bistrot vivienne

paris, france

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being the american tourists that we were, jenny and i couldn't leave paris without getting steak frites. sure, nearly every restaurant and bistro in paris serves the dish but we wanted the best steak frites we could find, no matter the distance. we spent the day shopping in the marais district in northeast paris - tons of cute boutiques. but the restaurant that caught my eye in my time out paris guide was la bourse ou la vie in west paris. so we hiked a mile and a half across the city, but the restaurant was closed! c'est la vie, i guess. tired and very hungry, we stumbled into a nearby restaurant, bistrot vivienne, and ordered steak frites anyway. and it was incredible! giant slabs of steak perfectly cooked and served with a creamy bernaise sauce. an excellent carafe of red wine. then an elegant and completely delicious dessert - brioche toast with homemade hazelnut ice cream. quite possibly the best dessert i've ever had - so simple, buttery, rich, and perfect. yes, it's the life.

scratch bar

beverly hills, ca

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sorry for the terrible picture. the restaurant is dimly lit. a suprisingly hipster-ish spot on restaurant row (which otherwise has chains like lawry's and fogo de chao). there are large rustic looking tables. a bunch of us sat around one to celebrate the lovely cindy c's birthday. most of the plates we ordered were for the table to share, but they have little "bites" that you can order individually. they had a "chicken and waffle bite" so of course i had to order it. it was good, nothing spectacular. but the showstopper here is the 30-40 oz dry-aged ribeye that you order for the table. the steak is cooked perfectly - all crispy and fatty in all the right places. it takes forever to prepare, so order it as soon as you sit down. i asked the table whether they thought derek and i could eat one on our own. maybe, was the answer. well, leftover ribeye is never a bad idea.

sundance the steakhouse

palo alto, ca

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even though we're in sunny, laid-back palo alto, the interior of this restaurant reminds me of old-school new york steakhouses like wolfgang's, spark's, or smith & wollensky. except in palo alto, you're more likely to run into a venture capitalist than a mob boss. nevertheless, it was an appropriate spot to take the summer interns out for lunch. one note - parking is annoying - a tiny lot with a weird one-way entrance/exit. i ended up parallel parking on el camino which was unpleasant for me (and probably for the drivers around me as well).

but onto the food -- an appetizer of raw oysters was perfect to share: light and refreshing, tasting just a hint of the sea. sundance is apparently known for their prime rib, which most of the guys at the table ordered. it seemed a bit much for lunch, so i ordered the french dip sandwich with au jus. the prime rib meat inside was pretty good - rich and flavorful, but the bread was boring and didn't complement the meat. i was quite jealous of the juicy looking prime rib slabs on everyone else's plates. next time, definitely ordering that instead.

porto alegre brazilian steakhouse

pasadena, ca

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my brother had just had his medical school graduation ceremony at the pasadena civic auditorium. mom, dad, aunt tina, amanda, cindy, my niece, and i were all waiting outside, pondering where to take the newly minted doctor out for a celebratory lunch. well, my niece was doing less pondering and more singing and dancing. i really wanted to go to koreatown for my favorite korean bbq but it was too far and there were too many of us to make that happen.

glancing across the street, we noticed that the shopping mall had a churrascaria on the top floor. a quick check on yelp confirmed that it was decent and my sister called to make lunch reservations. i really don't know how we survived before iphones. anyway, to cut to the chase, the buffet portion of the churrascaria wasn't great. the gougeres were okay, but everything else was boring. what was great, however, was the meat - the sirloin and skirt steak were my favorites. perfectly cooked with just the right amount of char. the photographed piece doesn't look very good, but i forgot to take a picture of the good stuff. sorry.

pampas

palo alto, ca

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this is a favorite special occasion spot for derek and myself. peak times require a reservation, but we prefer to dine early when it's less crowded and everything is fresh. it's a churrascaria, similar to churrascaria plataforma in nyc - a set price for all-you-can-eat. they give you a disc that is green on one side, red on the other. flip it to red while you check out the salad bar (my favorites are the marinated mushrooms and the coconut couscous). flip it to green for servers to come by and slice you a piece of meat. my favorites are the top sirloin, the skirt steak, and the tri-tip. they also bring around filet mignon, lamb, spicy chicken, housemade chorizo, and grilled pineapple.

one of their tricks to keep you from eating too much expensive meat is to put really good sides on your table - gougeres, fried polenta, and fried bananas. the gougeres are amazing, especially fresh out of the oven. pacing yourself is key when you eat here - it helps to order a good bottle of red wine. we like the napa cabernet sauvignon from their wine list. flip the disc to red, take a wine break, maybe even a little conversation with your dining companion, then flip it back to green for more meat.

reposado

palo alto, ca

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reposado is one of our favorite places to eat on university avenue ("the ave"). great raucous atmosphere - lots of people chatting and having a good time. excellent wine list and very good sangria. this is a good place to bring friends to - i brought anthony and his cousin here when they were in town.

my absolute favorite entree is the hanger steak. unfortunately it's not a very photogenic hanger steak, but it's delicious - perfectly grilled and served over an arbol chile demi glace. because i always get the guacamole (not quite spicy enough but perfect if you add their smoky salsa), i can never finish the entire steak. it's fantastic as leftovers, especially over some noodles. also - the chocolate gelato is homemade and amazing, but my favorite part of the dessert are the buttery mexican cookies they serve on the side.

charlie palmer steak

washington, dc

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charlie palmer is best known for his restaurant aureole, which i've never been to but heard good things about. after several days of hotel catering, i was really looking forward to a real meal and a real steak. when i lived in manhattan, derek and i went to many excellent steakhouses. palo alto, not so much. in california, they tend to drench their steaks in unnecessary sauces. ridiculous.

charlie palmer did not disappoint. my steak was excellent - perfectly cooked and perfectly seasoned. the right amount of char and the right amount of fat. a pleasant surprise was the amazing starter salad, served with a poached egg to add yolk to the dressing. dessert, a berry cobbler, was also very good.

bistro le clochard

curacao

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curacao doesn't have that many fancy restaurants. remember that couple that i mentioned in the pane e vino post? well, we saw them again at pampus the following night (where i forgot to take a picture). then we saw them AGAIN at bistro le clochard on the next night! turns out, one of the guys is originally from curacao but studied hospitality abroad and had returned to take his partner to some of the best restaurants in curacao.

bistro le clochard is definitely one of the best - everyone at the resort recommended it and it's been around since the 1970s. the restaurant is located inside an old fort from the 1800s and includes includes a little outdoor ledge on the water. we sat at a corner of the ledge, where we could look up at the old fort looming above us and out into the ocean to watch ships passing the island. great romantic atmosphere, solid french cuisine, excellent wine, and great steaks.

quality meats

58(5/6)

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i suggested to derek that we try quality meats, a midtown steakhouse, because i heard great things about it on the internet. i might have neglected to mention that the great things i heard were that it's female-friendly and that it serves amazing single-serving ice cream cakes. what he doesn't know can't hurt him, right ? i arrived before derek and was led to the back of the restaurant, up some stairs, around a few turns, into a small room with a low ceiling that overlooked the front entrance. the waiter seating me could tell that i wasn't thrilled about the location, but he explained "it's our room for special occasions."

now it's hard to pinpoint exactly why i was placed into the upstairs dungeon for dinner. was it because i made my reservation only 2 hours in advance? because of how i was dressed? or because i'm (gasp) asian? i don't know, maybe the 30 empty tables i passed along the way were truly reserved. regardless, the service we received in that little dungeon was beyond reproach. efficient, friendly, attentive, even poured me a little extra wine to finish a bottle. and the menu is indeed female-friendly. i ordered the hanger steak with cherry sauce, a great combination. the hint of sweetness from the cherries matched perfectly with the steak. and we indeed ordered one of the ice cream cakes, topped with a cute candy cow. will we be back? probably not. my hanger steak was a tad overcooked. plus derek needs more serious steak and for that, we'll head to primehouse.

le relais de venise

52nd/lex

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after reading m's post on this restaurant in london, i knew i had to try the new york branch. it's an interesting concept - there's no need for a menu - everyone gets salad with mustardy dressing (but not too much mustard), sliced strip steak and french fries. the only thing you order is the doneness of the steak - rare, medium, or well. waitresses dressed in black and white serve you the steak half a portion at a time, each time with fresh french fries.

the steak comes covered in an amazing sauce. jenny and i were trying to figure out what was in the sauce, but we only managed to taste the butter. i'm sure there's other stuff too. it was amazing on the steak, amazing on the fries, and minding my manners was the only thing keeping me from licking my plate clean. salad and steak for $24 - a great deal in the city. reasonably priced bottles of wine (it was $20 for our cote du rhone) and an extra $7 for three tarts (my favorite was the lemon). m has managed to provide an excellent recommendation from the other side of the pond.

j&g steakhouse

washington, dc

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we were staying at the W in washington DC, which has great views of the city from its rooftop bar - you can see the top of the white house! in an effort to be fancy and exclusive, there's a velvet rope and a bouncer managing the line. derek and i managed to skip the line by flashing our room key cards (a nice perk). we wanted to get a good spot in order to see the cherry festival fireworks. once we got up there, however, it wasn't that crowded. (but maybe DC has a different definition of crowded). we snagged the perfect spot with a view of the water and enjoyed yummy strawberry lemonades (infused with alcohol, of course).

by the time the fireworks were over, it was pretty late for dinner. after browsing through a few dinner options in our hotel guide, we learned that the j&g in the hotel's lobby restaurant actually stood for jeans-georges, a famous new york chef. an easy choice for lazy people of somewhat discerning taste. for my entree, i had the snake river farm wagyu sirloin, which was amazing. derek had the bone-in rib eye, which he enjoyed (and considered just a small step below primehouse's 40-day aged rib-eye). for dessert, i had a cookie plate which made a pretty picture and a nice treat. derek had the famous jean-georges molten chocolate cake, which is one of the few desserts he truly enjoys.

churrascaria plataforma

w bway (franklin/white)

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the price of their prix fixe dinner has increased significantly since i took ryan and cindy here on their nyc vacation a few years ago. the price is understandable because it is all-you-can-eat, but i simply don't eat enough to justify the cost. i'm saddened because i like this place - great food and lots of fun. at the beginning of the meal, everyone gets a disc that is green on one side, red on the other. if you leave the red side up, you are free to go to the "salad" bar, which includes sushi, cheese, risotto, salads, various antipasti, and the BEST chicken salad i've ever tasted. i would be completely satisfied with a meal that consisted entirely of the "salad" bar.

but wait, there's more. flip your disc to the green side and that gives the waiters the green light to start bringing you giant slabs of meat. the meat is often carried by the waiter on a spear. if you would like a piece of a particular cut of meat, the waiter slices off a piece for you. there are all different kinds and cuts - duck, filet mignon wrapped in bacon, chicken, sausage, prime rib, sirloin, beef rib, pork rib - even octopus and salmon. my favorite was the sirloin - fatty and juicy with crispy charred spots. amazing. derek has mastered the art of staring down waiters who are carrying his desired cut of meat. it's quite impressive - he spots them as they walk out of the kitchen and stares at them until they walk to our table. with the price, however, this is a restaurant to save for special occasions - maybe the next time will be when cindy and ryan visit the big apple again!

wolfgang's steakhouse

new york, ny

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peter luger is probably one of the most famous steak houses in new york city. it's in brooklyn, though, so derek and i decided to go to wolfgang's, which is a luger emulator started by a former luger waiter. it was valentine's day and derek thought that the porterhouse for 2 (which both luger and wolfgang's are known for) was particularly appropriate.

so we got all dressed up (despite the cold) and trekked down to the tribeca location. upon arriving, we discovered that there's also a park avenue location which is much closer to our apartment. oops. anyway, we ordered the porterhouse medium, side of steamed broccoli, and side of fries. the porterhouse is served on a hot plate which causes the steak to continue to cook while it's at the table. next time i think we should get medium rare. the porterhouse has a black charred crust on top, which derek loves and i found mildly carcinogenic. my favorite part of the meal was the gift that came with dessert (a nice cheesecake) - an adorable teddy bear in a wolfgang's apron to commemorate our special day.

karendipity cooks: steak

new year's day, we decided to eat at home for dinner. derek went downstairs, picked up some steaks, salad, and frozen ore-ida french fries. derek likes rib-eye, i like strip steak. pretty straightforward and easy.

salt and pepper steaks - cook on medium-high heat for about 5 minutes a side. the french fries crisped in the oven in 10 minutes and ended up tasting like mcdonald's french fries (in a good way). i realize that this isn't very impressive other than the fact that i cooked at home instead of eating out, but it was quite delicious.

primehouse

new york, ny

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after reading about primehouse's burger from this article, derek and i decided to try this steakhouse just up the street last night. nice outdoor seating although it's right on park, so there's a lot of foot and car traffic. good for people-watching. i ordered the steakhouse burger (off their bar menu) - which as you can see, was quite the burger - topped with mushrooms, caramelized onions, and steak sauce. good, messy, but i liked derek's rib-eye better!

one of derek's restaurant pet peeves is when they put "fries" on the menu and end up serving potato wedges instead. as you can see, these "fries" were definitely on the wedge-end of the spectrum...