Smith & Wollensky
New York City
Almost nothing disturbs tradition at Smith & Wollensky, one of New
York City's premier steakhouses. The deep, burnished gleam of the
wooden bar welcomes the droves that gather there waiting to be seated
in the crowded dining rooms. The oak floors are slightly scuffed and
worn. The walls glow in a kind of faded yellow, as if they are aged
parchment. For a restaurant that only opened its doors in 1977, the
total effect is more than a passing homage to the great
turn-of-the-century New York restaurants.
The only evidence that the guardians of a nineteenth-century
meat-and-potatoes diet are easing up turns up on the menu: There, in a
small, relatively unobtrusive box, the "Kitchen Within A Kitchen" menu
offers pan-roasted fish steak, grilled chicken breast, Cajun-spiced
filet mignon and shrimp Natchez. There are other nonmeat offerings: On
the main menu are lemon pepper chicken and three fish dishes at lunch,
four at dinner. Most restaurant reviewers tout this place as a steak
and seafood restaurant, but this is not a place to eat fish or
chicken--no matter what restaurant critics or physicians say.
This is the house that meat built. There are other great steakhouses
in New York, some with histories stretching back to the turn of the
century, and each has its avowed defenders. But Smith & Wollensky
surrenders nothing to any of them. The list of "S & W
Classics"--all of which cost $29.95 at dinner--is simple: sliced steak
Wollensky, sirloin, filet mignon, filet au poivre, prime rib of beef,
triple lamb chops and veal chop. Veal dishes, chopped steak, calf's
liver and a double sirloin or Chateaubriand (for two) also appear on
the menu.
A recent meal included a taste of the three most traditional
appetizers that waiters suggest when customers ask for
recommendations: shrimp cocktail, lobster cocktail and fresh lump
crabmeat. The shellfish were fresh and properly cooked; the crabmeat
was especially tender. Then, along with the meal came cottage fries, a
delicious pan-seared version with chunks of potato browned in butter
and served like a potato pancake. There are vegetables to be had, of
course, but they are extra. Unless you're very hungry or feel like you
must have something virtuous visible on the table, don't bother.
The main event was the sirloin, also suggested by the waiter as the
most traditional of the traditional meat dishes. Perfectly cooked to
medium rare, the steak succumbed easily to the knife, and the flavors
from the extra weeks of special aging in the Smith & Wollensky
cellars filled the mouth. There are other meat dishes, too: The prime
rib usually causes gasps as it arrives hanging off the edge of the
plate, and the filet mignon is so thick and tall that you wonder what
sized mammoth was slaughtered for you.
Don't quibble about dessert either: Cheesecake, hot deep-dish apple
pie with vanilla sauce, homemade Austrian strudel and pecan pie are
all part of Smith & Wollensky's traditional feast.
The wine list wins points too. A winner of The Wine Spectator's
Grand Award for Excellence since 1987, it highlights American wines,
especially Cabernet Sauvignons from California. Napa Valley wines such
as Beaulieu, Beringer, Caymus, Diamond Creek, Dunn, Heitz, Robert
Mondavi Reserve, Spottswoode, Silver Oak and Stag's Leap Wine Cellars
are all well represented. From Sonoma, Jordan dominates the listings
while Ridge tops the other regional California appellations.
Prices are not low, although there are good deals on the better-known
wines. Also, there is a significant selection of bigger bottles with
rarities like the Robert Mondavi Reserve 1974 in a double magnum, or
jeroboam. If you can't find what you want on the main list, ask for
the cellar list of older vintages.
Don't worry about cigar smoking here. When asked over the telephone
about its cigar policy, the maître d' said, "Smoke, drink--you
can do whatever you want here." Cigar smoking is restricted to the
smoking section. But the restaurant has made a new commitment to
cigars by acquiring a cart for its humidor, both specially made by
Davidoff, and Davidoff cigars are kept for customers.
Don't be shy. Smith & Wollensky's entire reason for being is to
flout a lot of the diet and life-style conventions that have arisen
over the last two decades in the United States. Red meat. Good wine. A
fine cigar. All is right with the world.
-- Gordon Mott
Smith & Wollensky
797 Third Avenue
Phone: (212)
753-1530
Lunch: $55--$60 per person without wine
Dinner:
$65--$70 per person without wine
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