Is Warren Buffett's Favorite Steakhouse Smith & Wollensky the BEST in NYC?

Smith & Wollensky might not be the oldest steakhouse in New York City, but it's become iconic nevertheless. It's famously Warren Buffett's favorite restaurant in the city and has appeared in movies like The Devil Wears Prada. We are going to try their legendary prime rib and their hanger steak, Brussels sprouts and coconut layer cake.
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[@stretchjazz1]

I enjoy watching you both eat, but i have to say you make me hungry, which means you've done a great job👍

[@travelfuller]

Haha glad you enjoyed it! Editing these is always such a struggle!

[@hermanlee2002]

That is where my wife and I had our first anniversary dinner, some 30 years ago...always loved that place ❤

[@artaudcharles]

Iconic NYC steakhouse I have yet to visit. Thanks for the engaging and glowing review!

[@travelfuller]

Thanks for watching! Everything we had was amazing!

[@bb57365]

Love that your videos are short and very concise. I always prefer a great seared steak, and the brussel sprouts seemed like a great pairing.

[@travelfuller]

Glad you like them! Yeah as flavorful as the prime rib was, I couldn’t help but think their ribeye would be even better

[@2Wheels_NYC]

S&W is definitely in my top 5 steakhouses in NYC. I lived by the UN for a bit, so I could easily walk here. I do love a great prime rib, and I started playing with hanger steak at home. Great meal, and great review! Fun fact (if you didn't know) The original owner of TGI Friday's is the founder of S&W!

[@travelfuller]

Thanks! Yeah we can definitely see why it’s usually in the conversation for top 5 steakhouses. Yes we were actually going to talk about that, but since we mentioned it in our Quality Meats video we were worried about being too repetitive. We used to live right next to the original TGI Fridays and always contemplating making a video on that as well!

[@oaklandtobangkok]

Great review, honest and to the point.

[@travelfuller]

Thanks for watching!

[@Oceanstone69]

As someone who is probably one of your few Cajun subscribers, I would love to see you go back for their Cajun Ribeye steak. 😁

[@travelfuller]

We wanted to try it as well! Too many great options, we'll just have to go back. We're planning on traveling later this year to try restaurants all over the country and would love any Cajun recommendations you might have!

[@incognitotees]

Another Banger! Kristin let's be real. The Baked Alaska is the best dessert in NYC.

[@travelfuller]

Thanks haha yeah I'd say it's between the Baked Alaska from Strip House and the apple strudel at Peter Luger!

[@incognitotees]

@@travelfuller oh yeah the strudel left Will speechless lol

[@FreddyJong-co6cb]

Get busy living or get busy dying 😂😂❤😂😂❤❤❤❤❤❤

[@KellyFurst1]

So cool you got to see the meat fridge! Great video guys!

[@travelfuller]

Yeah that was pretty special. Thanks!

[@kathrynarnold313]

I love hanger steak! I think it's really underrated. The prime rib looks like perfection. Great review 👌

[@travelfuller]

Absolutely! It's one of our favorite cuts and yet is one of the least expensive. Thanks!

[@stephenkapuscinski5637]

Wow!! Those steaks looked fabulous. I would love to have one of them so much

[@hpph1744]

Wow. You guys are great food reviewers. Very well spoken

[@travelfuller]

Thank you!!

[@johnjuarez8005]

Great to see your channel gaining subs!

[@travelfuller]

Haha yeah we think so too. Thanks for sticking around for so long!

[@keepingitrealwithlefty]

I am used to your 10 minute videos, this one is short but good. Thanks a million for sharing this.

[@travelfuller]

We were kind of shocked how short this one came out. Maybe we just have to get more food. Thanks for watching!

[@FreddyJong-co6cb]

Bonza living the dream 😂😂❤😂😂❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

[@Jamesnu]

That's so awesome to get that behind the scenes look at the restaurant. Smith & Wollensky is a classic establishment for sure!

[@travelfuller]

It was so cool! Sometimes it pays to look like fools filming ourselves in public haha

[@rtrrr7215]

I’ll have to try that place out

[@rugger104]

I prefer the Grill myself, plus they have later hours

[@travelfuller]

The Grill was amazing! Its nice they have a formal and casual option with the same great food

[@jkhegarty857]

Thank you for introducing the Wollensky Grill. I wasn't aware of this additional dining area. Suggestion...ever consider the Homestead on 9th Avenue between 14-15th Streets? It is one of the oldest restaurants in NYC. Ever do rooftop dining? That is the latest craze in NYC dining.

[@travelfuller]

We’ve actually done a video on Old Homestead! It was one of the first ones we tried. And yes we’ve been to many of them but haven’t made videos on any. I think our favorite so far is the Panorama Room on Roosevelt Island!

[@rmcross428]

I love the exterior and interior of the restaurant. So much more welcoming and warmer than Peter Luger's

[@travelfuller]

Totally agree! And the waiters are so much more welcoming too

[@user-sm7wy7iz6y]

I really enjoy your videos on restaurants, in particular New York steakhouses. I'm a big steak fan, especially USDA prime, dry aged bone in rib steak. Now that you have done so many steakhouses, you should do a video on your favorite steak and only the steak, not the service, not the price or decorations and ambiance and ranked 1 to 5. Don't do a top 5. I want to see a ranking and the reasons why. I know every steakhouse has their own specialty like Porterhouse, filet, strip, etc, but I would have liked to see a comparison on the same steak at each of the restaurants that way you're comparing apples to apples. Preferably, I would like to see a comparison of rib steaks, as I think it's the best cut because of it's marbling, fat content and beefy flavor. You could do a separate ranking of the best steak based on price. Keep up the great work!

[@travelfuller]

Thanks for the suggestion! We've been thinking of doing a video like that for a while now. We'd probably do top 5 steaks and top 5 steakhouses as two separate lists. It's hard to choose between trying our favorite cut and what the restaurant is known for. At Smith & Wollensky the prime rib actually really surprised us so we're glad we tried it. And our video for next week is on Sparks which doesn't even serve a ribeye! We actually just shot 6 steakhouse videos in a row in Las Vegas and got ribeye five times haha but thanks again, we'll definitely keep your suggestions in mind and try to do a big ranking video in the future!

[@user-sm7wy7iz6y]

@@travelfuller Thanks for the reply. I look forward to seeing the ranking videos and on Vegas. I know you've been to Houston but if you ever get a chance, go to Pappas Bros. Steakhouse. The best rib steak I ever had at any steakhouse. They have a location in Dallas as well. You should do videos on Texas steakhouses since you've done New York already and Vegas as you mentioned.

[@travelfuller]

Yes! We wish we were focusing on food when we made that trip, there are so many incredible restaurants there. We will definitely have to plan a trip back soon

[@ReuvenGoldstein1]

This video seems to suggest they don't sell *any* wet-aged steaks. Is that correct? I'm decidedly in the wet-aged camp, due to my aversion to blue cheese, nutty flavors, etc I could absolutely eat that prime rib by myself lol. Here in California we have a few good options (Summit House is nearest to me, but there's House of Prime Rib in San Francisco and any of the Lawry's restaurants such as the ones in Beverly Hills, Corona Del Mar, etc) While I think the food quality is equal to or slightly above here, the travel time to each place would be absurd. Even if you were a wizard and magicked away all the traffic, you'd be *driving* 30-45 minutes between restaurants. Compared with a quick Subway ride or even walk in NYC.

[@travelfuller]

Great question! He did say all steaks are dry aged for 28 days but it's possible they do some wet aging. I'll see if we can find out for you! Kristin pretty much finished that herself since she liked it a lot more than the hanger steak. House of Prime Rib is high on our list of places to try! Next time we come out that way we'll hit up a few of those. Haha that's a great point, definitely a high density of amazing restaurants here

[@mhouse451]

That looks delicious.

[@matthewpoole7752]

It's a great steakhouse

[@travelfuller]

Definitely!

[@cshubs]

It was founded by the same guy who founded TGI Fridays.

[@travelfuller]

Yeah we talked about that a bit in our Quality Meats video. We’re thinking of making a video on the original TGI Fridays if people would be interested!

[@FreddyJong-co6cb]

Fair dinkum unbelivable 😂😂❤❤❤❤❤😂😂❤😂😂😂😂❤😂

[@user-dc9bq1nn9n]

was that charred steak medium rare?

[@travelfuller]

The hanger steak? It was maybe a bit rarer than medium rare but still really good. It looks a lot more red in the video than it did in person

[@user-rv8lg5oc6w]

Looks great can obviously split that prime rib You never mentioned how much it was?

[@travelfuller]

It’s easily big enough to share! Sorry about that, we just had the price pop up on screen but it’s super easy to miss. The prime rib was $78 and the hanger steak was $39

[@user-rv8lg5oc6w]

@travelfuller that's I have to say is a bargain! Compared to the other places that want over 100 bucks for a stake. P.s. I worked in building literally next door when the place opened in 77. I remember the lunch specials where around 10 bucks .we thought it was a lot of money back then for lunch!

[@travelfuller]

I agree! It’s not bad at all and it’s huge. Two people can split that and a side or two and have a pretty big reasonably priced meal. Wow that’s amazing! You can’t even find a burger in the city for $10 nowadays

[@jpbanksnj]

Warren's favorite steakhouse is Gorat's in Omaha, not Smith & Wollensky. I don't get the reference at all....

[@travelfuller]

You’re right! We needed to talk about this a lot more. It’s supposedly his favorite restaurant in New York City. This was the article we were referencing which we definitely should have included in the video: www.businessinsider.com/warren-buffett-favorite-restaurant-smith-and-wollensky-review-2017-10?amp

[@jofoto612]

I like the one in Chicago better

[@roan6125]

Their steak is better than Peter Lugers.

[@icm65]

Been there many times, it’s fine. Steak houses are generally a rip off. You can make a better steak at home for much much less.

[@travelfuller]

We enjoyed it! But yeah steakhouses are never really a good deal. Steaks and most steakhouse sides are pretty easy to make at home for a fraction of the cost

[@michaeld2662]

Maybe. It’s tough to source the same quality meat as restaurants. A dinner at a fine steak house is a treat, IMHO.

[@Nls-nj5yw]

You’ll never make a better steak than a top tier steakhouse.

[@nosyrosie6947]

The two of you are most definitely better than UA and James Andrews.

[@travelfuller]

Wow thanks that's high praise! Might be a while before we catch them in subscribers tho!

[@hoppysport2872]

James Andrews is also superlative. UA, with his circus big top music is insulting.

[@Tybennie-nz7vr]

James Andrews is great!

[@FreddyJong-co6cb]

Once you have asian you don't want to go back to Caucasian 😂😂❤😂😂😂❤😂😂😂❤❤❤❤❤❤

[@djuromilovic8251]

great place, but i wouldnt call it "the best"...

[@TimG--]

Click bate. Like you guys. This restaurant is TOTALLY OVERRATED

[@travelfuller]

Sorry you feel that way! We actually thought it would be too but really enjoyed it. We would love to hear what your experience was like though

[@normagaloski214]

Disagree

[@totalfc6456]

Deserve more subs

[@travelfuller]

Thanks! Appreciate it