Delmonico's Steakhouse

Delmonico's Steakhouse has been around for almost 200 years. It's considered to be one of, if not THE, first fine dining restaurants. They also tout being the first to serve several dishes including the Delmonico Steak, Oyster Rockefeller, Lobster Newburg, Baked Alaska, and more. It was finally time for me to try this renowned restaurant.

Delmonico's is still a very old school feeling establishment. With dark wood, chandeliers, and oil paintings on the wall, I felt like stepping into a museum.

I think the aura of the place sits well with what they stand for which is good classic food without all the fuss. But they stand behind the mannerisms that makes places a fine dining destination.

A basket of bread appeared on the table before we even order. Dig in fast because they're warm.

First, we wanted to booze it up a little bit. I asked for a cocktail menu but the waiter ensured me that they can make anything. I asked for a French martini. He had no idea what it was. After a couple of huhs and whats, I asked for a pineapple martini instead. He came back saying they didn't have pineapple juice. So much for being able to do anything. He also handed me a cocktail list. Finally! That's what I asked for in the first place. Anyway, I chose the caipirinha which turned out okay but really strong. Mmm, worth my money in alcohol! One was enough for me.

When I dine at steakhouses, I usually don't get any appetizers. I'd rather get more sides. However, I kind of wanted the foie gras because it was only $21 here. But alas, I was encouraged to listen to my brain and not my stomach or eyes. We went ahead and ordered the Delmonico's Double Rib Chop ($90) which is a 3lb dry aged bone in rib eye.

We ordered it medium rare but it came closer to medium to well done to us. Only 2-4 pieces like below had nice signs of pink. The rest looked more like the above which was very overcooked for us. Booo...

The creamed spinach ($9) was okay. I liked the texture. You can actually detect spinach in it.

The fries ($8) were also good. Nice and crispy browned.

The king crab mac n' cheese ($16) was definitely the best though. Creamy, cheesy, and with a nice crust on top.

Best of all, we found chunks of this in it. Yup, real pieces of crab. In fact, large pieces.

I actually left some room for dessert which was really surprising. The majority of the time, I eat so much (happily) that I don't make it to sweets. However, I knew about that Baked Alaska. It was mine for the taking!

Baked Alaska consists of a thin walnut cake is topped with banana gelato then covered in a meringue. Apricot jam is spread around the plate as well. I really enjoyed this. The walnut cake was kinda dense but I didn't care. The cold gelato wasn't overpowered with banana flavor but the meringue was the winner. It tasted more like marshmallows to me. It was sticky sweet and really went well with the rest of the dessert. I was surprised that I liked this so much because I'm not normally a fan of any of the components.

Delmonico's Steakhouse overall was just okay. I was mainly disappointed in the steak which is the most important thing for me. The sides are good and the dessert better. But if they can't get the meat right, then what's the point? I'm glad I went and would recommend it to people for the allure of going to a place that has so much history. A repeat dining destination? Not so much.

Delmonico's Steakhouse
56 Beaver Street
New York, NY 10004-4130
(212) 509-1144
delmonicosny.com