At Midtown Grill in Amsterdam, enjoy amazing meat dishes from the sizzling grill
Do you love a perfectly cooked, substantial T-bone steak or a juicy tenderloin? Then make a beeline for Amsterdam restaurant Midtown Grill in the Marriott Hotel. Here, you can eat steak exactly the way you like it: seared on the outside and still red inside. Carnivores unite!
FavorFlav’s Vincent predicted the so-called ‘luxury trend’ for 2022 last year. The trend in which we go out to eat and drink much less, but when we do, we do it properly and with plenty of fanfare. Michelin-starred restaurants, champagne, fine wines, impressive cuts of meat or fish. We’d rather spend big on truly exceptional food once a month—with lots of tableside theatre—than eat something twice a week away from home that we could also prepare ourselves. Another trend: eating less meat, but when we do eat meat, eating very good meat. At Midtown Grill, these two trends come together seamlessly. The meat is fantastic, it’s luxurious, and there’s theatre at the table.
Aging cabinets
The theatre begins as soon as you enter, where you come face to face with cabinets filled with aging meat. Meat lovers know: good meat needs to age. And to age meat until it is tender and full of flavor, aging cabinets (also known as ‘dry-aging cabinets’) are ideal. ‘Dry aging’ is a traditional method that gives a perfect steak time and the right conditions—such as temperature, humidity and air quality—to mature. Dry-aged meat is therefore hugely popular among meat lovers and connoisseurs.
At the grill
As you continue, you pass the long bar, where you sit right by the kitchen (and grill). Tables for two, four and larger groups are spread throughout the restaurant. The place is completely full, with both locals and tourists.
Carpaccio of aged sirloin
We start with dry-aged beef carpaccio, made from aged sirloin. It is considerably fattier than carpaccio made with thinly sliced, non-aged beef, but also so much more delicious! The carpaccio is finished with truffle aioli, pine nuts and Parmesan flakes. It’s a shame they come pre-sliced from a bag; truly fresh shavings would have been more refined and tastier, but we see it through our fingers. The sourdough bread is also very good. It is served with smoked butter—you have to be into that—but there is also good olive oil on the table.
Meat trolley
Entirely in American style, one of the servers rolls a trolley over to the table, displaying the best cuts from all over the world. The best steaks from American Creekstone Farms come from corn-fed cattle, while the Dutch cattle are grass-fed. Meat from Australia, New Zealand and Spain comes from grain-fed cattle. Feed plays an important role: a grain-fed cow has more fat in and on the meat than a grass-fed one.
Different steak knives
After the explanation of the different cuts, we are given an explanation of—and a choice from—a series of beautiful knives. Japanese, Argentinian, French and Dutch knives: they have them all here.
Wonderful chateaubriand
We order the 600-gram Filet Mignon ‘chateaubriand’ (for 2 people) and the dry-aged Ribeye. Both cuts are served at the table on a sizzling grill. Chateaubriand is the thick end of a tenderloin and incredibly tender, because the muscle has done very little work. There is therefore little fat on the meat. Incredibly delicious! The dry-aged Ribeye is also exceptionally good. Perfectly cooked and finished with salt flakes. All steaks on the menu come with a sauce of your choice: green pepper sauce, béarnaise, red wine jus or chimichurri.
The sides—fries and sweet potato fries—are fine, while the vegetable side dishes are even very good: crunchy haricots verts and green asparagus.
Vegetarian options too
Alongside the fantastic selection of tender (organic) grilled beef, the menu also features fish and vegetarian dishes, such as grilled cauliflower steak and saffron risotto. Given the quality of what comes out of the kitchen here, these are undoubtedly delicious too, but we come for the steaks.
New York cheesecake
The dessert menu is literally a dessert card—in other words, a postcard. It features various classics, such as crème brûlée, tiramisu and New York cheesecake. And if you want to send your dessert menu to someone, Midtown Grill will do that for you. Funny. We order the New York cheesecake and holy moly, what a unit it is. Through sheer determination, we manage to finish it together.
Back soon!
We roll our way outside. This is so good. Fantastic meat, delicious side dishes and good, friendly service to boot. This is our go to when we’re in the mood for steak. In short, highly recommended!
Midtown Grill, Stadhouderskade 12, Amsterdam
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