That Bad You Don’t Need: Steak at Restaurants
That Bad You Don’t Need is our opportunity to let you know what to avoid in life. Ignore this advice at your own peril.
Going out to eat is something I find to be greatly enjoyable. Eating delicious food in a lovely environment, surrounded by people I care about, and all without needing to prepare anything before or clean up anything after the meal. It’s a great time.
But folks, the fun doesn’t stop there. Going out to eat gives you the opportunity to try all kinds of interesting cuisine. You may not be able to buy octopus at your local Trader Joe’s, but they’ve got it at this restaurant! You may not have ever thought to try to make a sauce with crushed vanilla, but let me tell you what, the chef at this weirdo place did! It’s like there’s no limit to the unique dishes you can sample.
And that brings us to our point. Why, in this situation, would you ever order, and pay a premium for, something that you can make on your own? What’s the point of going out and getting something you can conjure up yourself with minimal complication? Why waste your time with something as elementary as steak?
And here’s the thing, there’s nothing wrong with eating steak. Steak is delicious and it’s not that hard to make! In fact, it’s so easy to make that there is no reason to spend such a disproportional amount of money on steak when you go out to eat. Think about it, it’s virtually always the most expensive item on the menu wherever you are, from Applebee’s to the dining room at The Ritz. Why spend money on something so easily recreated at home?
“But wait,” you say, with a bit of insecurity in your voice, “I can’t make a steak like they can at Ruth’s Chris! I mean, sure, I can buy the same cut of meat and I could just use the same kind of seasoning after a quick google search and it’s not like you have to cook it for very long and…wait a second…I AM A MASTER CHEF!” You explode with confidence and ride a unicorn to your local butcher to buy some high-quality meat. Good for you!
Am I oversimplifying the work that goes into making a good steak? Maybe? Have I had a steak at home, prepared by my roommates, that isn’t really that different than a steak I’ve (Note, not actually me) paid $90 for at Del Frisco’s Double Eagle Steakhouse? YES.
And before we move on to how much you’re sacrificing when you order steak, let’s talk for a moment about steakhouses. Why are they so dark? Is it so that you can’t see that mashed potatoes cost $18? Why is it that every other fine dining restaurant either serves courses or a meal with sides, and not just a slab of meat by itself that you can then add overpriced vegetables to? Why is broccoli $80!? EIGHTY DOLLARS FOR BROCCOLI!? These are just the facts, friends. I’m as shocked at this reality as you are.
Spending a zillion dollars on something you can make yourself isn’t just silly in isolation, it’s also an opportunity cost! Think about this, can you make sushi at home? Nope. Can you get an absurd amount of sushi for $30, less than half of the price of one stalk of broccoli from a steakhouse? Yep.
Once, my lady and I tried to make rabbit at home. You know, for fun. We went to Whole Foods, the local butcher, and other places that we thought would sell us a fine, pristine, rabbit. Guess what? No rabbit. Can I get rabbit at, like, every restaurant on my street? No. And I can’t get it at the steakhouses. But I can get it a lot of the other restaurants, so eating rabbit is a cool opportunity, and that’s the point!!!
One caveat, I’m not including burgers or any other beef product in this criticism. Burgers are delicious and involve many different elements and most importantly don’t cost twice as much as everything else on the menu. Beef tartare is fire flames and welcome on my plate. Is there beef stew at this restaurant? There is? Why are we at a Medieval times? Whatever, let’s go with it.
In conclusion, you can do better. Next time you go out to eat and feel tempted to order a steak, instead try to get something a little more creative and adventurous, something your roommate can’t compete with, or at the very least something cheaper. And for goodness sake, don’t go to a steakhouse.
Unless someone else is paying. Then go. Definitely.
