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Vancouver Steak Houses


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So what your saying Fanny Bay is that your doing comparable bbq in your backyard pit?

Memphis Blues is what it is. BBQ. Last time I went was with a friend of mine. We're relatively savvy on the food scence and thought that the Elvis Platter had to be the best deal we'd seen in a long time. $60 for two! That's appies at the usual joint! And dirty.....awww come on. You sound like the hippies at the hippy college I went to in Boulder, CO. While they were eating their rice, beans and tofu burgers in the cafeteria (check it out at Naropa.edu) I was walking down the block to Daddy Bruce's......the dirtiest one room, 8 seat (makes room for the piano) bbq place with the best brisket and ribs on earth.

....and last time I was in Memphis blues which was mid-morning before lunch actually started.......asking for a pulled pork sandwhich.....the owner was nothing more than pleased to help me out.

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Worst steak (or beef as Vancouver Mag say's. Jamie, sorry but...what were you thinking? Best beef? How can you possibly say that the quality of beef they use at Memphis Blues is better then Gotham, Hy's or Hamilton Street Grill, It just isn't!) Truth be told, I don't get Memphis Blues - The prices are outrageous for the level of service and food. The place is dirty, the service staff snarly and the food, OK. Last time I was there I got cold over-cooked fries, tasteless pork,  beans and our bill was huge! Their food cost must be amazing…

My assumption was that Memphis Blues was rated for it's bbq in vanmag- not so much in competition with the grand steakhouses- I think they are competing in a different category as the restaurants are hardly comparable.

"Never eat more than you can lift" -Miss Piggy

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Worst steak (or beef as Vancouver Mag say's. Jamie, sorry but...what were you thinking? Best beef? How can you possibly say that the quality of beef they use at Memphis Blues is better then Gotham, Hy's or Hamilton Street Grill, It just isn't!) Truth be told, I don't get Memphis Blues - The prices are outrageous for the level of service and food. The place is dirty, the service staff snarly and the food, OK. Last time I was there I got cold over-cooked fries, tasteless pork,  beans and our bill was huge! Their food cost must be amazing…

My assumption was that Memphis Blues was rated for it's bbq in vanmag- not so much in competition with the grand steakhouses- I think they are competing in a different category as the restaurants are hardly comparable.

In 2004 VanMag had a category titled, eloquently, "Best Meat". Memphis Blues won Gold, West (?) won Silver, and Gotham Bronze.

This year the category was split into two: Best Steakhouse/Chops and Best Barbeque. In first category, Gotham tied Morton's for Gold, Hy's won Silver and The Keg Bronze. In Best Barbeque, from the many fine Vancouver barbeque establishments we enjoy :wink: , Memphis Blues won Gold, Dix won Silver and Slim'z Bronze.

Laura Fauman

Vancouver Magazine

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I just wanted to address a steak issue of mine.

I always order my steaks blue rare and am invariably disappointed when my steak arrives and I make the first cut. I suppose my love of high tea and my preference for blue rare steak is a bit of a paradox but nonetheless...

Invariably, the steak is overcooked. For example, a couple of nights ago, my requested blue rare steak was medium rare. I'm too polite to send my steak back but I do find it a little tiresome that I never get the steak cooked (or not cooked in my case!) the way I want it done. This tendency to overcook the meat even seems to happen at Vancouver's best steakhouses.

Anyway, I just wondered whether other people encounter similar difficulties (they ask for rare and get medium rare, etc.). Is there a tendency in Vancouver establishments to cook the steaks at least one grade up from what was requested? I realize that restaurants get tired of people sending their steaks back because they claim that they are undercooked. However, I think most cooks can safely assume that if I asked for blue rare, they don't need to worry about such a complaint coming from me.

"There are few hours in life more agreeable than the hour dedicated to the ceremony known as afternoon tea."

~ Henry James, The Portrait of a Lady

Tara Lee

Literary and Culinary Rambles

http://literaryculinaryrambles.blogspot.com

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I'm a medium rare (on the rare) side person, and that's how I ask for it. I usually get it that way in a steakhouse, but I usually don't get it that way if I'm in anything BUT a steakhouse. So I usually only order steak in a steakhouse, since I can't stand it overdone.

Agenda-free since 1966.

Foodblog: Power, Convection and Lies

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  • 2 weeks later...

At Gotham Steakhouse we serve grain-fed prime beef, amazing steaks.

If you order a steak blue rare, the server will make sure that the steak that you order will be delicious at that temp and then when the steak arrives it will be slightly sooked on the outside and bright red in the centre. Yummy. I like my steaks that way too. So rare that a good vet could save it.

The steaks are expensive, but well worth it. No better steak out there.

Bob McLeod

VOX BACCULUS HIC VADIS IN VITRIO JUBILIAM

The road goes on forever and the party never ends

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The only way to get blue-rare is if you cook it yourself, from my experiences.  :smile:

AHEM! :huh:

I take offence at that remark. Thousands of heads of cattle have been sacrificed for the Beta Testing of the blue rare steak. I know that I have it down pat.
I apologize. I just cook it for a few seconds per side at home, and I find that most steakhouses cook it for a bit longer when I ask for it blue rare. The hangar steak I had at HSG was actually very rare.  :smile:

Ling, don't let them bully you into an apology! Your experience is your experience. :raz: My experience is similar, restaurants are reluctant to cook steaks that rare. I will agree however that the hanger I had at HSG just after DOV was almost moo-ing. Chef Fowke, unless you cooked my hanger that night, I've never had the pleasure of eating your cooking. Let's remedy that soon shall we?

A.

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I can personally attest that Chef Fowke can cook a hanger very blue. Witnessed it myself and that was the very first rare piece of meat I had ever had, and well....now I can't eat it any other way! Thanks Brian!!!

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I too am from the "wipe its arse and clip its horns" blue rare "school" when it comes to cooking steak and have found that good restaurants usually do a better job than what I can accomplish at home.

I do however insure that the restaurant and I are on the same "wavelength" when it comes to what we are talking about. Blue rare and differ from spot to spot. I want it as red/purple as possible but still have it warm throughout rather than chomping through ice crystals.

My "significantly better half" prefers her steaks med-rare...leaning toward the medium...and by the time I get hers done I usually have overcooked my own even if just "resting". Yes, I know I should do mine last but that too has usually not worked.

Part of the problem I think is that I do not take the meat out of the fridge early enough.

Next road trip to Van will have to get down to check out HSG's hanger steak.

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Neil, I don't know HKDave's date of departure, and was hoping to have a farewell tipple, as well!

Dave, if you're still on the continent, let us know!!

Very sorry, I'm weeks late in replying... I am back in HK, digging out from 4 months of not-taking-care-of-business while I was in school. Sorry I missed doing a round of 'good-byes' but my last week in town (which was the week of the above posts from nwyles and *Deborah*) was crazy, with final exams, graduation, and family obligations.

I'll be back...

My favorite slab-o-cow in Vancouver was the prime rib at Rex. They hold it in an Alto Sham oven and it delivers the goods. I never did try my favorite steak (bone-in prime rib steak) anywhere in Vancouver.

Re steak doneness, the Canadian Beef Info Centre does a great, simple wall chart and pocket-size waiter cards showing in photos and describing in words Blue Rare to Well Done. I wish more places would standardize on tools like these rather than making their guests - and sometimes staff - guess what each other is talking about when it comes to doneness. At one Vancouver restaurant that I'm not going to name (ok, it was Cafe de Paris, but under a previous owner) I sent a steak back 3 times and they never did cook it right, and I never went back as a result. The cards are available here: http://www.beefinfo.org/OrderCentre_eng/Pr...ONSTUFF&alert=1

Hong Kong Dave

O que nao mata engorda.

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  • 1 month later...

I've had steaks at Hy's, Gotham's, and Morton's, and my favourite slab of meat is the ribeye at Morton's. I asked for it rare, and it came bright red in the center--perfect. Nicely seasoned, well-marbled, juicy, flavourful....what more can you ask for from a steak?

I'm going there again on Saturday to try the filet mignon (after lunch at C Restaurant--what a glorious day, food-wise. :biggrin: )

Edited by Ling (log)
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I've had steaks at Hy's, Gotham's, and Morton's, and my favourite slab of meat is the ribeye at Morton's. I asked for it rare, and it came bright red in the center--perfect. Nicely seasoned, well-marbled, juicy, flavourful....what more can you ask for from a steak?

I'm going there again on Saturday to try the filet mignon (after lunch at C Restaurant--what a glorious day, food-wise.  :biggrin: )

Sounds like a protein filled week-end Ling.

Veritable Surf'nTurf...fish at C and boeuf at Morton's

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  • 1 month later...

Finally... tried the much-raved-about Hangar Steak (and the Gingerbread Pudding) at Hamilton Street Grill. Both items lived up to their reputation - the steak was juicy-tender-chewy with great flavor intensity, and the pudding was juicy-tender-cuddly with WOW sauce and ice cream duo.

Great to finally meet chef Neil - had the mini tour of the new rooms - very swank.

Thanks Neil and see you in the fall.

S

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What a timely topic for me to stumble across. I have been craving a good steak for several days and my choice destination will probably be the Hamilton Street Grill. As for doneness, it depends on the cut. My preferences range from very rare (filet) to medium rare (ribeye). A good server should know the cooking patterns of his/her chef. Does that make sense?

P.S. What about Chartwell @ the Four Seasons?

"People go to restaurants for hundreds of reasons, and food is only one of them." -Ruth Reichl

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Hi Jen,

Depending upon where i am in the world, i generally would like to trust the taste of chef, its his/her work that i am tasting, i want to be engaged by reaction(no influence from me!). Does that make sense. However there are times when of course the establishment will offer the preference, but i find that this is still far too open for abuse. As far as the server knowing the specifications of the chef is concerned there can still be alot of inherent misunderstanding- so why not have a chef whose cooking you trust & enjoy the experience as he/she sees it.

By the way, what do you think of Ruth Reichls' truism.

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Every competent Broilerman or Chef should be capable of judging the doneness on any cut of meat, fish or poultry by touch weather in a pan or on a open fire.

It's always better when serving someone a Steak Blue to under cook unless your advised exactly what the customer considers blue by the order taker or server.

Since a undercooked steak can be returned to the kitchen for more heat it's easy to rectify, but overcooked requires starting from scratch again. Most cuts are easier to prepare as Rare, Medium Rare, Medium or even Well Done are each easily gaged, but so called Blue is more difficult as many want a center at room temperature while others want it heated thru just a little less then rare.

With Blue orders communication rules, even if the waiter isn't sure initially its better to ask the customer again his exact preference. If you cook it right it's a good investment in getting a repeat customer as I have learned that those who order "Blue" and get it their way become very loyal.

Remember in 2005 every Steak is a investment that goes two ways for both the seller and the customers.

Irwin

I don't say that I do. But don't let it get around that I don't.

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...With Blue orders communication rules, even if the waiter isn't sure initially its better to ask the customer again his exact preference.  If you cook it right it's a good investment in getting a repeat customer as I have learned that those who order "Blue" and get it their way become very loyal....

Agreed. I like my steaks blue rare and usually qualify my order by asking what the restaurant considers blue rare stating, "I want it as rare as possible but with the meat still being warm inside".

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That is a good way of putting it, merlin. I'll be sure to remember it next time I order steak. Usually I tell the waiter I want the steak between blue rare and rare.

One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well.

Virginia Woolf

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  • 3 weeks later...

All this steak talk makes me mourn the loss of 900 West, which had the best food for a steakhouse in the city, hands down.

18oz Prime Rib slow cooked for 20 hours - unbelievable.

Ian McTavish

General Manager / Capones Restaurant & Live Jazz Club

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A salute to the Hamilton Street Grill for a fine steak last night.

Sat at the bar with a hanger steak with chanterelle mushrooms and a glass of B.C. merlot. Honest and unpretentious food presented by people who clearly know and love what they do.

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