Benjamin’s Steak House

Benjamin’s Steak House invited me to dine at their restaurant last night to sample their upcoming Mother’s day menu. I was super excited – not just because I love steak, but because I haven’t eaten it in 21 days. I finished my final weigh in from the fight diet with a good weigh in (still not my ideal weight, but we’re getting there!) Ken and I accepted the invitation and I was super excited the entire day because we were not only getting a free meal, but it was my first splurge meal after 21 days of monitoring everything I ate.

Benjamin’s Steak House is located in midtown inside the Dylan Hotel on 41st between Madison and Park (down the street from my old office on 42nd and Madison):

I’ve never walked by that area (I usually went west for lunch) but it must be a very popular spot for business lunches and dinners because the restaurant was packed when we arrived for our dinner reservation. The restaurant was opened by Peter Luger alumni and has a much more intimate and warm interior than Luger’s (and many other steakhouses I’ve visited). The atmosphere felt similar to Del Frisco’s and Del Posto; lively but very spacious. We sat by the fireplace but the space is pretty open (and there’s a second floor with more seating) so you can get a good view of the restaurant at almost any seat. We started off with a bread basket:

Good variety (especially compared to some steak houses that only do one type of bread) – Ken was a big fan of the sesame breadstick. My one pet peeve is when butter is served too cold; I mean, how is it supposed to be spread on the bread?

I started off with half a dozen oysters on the half shell and two large slices of Canadian bacon:

And Ken had the lobster bisque:

While I was on the fight diet, I did eat oysters sparingly and ate ham every morning in my daily omelet, but both the oysters and the Canadian bacon were probably the best things I’ve eaten in the past 21 days. The bacon was smoky, really thick, and had a wonderfully juicy flavor. It was slightly salty and Ken thought it was a little too fatty, but I happily ate my thick slice of fatty bacon. Ken’s lobster bisque was so creamy; I haven’t had cream in quite a while so it tasted extra decadent to me. It also had lots of large lobster chunks that made the bisque a really wonderful appetizer for our meal.

For our main course, we ordered the steak for two:

The asparagus:

And the mushrooms:

The steak for two was gigantic, cooked perfectly, and served with steak sauce (butter and steak juice). Each bite of steak had a beautiful crust that is very difficult to replicate at home and both cuts of the porterhouse were absolutely delicious. My plate:

The vegetables were also delicious – the mushrooms and asparagus were both flavored with lots of butter and sauteed al dente. We finished the asparagus spears easily but had problems finishing the mushrooms because the servings were so large. Ken and I both ate a ton of steak but barely made a dent in the steak for two (it could feed three large men, easily).

We had to order dessert because I haven’t really eaten dessert in such a long time, so we ordered the cheesecake and the pecan pie:

Ken wanted the Bourbon pecan pie – he loves pecan pie and the server recommended it as our second dessert:

I’ve actually never had pecan pie before (it surprisingly doesn’t really appeal to me) – even though Ken was stuffed from the steak, lobster bisque, and bacon, he ate the majority of the pecan pie before I barely made a dent in my cheesecake. When it was time to switch (because we always switch after we’ve eaten half of our entrees), Ken built this super cute barricade with all of our drink glasses because he didn’t want to share:

I carefully maneuvered the glasses, picked up the pecan pie and took both desserts to my side and realized why Ken didn’t want to share; the pecan pie was absolutely AMAZING. Since I haven’t eaten pecan pie before I’m not exactly sure if it’s the best pie in the city, but Ken ate it with a huge smile on his face and he’s had his fair share of pecan pie, so I’m guessing it’s pretty damn good. The crust was super flaky, the pecans had a great crisp and nutty flavor, and the corn syrup was actually not that sweet. I’ve always been a little turned off by pecan pie because the corn syrup looks a little too sweet and unappetizing, but it was actually absolutely amazing (no wonder Ken didn’t want to share!)

Benjamin’s Steak House is having a great Mother’s day brunch on Sunday featuring a special three-course menu (appetizer options: Caesar salad, lobster bisque, or mozzarella and tomatoes, main course: Chilean sea bass, 20 ounce ribeye, or filet mignon, vegetables, and dessert) for $60! You should definitely make reservations – it’s a wonderful place to bring your mom to celebrate Mother’s day and you will definitely leave feeling very satisfied.