I Tried the Best Steak in America

[00:00] 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 going to 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  

[00:14] giant 72 oz 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,  

[00:31] and a million celebrity steakouses. 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  

[00:44] time I've ever tasted his food. Obviously, we got  the Wellington, got the trio beef, and then we got   this. I'm joined by my friends. We have R.J., we  have Graham, we have Jack. R.J., I think we're  

[00:56] going to 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 going to taste   each of these and we'll announce our favorite at  the end. The steak does look nicely cooked, that  

[01:08] I'll say. It has a nice char to it. It's a little  chewy. How much was this? I think it was like   hundred something dollars. Yeah, it was not cheap.  This is good. I don't think financially it's worth   of beef? Just pick up a piece and try it. I'll  explain these. So, this one's the A5. Melt it in  

[01:25] your mouth. Salted. Like it had 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 have been  one of the best bites of steak I've ever had in my   entire life. American Wagu. This was fantastic.  The American Wagu was a little bit better. It's  

[01:40] 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  

[01:54] balanced. It's not overly fatty. It's not overly  lean. It was nice. Overall favorite, what I would   bottom. One we've all been waiting for, the one  that Gordon's entire brand has been leaning on,  

[02:06] 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.   they are not going to screw up. And it's seasoned  perfectly. The flavor is great. The beef is cooked  

[02:25] absolutely perfectly. It melts in your mouth and  the pastry is 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 Gord meal is complete. We had the New York  strip for $109, the Trio beef for $165, and the  

[02:38] famous beef Wellington for $85 each. The New York  strip is a classic and the Trio Beef luxurious,   but the Wellington had the most hype. And I got to  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  

[02:52] you. Now moving on to Bizarre Meat by Joseé Andre.  He constantly is advocating for humanitarian   efforts. He's also a Michelin starred chef and  was named as one of Times 100 most influential   people twice. To speak on his food though, what  Gordon is to the UK, Jose is to Spain. He's always  

[03:08] kept it innovative, but he's most known for his  authentic Spanish food. I'll be honest, walking   to 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  

[03:23] discomfort. Literally, we were eating for 3 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 Wagu on top. Holy,  

[03:39] dude, 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.  

[03:51] The fact that you could order one of these for $19  and it's one of the best and most unique bites of   can or needs to be improved. I think that might  be a 10 out of 10. It's really a banger. Next up,  

[04:05] they brought out their A5 Wagyu cooked beautifully  tableside. 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,  

[04:22] it's actually not overly fatty. Like a lot  of time with A5, it's so fatty and greasy,   you have to add the sauce. I do like that it's  not heavy. Plus, with the actual real wasabi,  

[04:35] makes a great flavor. Do they have A1 steak sauce?  I'm kidding. We have another steak. This is the   filet minan. Wow. I would take the beef Wellington  over that. Oh, but this is really good. The piece  

[04:48] the resistance. This is the ribeye. This is one of  their iconic pieces. This is the mix between the   Angus and the American Wagu. This has the perfect  mix of like beefy but also not overly beefy. Like  

[05:00] 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 ribe eyes I've had,   it's it's up there. This was an incredible  experience and it was not cheap but somehow  

[05:13] it felt worth it overall for how special it was.  Now let's talk about prices. We had the 85 Waggy   for $60 an ounce, beef tenderloin dish with [ __ ]  raw for 110, and the 2.5 lb ribeye for a whopping   2.8750, over $100 a pound. And finally, the cheese  steak blew us away. And at $17 each, it might  

[05:30] have 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  

[05:43] famous. It is the bedrock of American steakouses.  L'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  

[05:55] thing and one thing only. Massive shining trolley  filled with prime rib cooked to perfection. Carved   tableside. 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  

[06:10] 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, little crunchy romaine. But we're still   because it's simple, there's not a lot to hide.  The question is, how good is it? Super tender.  

[06:28] Wo. It's good. I wouldn't say it's phenomenal. You  guys didn't get any ribb cap. Try this rib c. Wow.   hard to flavor prime rib all the way to the center  with salt because it's so big. And I think this is  

[06:42] the salt. I mean, it's cooked very nicely. Out  of all the ribe eyes 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 wellexecuted classic ribeye.  The prices were insanely good here. We each got  

[06:57] 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  

[07:12] 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,  

[07:29] we have Josh attempting our 72 oz 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,  

[07:42] 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. No.  With only 12% of people finishing this challenge,  

[08:00] 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   I feel like I'm protected by a guardian angel.  Enjoying the food. It's delicious. I'm curious at  

[08:17] 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   is a little tired. I think I'm at 45%. We're  on track to beat. Oh, we're doing good. Once  

[08:30] but I'm putting ketchup on this steak. Truly  impressed at his face. 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  

[08:42] or I'm hitting chewy piece after chewy piece. We  were rocking and rolling till about the 35minute   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  

[08:54] 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. You're a 30 minutes. Stomach,   no problem. My face muscles for the smiling. No  more. No more smile. The jaw muscles I can't feel  

[09:09] anymore. Nose gone. If I scoot it over, it looks  like I ate half. That's 2 lb down. 30 minutes in.   I know it sounds crazy, but can I get another  roll? That might have been a mistake. Jeremiah   Martinez. Besides sweating meat juice, Martins  and I started hallucinating. Maybe a lot. I'm  

[09:27] not even thinking right now. I'm just letting  my bodies take over. Eat faster. He's back. 15 minutes left to go. Can I get it done? This  doesn't feel good anymore. Oh god. Not losing it  

[09:42] without putting up a fight. Martis was barely  holding on at this point. It's like endurance   running but for your jaw. That bite was rough.  Oh my days. I'm fine at this point. I only had   5 minutes left on the clock. I'm so done with  chewing. Hell, dude. I ate the salad. I ate two  

[09:58] rolls. plate. 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 somebody shoot so  fast? I was so close. And I wanted to win this  

[10:14] challenge so bad, but I'm going to be honest  with you. I was on the edge of uh 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.  and Sweet Martins blocked out as well. 3.

[10:33] 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  

[10:47] a bad deal cuz you still got to eat. But 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,  

[11:00] I'm sure your mind goes immediately to Wagyu.  Turns out some of the best Wagyu might not   even be coming from Japan. And 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  

[11:14] in the restaurant Isidor, 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 Crudeo, Wagyu beef tartlet, a beef  

[11:26] butter with bread service made tableside, 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 flat iron here,   the Denver here. Here's what's unique about these  two pieces. Very, very important. These aren't the  

[11:39] typical filetmenan ribeye steak that you're going  to see. The only steaks they're highlighting are   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 goddang good. We're  going to go with the least popular cut. So, let's  

[11:53] see how that goes. I want to start with the flat  iron. That's incredible. One of the best pieces   of beef I've ever had. It's got that anxious,  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.  

[12:07] 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.  

[12:20] It's incredible. They do kind of have very similar  flavors, but it's still delicious. We had two   steaks at Isidador. $86 each. I'd probably choose  the Flat Iron for me personally. Not too bad of a   value, but the whole tasting menu itself was very  special and highly recommended. Texas is doing  

[12:34] 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  

[12:49] 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 room. There are three   total. This is the final boss of meat lockers.  This is like the last rack. These are ready  

[13:04] to roll. Exactly. All these short loins here are  ready to be butchered and then brought upstairs 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,  

[13:20] 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  

[13:32] they cut it, put it back on the platter, go back  in, it forms this like steak, juice, butter sauce,   and then we'll tip the plate so that it all kind  of pulls together. Don't leave the kitchen if a   steak isn't sizzling. We need that sizzle. I want  to hear it. They were nice enough to give me a  

[13:46] They do a lot of salt coverage so the fat can  come up through the salt and moisturize the salt,   hopefully a perfectly seasoned steak and a nice  crust. It's a technique I'm not really sure I've  

[14:01] typically I would use a chef knife, but they're  using literally just a steak knife to do it all.   was uh was was you know, let's just say that I  did not have the muscle memory for that. Oh my  

[14:14] god. Magic. What? Uh and then back in. 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.  

[14:27] They won't really last 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 fillet. Damn, it's really good. Ton   fact that the juices from the strip side are  kind of co-mingling with what's going on with  

[14:44] the fillet. You're getting some of the flavor from  the strip in the fillet. New York strip. I really   was worried about the one-sided salt thing, but  it works so well. It really is actually very good.   Joining us on our New York steak adventure is  seasoned channel taste tester and director Vicram.  

[14:57] That fillet 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,  

[15:10] it seemed like, okay, it'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  

[15:22] very sweet. They comped our 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 at  a steak for two for about $135 total. That's 6750  

[15:36] 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  

[15:48] the first place and they've just maintained that  quality. And that is it. I think I have to come   Incredible work. Moving on. Next up is the oldest  steakhouse in America. Why has it stood the test  

[16:01] to a steakhouse where they don't slice the steak  for you, but I kind of like it in a way. Gotham   saw go to flat top. He got a great color on it. He  changed the cooking method three different times.  

[16:15] First it was flat top, then it was broiler, then  it was grill, then it was back to flat top, then   rested, then back to the flat top. The quality of  the beef literally cooked perfectly. It's actually   very good. The crust is really nice. This is  a very unadulterated steak, though. I mean,  

[16:27] it's literally just salt, pepper, I think a few  other spices, but you really get the beef flavor   time that he said it was dry age, but they're not  over dryaging it or you taste the dry age. You can   still taste the beef. I do wish there was a touch  touch more salt. I do like a little bit of brown  

[16:42] butter on there. I wish that I had a little bit  more of that plating is old school cuz 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  

[16:54] 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 Joseé Andreas, I'm having   flavors that I've never tasted before. Honestly,  I'd say this is a bit better than the Wellington  

[17:07] experience I had just from a textural experience,  but I definitely would put this above something   like a ribeye cooked with this much texture and  flavor goes a lot higher than something like   that one. The bone in flamean, it's cooked pretty  damn nice. The bone does nothing for the steak at  

[17:23] all. It looks cool, but it truly does nothing for  the steak at all. It's also lacking a little bit   with flavor and seasoning. So, which steak was the  better value? Super tender 15oz prime filet minan   for $85 or the bigger, fattier 24 oz goth and rib  steak for actually surprisingly the same price.  

[17:37] steaks. It's kind of an OG establishment. I  mean, like we're talking old school served   simply. They're not trying to reinvent the wheel  the way that they've always been served. So,   this is the place to go. Moving on, we're at  the number one Cherascaria in New York City,  

[17:55] Cherasaria Platform. And joining me today is  Henry aka the sandwich king, Salt Hank. If you   don't know how Cherasaria works, it's very simple,  right? Red means stop, green means go. You leave   banana here because that's kind of what makes  the Brazilian steakhouse special, right? It's  

[18:11] the classic 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 Shirine's actually one of the  most flavorful cuts of beef you can get. But what  

[18:26] 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 pani. Is this pani good? It's  excellent. It's flavorful. It's delicious. Most  

[18:39] cut 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 unlimited salad bar cost $84 a person   without tip and tax. I mean, that's insane value.  Kind of hard to beat that. The more you can eat,  

[18:52] 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 Coat. 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  

[19:09] 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 Coat's biggest fan, like ever. We ordered  the butcher feast which comes with four cuts of  

[19:21] prime and Wagyu beef plus bonchan and a few tasty  sides for 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 is   worth it. This really is going to come down to the  quality of the beef and how well they execute the  

[19:35] grilling. Be first by itself. Cheers. It's so  good. It's really good. He has this like poker   face. It's the besting 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,  

[19:51] but we're eating it so when we bite into it, that  juice is just shooting into your mouth. Next,   we tried some American Wagu. I think the texture  is 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  

[20:04] the American Wagu 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 Wagu,  

[20:16] New York strip. Yeah. Yeah. 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,  

[20:30] but it's not so fatty that I'm eating butter. This  is kind of hitting that. It's so tender, so juicy,   I actually agree. So, this is the short rib galby  marinated. It's meat candy. Cheers. If this wasn't  

[20:45] 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 anxious. The   beefiness comes through, the sweetness from the  marinade, the little smoky char. It's crispy. God  

[21:00] to 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,  

[21:12] the Japanese A5 Wagyu at the number one steakhouse  in the USA. Tenderloin A5. You ready? I mean, come   on. Right. It's so good. It's really good. It's  almost a little too much. Uh-uh. I think I just  

[21:26] 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   uncxiousness that the other fillet just simply  didn't have. It's more tender. It has more flavor.  

[21:40] How could it not be better? Ready? I think this  is going to be like at least top two bites of   the night. Love A5, dude. All right. Come on. It's  so so good. Like the flavor is so deep. It almost  

[21:53] has like an umami quality to it. And there's just  salt. That's my favorite so far. I'm going to put   this neck and neck with the American Wagyu strip  because I can eat much more of the American Wagu   strip one. And this is so rich. I can barely take  this last bite. So much fat, but flavor and the  

[22:08] texture is superior. My favorite is the New York  strip American Wagu 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  

[22:24] 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 $78  per person, and that comes with four cuts  

[22:39] 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 Texans 72 oz steak for  

[22:54] $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 feast, then Coat ends up being the   best value. Where was the best experience  overall? Personally, I'd say Josie Andre's  

[23:10] Bizaarre Meat tops the list for me, and Coat 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 steakouses. Subscribe.   Love you. I love you, too. I love you. Well, I  was talking to them. I love you, too. [Music]