The Classic American Dishes That Made Delmonico’s Famous

Sure, Delmonico’s in the Financial District bills itself as a steakhouse, but historically, it has always been much more, with many now classic dishes having been invented there. And so, one evening last week, a friend and I decided to visit: That night, and on two other occasions, we tried the steak and some of the other dishes that have helped make Delmonico’s one of the world’s most famous restaurants.

New York’s oldest dining dynasty opened in 1827 as a pastry shop started by the Swiss Delmonico brothers, but, by 1831, had turned into a full-fledged restaurant. Delmonico’s came to occupy its current corner of Williams and Beaver in 1837. Further branches worked their way northward to 44th Street. Today, there is only one location.

Delmonico’s has been getting its footing since late last year, when it reopened after a three-year shutter during COVID, followed by a ferocious battle over ownership. It is now run by Dennis Turcinovic, also an owner of the clubstaurant, Sei Less; and Joseph Licul, both of whom won the lease to the restaurant at 56 Beaver Street, at William Street. The chef is Edward J. Hong.

Robert Sietsema/Eater NY

Charles Tumiotto Jackson/Delmonico’s

We entered the wedge-shaped front entrance through a pair of columns said to have been salvaged from the ruins of Pompeii. At the greeter’s stand, when we admitted we didn’t have a reservation, my friend and I were ushered through the dining room to the restaurant’s equivalent of Siberia: a booth in the next-door barroom.

Robert Sietsema/Eater NY

Robert Sietsema/Eater NY

First the steak. There’s been some controversy surrounding the cut called the Delmonico. When I asked one Soho butcher what it was, he said it was just a rib-eye with the bone cut out; while another in Greenwich Village claimed it could historically be any cut the restaurant happened to be using. Other sources say the essence of the steak is its thickness and not the actual cut. The current Delmonico’s website claims the steak that originated in the kitchens of Delmonico’s in 1850 was quite simply a rib-eye.

The Delmonico steak ($79), weighing in at 18 ounces, was one of the best I’ll see in my lifetime. If it was a rib-eye, it was rounder than usual, thick and boneless. As we cut into it, we didn’t find the fatty and gnarly sections often discovered even in premium cuts of beef. We’d asked for medium rare, and so it was done throughout, oozing pink juices and topped with crisp shallots. The thing was perfectly salted, with a thick bark, as well as a modest rim of fat. It was enormous enough we couldn’t finish it. How much of a steak this good do you really need?

Robert Sietsema/Eater NY

The steak appears all by itself, lonely on the plate. The staff tries to upsell the $6 sauces, including kosho butter, Sichuan peppercorn, and blue cheese. (I want my steak to taste like steak.) The Delmonico is prime, but wet-aged rather than dry-aged, accounting for its assertive flavor and lack of crumbly texture.

We picked the near-perfect hash browns ($18) to go with it, a brown chive-infested dome marred only by the over-caramelized onions on top, so sweet they might have served as dessert. Scrape them off.

Robert Sietsema/Eater NY

Robert Sietsema/Eater NY

We also tried lobster Newberg, which was known as lobster Wenberg when it appeared on the menu in 1876, named after wealthy sea captain, Ben Wenberg. Apparently, the name was changed to Newberg when Wenberg failed to pay his bill. The recipe was later published by Charles Ranhofer, who presided over the kitchen for 30 years, becoming the city’s first celebrity chef. Today, lobster Newberg ($59) is a modest specimen in an agreeable bath of cream, cognac, and lobster coral, though it is nearly outshone by the briny spaetzle that comes in a crock on the side.

On another occasion, we tried chicken a la Keene ($44), supposedly invented by Ranhofer in 1881 and named after Foxhall Parker Keene, who is invariably depicted on a horse wearing a bowler hat. How this dish migrated out of Delmonico’s bill of fare and into the diners and home kitchens of America, changing its name to chicken ala king in the process, is a tale worth investigating. But back at Delmonico’s today, it has returned as a gussied-up version of the chalky American classic, with multiple vegetables and a nicely done quarter chicken — only the comically large macaroni shells add a false note.

Robert Sietsema/Eater NY

Robert Sietsema/Eater NY

Baked Alaska ($24) is another dish attributed to Delmonico’s, set aflame with a thimbleful of brandy as it arrives. Unfortunately, it was impossible to taste the banana ice cream inside, and the thin layer of walnut cake underneath was nearly invisible. Yet, it made an Instagrammable picture on the plate, with apricot jam dribbled beside it.

Believe it or not, the hamburger is a dish that Delmonico’s can at least partly claim. Though it may have originated as street food on the docks, Delmonico’s was apparently the first restaurant to serve it in the 1870s. Doubtlessly without a bun, it cost 11 cents. Today’s version, available only in the bar and at lunch, is $35, but it is made from wagyu, and includes in the price cheese (a brie remoulade), bacon, killer fries, and truffle mayo made with real truffles. And now it has a bun.

March 8, 2024, 4:05 p.m.: This article was corrected to show that Delmonico’s resided at its current address since 1837, not 1849.