Guides
Best Steakhouses in New York City for a Special Night
The best steakhouses in New York City for a special night — Peter Luger, Keens, Wolfgang's, and the newer names.
The best steakhouses in New York City are, still, some of the best steakhouses anywhere in the world. New York invented the American steakhouse — the dark wood, the martini before the meat, the porterhouse for two — and the classics have earned their reputation. So have some of the newer spots. Here’s where to eat when the occasion calls for it.
Peter Luger: the Brooklyn institution
Peter Luger has been open since 1887 and the menu hasn’t meaningfully changed. Order the porterhouse for two (or three, or four — they scale up), the tomato and onion salad, the German fried potatoes, and a martini. It’s cash or Peter Luger card only, which is the kind of anachronism that makes the place what it is. The dry-aging is the point, and no one else in New York does it with the same institutional muscle memory.
Keens Steakhouse: the Herald Square classic
Keens on West 36th has been open since 1885 and it’s the other New York steakhouse where the room itself is half the meal. The mutton chop is the specific order — a massive, aged chop of lamb that no one else in the city really serves anymore. The porterhouse is excellent too. The bar has one of the best whiskey collections in Manhattan and clay pipes on the ceiling that belonged to famous former patrons. Wear a jacket.
Wolfgang’s Steakhouse: the Peter Luger alumni play
Wolfgang Zwiener spent 40 years as head waiter at Peter Luger before opening his own steakhouse. Wolfgang’s — with locations across Manhattan — is essentially the Luger dry-aged porterhouse experience without the trip to Brooklyn and with a proper wine list. The bacon appetizer, the porterhouse, the creamed spinach. The Park Avenue location is the classic room.
Cote: the Korean steakhouse rewriting the category
Cote in the Flatiron won a Michelin star for a reason — it’s a Korean-American steakhouse where the beef is dry-aged in-house and grilled at your table on smokeless grills. The Butcher’s Feast is the way to go the first time: four cuts of meat, banchan, egg soufflé, kimchi stew at the end. It’s a full performance, and it’s earned its reputation as one of the most exciting steakhouses opened in New York in the last decade.
St. Anselm: the affordable steak worth eating
St. Anselm in Williamsburg is where you go when you want a properly cooked steak without the full steakhouse ceremony. The butcher’s steak (bavette) is under $30, cooked over live fire, served with a little chimichurri. The bone marrow is the appetizer to get. Wine list is small but sharp. It’s the steak dinner you can actually take a first date to without a mortgage.
The Grill: the room that defined New York power dining
The Grill in the Seagram Building is the reboot of the old Four Seasons space, now run by Major Food Group. The steaks are exceptional — the aged sirloin and the ribeye specifically — but the room is the reason you go: floor-to-ceiling walnut, the pool room in the back, waiters who have done this for a long time. It’s an event of a meal.
What to order at a New York steakhouse
Porterhouse or ribeye for the classic experience. Bone-in is better than boneless. Medium-rare is the standard; well-done at a serious steakhouse will earn you a look. Get the creamed spinach, the hash browns, the shrimp cocktail as an appetizer. Order a bottle of Cabernet or a big Bordeaux — this is not the meal for a light red. Cheesecake for dessert if you have room, coffee if you don’t.
Reservations and pricing reality
The classic steakhouses now run $75-$120 per steak, and with sides and wine you’re at $200 a person minimum. That’s the reality. Reservations two to four weeks out for weekends at Luger, Keens, Cote, and The Grill. Cash preferred at Luger; cards fine everywhere else. Tipping is 20% at least on the pre-tax total.
When to go for the special occasion
Weeknights are calmer, wine service is more attentive, and you can hear the conversation at your table. Weekends are for the theater of it. Neither is wrong. If it’s a birthday or anniversary, mention it when you book — most of these places will do a small acknowledgment at dessert.
If you want the more casual side of New York dining, our roundup of late-night restaurants in NYC is what you’ll want after a steak dinner ends. Every steakhouse above is on the NewYorkEatsguide map.
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