Mickey Mantle's Steakhouse in Oklahoma City's Bricktown district. Classy, featuring memorabilia of Yankee #7, with live jazz on weekends.

I have to say I love Ruth's Chris. We don't have one locally so when we do get to go it's always a treat - the au gratin potatoes are to die for!

I've been to the Morton's here in Cincinnati and was unimpressed. My filet was too fatty and the sides were just okay and much smaller portions than Ruth's. Perhaps the original in Chicago is better.

Props also go to the local Jeff Ruby steakhouses here in town.

The Big Island, Hawaii. The Parker ranch has fantastic beef. Must be all the natural and lush vegetation, but we have consistently had melt-in-your-mouth steaks everywhere on the island. The Kilauea lodge, near the volcano, is heavenly if you get the opportunity to visit! Their dining room has some of the best choices for beef I've ever tasted.

Hey Dan, thanks for the heads up. We have been planning to eat at the Morton's at One Canal Place in NOLA for several years but haven't gotten around to it. The one is Chicago IS to die for. I can't believe no one else has remarked on Capital Grill in Boston. C'mon guys! We'll be eating there in November, I'll update after our Boston trip but I expect a command performance on our 3rd return visit. Hey, the first time we ate there, Seinfeld was there with Shoshanna!

Atmosphere is a big part of steak houses. If I had to pick my favorite steakhouse experience it would have to be Smith and Wollensky in South Beach.

One of the great locations for any restaurant on the government cut (where the big ships go to port). Excellent moderately- aged steaks, bargain priced cold lobster appetizer, superb wines by the glass as well as the bottle, iced champagne flutes, quiet understated service. Everything clicks for me here including their dim sum brunch.
A window seat watching the cruise ships sail by of course just tops the experience.

Re: Berns and that goofy 500 page wine list. It is a throwback IMHO to the time that business entertainment included the ostentatious ordering of wine to impress. Lots of unbelievably overpriced wines ordered and drunk by the unknowing. Then there is that bordello decor! It is lost somewhere in the 70's.

In New York and Chicago I have had great steak dinners at the Palm but its been a while. I usually do French or continental when in New York these days.

A few weeks ago I had a wretched dinner with lousy service at Shulas on the Beach in Fort Lauderdale. (Think Outback)

LMF

We very rarely opt for a seaekhpuse when we go out to eat. I can get a great prime steak, and cook it on my grill and be just as satisfied. I like to eat at restaurants that have food I usually do not cook at home. Judy :-)

Texas Roadhouse in Indiana..

I'm with Judy! we grill most of the year and can get EXCELLent meat at
local markets. Mr R5 is a great cook.
Soooooo..my favorite steakhouse is our deck!>:D<
I have eaten at Mortons/Chicago and found it unimpressive-If I'm out and ordering it won't be mucho dinero for steak, maybe it's just the SFBay Area influence. IMHO I don't see steak offered that often here...
Now in Tucson... <):)
R5

Glad to see Oklahoma City was mentioned, but suprised to see Cattleman's steak house wasn't listed. Perhaps this isn't as good as it used to be? My husband has eaten at the Saltgrass steakhouses in Houston and said they were very good.

There are a lot of great steakhouses in OKC, and Cattlemen's is the legend among them. But my favorite is Mickey Mantle's. It delivers on everything --preparation, service, location, and ambience.

Chicago - Gibson's
Tampa - Bern's - About 1/2 of the wines in the phonebook size wine list are served by glass. I don't know of any other place in the world that has that kind of selection by glass. The steaks are great, the atmosphere, the dessert upstairs..... it's an experience!
Las Vegas - Prime
Few others but can't remember the names and places now(to protect the innocent):-)

Never ate the Capital Grill in Boston but did at the one in Chicago and thought it was decent. They actually brought me two steaks, without me saying anything, since they realized they originally grilled the wrong one.

Wow, AAFrequentFlyer. There are something like 10,000 wines in the Bern's wine book. Are you saying 5,000 of them are available by the glass? I don't remember that at all. Or is that a new thing? I haven't been there for a while. Not since the night a young couple staged a big fight and threw all their food across the dining room, planning to be kicked out without paying. They were foiled when the police were called, and management wouldn't release their car until they paid -- something they weren't prepared to do.

But I will say, it's the first place I ever saw a dry martini ordered and they bring the eyedropper, asking how many drops of vermouth. That was pretty cool in the 70's.

Maybe I was exaggerating just a bit :-)PATRICK, but yes, I have not found a place anywhere in the world that has such an extensive list of wines by the glass. I may be wrong, I do believe that out of 7000 wines they do serve about 500 by the glass.

I try to visit before any big trip since I fly out of TPA. It has been a tradition for me. Never dissapointed.

I have eaten at Morton's of Chicago and thought it was very good. i have also heard good reviews for The Capital Grille in Philadelphia.

Plaza III in Kansas City.

Metropolitan Grill in Seattle. Wonderful menu, great wine list, awesome service!

Morton's has consistently been the best in my experience. Capital Grille is also stellar.

Mickey Mantle's in OKC is excellent, but not up to the two above. Never been to Cattleman's, but had colleagues who went there and were very disappointed.

I've been to both Sparks and Peter Lugers, although not within the last 5 years. At the time, Peter Lugers was better and neither was as good as Morton's or Capital Grille in my view.

Kilauea Lodge on the Big Island is fabulous all-around, although I did not try their steaks on my visit there just over a week ago.

Off the beaten track, I would have to recommend the Elks Lodge restaraunt (open to the public) in Dickinson, ND. Exceptional food and unbeatable value. E.B. Green's in the Buffalo Hyatt was also a memorable meal.