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Gersh Kuntzman at the Brooklyn Paper has jumped on the Peter Luger backlash bandwagon with a savage evisceration of the legendary Williamsburg steakhouse. Take it away Gersh! "It needs to be said, and said loudly: Peter Luger is an over-rated, obnoxious, pompous, unsatisfying, overpriced and underwhelming restaurant that serves a single, well-prepared dish." For his money, the new Brooklyn outpost of Morton's "is the better restaurant. Yet I remain unsatisfied with the realization that no amount of negative reviews will destroy the Luger hegemony." And it's true; history has shown that no force—not rats, not Lohan, and certainly not some disgruntled local muckraker will ever bring Luger to its knees.
Peter Luger Steakhouse Backlash: Brooklyn Paper Piles On!
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"A single, well-prepared dish."
Isn't that what people go to Luger's for?
"Kuntzman"? Haahahaha..
considering that that single well-prepared dish is what i would go there for... and that you're not going to get that friggen awesome steak sauce in any other restaurant ...I'll still be looking forward to my next visit to Luger's.
Bringing Luger to its knees? What for, tube steak?
Meh. The question is: what makes for a good steakhouse? Luger's answer is "steak." Anything else is window-dressing. Morton's answer is "the whole experience." Neither is wrong -- it's just a question of what you're looking for in a steakhouse.
But I do disagree about the service being poor: Luger's service is stiff, old-world, and curt -- they're professionals doing a job and serving you professionally, rather than your buddy-buddy waiter glad-handing you through a meal. Again, neither approach is "wrong" -- it depends on what you like.
Meh. The question is: what makes for a good steakhouse? Luger's answer is "steak." Anything else is window-dressing. Morton's answer is "the whole experience." Neither is wrong -- it's just a question of what you're looking for in a steakhouse.
But I do disagree about the service being poor: Luger's service is stiff, old-world, and curt -- they're professionals doing a job and serving you professionally, rather than your buddy-buddy waiter glad-handing you through a meal. Again, neither approach is "wrong" -- it depends on what you like.
It's a good steak but I do think that it is over rated. I have had better steaks at cheaper places and the service there is grumpy and annoying. It will always be an institution and I would go there again but it's not my first choice.
There are better steaks in the city than luger. the NY Strip at BLT Prime? better than the luger porterhouse.
in fact, i'd bet money that in a blind taste test, eliminating all prejudices about price, decor, and service, luger wouldn't win best in the city.
delfrisco is better
and i dont like places that are cash only
What about the holy cow?
I went there for the first time this december and the service was very good...
as an addendum though- i am curious to try the lunchtime burger at luger that frank bruni recommends so highly.
they have 2 well prepared dishes. the hamburger is also good.
A steak to me is a Porterhouse, no ny strip.
I don't want the waiter bending over to recommend a wine or bleu cheese topping.
sure for your buddy buddy, all boys, CEO, master of your universe, nothing beats Sparks. but for steak, and just steak, it's luger's.
thespis is correct though, neither is wrong, it's just what you like. Some like the "whole experience" and some just like to go all beef.
but at least give Luger's a try before putting them down.
I think if you want steak, you go to Luger. You don't go in expecting anything else. If you do, maybe you're disappointed.
And who cares if the waiters a gruff. I don't go to a restaurant to get for their oral services.
for everybody complaining about the 'buddy buddy' waiters at other steak restaurants:
that cloying friendliness may be a conceit, and an annoying one at that, but it's no less an annoying conceit than the studied brusqueness of the waiters at Luger. The fact is, Luger is GIMMICKY. the cash only policy, the tacky, faded decor, the consciously curt waiters- that is a GIMMICK used to sell an IMAGE. Get it? it's marketing. People who go there and pat themselves on the back for dealing with REAL WAITERS and JUST WANTING A PLACE TO GET A STEAK are buying into the whole Luger song and dance, just as rich douchebags buy into the idea that they have class because they're at a classy joint choosing a bernaise sauce and an expensive red wine with the help of their toadie waiter. in both cases, the restaurant is literally selling the sizzle, not the steak.
so please spare me the macho bullshit about how luger is a REAL steakhouse. It doesn't make me any less of a man to want service that is neither sycophantic nor gruff. And as for steak, the real criterion that matters, i maintain that luger's sacred cows are no better than many others in NYC that deserve a place on the altar.
Eh, with this approach you could literally say that about anything that's popular. MrGuy's writing style, with all its CAPITALIZED WORDS and the RANTY STYLE is so cliche, it's just the image of a "REAL NEW YORK" curmudgeon, and you all buy into it because you fantasize about being RIGHT about everything.
the restaurant is literally selling the sizzle, not the steak
This is what it boils down to - do they consistently serve the best steak in NYC or not? Some people swear they still do, and some people have asserted otherwise.
Oh dear, I've upset the anti-caps contingent. i just didn't feel like coding the html for italics! But you go to far in equating my sincerity, rakishly adorned with a bit more style than is my custom, for the more elevated theatrics of the Luger experience.
And regardless, handsomedevil, your response reveals you to be a lazydevil as well. "You can say that about anything" is a less than dazzling rebuttal. And untrue.
For example, Shake Shack is wildly popular. They make simple, delicious burgers for a reasonable price, and they attempt to make the experience of getting one as easy as possible: webcams so you can check how long the line is, beepers to alert you when your order is ready. Their staff are friendly too. I have no plans to call them gimmicky and overrated. Do you?
Finally, may I compliment your lucid exegesis of the many words expended on the Luger debate: "SOME PEOPLE LIKE PETER LUGER, SOME PEOPLE DON'T! WHAT CAN YOU DO? ACK!"
A rumination worthy of Brillat-Savarin himself.
I'd be more inclined to believe this if Gersh Kuntzman weren't an annoying know-it-all.
Well said, mrguy.
i've always thought this place was way overrated, only douchebags who fall for the hype go there, i've had much better steaks (for a lesser cost too) at other places in the city, screw you Luger and your overpriced overrated steaks
I have found that steak restaurants usually have nasty waiters. Luger's are not that bad. The worst are at Ben Benson's, the absolute worst are at Sparks. I no longer eat as much red meat as I would like to, but when the occasion arises I prefer Williamsburg.
First of all, a 'meat pillow'? The filet is going to be soft and tender and not have as much flavor as the sirloin, which will have a more 'beefy' flavor. I wonder if this guy even knows which is which. The porterhouse I had was exactly that.
Second, when you have been around for 120 years, and there is a 3 month wait for a weekend reservation, you dont need to sell an image, or anything else.
actually, i'd say that their being around for 120 years is as good an argument as anything that they are geniuses at marketing. same for the 3 month wait. There are plenty of good, even great, restaurants that haven't lasted 120 years and don't have a 3 month wait. Product alone doesn't ensure longevity.
i'd also argue the power of psychology here. most people who go to lugers save up and eat there very rarely, maybe only once in their life, as a treat, because they know the place is SUPPOSED to be the best steak in the city. First timers who haven't done their homework are probably surprised when they find a dingy joint with rude waiters, shitty decor, laugable sides, and an impoverished wine list. with all those things going against it, the steak must be the best steak in the world, right? at least that's what you tell yourself. Who wants to admit they just dropped $85 and up on a merely above-average steak in an otherwise unremarkable restaurant. At those prices, most people will tell themselves it was the greatest meal they ever had, and repeat that to their friends too, for fear of either looking unrefined (because EVERYBODY KNOWS LUGER IS THE BEST), or just like a sucker.
On my typical dinner bill, 50% of the bill is for wine, but not when I go to Peter Luger's. Why? Peter Luger's wine list laughable. It takes work trying to find something good (forget about very good) to drink. So, I usually stick with draft beer: fresh, cold and poured into a good-sized mug with just enough head.
Next time you're there, look around at what people are drinking. We always are astounded at the number of Diet Coke drinkers. Diet Coke. In a steakhouse. A great steakhouse.
I would have liked Lugers if the steak I had there hadn't been half overcooked and not even that nice a cut. It was mediocre at best. Though it wasn't that pricey compared to other steakhouses in the city.
The steak sauce was good though.
and the waitstaff are a bunch of obnoxious mooks. Never go back there. Any steakhouse USA is better.
Peter Luger's steaks induce diahreah within minutes of consumption. If your colon can handle that much meat, it isn't a bad deal. In these tough economic times I can't justify spending $50-$75 on any meal that will out of my system within the hour. A Big Mac is far cheaper, tasty in its own right, and has the same colon cleansing effect.
Thinking Peter Luger's is good, or a even a genuine New York experience, is like thinking "Hogs & Heifers" is a quality New York bar. The food is, I think, better at the bar.
My brother thought it was a good idea to take our mom and his mother-in-law for Mother's Day. A month later, I was still pissed.
I haven't tried Morton's, but the Palm is #1 in my book (the original, on 2nd Avenue.)
Mr. Luger, meet Troubled Economy.
Troubled Economy, Peter Luger.
I took my son there for his high school graduation and he loved it. They have delicious steaks but it is such a wall street crowd which I am not.
I've spent less for better and more for worse but there's only one Peter Luger and while I recoil at all the benjies the place hoovers up, When friends from out of town drop in, we always end up doing the Peter Luger thing.
Peter Luger is definitely overrated. Their steak is a slab of fat with burnt bits of meat. I was there in July and the waitstaff was appealing, after waiting a half hour to be seated even though we had reservations the staff were pushy and when I asked for a minute to look at the desert menu they said no. But with such a grand reputation like theirs, they could crap on plate and people would still go.
You want good steak, go to Old Homestead. Amazing food and very polite waitstaff.
Sorry, I meant *appalling, nothing appealing about Luger's rude waitstaff.
I've been there for the Porterhouse. Was it good? Definitely! However, I've had better steaks in Brooklyn for way less money. It's all about the hype and the snob appeal there.
Just because it’s a steakhouse doesn’t mean that you should only be able to order one dish—and a sub-par, overpriced one at that. After a few disappointments at Peter Luger’s, I started searching for a steakhouse that delivers every time. I’d actually say that most were better (and cheaper) than Peter Luger’s, but a couple of years ago I settled on Uncle Jack’s on 9th and 35th. It’s in Manhattan, but the trek is definitely worth it. Not only is the steak consistently delicious, but the seafood, chicken, salads—everything is held to a high standard. Not to mention the service, which is friendly and accommodating. I understand that it’s all about your preference and what you're looking for, but I can’t imagine ever going back to Peter Luger’s.
Just because it’s a steakhouse doesn’t mean that you should only be able to order one dish—and a sub-par, overpriced one at that. After a few disappointments at Peter Luger’s, I started searching for a steakhouse that delivers every time. I’d actually say that most were better (and cheaper) than Peter Luger’s, but a couple of years ago I settled on Uncle Jack’s on 9th and 35th. It’s in Manhattan, but the trek is definitely worth it. Not only is the steak consistently delicious, but the seafood, chicken, salads—everything is held to a high standard. Not to mention the service, which is friendly and accommodating. I understand that it’s all about your preference and what you're looking for, but I can’t imagine ever going back to Peter Luger’s.