Filet Mignon – The Crown Jewel Worth Every Penny
If you’re eating steak at a restaurant, going all-in on a buttery, medium-rare filet is the smart move. The beauty of a well-executed filet mignon lies in its tender texture and subtle beef flavor. When you’re paying steakhouse prices, you want that perfect pink center that’s practically impossible to achieve consistently in your home kitchen. This isn’t the cut you experiment with at home very often, making it truly special when done right by professionals.
This cut doesn’t need fancy sauces or complicated preparations – just a skilled chef who understands temperature control. Pair the filet with fries or creamed spinach, and you’re in for a memorable experience. The tenderness melts on your tongue in ways that make you understand why this cut commands premium prices.
Fresh Oysters – The Perfect Palate Cleanser
Briny, shimmering oysters are an ideal way to start a meal, and there’s something magical about the way those salty bursts cleanse your palate before the richness of steak arrives. Many steakhouses – especially those on the coasts – take pride in their daily mollusk offerings. Think of it like pressing the reset button on your taste buds before the main event.
If there are multiple varieties, ordering a medley for the table with all the accouterments creates a shared experience. The contrast between the ocean’s freshness and the upcoming land-based feast creates this beautiful culinary rhythm that gets your taste buds excited. Some might skip the mignonette, but a squeeze of lemon really makes these little treasures shine.
Caesar Salad – When It’s Done Right
Getting the Caesar as long as the croutons are house-made is worth it – it’s worth asking if the croutons are house-made or not. If you’re going for a salad at a steakhouse, it has to be a classic, and a savory Caesar pairs well with both beef and seafood. This isn’t about ordering the healthiest option – it’s about getting something that complements the richness of your main course.
A proper Caesar cuts through all that meat and fat with its acidic dressing and sharp parmesan. If the restaurant is making crispy croutons in the back and using real Parmesan, it’s all worth it. But if those croutons come from a bag, you’re better off skipping this entirely and saving room for something more spectacular.
Truffle Fries – Simple Yet Essential
Truffle, Parmesan, or simple salt and pepper – no matter how the steakhouse fries are seasoned, you want them on your table. Fries often pair nicely with steak and can be dipped in some of the meat’s juices, too. There’s something deeply satisfying about dragging a perfectly crispy fry through the remnants of a good steak’s natural juices.
These aren’t your average fast-food fries – steakhouses typically use high-quality potatoes and seasonings that elevate this simple side. The contrast between the crispy exterior and fluffy interior provides the perfect textural counterpoint to your tender steak. Sometimes the most straightforward choices are exactly what your meal needs.
Crab Cakes – Surf Meets Turf Excellence
A lot of steak houses have been impressive with their crab cakes. The best ones are golden and crisp on the edges and fluffy and tender inside. In many experiences, steakhouses tend to do a good job on the crab-to-filler ratio – you want crab cakes, not breadcrumb cakes – and they often come with a tasty, tangy tartar sauce for dipping.
It might seem counterintuitive to order seafood at a steakhouse, but quality establishments understand that surf and turf is a classic combination, and when they do crab cakes right, they respect the ingredient and don’t try to stretch it with cheap fillers. The sweet crab meat provides a lovely contrast to the beef you’re about to enjoy, creating layers of flavor that make the whole meal more interesting.
Chocolate Lava Cake – The Sweet Finale
Finishing meals with a chocolate lava cake is often the move – chocolate lava cakes are basic but often tasty, and somehow, this intense, dense cake has become a steakhouse staple. Though many aren’t generally cake people, making an exception for a warm, lava-centered chocolate number topped with fast-melting vanilla ice cream makes sense.
After all that savory richness, your palate craves something sweet and comforting – it’s predictable, sure, but sometimes predictable is exactly what you need to close out a perfect steakhouse experience. Of course, you need enough spoons so everyone at the table can have a bite of chocolate lava cake. Sharing dessert is part of the steakhouse ritual that brings people together.
Chicken Breast – The Uninspired Choice
Chicken breast is never a first choice anywhere – for starters, you want the flavor and richness of dark meat, and why would you risk a dried-out piece of poultry when you’re dining at (and paying higher prices for) a restaurant that specializes in perfectly cooked red meat? It’s really that simple – you’re at a steakhouse, which means you’re paying premium prices for their specialty, and you wouldn’t even order chicken if you weren’t getting steak.
This isn’t about chicken being bad – it’s about being smart with your money and expectations. Steakhouses train their cooks to master beef temperatures and techniques. When you order chicken at a place that specializes in steak, you’re asking them to step outside their wheelhouse while paying top dollar for the privilege.
Wedge Salad – The Disappointing Classic
Whenever you see a wedge salad on a menu, disappointment follows because wedge salads are some of the worst salads that have ever been placed on the face of this earth, with the first red flag being that most wedge salads call for iceberg lettuce, which is one of the least flavorful leafy greens. It tastes of little more than water, so really all you get from it is the crisp texture, which is why they have to cover your wedge of iceberg in the most over-the-top salad dressings available – usually something ranch- or blue cheese-adjacent, and because the lettuce is so light, all you can really taste is the dressing itself.
Sure, you get a bit of flavor from the random ingredients, like bacon bits, sprinkled over the creation, but it’s not enough to save this salad from disappointment, and some wedge salads are better than others, but ultimately, most of them can’t help but disappoint. You’re essentially paying restaurant prices for a quarter of a head of lettuce drowning in dressing.
Lobster Mac and Cheese – All Show, No Substance
Mac and cheese is a classic side dish, but when it’s filled with lobster, it becomes more about the show than it is about flavor – lobster mac and cheese takes a basic, often budget-friendly dish and attempts to turn it into a slightly fancier, more elevated dish with the inclusion of lobster, one of the priciest ingredients on any menu. Lobster itself doesn’t have much of a strong flavor, and the subtle seafood notes are completely lost in the midst of the overwhelming cheese sauce, leaving you with just a strange texture in your otherwise creamy mac and cheese.
Not only is the flavor of lobster mac and cheese generally unimpressive, but the addition of lobster raises the price of this staple side dish precipitously – most of the time, you’re going to pay way more for lobster mac and cheese than you would for the plain stuff. Executive chefs note that unless you’re in a restaurant that offers some type of lobster dish or is passionate about their seafood program, the lobster meat was brought prefabricated in a sealed bag, and because lobster is so expensive, chefs and owners are less likely to throw this item out and will hold on to it longer, potentially past its time of peak deliciousness.
Creamed Spinach – The Steam Tray Tragedy
Creamed spinach is a savory and memorable dish people often order, but at many chain or corporate steakhouses, creamed spinach often turns into a watery, bland, and overcooked mess – it’s usually been held in a steam tray too long, losing that fresh, vibrant flavor and turns mushy. When it’s done well, freshly made with a proper cream reduction and a little nutmeg or parmesan it can be fantastic. But those perfect versions are increasingly rare.
The problem isn’t the concept – creamed spinach can be absolutely delicious when made fresh. The issue is that most steakhouses prep this hours in advance and let it sit under heat lamps or in warming trays, turning what should be a silky, flavorful side into something that resembles green mush. You’re paying premium prices for what amounts to cafeteria-quality vegetables.
The reality of steakhouse dining comes down to understanding what these restaurants do best and where they cut corners. These are places where chefs and servers are well-versed in the art of making recommendations, but not every recommendation serves your best interests. Smart diners focus on what steakhouses have perfected over decades – exceptional cuts of meat, fresh seafood, and classic preparations that have stood the test of time. Skip the gimmicky additions and overpriced sides that detract from the main event. Your wallet and your taste buds will thank you for choosing quality over quantity every single time.
