal.

Austin City Limits: Christine over at My Plate or Yours is just back from Austin where I'd argue she ate even better than her recent trip to Paris! Chilequiles (red and green), refried beans, and ... wait for it ... Shiner Bock ice cream?!!!! (My eyes just rolled back in my head for a minute.)

Hey, Dad, Can I Borrow the Car? Ruhlman's done it now! He's given Tony Bourdain his own password to the blog ensuring all of us can benefit from Bourdain's crazy, wonderful, and always spot on rants. If you weren't reading Michael Ruhlman's blog before (what, are you crazy?), then make sure you add it to your list now. And while your at it, read Ruhlman's interview and commentary on Grant Achatz and his take on molecular gastronomy.

Give 'em an Inch and They Take a Mile: And last but not least, PETA is upset with Al Gore. They've taken a break from setting up their Upper West Side office in NYC for the upcoming NY foie gras fight to criticize the country's best known environmentalist. Their issue? If Gore *really* cared about the environment, he'd stop eating meat. Hey, PETA, bite me. I'll be the one wearing a mink coat with a fork-full of foie gras in my mouth.

Steaks and Steakhouses -- The Final Roundup

Finishing up the discussion on steaks and steakhouses, dry aged versus wet aged, and USDA prime versus choice, I wanted to pass on just a few more interesting pieces of reading flagged from around the food blog world.

Slate's Mark Schatzker gives a basic primer on the USDA grades, marbling, and issues surrounding the beef controversy today. He also (lucky man) does a taste test of aging, feed styles, and breeds including the elusive Wagyu breed, source of Kobe beef and all the buzz in today's food world.

Forbes Traveler announced it's list recently of the world's most expensive steakhouses -- just in case you're planning a trip in the future. (List via Slashfood.) As they note, it's no surprise that they all include Wagyu beef.

*"103" Wagyu rib eye at Craftsteak New York (private order item), $2,800 for 20 pounds
*Charbroiled Kobe Filet, Aragawa, Tokyo, $258 for 8-oz.
*Select Special Kobe Filet at the Kobe Renga-tei Steak Restaurant, Kobe, $246 for 160 grams (5.6-oz.)
*Australian Wagyu Striploin at the Al Muntaha restaurant, Burj Al Arab Hotel, Dubai, $169 for 300 gm
*Japanese Wagyu Rib Eye at Wolfgang Puck's CUT at the Beverly Wilshire, Beverly Hills , $160, eight-ounce filet
*"Wagyu no sumibiyaki" at Zuma, London, $132 (no size indicated)
*Sendai Sirloin at the Ekki Bar & Grill, Four Seasons Hotel Tokyo at Marunouchi The Price: $129 for 150g
*Australian Wagyu Fillet Mignon at the Polo Club, Marriott Royal Aurora, Moscow, $101 for 12-oz.
*Smoked Salt American Kobe Rib Eye Cap Steak at BLT Prime, New York, $95 (no size indicated)

And in one final list (also via Slashfood), Maxim picks their list of Best Steakhouse in the US -- and how much do I love that Big Texan from Amarillo made it. (And that St. Elmo's did not.) Here's the list, in no particular order:

*Del Friscos, Orlando, FL
*Grill 23 Boston, MA - "beef comes from a small herd of purebred steer,"
*The Big Texan Steak Ranch, Amarillo, TX - "If you can eat a 72-ounce steak and all the trimmings in under an hour, it's free. In 46 years only 7,000 people have done it."
*Dickie Brennan's Steak House, New Orleans, LA
*Gene & Georgetti Chicago, IL
*Strip House New York, NY - "silhouettes of naked women adorn the napkins"
*The Forge Miami, FL - "known for nude oil paintings and a wine cellar with 380,000 bottles,"
*Bern's Steak House, Tampa, FL
*Peter Luger Brooklyn, NY
*Donovan's Steak & Chop House La Jolla, CA