Keens Steakhouse

All 2,448 rated mentions, most helpful first

  • Steaks were good. Mutton was even better. The steaks didn't even need it but their steak sauce was to die for. It's hard to beat the atmosphere. Elegant, yet cozy. The restaurant seconds as a museum. 10/10.

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  • in:Keens24 pts

    T Bone was not great, under seasoned and ate pretty dry though we ordered medium rare. Service was awkward at best, not at the level you'd expect at a place charging the amount they do. Overall, don't see myself returning, plenty of better steakhouses in the city imo.

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  • Here’s the pro move. You order the Keens King Cut prime rib rare, and ask them to put a little char on it with the grill.  Tenderness of the roast with the flavor of a steak

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  • Keens has great meats aside from the mutton (which I don’t really like) Get the T Bone with a side of mushroom sauce. I would eat scraps of the steak just about every day and no matter the temperature, it was delicious.

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  • replying to u/not_charles_grodin: We have never had a bad experience at Keen's. Every single time we've been there, the service, food, and atmosphere have been exactly what we had hoped for. I know it can be a touristy "best of" place, but it really is that good.

    Sadly, I strongly disagree. Went once with high expectations and was severely disappointed. Got the porterhouse for 3 and it was bland, wrong temperature, shitty crust, and fat was grizzly and chewy. The server didn’t check on us a single time after dropping off the steak and it took 15 minutes to get the check. 2/10

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  • replying to u/ChornWork2: Lots of great steak places in the city, no reason to support a maga booster particularly when trump is attacking our city via vilely corrupting the mayor.

    the undersalted meat and lackadaisical service that made up my mediocre experience makes much more sense now, vibes were way off

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  • replying to u/may241989: Keens is definitely the better choice.

    I went to Keens for the first time a few weeks ago and was severely disappointed. Our medium rare porterhouse for two was noticeably undercooked towards the bottom - was rare, bordering on black and blue, and the cut of meat itself was just shockingly underwhelming.

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  • They were cooked right, they just didn’t taste like they had been seasoned at all. Certainly not what I had in mind for the price. Neither were the roasted veggies we ordered as a side. Not bad or offensive, but nothing exceptional.

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  • The mutton is excellent but it’s gamey. The steak there is so good, that I like to caution people who love steak to skip the mutton or get the mutton for the table to share, and then get a ribeye.

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  • Ngl went to keens last week and it was very disappointing. Nothing was seasoned well and there was no crust on the porterhouse for two nor the mutton chop.

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  • I think the mutton is an acquired taste and a little gamier than the steaks so it's diner's preference. It's wrapped in a fat flap and has a lot of gristle on the outside (by design). Worth trying once, but I wouldn't go back to it.

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  • replying to u/TerrapinStation17: Let me rant here: I just visited NYC for the first time in my life. Everyone recommended KEENS and let me tell you I’ve never been more let down and unimpressed by a steak house in my life. The only credit I’ll give Keens is their prices were decent. First off, the mutton is alright nothing out of this world like everyone talks about. It’s a huge piece of bone in lamb with a large fat cap . It’s not bad but it’s nothing crazy. They serve the steaks semi cold for some reason , I’ve seen other comments on this and it turns out it’s true. Girlfriend got the filet, lukewarm an average. The sides we got were creamed spinach and hash browns. Both were MID. I’ve had better versions at practically every other steak house I’ve ever been. The service was good and I enjoyed the ambiance but the food we ordered was some of the worst I’ve had at a steakhouse for the hype it was receiving. It wasn’t bad but it was not special at all. I come from Atlanta - our food scene sucks and I can name 4 steakhouses better than Keens. Not sure about Delmonocos but it has to be better. End rant.

    I also got to have a lukewarm filet at Keens. For dessert I got to have melted ice cream. It’s like the food has 1 temperature and it was wrong for both things I ate.

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  • replying to u/justaman_nyc: Interesting…I have the opposite take of you. I think the ambiance is better at Hawksmoor but the steak is average, while the Keens ambiance is meh and their steak is amazing.

    the few times I ordered their porter house, it came lukewarm. They serve it on a wooden slab which really cools the steak down.

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  • replying to u/Smart_Freedom_8155: Piggy-backing on this: I really enjoy lamb, but I also want to try _the_ best steak in NYC at some point. Is this the place to go for gold with the steak, or is the mutton chop/lamb THAT good and deserving of a try? A richer person would fix the issue by simply going twice, of course.  Not sure if I can afford to.

    Keens has great steaks - if you are just looking for a traditional steak you won’t go wrong with theirs (I’d order the ribeye but that’s a matter of preference).

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  • replying to u/False-Character-9238: Great write-up. I agree on Keen's, as it has become Instagram famous. There are many other places in NYC better.

    Our waiter was brusque and irritated, the table sat uncleaned for 20 minutes between courses, and most importantly, the steak was just average.

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  • The ambiance was gone. The bar was crowded and overrun with huge loud groups. I got a martini that wasn't very good.

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  • replying to u/CabassoG: Gallagher's is honestly terrible. If you're in the area they might as well go to Keen's or Del Frisco's

    Keens (no apostrophe) is one of my favorite restaurants, despite my not having eaten meat since 1987.

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  • replying to u/helcat: Hi there OP. I'm going to Keen's tonight and I need you to report back how it went. 

    The taste of mutton was around 10 oz and even that was a bit much for me (delicious though). Bacon as an appetizer didn't taste much different from ham or Canadian bacon but still very good.

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  • replying to u/aceisntdead: Everyone suggests Keens! Can I ask why you had a bad experience?

    All the good came out cold, the steak didn’t have as much tastes as a Benjamin Steakhouse steak. The mutton and ambiance was the best part of keens. Everything else was mid and I couldn’t understand the hype

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  • For the price point of Keens it’s good and the carrots on ice is free. The fresh and crispy cold contrast to the rich meats is pretty nice to have.

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  • for a proper meal Keens is the one. You'll have a much more pleasant experience, more reliable food, and much better wine and whisky (the Scotch list is one of the best in the city).

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  • Keens is my go-to for a couple of reasons. The steaks are top quality and consistently cooked to perfection.

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  • replying to u/HotMountain9383: I would recommend going somewhere else, but at Keens it's supposed to be the "Mutton Chop" Enjoy!

    I have to agree. I went earlier this month with my cousin and we both did not enjoy it.

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  • had one of the most tender, delicious steaks I’ve ever had there. Our mutton was a little fatty and our waiter wasn’t the friendliest, but overall was still great!!

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  • replying to u/Girl_On_The_Couch: Ty! I saw this recommended in other steak threads but the reviews kind of seemed inconsistent. Thoughts on that? Admittedly some were a year old, maybe things have improved since then. 

    I thought the steaks were delicious, medium rare, but with a very nicely browned crust. And I enjoyed the historic atmosphere of the interior.

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  • Took my family to Keens back in June. It was amazing. The steak on its own wasn’t anything special. It needed the sauces you can order. Highly suggest the au poivre sauce. That made it spectacular. The sides are super good too. Creamed spinach and their fries are amazing.

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  • I read dozens of reviews recommending Keens (especially over Lugers) and it was super mediocre. Steak was so thick you couldn't really chew it and get any crust, was not very hot, and no dry age flavor.

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  • Porterhouse for 2 was superb and loads of fun, but I agree that there are better steaks in, say, Houston.

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