Steakhouse style · US, high heat

American chophouse

The American chophouse, or steakhouse, is a restaurant style centered on large steaks cooked at very high heat and served with side dishes. Ruth's Chris says its broiler reaches about 1,800 °F / 980 °C; the style descends from the London chophouses of the 1690s and the inns of 19th-century American cities.

Also known as: Steakhouse, chophouseLast reviewed 25 Oct 202615 sources

From a London chop to a steak menu

A chophouse, in the original sense, was a London eating house that served single portions of meat, or "chops". In the United States the word survives alongside "steakhouse" for restaurants whose menus are organized around beef steaks — the porterhouse, the strip, the rib eye — and, in a few older houses, the mutton chop. Steaks are ordered by cut and doneness, and side dishes such as creamed spinach are a common part of the meal.

At its high end the style is associated with top-grade, aged beef. Peter Luger and Keens, both in New York, state that they serve USDA Prime beef dry-aged on their own premises.

London in the 1690s, then America

London chophouses appeared in the 1690s, selling individual portions of meat, and remained a place for traditional food through the late 19th century. They were usually for men only. Simpson's Tavern, described as the oldest in London, closed in 2022.

The American steakhouse emerged in the mid-19th century out of inns and bars. An earlier New York chophouse, Cobweb Hall, run by David Pattullo, was known for its mutton chops. Delmonico's opened in 1827 in a pastry shop at 23 William Street and in August 1837, after the Great Fire, moved into a large building on Beaver Street. It gave its name to the Delmonico steak — originally a strip steak, today often a rib eye — and the name "New York strip" is linked to it. The Old Homestead, opened in 1868, is described as the oldest continuously operating steakhouse in the United States.

In parallel, New York developed the beefsteak, a banquet that began in the mid-19th century as working-class "testimonials" and fundraisers, many organized by Tammany Hall. Guests ate with their fingers and wore aprons instead of napkins; the meal was sliced loin with a butter sauce, served on bread. Women and cutlery arrived later, in the era of Prohibition and women's suffrage. The main account is Joseph Mitchell's 1939 article in The New Yorker; the custom survives mainly in Bergen and Passaic counties, New Jersey.

Keens was founded around 1885 by Albert Keen, manager of the Lambs Club. Peter Luger opened in Brooklyn in 1887; it received a Michelin star in 2006 and lost it in 2022. The Palm opened in 1926 at 837 Second Avenue, founded by Pio Bozzi and John Ganzi, and became known for the caricatures on its walls. Later in the century the style grew into restaurant groups: Ruth Fertel bought the 60-seat Chris Steak House in New Orleans in 1965 and, after a fire in 1976, the restaurant took the name Ruth's Chris; Morton's was founded in Chicago in 1978 by Arnie Morton and Klaus Fritsch.

A broiler at 1,800 °F

Where the South American and Basque traditions cook over wood or charcoal embers, the American steakhouse is identified with intense, controlled heat. A documented example is Ruth's Chris: the company says its broiler reaches about 1,800 °F / 980 °C, and it serves its steaks on a plate heated to 500 °F / 260 °C, with butter.

Aging is the other half of the kitchen. Peter Luger and Keens both describe dry aging on their premises as part of how they prepare their beef; the process itself is explained under dry aging.

USDA Prime, about 10 % of the beef

The quality grades of the US Department of Agriculture frame how the beef is sold. Prime is the top grade and a small share of the supply: in recent years around 10% of graded fed beef has reached it.

The porterhouse is served at Peter Luger as a steak for two to four people. The strip is tied to New York by name, through Delmonico's; the rib eye is what a Delmonico steak usually means today. The mutton chop at Keens keeps a link to the chophouse era, when single chops, not shared steaks, were the unit of the meal.

Creamed spinach and a hot plate

Steaks come with side dishes; creamed spinach is one of the most common. The room itself often carries history: the men-only tradition of the London chophouse, the aprons and bread of the beefsteak banquet, the caricatures on the walls of The Palm. At Ruth's Chris the steak arrives on its heated plate with butter, a service detail the company presents as its signature.

Peter Luger, Keens, Delmonico's

Peter Luger (Brooklyn, 1887), known for its porterhouse; Keens (New York, around 1885), known for its mutton chop; Delmonico's (New York, 1827), associated with the Delmonico steak and the New York strip; The Old Homestead (New York, 1868); The Palm (New York, 1926); Morton's (Chicago, 1978); and Ruth's Chris (New Orleans, 1965).

Frequently asked questions

Sources

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1. USDA Agricultural Marketing Service. United States Standards for Grades of Carcass Beef. 2017. www.ams.usda.gov/grades-standards/carcass-beef-grades-and-standards
2. Savell, Jeffrey W. Dry-Aging of Beef: Executive Summary. Centennial, CO: National Cattlemen's Beef Association, 2008.
3. Wikipedia. "Chophouse." en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chophouse
4. Wikipedia. "Steakhouse." en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steakhouse
5. Wikipedia. "Beefsteak (banquet)." en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beefsteak_(banquet)
6. Wikipedia. "Delmonico's." en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delmonico%27s
7. Wikipedia. "Keens Steakhouse." en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keens_Steakhouse
8. Wikipedia. "Peter Luger Steak House." en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Luger_Steak_House
9. Wikipedia. "The Palm (restaurant)." en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Palm_(restaurant)
10. Wikipedia. "Morton's The Steakhouse." en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morton%27s_The_Steakhouse
11. The Takeout. "How Ruth's Chris Steak House cooks its steaks." thetakeout.com/1990802/how-ruths-chris-steak-house-cooks-steaks
12. Agri-Pulse. "Is the beef industry primed to reconsider its quality grades?" www.agri-pulse.com/articles/20829-is-the-beef-industry-primed-to-reconsider-its-quality-grades
13. Wikipedia. "Creamed spinach." en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Creamed_spinach
14. Peter Luger Steak House. "Our story" (official site). peterluger.com/pages/our-story
15. Keens Steakhouse. "Dinner" (official site). keens.com/dinner

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