Don't Make This Rookie Mistake When Dining At A Steakhouse

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On the list of words to avoid when ordering at a steakhouse, "please bring out the A1 sauce" is an unspoken top entry — and the less said about ketchup, the better. Over at Tasting Table, Foodie's sister site, a feature writer spoke with Scott Weiner of The Alston in Chicago about steakhouse etiquette. Weiner, who also represents the Fifty/50 Group, had some tactful advice regarding smothering your steak in sauce: "We encourage guests to taste the steak on its own first to appreciate its quality."

At a steakhouse like The Alston, premium steak is all that's served. The meat there is cut from a prime chunk of beef, dry-aged, and cooked to the standards of a chef who boasts Michelin stars and James Beard awards. You may even encounter Wagyu beef, which is extra-expensive because of its refined pedigree. At the risk of sounding a bit precious, it's a slight against the chef and the steak to drown your meat in bottled sauce, because doing so disregards all the care that was taken to bring it to your table.

With that said, Weiner points out, top-tier steakhouses will likely offer their own, bespoke sauces to perfectly enhance the beef they offer. In fact, some of these accompaniments are what he calls "crown jewel[s] of the menu," as they are works of culinary art in their own right. If you tend to like a sauce with your steak, choose one of these. Note that all this guidance pertains to high-end steakhouses, and may not be relevant if you are dining somewhere a bit more pedestrian.

Keep in mind that the chef (and even the server!) at a fancy steakhouse may take umbrage to your ordering your steak with a bottle of sauce, but this isn't the case at your local, "everyday" establishment. Many of the most popular steakhouse chains in America are entry-level steakhouses like LongHorn, Texas Roadhouse, or Outback, where the atmosphere is a lot less refined and you won't catch aghast glances for requesting some A1. The rules are different when it comes to middle-of-the-road dining, where the vibes are more casual and the food is a bit more assembly-line fare than haute cuisine. At a corporate chain, there likely isn't an executive chef in the back to feel offended, so do as you please.

Reading the room is a life skill that applies to multiple aspects of existence, and knowing when to sit back and let the quality of your food speak for itself is critical for true foodies. A meal at a premium steakhouse is an event to be savored, and that includes letting the kitchen prepare your meal as the chef sees fit — sans third-party sauce. You have quite a bit more room to be relaxed at a chain, where setting off the beauty of the product isn't necessarily a front-and-center concern.

Static Media owns and operates Tasting Table and Foodie.