Morton's The Steakhouse - New York City

Yes, it's a chain. Yes, it's in a tourist trafficked area. Yes, it's pricey. And: yes. Morton's does an excellent steak. I booked an early birthday dinner for myself on a Saturday evening. Being in the Financial District on a Saturday, I wasn't entirely surprised to see a lack of crowds, though I was the only diner on the first floor. My steakhouse order doesn't change much: shrimp cocktail steak mushrooms whiskey drink. The shrimp cocktail here had some of the largest shrimp I've seen, served with some properly zippy cocktail sauce. While ribeye is my go to cut, I went with a dry aged strip instead. It was done a perfect medium rare but a little too charred on the edges. The accompanying side of spinach and mushrooms added a nice flavour contrast but was in need of some other seasoning. And the whiskey drink? A fine Manhattan with Woodford Reserve sweet vermouth cherries orange peel ...steak. It may seem gimmicky to garnish a cocktail with a small piece of prime beef, but it works.

For a change, instead of going for dinner, went to Morton's for drinks and dessert and had a great time. We sat at the bar and had a couple of drinks and a Sticky Toffee Bread Pudding which was wonderful and perfect for sharing. The bartender was very friendly and energetic (and made a great Expresso Martini! and we had a nice conversation with Kayleigh, the manager that we know from past visits. The restaurant was very lively for an evening in the middle of the week but not overly crowded.

When I say they have the best steak , especially this location. I have nothing bad to say at all . Service is always amazing welcoming. Love how the inside looks very upscale.

When you think of places out-of-towners would frequent, what name comes to mind? To me, Ruth's Chris and Benihana's fit the bill. Honestly, one we frequented before has been Capital Grille. We stopped into this Morton's Steakhouse location about two blocks South of the World Trade Center, tucked between two hotels, and across the street from the future site of 5 World Trade Center. We had a mid week lunch late in the day, so it wasn't too busy. The decor I would categorize as 1980's bar lounge. Black with art decoish embellishments. We sat at a table harking to booths you would find common in 1980's establishments. A place Mike Pence would find comfort in, should he decide to campaign in The Big Apple. The food was good. Our server brought us a warm fluffy loaf of bread, dotted with browned onions. I liked the butter that spread effortlessly. I had the filet mignon, very tender and nicely seasoned. My wife had the pork chop. The photo does not do it justice, as it is humongous. I loved the taste I got from it. Cuts like buttah. We were there for Restaurant Week, but were surprised that the daily lunch special nearly matched the Restarant Week deal. King of the Road played in the dining room, along with tunes by Sammy Davis, Jr, and Frank Sinatra. Norah Jones' Cheatin' Heart fit the playlist, too. Okay, back to the future.

I've been coming to this Morton's location for over 5 years. Adjacent to the Club Quarters World trade hotel everyone here is very friendly and always provide excellent service. Everything here is delicious but I usually come here for lunch, before your meal you get a freshly loaf of onion bread with butter!