When "Carl Luger's Café, Billiards and Bowling Alley" was opened in 1887, the restaurant quickly became a neighborhood favorite in the predominantly German Williamsburg area of Brooklyn, NY. Peter Luger owned the establishment, while his nephew, Carl, manned the kitchen.
Peter Luger Steak House has since expanded from Brooklyn with another location in Great Neck, Long Island. We recently dined there to celebrate Keith's parents' 40th wedding anniversary.
The dining room is very old school with a German lodge vibe, and while reservations can be made in advanced, be prepared to wait in their lounge/bar area for a table. Also, be warned -
no credit cards are accepted, so be sure you have cash at hand.
Once our party of 7 were seated in the main dining room, we ordered a couple bottles of wine for the table. Keith chose a surprisingly smooth
2012 Cabernet Sauvignon from Avalon in Napa Valley, CA. This reasonably priced wine had a nice finish and paired well with both the seafood and meat options.
We ordered a couple items as appetizers. First, the
Sliced Tomatoes & Onions came with Luger's own sauce. The tomatoes were huge and plump with fresh flavor. I cut up a piece to enjoy with the
Caesar Salad with grated Pecorino Romano.
We also ordered
Jumbo Shrimp Cocktail and the
Luger's Sizzling Bacon that is
extra thick and served by the slice. The shrimp were truly jumbo in size, and simply served with lemon wedges and cocktail sauce. The bacon was a little fatty for my taste, but Keith loved it.
We came for the steak, so we ordered 3 portions of the
Steak for Two in varying temperatures to accommodate everyone's preferences. The USDA Prime beef is dry aged and the cut is a porterhouse. Keith found the filet side to be more tender than the sirloin side. The steak was cooked well, but could have used more salt & pepper. Keith doesn't usually like the Peter Luger's sauce, but it was much better in-house than the bottled version. It was not as sweet and had more of a horseradish kick.
Since I do not eat red meat, I ordered the
Grilled Atlantic Salmon. It was very simple and lightly seasoned. With our proteins, we enjoyed sides of
Creamed Spinach,
Luger's Special German Fried Potatoes, and
Onion Rings. The best of the three were the fried potatoes.
We were all pretty full, but had to order dessert - especially to get the obligatory "anniversary" dessert for my in-laws. (Think: Waiters coming out with a lit candle on the dessert, singing 'Happy Anniversary' to the tune of 'Happy Birthday.') For this celebratory dessert, we chose the
Luger's Special "Holy Cow", which was just a hot fudge sundae. We also shared a slice of classic
Cheese Cake served with Homemade "Schlag" (whipped cream).
All in all, we had a decent meal at Peter Luger's. The atmosphere was boisterous, packed with patrons. Steak lovers will appreciate the classic offerings. Custom chocolate coins come with your check. Remember - cash only!
Total Rating:
3.75
Food: 4, Price: 3.5, Service: 4, Ambience: 3, Accessibility: 3
What I ate:
Sliced Tomatoes & Onions
with Luger's Own sauce
Luger's Sizzling Bacon
extra thick by the slice
Caesar Salad
with grated Pecorino Romano
Jumbo Shrimp Cocktail
Grilled Atlantic Salmon
Creamed Spinach
Luger's Special German Fried Potatoes
Onion Rings
Plus Others ate:
Steak for Two
USDA Prime Beef Family Selected, Dry Aged
Cheese Cake
served with Homemade "Schlag" (whipped cream)
Luger's Special "Holy Cow" Hot Fudge Sundae
The dining room is very old school with a German lodge vibe, and while reservations can be made in advanced, be prepared to wait in their lounge/bar area for a table. Also, be warned - no credit cards are accepted, so be sure you have cash at hand.
