As someone who writes about food and loves to try new things, I’m always on the hunt for the next great restaurant. I have my regular spots, of course, but more often than not I’m going somewhere new. That said, there’s one restaurant I have been to time and again since it opened because I simply can’t get enough: Cote Korean Steakhouse.
I love a steakhouse. The ice-cold Martinis, the Caesar salads, the dry-aged beef. New York’s Cote has all of these things and does them very well. But there’s something very specific about this steakhouse that keeps me coming back, and that’s its Korean personality.
Cote serves some of the most delicious and highest-quality steaks in the country (and probably the world). But just like at your standard Korean barbecue restaurant, one of the servers cooks the meat for you on a tabletop grill. Meanwhile, the shrimp cocktail, a steakhouse classic, is served with gochujang cocktail sauce. The wedge salad is made with sesame dressing. The Butcher’s Feast — which, at $78 per person, is the best deal in NYC — pairs four cuts of steak with Korean accompaniments like scallion salad and kimchi stew. The concept is so successful that Cote has opened additional locations in Miami and Singapore, with Las Vegas to come later this year.
Cote isn’t the only American steakhouse taking cues from other cuisines. During the pandemic, Sunny’s Someday Steakhouse at Lot 6 was Miami’s hottest reservation; the outdoor setup meant people could enjoy themselves with less worry, and the food and cocktails were so damn good — I still think about the meal I had there in April 2021. Turns out, lots of others agreed because Sunny’s opened permanently in October 2024 with both an indoor and outdoor space.
Sunny’s has all the classics you’d want from an American steakhouse, but it’s the Miami flavors woven throughout the menu that makes it a knockout. In addition to traditional Martini service, mezcal service is also available. Hokkaido scallops from the raw bar are served with aguachile negro and pickled chayote. The chicken liver mousse is accompanied with starfruit mostarda, and you can order a side of pineapple hot sauce or salsa verde with your dry-aged ribeye.
If I’m Paying $20 for a Martini, I Need a Fresh Glass Halfway Through
Not ice-cold? Not worth the money.At Asador Bastian in Chicago, Basque influences are seen throughout Chef Doug Psaltis’s menu. The Martinis are reconceived with sherry, Spanish vermouth and piparras pepper. A pintxos menu has bites like a golden caviar churro and house-cured chorizo, and steaks can be dressed up with piquillo peppers. The Americano in Scottsdale, Arizona has a tableside mozzarella cart and gives a few classic steakhouse dishes some Italian flair — think oysters with prosecco mignonette and roasted pork belly with Calabrian hot honey. Over at Aris in Austin, Texas, they look to the Mediterranean. Instead of a classic wedge or Caesar, diners get their greens via a fattoush salad or tomato salad with Moroccan olives and feta. Honey harissa carrots and a cigar stuffed with sweetbreads, pine nuts and harissa serve as sides to classic beef cuts that are butchered in-house.
Last night, I dined at Gui Steakhouse in Midtown Manhattan. It has all the trappings of an American steakhouse but with Korean, and sometimes Japanese, influences. At downstairs Bar92, the 50/50 Gibson Martini is made with charred scallion-infused dry vermouth and Japanese umami bitters. Asian flavors are all over the food menu, too. The Caesar gets revamped with candied anchovy and umeboshi dressing. The kimchi Wagyu fried rice is one of the most popular shareable plates. And the sauces to complement the perfectly cooked dry-aged steaks are standouts, especially the béarnaise made with makgeolli (a lightly sparkling Korean rice wine) and wasabi chimichurri.
Yes, I love Peter Luger and Keens, and I always will. But these globally-inspired, nouveau steakhouses have a hold on me, and I never want to let go.
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