How can you go wrong at a place that claims supper club status. It just evokes ladies in pantsuits and “relish trays”. We were not disappointed. In fact, besides it’s far away location in far flung Eagan, MN. (Truthfully, it’s not that far from the center of Minneapolis but I start to feel uneasy any time I leave the city limits.)

After being ushered to our table by the teenage hostess, we were greeted by Judy, our waitress, who surely has worked at Jensen’s for most of her adult life. Judy provided us with the obligatory relish tray.

Jensen’s only got a C grade on the Big Beer Test–an A grade requires beer by the liter, a failing grade a dry restaurant. Jensen’s had only pints.

I chose the Filet Medallions–2 little filets, wrapped in bacon. They were $14 less than the real filet but I was poor that week. Here’s the menu.

True to supper club form, salad, choice of potato and “rolls” were included with the meal.

my medallions were superb–almost tender enough to cut with the fork, grilled to absolute perfection. Somebody in the kitchen knows how to make a tenderloin. Charlie got the New Your Strip and was extremely happy as well–he said the fat was succulent. I say that’s gross but each to their own.

The other thing to note: the roasted garlic mashed were amazing–served in a ramekin, they’d been toasted under the broiler before being served so they had that tasty little crust that makes any food item taste better.

As we were eating, the “band” started playing. The band gets quotes because they consisted of a dude on a guitar, a drummer with what looked to be a toy drum set and a keyboard player. They played mostly waltzes and polkas and even let a drunk lady from the bar sing along on one number. Oddly, no one danced while we were there.

We skipped dessert in favor of the ice cream shop near my house but, after paying the bill, I was treated to a classic supper club moment, when, outside in the parking lot, I was treated to the sight of a mint condition Trans Am with personalized plates: Itza 92. You couldn’t end the supper club vibe any better way.

So, I’m too cheap to subscribe to Cooks Illustrated. But my friend Sarah does and she loaned her collection to me to read over the holidays.

Cooks Illustrated has a website but they only post recipes for subscribers and even then for a limited time.

Because I don’t want to get Steakfeed in trouble with copyright laws. I’ll just post the highlights from issues with steak recipes. I’ll also put up the Issue numbers and dates so if you want the whole thing, you can get it from your local public libarary (or I’m sure their website).

Everything I’ve read, looks to be really good. All the recipes are really thorough and also explain their process for determining the “best” way to cook something.

I’ve never been disapppointed when making a Cooks recipe.

More later.

My friend Jeff makes the most amazing tenderloin. I’ll ask him for his recipe so I can post it here. I’d probably never make it though. I don’t have enough money to feed my friends that sort of food and I’ve got Jeff to make it for me.

What I do know so far is that he buys a whole tenderloin from a proper butcher, who preps it for him–removing the silverskin and the like. He lets it come to room temperature before grilling and while it’s hanging out, he slathers it in garlic. It takes forever to make but the wait is worth it.

Last time we had it, we did twice baked potatoes, creamed spinach and I made a chocolate with orange chocolate icing layer cake for dessert.

If I can get him to share the recipe, I’ll put it here.

What more can a girl ask for her birthday than to be taken out for a tasty steak dinner?

Nothing, I tell you.

Of course, me being me, my date was my mom.

I chose Kozy’s Steaks and Seafood mostly because mom’s on a budget and Kozy’s seemed to have decent food to dollar ratio.

Kozy’s is in The Galleria shopping center in Edina, MN. Malls are not normally my first choice for steak restaurants–something about all malls having the same stores and fastfood places doesn’t lend itself to my idea of where a steak place should be located. But, The Galleria isn’t a mall, mall. It’s a rich people’s mall. And, Kozy’s isn’t owned by mall steak people; it’s owned by the folks that own Kozlak’s Royal Oak–a Twin Cities dining fine dining flagship. So, I knew it would probably be pretty good.

My thought was proven out.

We both got filet mignon ($27) which included salad and garlic mashed potatoes. (I’d been warned by my brother that mom would think anything over $20 that didn’t include sides would be too expensive.)

The steak was probably the best I’ve had in that price range. It was cooked perfectly (medium) with a wonderful crust. It was tender, tender, tender! The potatoes were slightly lumpy (a good thing), with actual roasted garlic bits laced laced throughout.

The setting was very unmall-like and was done in classic steakhouse: dark wood, lush drapes etc. We were seated in a backish room which meant that the mall was hidden from view and that we had actual windows that faced the out of doors.

Overall, twas a fabulous, tasty birthday dinner.

M and S Grill is McCormick and Schmick’s new “casual” dining option. As best I could tell, that means that you can see over the backs of the booths and you can see out the windows. At least that’s the translation between the Minneapolis offerings.

We were there through amazing luck of me having a PO box in M and S Grill’s neighborhood. I got a “Dear Resident” coupon for them announcing they’d just moved into my neighborhood—apparently, their neighborhood is all of downtown Minneapolis. But, I shouldn’t nitpick–the coupon was worth $20 off a meal.

The decor is steakhouse woody, with big velvet drapes. The bar was only about half full, the dining room less so. They’re on steak house row but off the beaten path of the younger afterwork happy hour crowd.

We went with a bottle of wine–it was cheaper that way, we decided ($28). Wine isn’t cheap but it never is in that sort of place.

For appetizers, we had the tempura asparagus. It was good for about 3 spears worth–the breading was too heavy to eat much more than that. The asparagus was amazingly tender, considering that it’s not even remotely asparagus season in MN.

Dinner was, of course, a filet mignon and mashed ($29). I got the big filet, though I would have been full after the little one.

The steak had a nice char–something I probably appreciate more than most. The steak was cooked perfectly medium, a nice change for a thick filet.

The mashed were pretty normal. I made them amazing by stealing bacon bits Kim’s baked potato condiment tray. What doesn’t taste better with bacon on it?

The service was amazing. I’m guessing the wait staff was just trying to stay busy but it was true “plates whisked away as soon as they’re empty” service. I normally hate overly attentive wait staff but these guys were so low key–they just seemed to appear exactly at the right moment and vanish with the blink of an eye.

Kim gave M and S a 7.5. Not sure if she’s eaten less bad steak than me or if being from Iowa gives her a different standard but I’d give them at least an 8.5, maybe a 9 since it was nice without being stuff. We didn’t have beer so I can’t give it perfect marks.

I’ll admit it, I’m a sucker for a coupon, especially when it involves red meat.

The September special at the Poodle Club in Minneapolis was a New York Strip dinner for $9.95. As I’ve said before, cheap steak is judged in an entirely different category than expensive steak. For it’s cost, the Poodle was a winner. But, you need to remember how much you’re paying.

My dinner included the steak, a salad (iceburg with carrot shreds, grocery store cherry tomatoes and cucumber slices) and potato (I had baked). We were also able to get big mugs of beer, which is always a plus on cheap steak night. The same meal would normally cost $12–still a bargain.

The Poodle is a south Minneapolis classic. It’s also taken a bit of a hit because of the smoking ban in Minneapolis. Almost all of the clientele was outside on the patio when we arrived so they could dine and smoke at the same time.

My only complaint would have to be the live band that started up around 30 minutes after we arrived. It was loud to the point that we couldn’t have a conversation while they were playing. Eh, for $9.95, who can complain.

If this were a small, obscure theater company blog, I’d go into detail about our 2nd stop of the evening–at the Bedlam Theater’s 10 minute Original Play Festival. Imagine young “avant garde” playwrights, trying to make a deep lasting point in 10 minutes. Yeah, it was interesting to say the least. Thankfully, this isn’t a small obscure theater company blog so you’re spared the details.

This is yummy if you’re in a world with out a proper grill or even a proper grill pan.
Of course, I’m a sucker for balsamic on pretty much anything.

Rib-Eye Steak au Poivre with Balsamic Reduction

So, on the hunt again last week we headed to The Steak Knife, in Minneapolis’ Dinkytown neighborhood, near the University of Minnesota. I should have known that a steak place by a university, with a coupon in the Happenings book wasn’t going to make us very happy. But we had a coupon!

Most notably, the place was empty. Granted, it’s summer and school’s out but empty? We should have known. It was set up fast food style–you ordered at the counter and if you were getting it to go, you loitered at the other end to get your sack of food. For those lucky enough to dine in, table delivery was provided. But they had two for one beers and we had a coupon!

I ordered the “Filet” medium well with a baked potato and beer. Charlie got the 18 oz cut medium with fries and beer. Oh yeah, I should mention the sign by the checkout that says, “due to an error, we are not accepting Happenings coupons”. Dang, no coupon!

The chef seemed to be the order taker and the server and the busser but since the place was empty, he was handling it all well.

When food arrived, my medium well steak was what I’d consider well done–and it wasn’t really a filet, it was a small thin piece of meat roughly shaped like a filet. But, I was hungry, had low expectations and didn’t feel like complaining. Poor Charlie’s medium slab of meat was more than well done. Since we’d been robbed of our coupon, we felt like we could demand a bit of customer service so Charlie returned his steak an asked for a new one, less cooked.

A few minutes later, the manager arrived at our table. Apparently, Charlie’s steak had been the only 18 oz one left so would he take a smaller one if they’d refund the difference. As if he had a choice.

Charlie’s 2nd steak arrives a bit later. He sliced in and, surprise! Now medium translated to barely cooked. Back at the counter a 3rd time, the manager apoligized–apparently the chef/cashier/server/busboy was now nervous and screwed up again. We thought he’d just throw it back on the grill but instead, he got out a 3rd steak and started over.

By now, I was long done with my meal. Thankfully, Charlie’s 3rd steak was nicely done and very tasty.

Whew!

So, no, I don’t recommend The Steak Knife in Minneapolis–unless you’re a college kid who can’t afford anything else. Even then, you could go around the corner to several other places and get a better meal. I’m not sure how this place stays open–but I suspect that the cheap beer has something to do with it when school is in session.

I love steak. And I like the steakhouse experience–probably because it’s “fancy” dining like we were too poor to do when I was a kid.

So I was traveling for work [in April] in Washington DC and thought I’d treat myself to a proper steakhouse meal. Just 3 blocks away was the DC branch of Smith and Wollensky, which according to the New York Times (and SandW’s website) is, “a steak house to end all arguments.”

Liars.

First, they put me in the corner booth, out of the line of site of all staff. Not that it mattered though, my server had no intentions of paying me any attention. He’s got friends a few tables over and a table of 8 beefy businessmen to help–why bother with a single female diner?

What he doesn’t know is that I love steak and if I get an especially good steak coupled with really good service, I’m a really good tipper. Eh. His loss.

It should be said that the other server working tables near mine was doing a great job.

I’ll not recount all of the details. The pertinent ones are: my steak (a 10 oz. filet mignon that I’d ordered “a bit more done than medium rare”) arrived grossly overcooked and the beer I’d asked to be delivered with my steak never materialized. I sat for a while, assuming I’d get to customary “how’s you’re dinner” but it never came. Finally, I decided I’d just eat it so I could get out of there.

About 3/4 the way through, I caught the eye of a manager, who apologized profusely and finally got me my long overdue beer. He also comped my entire meal. It was an appreciated gesture but it didn’t make the steak good. A steak place should know how cook steak to order, right?

So, if you’re a group of male business travelers with a few spare tires apiece, I’m sure you’ll get great service at Smith and Wollensky in Washington DC. If you’re a steak loving woman, traveling alone, don’t bother.

About 8 years ago, a friend and I decided to try to figure out exactly how we liked to eat our steak. So, we spent the summer grilling and grilling and grilling. But then winter happened. Any of you’ve ever been to Minnesota in the winter can probably imagine why grilling in winter isn’t for the faint of heart. It’s so much less fun to grill while wearing a parka.

(By the way, we discovered that I love filet mignon with a little garlic, done just under medium well. Charlie prefers any cut that’s big, with a little celery salt, medium.)

So, when winter arrived, Charlie and I needed a new outlet for our steak habit. We decided to embark on what we named Steak Quest–the search for the best steak for the money. Extra points added for really big beers.

Enter my brother the blogger and steak afficiando. He decided we needed a place to catalog our efforts after hearing me rant about my trip to Smith and Wollensky.

So, look for me here and let me know if you’re coming to Minneapolis. I’ll point you toward steak that fits your budget and your tastes.