Earlier this year the Fifth Avenue Morton’s location celebrated the restaurant’s sleek renovation, making it into a chic, comfortable and inviting dining location not far from Grand Central Station. I was invited to return to sample the fare.

What a spectacular and elegant dining experience coupled with amazing friendly service. I highly recommend a visit.

While we were perusing the menu and sipping a glass of white wine (Conundrum, white California blend, 2011, $15) we nibbled the fresh bread — an onion roll on steroids, served with butter soft enough to spread.

Our sommelier, suggested a bottle of the Sokol Blosser (Dundee Hills,  OR) a Burgundian lighter style Pinot Noir, 2004, to accompany our selections. Those included shrimp Alexander ($21) butterflied and lightly breaded before being sautéed and served in a white wine butter sauce; and a jumbo crab cake sitting on top a Thai dipping sauces ($18.50) with a mustard mayo on the side. The latter almost falls apart as it’s almost all crab meat, with little to no filler, before being sautéed in butter until golden.

We followed that with a field citrus green salad consisting of baby arugula, sliced tomatoes, orange segments, sliced with strawberries, candied walnuts, soft goat cheese in a roasted caper citrus vinaigrette ($11) and a chopped baby spinach salad with red onion, hard-cooked egg and slices of mushrooms all tossed in with a warm bacon dressing ($11).

We then indulged in what Morton’s is known for steak, grain-fed, USDA prime from the Midwest, wet aged for about three weeks. One of use ordered twenty-four ounce Porterhouse steak ($61) that the waiter describes as the cut for those who couldn’t decide as it’s a cut with a bone down the center, the dense, full-of-flavor sirloin on one side and the tender filet mignon on the other. The other ordered the juiciest cut with the most marbling — the ribeye. That was a 16-ounce center-cut prime ribeye ($49), both steaks were ordered medium-rare. Morton’s definition of that is a red center that’s warm to the touch. One steak arrived cooked right, the other a bit too rare – but they happily re-fired it and returned it quickly, cooked it to perfection. Along with that we sampled the grilled asparagus and Brussels sprouts sauteed with bacon and onions.

For even more decadence, you can order one of the “upgrades” or flavored butters for the steak ($4, each). We tried the foie-gras butter and black truffle butter, which we found unnecessary as the steak was tender and delicious naked.

Needing to order one of the four special hot desserts at the beginning of the evening, we did so not realizing how stuffed we’d be. We sampled a lemon souffle meant for two, but couldn’t resist also trying the hot chocolate legendary cake described with a liquid chocolate center served a la mode.

– bonnie

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Morton’s Steakhouse
Midtown West
551 5th Ave
(between Madison and Fifth on 45th)
New York, NY 10017
212-972-3315

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