This has always been a predictable category in the past. Laurelhurst would place first with a long list of the same restaurants in slightly different order every year. Not so this time. Yes, the winner is the same, but the rest of the list is shaken up a bit by the absence of more than four restaurants with enough votes to make it to the list. I wonder if part of that is due to the enormous popularity of the relatively new restaurant, OX. If you want more detailed descriptions, you’ll find my steakhouse showdown reviews here.
In years past, the order was:
2012: Laurelhurst 41%, Ringside 20%, El Gaucho 10%, Ox 4%, Ruth’s Chris, Morton’s, Nostrana, Paley’s Place, Urban Farmer, Firehouse.
2011: Laurelhurst, El Gaucho
Out of 816 votes:
1. Laurelhurst Market – 36% of the vote. 3155 East Burnside Street Portland, OR 97214 Map (503) 206-3097
2. OX – 17% 2225 Northeast Martin Luther King Junior Boulevard Portland, OR 97212 Map (503) 284-3366 My review
3. Ringside Steakhouse – 12% My review
Jill-O says
That ginormous porterhouse at Nostrana is still the best steak in town, IMO. I have to admit., though, the ribeye from Laurelhurst Market I had last week was fabulous. I’m also a huge fan of Ox.
Nice to have options, eh? ;o)
Food Dude says
I was surprised that the Nostrana steak only had 4 votes, but it is fairly expensive, and I doubt it gets ordered by many people (just because they don’t go to an Italian restaurant for steak). I didn’t make it back to Laurelhurst in the last few years. I also have had some terrific steaks at OX.
It is nice to have non-chain options!
A Fish says
I know that my experience is the outlier here, but I managed to get a table only once at Laurelhurst after a few failed attempts. I ordered the sweetbreads and a skirt steak. The sweetbreads were the smallest possible appetizing dish that I may have ever encountered and was too small to share any of or even garner an opinion on quality. In the “this must be a joke” category. The skirt steak was also way too small, way too fatty (yes I know that it is a fatty cut), and overcooked. I made the error of not sending it back, but after an hour or so of repeatedly hearing “We’re sorry for the long wait, however your table should be ready any minute now”, I didn’t have the patience to wait it out. Unfortunately, I am left with that one experience. The 3 other diners had meals that they enjoyed, although I’m not sure if anyone else ordered a meat dish.
Jill-O says
I just had a sweetbreads app last week and shared it with my GF. It was an app-sized portion, not too small for that, IMO. We shared that, a ribeye, a salad and some padron peppers and took some food home (and we are not small eaters). It was a great meal, and I was sorry it had been about a year since I last ate there.
Sorry you had a bad experience, Fish…
JandJ says
I can’t say that we exactly had a bad experience at LH a couple of months back, but both of us agreed that many steaks we’ve had elsewhere were far more memorable. Imperial, Ox, El Gaucho, Paley’s all did a far better job IMHO, and do so consistently. It’s been quite a while since we’ve been there and our first experience was somewhat better, however, with other equal or better alternatives out there, it wouldn’t be anywhere near our first choice for those occasional times when we’re looking for our steak fix.
Porter says
Is that a typo above? Did Ox really only get 4% of the vote – or should that be 40% no wait, that’s too many points.
PDX Food Dude says
Yes, that was a typo – all of them were off! Not sure how that happened, but they are correct now. Thanks for asking.