HILUXURY – Hawaii Luxury Magazine

Getting to the meat of Hawaii’s top restaurants

WE EXPECT A LOT from our favorite steakhouses. From the depth of the char on a New York strip, to white linen on the tables and wood wainscoting on the walls, the perfect steakhouse has to satisfy some pretty high standards.

Today in Honolulu, there are an unprecedented number of steakhouses, where atmosphere, service, wine and décor are just as important as the prime beef.

HY’S

Tradition is what often draws us through the dark doors of a steakhouse. And there’s no better example of tradition in Hawaii than Hy’s, where the main dining room resembles an English country mansion. With its authentic Tiffany stained-glass ceiling, mahogany paneling and the ambiance of a private gentleman’s club, Hy’s is unique.

In the Broiler Room, there’s an impressive, glass-encased copper cauldron where steaks are grilled over kiawe wood and ferocious heat. Expect your Hy’s steak, be it a New York strip or a 34-ounce Porterhouse, to have a smoky, dark char. Tuxedo-clad waiters serve tableside classics such as warm spinach and bacon salad and one of the city’s best Caesars. The service is seamless largely because many of the wait staff, including general manager Bob Panter, has been with Hy’s for almost 30 years.

MORTON’S

Importing dark mahogany and creating the kind of rooms that typify Hy’s may be financially prohibitive today, but dark rooms will always rule when it comes to the ultimate steakhouse ambiance. At Morton’s, the dark walls and dim lights serve to heighten expectations and remind us that we don’t want sunlight with our steakhouse cocktails. What we do want are oversized appetizers such as colossal shrimp cocktail and plump scallops wrapped in bacon. We want pumped up portions of Chicago-style bone-in ribeye and larger-than-life sides. And we definitely want the greatest wedge salad in the world. At Morton’s, the perfectly grilled steaks come with a deep, signature char. USDA prime-aged, Midwest grain-fed beef is shipped to Hawaii from Chicago, aged and cut, then cooked over intense heat.

A favorite haunt of the rich and famous, Morton’s offers service that goes beyond the perfect sirloin, like preferential seating and personal wine lockers for VIP connoisseur customers.

WOLFGANG’S

At Wolfgang’s Steakhouse, the curious can take their steak viewing a step further with a visit to the restaurant’s aging box. The room is kept at 36-38 degrees Fahrenheit, and steaks are aged here for 24 days, then trimmed and cut by hand. Aging brings out an earthiness and nuttiness in the meat.

Despite its location in the newly renovated Royal Hawaiian Center, Wolf-gang’s ambiance is completely New York, based on the city where owner Wolfgang Zweiner spent 40 years at Peter Luger’s, becoming a legend in his profession. The menu is as true to New York tradition as a big yellow taxi, and includes the now famous sizzling slab of bacon.

In bringing a taste of New York to Hawaii, Wolfgang’s also brought an impressive seafood platter and three-pound lobsters to round out its traditional menu.

BLT STEAK

Despite their name, steakhouses also are great places to eat fresh fish and supreme seafood. At BLT (Bistro Laurent Tourondel) Steak, a trendy raw bar offers a wide variety of littleneck and cherrystone clams, oysters, crab, mussels and lobster. More an adaptation of the classic American steakhouse than an imitation, BLT Steak has an impressive contemporary menu that includes complimentary popovers and pate, fresh Island tuna and USDA prime or certified Black Angus beef. This modern-day steakhouse, on the ground floor of Trump International Hotel & Tower Waikiki, offers a rare opportunity to sample elegantly presented dishes either at the trendy bar where busy bartenders hustle, or in the earthy, organic comfort of the modern interior.

RUTH’S CHRIS

Eating at the bar is a steakhouse tradition that requires a confluence of events only seasoned professionals can create. At Ruth’s Chris, one of the city’s most popular steakhouse destinations, eating at the bar has been turned into something of an art form. With the option to choose from a menu that includes aged prime steaks cooked at a searing 1,800 degrees, along with the opportunity to participate in oftentimes animated bar conversations, Ruth’s Chris has a multileveled and much appreciated local appeal. Offering freshly caught Island fish and locally inspired specials as well as seared prime steaks brought sizzling to the table, the restaurant honors its own impressive tradition with fine wines and original Southern-inspired recipes. Barbecued shrimp, chopped salad and sweet potato casserole originated in founder Ruth Fertel’s first New Orleans steakhouse. This restaurant chain may be more than 40 years old, but it comfortably keeps up with dining trends.

BALI

Perhaps the best indicator that steakhouses are leading the present culinary trend can be found at Hilton Hawaiian Village’s signature fine dining restaurant, Bali. Rarely has the transformation of a restaurant been more needed or more successful. The combination of changes in both menu and décor — and the successful transition of long-term staff — have catapulted the renamed Bali Steak and Seafood into serious steakhouse territory. Gone are the aquamarine designer distractions, the surf-inspired billowy curtains and a menu that changed as often as the trade winds. They’ve been replaced by sophisticated dark-wood trim, shuttered windows, subtle cream walls and a menu that features locally grown produce, prime aged steaks, and side dishes such as truffle Parmesan french fries and roasted Hamakua mushrooms. There’s also a veritable treasure of a wine list that’s been lovingly tended these past 20 years by veteran sommelier Stephen Fuller.