# How on Earth is a 10 oz New York strip steak worth $42.99? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 12, 2017, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-on-earth-is-a-10-oz-new-york-strip-steak-worth-42-99/793459 "2017-08-12T19:30:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2017, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-on-earth-is-a-10-oz-new-york-strip-steak-worth-42-99/793459/41 "2017-08-14T02:24:07Z")
Yeah, I can find 80-20 chuck at around $2.99/lb around here. No chub, either. But it’s usually family pack size, meaning around three pounds or more. ---
**Author:** ![D\_Odds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/d_odds/32/2882_2.png) [@D\_Odds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Odds)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2017, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-on-earth-is-a-10-oz-new-york-strip-steak-worth-42-99/793459/42 "2017-08-14T02:38:28Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > Steak has been steadily going up. > > The filet wrapped in bacon at Outback was $17 for several years. Even in 2011 it was about $18. > > It’s up to $21 now. Plus tax. > > We’ve almost completely quit going anymore. > > $100 is just too expensive for a group of four. > > I buy $9 steaks at Kroger and cook them at home. Oh my. OH MY! The price of an Outback meal has gone up $3 dollars in the past 6 years. Why, that’s $0.50 a year. How dare they! The unmitigated gall of that place. I have to find me a paper bag. I’m hyperventilating just from reading this. The outrage. The OUTRAGE! Inconceivable! ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2017, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-on-earth-is-a-10-oz-new-york-strip-steak-worth-42-99/793459/43 "2017-08-14T02:42:28Z")
Hey, it’s Outback. I’d say **acey** is better off cooking at home. ---
**Author:** ![D\_Odds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/d_odds/32/2882_2.png) [@D\_Odds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Odds)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2017, 2:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-on-earth-is-a-10-oz-new-york-strip-steak-worth-42-99/793459/44 "2017-08-14T02:46:09Z")
> [@Fiveyearlurker](#): > > Sous vide plus a torch has changed my steak game immensely. [Searing steaks for science](http://www.seriouseats.com/2016/06/how-hot-is-too-hot-steak-searing-adam-savage-tested.html), by Adam Savage (Mythbusters) and J. Kenji Lopez-Alt (Serious Eats). ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2017, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-on-earth-is-a-10-oz-new-york-strip-steak-worth-42-99/793459/45 "2017-08-14T02:56:37Z")
Believe it or not the top-level steakhouse makes fairly little money on the steaks. These are not your supermarket cuts. They are not choice, they are prime, and they are dry aged. You want to buy dry aged prime cuts to cook yourself? [Here’s](http://www.lobels.com/usda-prime-dry-aged-boneless-strip-steaks/p/UPBLSS) a place to order them. That 10 oz NY strip prime dry aged will cost you $39.95 to buy raw. Think that’s being selective? [Here’s](https://www.debragga.com/beef/dry-aged-beef.html) another. The 4-pack of raw 12 oz dry aged prime NY strips is $199. Truth be told you are getting _a very good value_ having that NY strip prepared just right served with good ambience for $42.99. They make the money on the [“upsell”](https://www.foodfanatics.com/food/the-dry-aged-beef-revolution) of drinks and sides, especially the drinks. > [@](#): > > Dry-aged beef is not as much of a profit center as it is an attention grabber. It relies on menu maneuvering, such as selling side dishes with a lower food cost (potatoes and vegetables) a la carte, to make it worth serving. For example, at Kevin Rathbun Steak, side dishes from onion rings to creamed spinach cost $7.50, while sauces such as roasted garlic butter and bearnaise are $3. Servers, as a result, can talk up sides for the table as well as suggest steak “accompaniments” (sauces and seasonings). > > “We lose a minimum of 40 percent (though the standard is less) to start; the longer we age, the more we lose,” Gresh says. “We price accordingly to keep our food costs in line around 32 percent overall.” > > Jon Weber, co-owner and director of operations at Cowboy Star Restaurant and Butcher Shop in San Diego, echoes these sentiments, noting that dry-aged beef typically performs about 8 percent less in terms of profit margin compared to the restaurant’s other beef programs. > > So if dry-aged beef is still expensive, why does it stay on menus? Cliff Bramble, co-owner of Kevin Rathbun Steak, says the recognition among guests with roomier wallets plays a big role. “You have to take into account that many guests in steak houses are on business accounts and are entertaining clients,” he says. “So they have a larger discretionary budget.” > > Operators agree that diners increasingly know that dry-aged steak doesn’t come cheap. ---
**Author:** ![BobBitchin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7ea924/32.png) [@BobBitchin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobBitchin)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2017, 4:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-on-earth-is-a-10-oz-new-york-strip-steak-worth-42-99/793459/46 "2017-08-14T04:09:13Z")
I would like to add my 2¢ to the other wonderful answers here. There is alot to be said for keeping out the unwashed masses. If I had the ways and means I would gladly pay way more for the same food I get at Denny’s or red lobster, just to eat in peace and civility. I don’t think I’ve ever made more than poverty level income, so I’m on a McDonald’s budget, but being in the music/high end motorcycle business has gotten me few passes into the rich people bars/ restaurants/hotels. I was VERY impressed with real customer service, it was shocking. Then add to that the lack of crying babies, dining table diaper changes, uncouth patrons and horrible bathroom facilities… I was floored. I finally realized why rich people pay way more. Looking at this from a business owners point of view,I met a guy who made hand built guitar amps and asked why he charged SO much. The answer was he was in high demand, at a low price point he made enough but had to hassle with working people who demand alot and will only buy one of his amps in a lifetime and feel impovershed by the price. At triple the price, he builds fewer amps, makes more money overall with less hassle… and happy customers buy several amps and are thrilled with the experience. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2017, 4:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-on-earth-is-a-10-oz-new-york-strip-steak-worth-42-99/793459/47 "2017-08-14T04:09:41Z")
How much does steak quality depend on how the chef beats his meat? ---
**Author:** ![D\_Odds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/d_odds/32/2882_2.png) [@D\_Odds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Odds)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2017, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-on-earth-is-a-10-oz-new-york-strip-steak-worth-42-99/793459/48 "2017-08-15T02:58:29Z")
> [@BobBitchin](#): > > I was VERY impressed with real customer service, it was shocking. Then add to that the lack of crying babies, dining table diaper changes, uncouth patrons and horrible bathroom facilities… I was floored. I finally realized why rich people pay way more. Pick the wrong night, and you can find the same thing in tonier places. Money doesn’t teach manners, and can often exacerbate bad ones. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2017, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-on-earth-is-a-10-oz-new-york-strip-steak-worth-42-99/793459/49 "2017-08-15T03:29:38Z")
> [@D\_Odds](#): > > Oh my. > > OH MY! > > The price of an Outback meal has gone up $3 dollars in the past 6 years. Why, that’s $0.50 a year. How dare they! The unmitigated gall of that place. > > I have to find me a paper bag. I’m hyperventilating just from reading this. The outrage. The OUTRAGE! Inconceivable! Keep in mind I’m usually paying for 4 people. The last time we went Ben Franklin couldn’t pay the tab. The entire meal was nearly $120 with tax. Then there’s the 15% tip. It’s just not worth it. YMMV I can take the family for Pizza for under $35. ---
**Author:** ![MeanJoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanjoe/32/5693_2.png) [@MeanJoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanJoe)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2017, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-on-earth-is-a-10-oz-new-york-strip-steak-worth-42-99/793459/50 "2017-08-15T15:03:15Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > I’ll probably have a world-class steak every 6 months or so. Between Delmonico, SW Steak, Jean Georges Steakhouse, Prime, Carnevino, CUT, The Country Club, The Steakhouse, CraftSteak, Morel’s and the rest we cycle through in Vegas, I am well served. HA! I travel to Vegas frequently for business conventions and as I read you list my mental commentary was: _“Been there, excellent. Been there. Been there too. Been there. Carnevino, been there had a $1200 bill for 4 people. Sure, why not order another bottle of wine! grumble Been there. Oh, never been to The Country Club. Been there, there, and there!”_ MeanJoe - Devout Carnivore and Lover of Steak ---
**Author:** ![D\_Odds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/d_odds/32/2882_2.png) [@D\_Odds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Odds)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2017, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-on-earth-is-a-10-oz-new-york-strip-steak-worth-42-99/793459/51 "2017-08-15T17:22:15Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > Keep in mind I’m usually paying for 4 people. No. > [@](#): > > It’s just not worth it. YMMV > > I can take the family for Pizza for under $35. Outback for 4 for $35 still wouldn’t be worth it. ---
**Author:** ![MichaelEmouse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/michaelemouse/32/101_2.png) [@MichaelEmouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MichaelEmouse)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2017, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-on-earth-is-a-10-oz-new-york-strip-steak-worth-42-99/793459/52 "2017-08-15T18:35:33Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > You’re also paying for first-rate front of house service, a nice atmosphere and so forth. > [@doreen](#): > > But yes, the combination of food and service can absolutely be good enough to justify a $100 per person price tag. > [@BobBitchin](#): > > I was VERY impressed with real customer service, it was shocking. How is the customer service different from middle ground restaurants? What things are present that would otherwise be absent in the service or vice versa? ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2017, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-on-earth-is-a-10-oz-new-york-strip-steak-worth-42-99/793459/53 "2017-08-15T18:41:15Z")
> [@MichaelEmouse](#): > > How is the customer service different from middle ground restaurants? What things are present that would otherwise be absent in the service or vice versa? I love it when a server scrapes away breadcrumbs from the tablecloth. ---
**Author:** ![August\_West](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/august_west/32/18069_2.png) [@August\_West](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/August_West)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2017, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-on-earth-is-a-10-oz-new-york-strip-steak-worth-42-99/793459/54 "2017-08-15T18:54:49Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > But my local Western Sizzlin (in a nearby town) ages their steaks. And they do not even approach the most expensive steaks in town. They have the same $25 limit on the upper end that most places have. And I never see sides for more than $6 or $7, though usually just like $4. > > I actually question whether food can even be good enough to justify an over $100 per entree price tag. Surely you hit diminishing returns before that point. > > Of course, I like my steaks at least medium, so what do I know? I took a look at a Western Sizzlin menu because I have never heard of this chain. The only aging those steaks receive is the time between when the farmer notices his old milk cow has died and the “fallen cattle” guy shows up to truck it away. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2017, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-on-earth-is-a-10-oz-new-york-strip-steak-worth-42-99/793459/55 "2017-08-15T19:17:27Z")
> [@August\_West](#): > > The only aging those steaks receive is the time between when the farmer notices his old milk cow has died and the “fallen cattle” guy shows up to truck it away. Don’t forget the 6 months it spends in the freezer! ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2017, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-on-earth-is-a-10-oz-new-york-strip-steak-worth-42-99/793459/56 "2017-08-15T19:23:38Z")
> [@nightshadea](#): > > you went to Ruth Chris? > > places like that tend to charge “market” price That’s a bit high, even for Ruth’s Chris. $50 should get you at least a 16oz porterhouse. I find all this talk of Outback steaks offensive. ---
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2017, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-on-earth-is-a-10-oz-new-york-strip-steak-worth-42-99/793459/57 "2017-08-15T19:25:37Z")
> [@MichaelEmouse](#): > > How is the customer service different from middle ground restaurants? What things are present that would otherwise be absent in the service or vice versa? The crumb scraping is nice, but it’s not that important to me. In the higher priced places, the servers have fewer tables and that allows them to pay more attention to each one. You don’t have to look around and try to get your server’s attention if you want another drink, or you’re ready to order dessert or you want the bill. Special requests are handled better- in the lower end places, if my husband asks for no cheese on his salad, I often end up with no cheese on mine as well. More than once, my husband has ordered a steak medium rare in a mid-priced restaurant and it came out medium-well. On at least one occasion, he was told “that’s the only way it comes”. Those mistakes don’t happen in the high end places, and if it did ,there would be an apology rather than an attempt to deny there was a mistake. The servers know the menu better in the higher end places and can describe a dish in words that aren’t used on the menu,while at Applebee’s I’m likely to get a blank state if I ask which whole grains the Pepper crusted Sirloin is served over. The servers and bus people are quieter, and it doesn’t sound like they are just dropping the dirty dishes into a bin in the middle of the dining room. ---
**Author:** ![kayT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayt/32/3633_2.png) [@kayT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayT)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2017, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-on-earth-is-a-10-oz-new-york-strip-steak-worth-42-99/793459/58 "2017-08-15T19:42:07Z")
Excellent summary of the service, **doreen**. To add a few thoughts, in a high end restaurant if the steak is not cooked to your specifications and you mention it to the waiter he whisks it away and brings back a perfect one. If he asks how everything was, and you mention that your side dish was cold, they take it off the bill, and apologize. We took a friend to a very expensive place for her birthday, and when I made the reservation, they asked if it was a special occasion. I told them it was a birthday. They put a birthday card on the table for her, and gave her a free dessert that was a small chocolate cake (these words cannot convey how wonderful it was). She shared it with us and they happily brought plates and forks and extra ice cream. For free. So, they made us feel very welcome. (Plus we had the very best appetizer I have ever tasted: lobster tacos with some sort of cream dressing…)(We need to go back there!) ---
**Author:** ![Boozahol\_Squid\_P.I](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/d9b06d/32.png) [@Boozahol\_Squid\_P.I](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boozahol_Squid_P.I)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2017, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-on-earth-is-a-10-oz-new-york-strip-steak-worth-42-99/793459/59 "2017-08-15T19:51:39Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > Keep in mind I’m usually paying for 4 people. The last time we went Ben Franklin couldn’t pay the tab. > > The entire meal was nearly $120 with tax. Then there’s the 15% tip. > > It’s just not worth it. YMMV > > I can take the family for Pizza for under $35. You could cook a pizza at home for under $10, too. You could probably make a nice dish of spiced rice and beans for your family, with leftovers for days, for under $5. It’s a different experience between going to steakhouse and going to a pizza parlor. The pizza joint is probably going to be brighter, it’s not going to have any sort of wine or beer selection, you’re going to be using paper napkins, and you probably have to bus your own table. The waiter will be able to tell you a bit about the items on the menu beyond a list of ingredients. The price differential between $8 and $30 a person pays for that atmosphere and those amenities, as well as the difference in ingredient cost between a steak and a pizza. ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2017, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-on-earth-is-a-10-oz-new-york-strip-steak-worth-42-99/793459/60 "2017-08-15T19:52:28Z")
> [@kayT](#): > > Excellent summary of the service, **doreen**. To add a few thoughts, in a high end restaurant if the steak is not cooked to your specifications and you mention it to the waiter he whisks it away and brings back a perfect one. If he asks how everything was, and you mention that your side dish was cold, they take it off the bill, and apologize. We took a friend to a very expensive place for her birthday, and when I made the reservation, they asked if it was a special occasion. I told them it was a birthday. They put a birthday card on the table for her, and gave her a free dessert that was a small chocolate cake (these words cannot convey how wonderful it was). She shared it with us and they happily brought plates and forks and extra ice cream. For free. So, they made us feel very welcome. (Plus we had the very best appetizer I have ever tasted: lobster tacos with some sort of cream dressing…)(We need to go back there!) The even higher end restaurants wouldn’t fuck up your steak in the first place.😃 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-on-earth-is-a-10-oz-new-york-strip-steak-worth-42-99/793459.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-on-earth-is-a-10-oz-new-york-strip-steak-worth-42-99/793459.md?page=4)