CUT in Photos, or, the $140 Steak Is Actually Worth It

[kevin h]

Well I finally made it over to CUT this past Saturday. I'm a huge steak fan and had heard a lot of hype about this place, so I expected to be a bit let down. I'm happy to report that CUT exceeded my expectations. In fact, I do not hesitate to say it's the best steakhouse I've been to. What we had:

Prime Sirloin "Steak Tartare", Herb Aioli, Mustard $22
Big Eye Tuna Tartare, Wasabi Aioli, Ginger, Togarashi Crisps, Tosa Soy $22
Kobe Steak Sashimi, Spicy Radishes $22
Maryland Blue Crab & Louisiana Shrimp "Louis" Cocktail, Spicy Tomato-Horseradish $24

U.S.D.A. PRIME, Illinois Corn Fed, Aged 21 Days: Bone In New York Sirloin 20 Oz $51 ($2.55/oz)
U.S.D.A. PRIME, Nebraska Corn Fed, Dray Aged 35 Days: New York Sirloin 14 Oz $58 ($4.14/oz)
American Wagyu / Angus "Kobe Style" Beef From Snake River Farm, Idaho: New York Sirloin 8 Oz $70 ($8.75/oz)
True Japanese 100% Wagyu Beef from Kagoshima Prefecture, Kyushu, Japan: New York Sirloin 6 Oz $120 ($20/oz)
True Japanese 100% Wagyu Beef from Kagoshima Prefecture, Kyushu, Japan: Rib Eye Steak 8 oz $140 ($17.5/oz)
--with 2002 Beringer Private Reserve

Nougat Semifreddo, Apricot Sorbet, Persian Mulberries $14
Chocolate Pudding Cake, Salted Caramel Sauce, Coffee Ice Cream $14
Valrhona Chocolate Soufflé, Milk Chocolate Hazelnut Glacé $14
Gaviota Strawberry Shortcake, Crème Fraiche Gelato, Berry Sorbet $14
--with 2001 Chateau d'Yquem

See here for details and photos: http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fus...

[kealoha]

Kevin, you rock!

[brandygirl]

OMG am I jealous. I want your life! How do you do this? Somehow you are able to go to all of these incredible restaurants quite often, and I can hope and pray to go to one of these every 10 years or so. You've even reported in the past on restaurants that I had no intentions of visiting, and now, thanks to your wonderful descriptions and photos, they are on my "musts."

[rameniac]

haha props man! i'm all for food porn =)

[HungWeiLo]

I'm a relatively young, healthy guy - but just looking at these pictures gave me minor chest pains. :-)

Chowhound needs a "Food Pornography" section.

[rednyellow]

WOW! That's the best reveiw I've seen.

[Clare K]

DAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANNNGGGGG!!

[Diana]

woooo! I wanna go!

[Swoshmn]

My stomach is hating my eyes right now out of jealousy

Beautiful post, and thank you for the review

[goodhealthgourmet]

glad you were so pleased with it. i haven't been yet, but now i really want to go!

for anyone who didn't see the review in wednesday's new york times, frank bruni wasn't quite as impressed...

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/15/din...

[kevin h]

Interesting review. It seems Mr. Bruni's complaints stem not from the food (steaks were "splendid") but from everything else that comes along with the restaurant.

[goodhealthgourmet]

agreed, although 'everything else' can be just as influential as the food when assessing the overall dining experience. all told, though, this was pretty much a rave for bruni...he's typically pretty critical.

for the record, he's also a fan of pizzeria mozza...

http://travel.nytimes.com/2007/05/09/...

i just wish he would award stars when he reviews restaurants in cities besides new york.

[David Kahn]

Nice review and great photos.

[Veggietales]

YOur review would turn any Cut naysayers over. Beautiful pictures, my mouth is watering.

[mstinawu]

Holy.. Was this a meal for two?

[ns1]

jeez; patina and cut in the same week? you must be ballin out of control

[kevin h]

Lol. This wasn't nearly as bad as Cyrus, French Laundry, and Go's Mart in three consecutive days:

http://www.chowhound.com/topics/402327
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/406607
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/403499 (from a buddy of mine)

[kevin h]

For four, definately. ;)

[Servorg]

Kevin -- you went so far over the top with this meal I'm sure you couldn't see the bottom as it was so far below you.

A couple of questions. You priced everything else but the d'Y. Was it because seeing the price actually printed would be too scary? Inquiring minds want to know. I also note in your blog write up that you say that the last time you were at Spago that Lee Hefter was at Cut that night tending to S. I. Virbila. Are you saying that the Spago folks know when she is in the house? That would be quite a scoop if it were true.

[Foodandwine]

Kevin, Dude you are one Foodie.. I kind of written the place off based on some of my own feeling and what I had heard here. I am going to check it out. Those steaks looked great! Perhaps I will see for myself.. I will need to wash it down with a nice Bordeaux to cut the fat...

[kevin]

wow, that does look good, and the thing is even the desserts here are good.

did you guys get any sides or were they all pretty pedestrian?

did they take the foie gras off the menu???

[Servorg]

I don't think you are allowed to order the foie gras along with what Kevin H ate for dinner unless you bring your own defibrillator and cardiologist with you to the table.

[kevin h]

I understand now what people are saying when they say Japanese Wagyu is like "beef foie gras!"

[ChinoWayne]

Puck has removed foie gras from all his restaurants.

[kevin h]

That's what I heard as well, but then I noticed the duck liver on the menu. I should've ordered that now that I think about it...

[kevin h]

We didn't get any sides since what we had was more than enough! Next time though I'd like to try some.

About foie gras, they did have "duck liver pave" on the menu.

[kevin]

awesome, thanks so the duck liver pave is the menu. good to hear. it''s a great dish too, tamarind chuntney, in there smooth terrine. great stuff.

[kevin h]

I didn't list the prices for the wines since we actually brought them ourselves. We got them at K&L in Hollywood, where the d'Yquem was $279 (would've been twice that at the restaurant I'm sure). Corkage was a hefty $70.

When I was at Spago last time, I wanted to get my menu signed by Lee. However, our server informed us that he was at CUT since Ms. Virbila was dining there. So, assuming our server wasn't blowing smoke in trying to explain Lee's absence, it would appear that the Spago folks know. ;)

[wilafur]

$70 corkage?!?! that is outrageous! wow.

[kevin h]

That was for both bottles. ;)

[revets2]

great blog post. well done! and happy birthday!

we were just at CUT and corkage was $25. did it go up in the last week? i hope not.

as much as we love lee, ari does just fine on his own in lee's absence. ari was in the house; we can see that in the pics. you also had the best server in the house (previously of patina fame). knowing danny so well, no, he probably wasn't blowing smoke.

[kevin h]

Thanks! I guess corkage did go up, as I just checked the receipt and it was $70.

You're right about Dan, he did a great job. He also mentioned that he was at Patina for 9 years, which was interesting since we were there the previous night!

[fooddude37]

Almost every restaurant in town knows when she's coming in ahead of time.

[fooddude37]

Good lord, ...those steaks, the wine, those desserts, Chateau d'Yquem, were you planning a last meal or something? Looks amazing. If I'm ever in the depths of a major depression binge and I need to feed it somehow I'll head over to Cut.

[kevin h]

Last meal? Hardly. Just a birthday dinner. ;)