I Tried The Best Steak in America

Is a great steak really worth the price? You're spending the most amount of money for the simplest thing. Steak, salt, pepper. So today we're gonna answer that question by going on a journey trying the best steaks in the United States. From the oldest steakhouse in American history to this giant 72 ounce steak that anyone can get for free. All the way to the number one voted steakhouse in the USA. To find out what is not only the best experience but a meal that's actually worth our money. And we're starting our journey off in Las Vegas. Ah, Vegas. Slot machines, bright lights, and a million celebrity steakhouses. Here we're going to two of the top celebrity restaurants starting at one of my idols, Gordon Ramsay. This is a huge moment. I'm a little scared because I've loved him for so long and I've watched him almost my whole life. But this will be the first time I've ever tasted his food. Obviously we got the Wellington, got the trio beef, and then we got a dry aged New York strip. So there's a good spread here. We'll be able to properly judge this. I'm joined by my friends. We have RJ, we have Graham, we have Jack. RJ, I think we're gonna have, you're the voice of the people. I'll try. Graham and Jack, you guys know good food, but you also know value of a food. So I need your help on that end. Deal. So we're gonna taste each of these and we'll announce our favorite at the end. The steak does look nicely cooked, that I'll say. It has a nice char to it. It's a little chewy. How much was this? I think it was like a hundred and something dollars. Yeah, it was not cheap. This is good. I don't think financially it's worth it. I will say it's a little under seasoned, but it's cooked really nicely. Shall we try the trio of beef? Just pick up a piece and try it. I'll explain these. So this one's the A5. Melted in your mouth. Salted really nice. It has like a nice little like pop to it when you bit down on it. Not my cup of tea. It's too buttery. That A5 might've been one of the best bites of steak I've ever had in my entire life. American Wagyu. This was fantastic. The American Wagyu was a little bit better. It's less aggressively rich. The last one, prime beef. I like the texture of it. You know, it felt like a nice cut of meat, but I felt like it had more body to it. When you bit, you can feel it. Yeah, there's some chew. That one was my least favorite in terms of flavor, but in texture, I agree. It's balanced. It's not overly fatty. It's not overly lean. Overall favorite, what I would order. Second favorite, I thought the Japanese Wagyu was better, and then the American at the bottom. One we've all been waiting for. The one that Gordon's entire brand has been leaning on, which is the Beef Wellington. So let's try it. I think for like a Beef Wellington, especially someone that's so known for their Beef Wellington, I like the texture. I like the flavors. It's good, and it makes sense because this is Gordon's brand. You know, this is the one thing that they are not gonna screw up, and it's seasoned perfectly. The flavor's great. The beef is cooked absolutely perfectly. It melts in your mouth, and the pastry's cooked beautifully. A 10 out of 10. This is perfect. 11 out of 10. That was first time ever having Beef Wellington. Phenomenal. So my first Gordon meal is complete. We had the New York Strip for $109, the Trio of Beef for $165, and the famous Beef Wellington for $85 each. The New York Strip was a classic, and the Trio of Beef, luxurious, but the Wellington had the most hype, and I gotta say, it delivered, and at the cheapest price tag, clearly the best value, but this is just our first spot. Nice work, Gordon. Happy to say I still love you. Now, moving on. Onto Bizarre Meat by Jose Andres. He constantly is advocating for humanitarian efforts. He's also a Michelin-starred chef, and was named as one of time's 100 most influential people twice. To speak on his food, though, when Gordon is to the UK, Jose is to Spain. He's always kept it innovative, but he's most known for his authentic Spanish food. I'll be honest, walking into this restaurant, I can tell we're in for a wild ride. Now, we came here to try three cuts of meat, but they were incredibly kind, and they sent out a mountain of food at no charge. We ate beyond discomfort. Literally, we were eating for three hours, but somewhere mixed in there, we actually had the bites we came for, starting off with their A5 Philly Cheese Steak. Came completely differently than I thought. It's sort of like an inflated bread, and then sliced A5 Wagyu on top. Holy, that is insane. That is delicious. It's airy, the cheese is incredible, the steak is perfect. I love that. So, we got the inside scoop that this restaurant cost $40 million to create. The fact that you can order one of these for $19, and it's one of the best and most unique bites of food you've ever had in your entire life, that makes no sense to me. I don't think that that can or needs to be improved. I think that might be a 10 out of 10. It's really a banger. Next up, they brought out their A5 Wagyu, cooked beautifully table-side. The way you eat this is you take a touch of that wasabi and kind of spread it on there, and then I wouldn't recommend eating this in one bite. Cut off a small strip. Oh man, that cut like butter. This is phenomenal. For A5, it's actually not overly fatty. Like, a lot of the time with A5, it's so fatty and greasy you can barely swallow it. I do wish that they put a little more salt on it, but the sauce, you have to have the sauce. I do like that it's not heavy. Plus, with the actual real wasabi, it makes a great flavor. Do they have A1 steak sauce? I would get it. We have another steak. This is the filet mignon. Wow. I would take the beef wellington over that. Oh! But this is really good. The piece de resistance. This is the ribeye. This is one of their iconic pieces. This is the mix between the Angus and the American Wagyu. This has the perfect mix of like beefy, but also not overly beefy. Like, a grass-fed steak is almost too beefy. This is nice and mild, yet you still have that forward, roasty beef flavor. It's not too fatty, but it's not too lean. Out of all the ribeyes I've had, it's up there. This was an incredible experience, and it was not cheap, but somehow it felt worth it overall for how special it was. Now let's talk about prices. We had the A5 Wagyu for $60 an ounce, beef tenderloin dish with foie gras for $110, and the two and a half pound ribeye for a whopping $287.50, over $100 a pound. And finally, the cheesesteak blew us away, and at $17 each, it might've been one of our most memorable bites of the year. You could just get a few of these and be a happy camper. Now, who is better, Jose or Gordon? Honestly, I love them both, and they're special in their own right. I couldn't pick one. Now, moving on. We're now entering a spot that isn't just famous. It is the bedrock of American steakhouses. Laurie's The Prime Rib is literally the first prime rib restaurant that was founded in the US, which was ultimately founded in 1938. And it's known for one thing and one thing only, massive shining trolleys filled with prime rib cooked to perfection. Carved table side, this could be the most theatrical steak experience that we've had thus far. I'll be honest though, the beef looks good. It's heritage, it's technique, it's the flavor of beef done right. We did get the famous spinning salad. I've always wanted to try this. It's good. It's like a standard steakhouse salad. Seasoned nicely, good acidity, a little crunchy romaine, but we're still waiting for the main event. Look, there's not a whole lot to say. This is a very simple dish. So because it's simple, there's not a lot to hide. The question is how good is it? Super tender, whoa. It's good. I wouldn't say it's phenomenal. You guys didn't get any rib cap. Try this rib cap. Wow. That right there was the best bite of prime rib I've ever had in my life. Right there. It's very hard to flavor prime rib all the way to the center with salt because it's so big. And I think this is seasoned quite nicely, but they did a good job with the jus and the gravy, which provide all the salt. I mean, it's cooked very nicely. Out of all the ribeyes that exist in the world, I won't say that it's like the best ribeye I've ever had, but from a prime rib standpoint, this is like a really well-executed classic ribeye. The prices were insanely good here. We each got a cut of prime rib that was between $41 and $52, depending on how big your steak was. And each came with sides. This is by far the best value. I mean, I can't believe it, but I know we'll find a better steak and we could even find a better value. And I'll be surprising this next place might just do it. We've left the polished dining rooms behind and now we're in the middle of nowhere. Amarillo, Texas. Off Route 66. Now this stop ain't about no Michelin stars, and it's definitely not about white tablecloths. It's about the most legendary steak challenge in America. Attention, big Texan! We have just attempted our 72-ounce challenge! The rules are simple. I need to finish this 72-ounce steak, which is four and a half pounds, a baked potato, a salad, three fried shrimp, and a roll within an hour, or I need to cough up $72. Honestly, at this point, it's actually kind of a crazy deal. And if I can't finish it, I'm hoping at least the 2019 World's Strongest Man, Martins, can. Are you ready? I am ready. I'm so ready. With only 12% of people finishing this challenge, the odds are definitely against us. But it's just some big fat steak. Is it even good? Honestly, the steak is seasoned really nicely. Salt levels are perfect. Got a garlicky, peppery kind of rub on it. I feel great. Honestly, I don't think I could do this without Martins next to me. I feel like I'm protected by a guardian angel. Enjoying the food. It's delicious. I'm curious at which point will this go from totally delicious to this is work. I feel like I'm not making a dent. I thought I was done with half the steak, but I still have all this. We're 15 minutes in. My jaw's a little tired. I think I'm at 45%. We're on track to beat this. Oh, we're doing good. Once a bite gets boring, you gotta do something to make it exciting. And I hate to say this, but I'm putting ketchup on this steak. Truly impressed out of space. I'm trying here. I still have quite a bit. I cannot let this place have my $70. God, it's either my jaw is tired or I'm hitting chewy piece after chewy piece. We were rocking and rolling till about the 35 minute mark. Some of these drier pieces are really hard to get through. There's one piece I just gave up on. I just swallowed it. The dinner roll helps a little. Now I'm hungry again. I have a whole potato left. No chewing. It's heavy, but your jaw gets a break. Nah, I don't think that's the move. I just felt this. And I was just like, that's just like concentration. Martins, you're at 30 minutes. How you doing? Stomach? No problem. My face muscles for the smiling. No more. No more smile. The jaw muscles I can't feel anymore. Nose gone. If I scoot it over, it looks like I ate half. That's two pounds down, 30 minutes in. I know it sounds crazy, but can I get another roll? That might've been a mistake. Let's cheer him on, Joshua and Martins! Yay! Besides sweating, meat juice, Martins and I started hallucinating. Maybe a lot. I'm not even thinking right now. I'm just letting my body take over. Eat faster! 15 minutes left to go. Can I get it done? This doesn't feel good anymore. Oh God. Not losing it. Not putting up a fight. Martins was barely holding on at this point. It's like endurance running, but for your jaw. That bite was rough. All my days. I'm fine. At this point, I only had five minutes left on the clock. I'm so done with chewing. Hell, dude. I ate the salad, I ate two rolls, I ate almost the potato. Allow my name to be forgotten with the wind. Yeah, I know, Vic. I can see you looking up at the damn clock. I know. I really want you to do it. I want to do it too, dude, but me. How does everyone do two so fast? I was so close, and I wanted to win this challenge so bad, but I'm going to be honest with you. I was on the edge of, let's just say, losing my lunch. And if you do that, you also lose. So I spared everyone the view and let the timer run out. Two, one. Sweet Martins, clocked out as well. Three, two, one. How far along do you think we got? Probably a fifth left in mine. You got like a tenth left in yours. You could go in with all the attitude in the world. Whoever finishes this is not a human. We got close. No cigar. That means we're paying a grand total of $144. Honestly, it's not a bad deal because you still got to eat. How can you talk right now? You're the same guy that you were when you first came in here. It was a fair play. I think it's a good deal. We did our fight, but this is not the end. We're moving on. When you think of some of the greatest beef in the world, I'm sure your mind goes immediately to Wagyu. Turns out, some of the best Wagyu might not even be coming from Japan. I think Texas is producing some of the best Wagyu beef in the world. Full blood Japanese Wagyu cattle being born and raised in Texas. It's done locally here in the restaurant Isidore, which we're in right now. This restaurant happens to also be one of the top 50 restaurants in the United States of America, according to New York Times. I have Kate with me. Kate is my wife. We started off with a nice crudo Wagyu beef tartlet, a beef butter with bread service, made table side, and a giant tender short rib. All great highlights with great texture. Let's be real. We're here for the main event, the steak. We have the Flatiron here, the Denver here. Here's what's unique about these two pieces. Very, very important. These aren't the typical filet mignon rib eye steak that you're gonna see. The only steaks they're highlighting are butcher cuts. These are the cuts that are forgotten. Places are afraid to serve them to guests because they're not the typical steak, but also they tend to be chewier. And what they're saying is this beef is so god dang good, we're gonna go with the least popular cut. So let's see how that goes. I wanna start with the Flatiron. That's incredible. One of the best pieces of beef I've ever had. It's got that unctuous, meaty, deep, rich, beefy flavor, but it's not like overwhelmingly grassy or anything like that. And then the intramuscular fat makes it just so juicy. And this one has some bite. There's a little chew to it, but it's a good chew. This is delicious. This is a Denver steak. The way that that develops a crust and the intramuscular fat on this piece is way more. This is a lot more rich, but again, not overly so. Also, the seasoning on this is so good. It's incredible. They do kind of have very similar flavors, but it's still delicious. We had two steaks at Isidore, $86 each. I'd probably choose the Flatiron for me personally. Not too bad of a value, but the whole tasting menu itself was very special and highly recommended. Texas is doing great, but for the next one, I want to cover some Hall of Famers, which is going to take us to New York. Up next is Peter Luger, which I would argue is the most iconic steakhouse in existence. Now, they have many steaks, but they are famous for one, a secret method that they've held close to them that they have been kind enough to show us. It's very specific, so here's how it's done. So we're in one of the most iconic meat lockers in existence. This is the final one. There are three total. This is the final boss of meat lockers. This is like the last rack. These are ready to roll. Exactly. All these shortloins here are ready to be butchered and then brought upstairs to our kitchen. So the butcher's going to cut it, trim them up. I think it's time we learn how to cook this thing. So these are all the meat you've seen butchered. That's all now brought up. This is our meat fridge. They season their steak with only salt. It gets broiled for a few minutes, flipped, broiled a little longer, then it lands on a plate of clarified butter where it's then sliced and then placed back in the broiler to finish. I've never seen someone slice a steak and then finish it again. Why not cook it all the way through? Is this really going to make the steak better? When they cut it, put it back on the platter and go back in. It forms this like steak juice butter sauce. And then we'll tip the plate so that it all kind of pools together. Don't leave the kitchen if the steak isn't sizzling. We need that sizzle. I want to hear it. You were nice enough to give me a shot at making one. So very simply, they only season one side. They don't season both sides. They do a lot of salt coverage so the fat can come up through the salt and moisturize the salt, create a little bit of a crust. Then when you flip it, the excess falls off and you have hopefully a perfectly seasoned steak and a nice crust. It's a technique I'm not really sure I've seen before. It's unique to this place. Just flip it and you tap it a little bit, yeah? Typically I would use a chef knife, but they're using literally just a steak knife to do it all. I tripped my hand at cutting it like they did, but I'm gonna be honest, this little knife was, let's just say that I did not have a muscle memory for that. Oh my God, magic, what? And then back in, yeah? Yeah. Now we wait for it to finish. This is the last step. Once it's finished, the waiter picks it up and delivers it to the table. Every single waiter in this restaurant has a pager. They don't pick up the steak within a minute of them being paged. They won't really last here as a waiter. And finally, it was time to taste. A peculiar technique. So how good is it? That's OG service right there. This is the filet. Damn, that's really good. Ton of flavor in that filet too, which you normally don't get. I think it has a lot to do with the fact that the juices from the strip side are kind of co-mingling with what's going on with the filet. So you're getting some of the flavor from the strip in the filet. New York strip. I really was worried about the one-sided salting, but it worked so well. It really is actually very good. Joining us on our New York steak adventure is seasoned channel taste tester and director Vikram. That filet is great. This has the crispy crust on the outside. It's as tender on the inside, but you have a really good textural experience as well. I think the flavor penetrates a lot deeper. The salt, I can taste in every bite, not just on the crust. It seems like when I was looking at it, it seemed like, okay, I'd go on the crust, it'd fall off, maybe a bit would get through, but the entire thing has a good amount of flavor, has a good amount of salt, and the crust on the top really brings it home. I think I can enjoy another like eight bites of this thing. Even though it's huge, I want to keep eating. Whatever the value is of it, I think it's worth it. Good check. They were very sweet. They comped their whole thing, which was very nice of them. That said, if we did have to pay for this, I'd say it's a pretty decent deal on a steak for two for about $135. Total, that's $67.50 a person. I was coming in with the wrong attitude, thinking they're stuck in their ways. These guys, they're a household name. That's why they're still running. And after tasting this, I'm now realizing that they're still running because they're holding on to the practices that got them successful in the first place. And they've just maintained that quality. And that is it. I think I have to come here every time I come to New York. I mean, it's been around for so long for a reason, and I get it. Incredible work. Moving on. Next up is the oldest steakhouse in America. Why has it stood the test of time? Is the food really that good? Let's find out. You know, it's been a while since I've been to a steakhouse where they don't slice the steak for you, but I kind of like it in a way. Gotham rib steak. This is what they're known for. It's basically a bone-in ribeye. I was skeptical when I saw it go on the flat top. He got a great color on it. He changed the cooking method three different times. First, it was flat top, then it was broiler, then it was grilled, then it was back to the flat top, then rested, then back to the flat top. The quality of the beef literally cooked perfectly, which is actually very good. The crust is really nice. This is a very unadulterated steak. I mean, it's literally just salt, pepper, I think a few other spices, but you really get the beef flavor from this. Possibly even more than some of the other steakhouse. Can't remember the amount of time that he said it was dry-aged, but they're not over dry-aging it. I mean, you taste the dry-age. You can still taste the beef. I do wish there was a touch, touch, touch more salt. I do like a little bit of brown butter on there. I wish I had a little bit more of that. Plating is old school, because what do I do with this parsley and burnt garlic? All right, let's check it out. What am I really coming here for? I think it's that flavor. The dry-aged flavor really takes it a step up. The beef flavor is very forward, just very classic experience. This one alone, I'd just be happy. I wouldn't say this is the most extravagant steak I've ever had. Going to somewhere like Jose Andres, I'm having flavors that I've never tasted before. Honestly, I'd say this is a bit better than the Wellington experience I had, just from a textural experience, but I definitely would put this above something like a Laurie's. I think an aged ribeye cooked with this much texture and flavor goes a lot higher than something like that would. The bone-in filet mignon. It's cooked pretty damn nice. The bone does nothing for the steak at all. It looks cool, but it truly does nothing for the steak at all. It's also lacking a little bit of flavor and seasoning. So which steak was the better value? Super tender 15-ounce prime filet mignon for $85, or the bigger, fattier 24-ounce Gotham rib steak for actually, surprisingly, the same price? I'm always gonna pick a ribeye over a filet mignon, let's be honest. All in all, these are both great steaks. It's kind of an OG establishment. I mean, we're talking old-school, served simply. They're not trying to reinvent the wheel. The way that they've always been served, so all the young kids out there, if you want to go and find an old-school steak experience, this is the place to go. Moving on. We're at the number one churrascaria in New York City, Churrascaria Plataforma. And joining me today is Henry, aka the Sandwich King, Salt Hank. If you don't know how churrascaria works, it's very simple, right? Red means stop, green means go. You leave it on green, they're gonna keep bringing you meat. But we're just gonna really focus on the picanha here, because that's kind of what makes the Brazilian steakhouse special, right? It's the plastic Brazilian cut. Top sirloin, absolutely stunning. So let's flip things to green. It's a service right at your table that never gets old. No, that's perfect. It's just juicy, it's nice, it's beefy. Top sirloin's actually one of the most flavorful cuts of beef you can get. But what I love about it is it's actually quite tender. This is my favorite part right here. That fat cap on the outside. I do wish there was a touch more salt. I agree, actually. Long story short, we are here for the picanha. Is this picanha good? It's excellent. It's flavorful, it's delicious, most flavorful cut of beef. It's juicy. It's not the best steak I've ever had, but it just delivers. I could eat this all day long, feel good, and happy. Unlimited meat plus a limited salad bar costs $84 a person without tip and tax. I mean, that's insane value. Kind of hard to beat that. The more you can eat, the better the value it is. So let's move on to the number one steakhouse in America. Our steak tour across America ends here at Cote. It's been rated the best steakhouse in all of America and number 10 in the world. And this place is dramatically different from every steakhouse we've visited so far. It's America's first and only Michelin-starred Korean steakhouse, and I'm a firm believer Korean barbecue is one of the best ways to enjoy meat. It also turns out that Salt Hank might be Cote's biggest fan, like ever. We ordered the Butcher's Feast, which comes with four cuts of prime and wagyu beef plus banchan and a few tasty sides for a shockingly good price, which I'll reveal at the end. But we did add some Japanese wagyu for a pretty significant upcharge. Maybe the wagyu's worth it. This really is gonna come down to the quality of the beef and how well they execute the grilling. Meat first, by itself. Cheers. It's so good. It's really good. He has this like poker face. It's the best meat ever. It's juicy. It's nice. I'm enjoying it. What happens when you cut into a steak that hasn't rested? Juice just flows out of it. He didn't let the steak rest, but we're eating it, so when we bite into it, that juice is just shooting into your mouth. Next, we tried some American wagyu. I think the texture's actually perfect. The flavor is so much higher. By the end of this meal, I'm picking my favorite cut. You should pick yours. So far, we have the American wagyu flat iron, which so far is my favorite. Onto the next, USDA Prime is up again, but this time, dry-aged ribeye. Big flavor, out the gate, and then immediately lost. American wagyu, New York strip. Yeah. I agree with you. I've said this before. I really believe American wagyu is the best cut of beef, more than A5. A5 is like all the way on the extreme spectrum. Prime is over here. I want something in the middle, where I can eat a lot of it, but it's not so fatty that I'm eating butter. This has kind of hidden that. It's so tender, so juicy, so fatty, a really nice crisp crust. Love that one. That's my favorite one so far. Yeah, I actually agree. So this is the short rib galbi, marinated, it's meat candy. Cheers. If this wasn't marinated, I would say this is immediately my favorite choice, but I feel like that's an unfair winner. It's so perfect. The fat content, it's not too fatty, but it also is so rich and unctuous. The beefiness comes through, the sweetness from the marinade, a little smoky char, it's crispy. God damn it, that was good. If I'm not considering the marinade, this is my favorite bite, but I'm gonna disqualify just because it's not pure meat, and that's not really a fair comparison to the other steaks. We still have two more cuts. It all comes down to this. The supposed king of all meats, the Japanese A5 Wagyu, at the number one steakhouse in the USA. Tenderloin A5, you ready? Come on, right? It's so good. It's really good. It's almost a little too much. I think I just love fat. It's really good. Yeah, it's so tender. Literally biting through butter. Obviously the extra fat is contributing a little bit more meatiness to it, a little bit more richness and unctuousness that the other fillet just simply didn't have. It's more tender. It has more flavor. How could it not be better? You ready? I think this is gonna be, like, at least top two bites of the night. Love A5. All right. Come on, it's so, so good. Like, the flavor is so deep. It almost has, like, an umami quality to it, and there's just salt. That's my favorite so far. I'm gonna put this neck and neck with the American Wagyu strip loin, because I can eat much more of the American Wagyu strip loin, and this is so rich. I can barely take this last bite. It's so much fat, but flavor and the texture is superior. My favorite is the New York strip American Wagyu by a slight margin. Is this the best steakhouse experience that we had? It's a perfect marriage of two things. The experience that a Korean barbecue brings combined with really high quality, diverse selection of good steaks. I also want to point out, there is an array of acidic, amazing kimchi that help cut through all of this fat and beef that are singing right now in my mouth. So how does this all stack up? First, we got the butcher's feast, which was $70 per person. And that comes with four cuts of beef, plus sides, which was plenty of food. But we went overboard and got a bite of A5, most prized beef in the world. And that brings it up to $110 a person. That's more than worth it. What was truly the best value? In terms of price per pound, actually Big Texan's 72 ounce steak for $72, clearly a winner. But in terms of a full meal, plus flavor, plus experience, it's nice, fancy, meat is incredibly high quality. If you just get the butcher's feast, then Cote ends up being the best value. Where was the best experience overall? Personally, I'd say Jose Andres Bizarre Meat tops the list for me, and Cote was a close second. So you clearly don't have to empty your entire wallet just to find some value at America's most famous steakhouses. Subscribe, love ya. I love you too. I love you. I was talking to them. I love you too.