A lot of restaurants cook beef. These places raise the steaks

By SCOTT CHERRY - 9/24/2009


The aroma of seared beef will be in the air Saturday at the Oklahoma Championship Steak Cook-Off, which prompts one to recall the many steakhouses that have dotted the Tulsa restaurant scene over the past century. The choices have been many and varied. We have spotlighted five that carry on that tradition today.

Bros. Houligan

The name comes from a basement bar in Kansas City, where the owner once lived. The 18-ounce T-bone special comes with fried shrimp. Nobody leaves here hungry.

2508 E. 15th St., 747-1086; 9707 E. 61st St., 254-1086

Fleming's Prime Steakhouse and Wine Bar

Thick, buttery, bone-in chops, served on white-tablecloth settings, in a room bathed in an amber glow, cutlery worthy of a backwoods hunting party, lots of leather, lots of dark wood. Near perfection. The 22-ounce bone-in ribeye is both manly and elegant.

1976 Utica Square, 712-7500

McGill's

Wide grill marks put their brand on the flavorful 6-ounce filets at McGill's. A longtime favorite of mine, Steak Gerard — a thick filet coated in pepper and nestled in a pool of earthy Dijon sauce. Tender beyond words. McGill's also does a superb prime rib.

1560 E. 21st St., 742-8080; 6058 S. Yale Ave., 388-8080; Hard Rock Hotel & Casino (Catoosa), 384-7500; Cross Timbers Resort (Skiatook Lake)

Silver Flame

The popular Silver Flame Steak: a succulent ribeye marinated in spices, flamed with cognac and topped with chopped green onions. In the classic tradition of Tulsa Lebanese steak joints. Hickory-smoked meat, darkly lit rooms.

6100 S. Sheridan Road, 496-3311

Mahogany Prime Steakhouse

Classic American steakhouse setup — big cuts, crusty outside, tender within, seasoned only with sea salt, fresh-cracked black pepper and lathered in butter. Served sizzling hot. Oh, yeah.

6823 S. Yale Ave., 494-4043

Avalon Steakhouse

Steaks are displayed in a glass case and sizzle on a long open grill within sight of the dining room. Avalon knows what it has and flaunts it. Most impressive is a Chateaubriand ($43.95), around three inches thick — built for two. And, like all of Avalon's steaks, full of that distinctive, char-grilled flavor that has a salty edge to it.

6205 New Sapulpa Road, 446-9917





Tripp’s tips

Forty-two teams are will compete in Saturday’s Oklahoma Championship Steak Cook-Off, but one of them won’t be event chairman Tripp Haggard. Good thing for the competition.

“I so rarely eat out,” said Haggard, “because I cook a steak better than anybody else.”

Here are three tips from Tripp on how to cook a mean steak:

“First thing is, don’t mess with it too much. People want to turn ’em around, flip ’em, punch on ’em.”

Two: “Seasoning.”

His go-to blend is:

1 tablespoon black pepper
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
½ teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon chili powder
½ teaspoon light brown sugar

But, to Haggard, there really only is one steak. “I’m a ribeye guy, all the way.”

Three: “When you take one off the grill, it’s got to sit for a minute. Five minutes.”

This rest gives the tissues time to absorb the juices that will otherwise end up on your plate.

On the rare occasions he does eat somebody else’s steak, Haggard is a fan of Doe’s Eat Place on Cherry Street. He likes the fact that he can order two pounds of meat and have it hand-cut on the premises.

“Generally,” he said, “I find that wherever they’re hand-cutting their steaks is a pretty good place.”

To wit: “One of the best I ever had was in the Vintage House. They have an incredible menu. Probably the best steak I’ve ever eaten in my life. About 20 miles north of Alva in a little town called Burlington. Like the coat factory.”

The Vintage House is near an airport, and a lot of its business comes from fly-ins. Colorado, Texas Panhandle, all over. But, for the Oklahoma Steak Cook-Off, Vintage will be in our house.

“They’re comin’ to the cookoff, closing the place down for the first time ever, and bringing half of Burlington with them.”

— Mark Brown, World Scene editor

Cook-Off at Cincinnati Avenue

This is cattle country, pardner, and if you want to lasso yerself a juicy certified Angus beef steak dinner for 20 smackaroos you better gallop off to the Oklahoma Championship Steak Cook-Off on Saturday at Trinity Episcopal Church, 601 S. Cincinnati Ave.

Contestants will start cooking at 12:30 p.m., and the results will be announced at 7 p.m. The grand prize is $2,500. Second place pays $1,000, third place $750, fourth place $500 and fifth place $250.

After contestants turn in their 16-ounce steaks — a certified Angus ribeye, handcut on site — for judging, they will begin cooking for ticket-holders and begin serving dinners at 5:30 p.m. The dinners include steak, baked potato, salad and bread.

Grill cooks will be set up in the street, dining tables in the parking lot of Trinity.

Festivities get under way at noon with live music acts such as Shelby Eicher and Mark Bruner, the DuoSonics, Timothy O’Brian’s Celtic Cheer and Matt Jewitt-Williams.

Tickets are $20 each and may be ordered online at tulsaworld.com/oksteakcookoff. Tickets are limited.



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Tulsa World Reader Comments
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Observer3, (9/24/2009 5:31:16 AM)
How about the Bluestone Steakhouse? Great steaks cooked to perfection. It would be nice to highlight some of the newer restaurants in town that serve wonderful food instead of the same old places everyone has already tried. The Bluestone is a favorite of mine because of the food and the quiet atmosphere. So many eating places are so noisy it's hard to carry on a conversation, but not at the Bluestone--mood lighting and soft background music make it an ideal dining out spot--and the food is top notch.

SRV, (9/24/2009 11:01:33 AM)
Where is Jamil's on your list?

Mar, Tulsa (9/24/2009 11:59:15 AM)
Now I'm hungry for a steak. Yum!

JLB, Tulsa (9/24/2009 2:20:20 PM)
What about Ryan's too SRV?

Arbythree, Tulsa (9/24/2009 2:23:05 PM)
Where is Doe's??????????

JLB, Tulsa (9/24/2009 2:34:31 PM)
Doe's Eat Place is at 1350 E 15th Cherry Street

HOGRIDER, BA (9/24/2009 2:52:08 PM)
Mahogany.......hands down.

flyfisher, (9/24/2009 3:15:49 PM)
Don't forget the Celebrity Club for a great strip.

Big Moose, Tulsa (9/24/2009 4:42:04 PM)
I had a pleasant surprise last week, Had a great 8 ounce filet @ Cardigans on Lewis. Very tasty.

tulsarick, (9/24/2009 4:44:09 PM)
Mollys in Catoosa

notyourfriend, (9/24/2009 5:10:58 PM)
If you are going to put your steaks on display please show better knife work when cutting up the green onions piled on top. Don't use ice cream scoop on mashed potatoes that goes for the whipped butter as well. Don't use frozen shrimp,grill marks should be on bias not run down the steak. Clean the rim of the plate and take the baker out of the foil. Frozen or canned green beans, please. Show some pride in your work.

livinintheburbs, (9/24/2009 5:52:27 PM)
Angus Inn in BA....shhhh it might get even more crowded

The Bug, Tulsa (9/24/2009 9:30:06 PM)
ooooh....steeaaak...

JLB, Tulsa (9/24/2009 10:13:47 PM)
notyourfriend, that's what you get at The Bros. Houligan. It's gross and I can't believe it would even be compared to the likes of Mahogany and other fine steakhouses. We cringe when friends suggest going there. It's like gussied up diner fare at full boat prices.

Jumbo, (9/24/2009 10:16:36 PM)
Believe me, I know steaks and McGill's doesn't deserve to be on this list. That place has been going downhill for the last 5 years. The Polo Grill and The Brasserie are hands down better steaks.

thatsright, tulsa (9/24/2009 10:42:26 PM)
Eddy's has the best steaks in town period!

Heather '75, Tulsa (9/25/2009 8:21:05 AM)
Oooh, I love the steak at Wild Fork. Mmmmmmmm...

maverick4god, Tulsa (9/25/2009 5:35:29 PM)
Had a nice steak at Logan's last night. One of my favorite restaurants, because they have good steaks, and they don't annihilate your checking account/credit-card

JLB, Tulsa (9/25/2009 11:24:36 PM)
LOL thatsright; some friends asked us to go to Eddy's a while back and I was stunned. First of all it was dark. Not like a nice restaurant with dim lighting but dark, to hide the rotted old carpet and torn naugehyde chairs. I felt so sorry for the old waiters that I we might need to serve ourselves. Then came the food. Salad from a bag with brown edges and dressing straight out of the gallon jug from Sam's Club. The steak was cooked as ordered (medium) but had no flavor. Not an aged beef flavor nor any seasoning. I think they just cut a piece from a cryovac IBP ribeye and threw it on the grill. Certainly not my idea of the best steaks in town, unless you've been frequenting the "Beef Night" at the Golden Corral. Then it might be a step up.

aa5drvr, (9/27/2009 6:15:46 PM)
Avalon is now closed.



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