Why is it so hard to get properly cooked steak in Ireland?

Hoop66

Any half-decent restaurant should be able to cook a steak as requested. If they can't, I wouldn't eat there.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121198167#Comment_121198167

Then you’re going to **** restaurants 🤷‍♂️

Table 41, Gorey

Sha Roe Bistro, Clonegal

La Cote Seafood, Wexford

Seafield Hotel & Spa, Ballymoney

any of those places would cook you a steak to die for. They’re not specialised steak houses either, they just have chefs that didn’t get their training from Jamie Oliver’s 30 min meals…

Santan

A lot of chefs tell you they can tell how cooked the steak is by a touch. Chefs, like musicians are just ego maniacs and most will not admit to not being able to tell by touch. One guy I work with uses a thermometer 99% of the time, which was new to me and he is right 99% of the time no matter what way the steak is asked for, rare, med rare, medium, he can get it correct almost every time, but, and this is a very big but, so many times a medium rare or medium steak is sent back in by the expert at the table who tell us that his medium is too undercooked and it needs 2 more minutes either side, but In reality what he really wants is a medium well or well done steak, but wants to appear all fancy or whatever and thinks by asking for medium they look more cultured or something. The amount of people that ask for medium but I don't want any pink, go figure

Padre_Pio

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121197258#Comment_121197258

Yah, different countries have different standards. I got exactly the same in Munich.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121198256#Comment_121198256

This is by far the most stupid thing I’ve ever read, well done

yes a chef (or home cook if you practice) can tell how far a steak, or any meat, is cooked by pressing on it. How it springs back depends on how well it’s cooked.

This has been practiced for decades and is as accurate as any meat probe. My head chef has never gotten in wrong in 14 months I work with him, so yeah, we’re making it up mate 🥲

as for the rest I actually agree 100% customers often don’t know themselves what they want and will order mid rare or medium when actually they were more thinking medium to medium well

we once had a guest order a medium steak, no pink. 😎

tinytobe

I think it's probably down to poor kitchen staff and poor chefs, rather than anything else.

If one orders rare, one should get rare, plain and simple.

Bobson Dugnutt

We haven’t had any edgelord in who thinks he’s some sort of Ron Swanson figure because he orders his steak blue. Or the lads who think they are the height of masculine sophistication who order a rare ribeye.

Yeah Right

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121197197#Comment_121197197

They’ll take the same meat they ate and check that also.

How are they going to check the same meat the OP ate if it's three hours later, never mind three days or three weeks?

martco

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121198204#Comment_121198204

and that may well be the case in those particular establishments, bravo for them, and I might even take a look someday per your recommendation

but I can name you another ten off the top of my head where the opposite is true and you will get an expensive door stopper

all I'm saying is you are far more likely to get what you want from someone who understands the nuances of serving meat cuts and that usually comes in a specialist place/someone at the helm that understands

as I said already it's not rocket science HOWEVER there are certain factors that have to be in play the finer aspects of might not even be covered in atypical catering school. It's simply not as straightforward as prepping a pot of mash, it is 1000% a learned skill, experience and a process and 1000% not not a task.

one of the best cuts I've ever eaten was prepared and served to me not by a chef but by a trained butcher. he knew where to get his product, how to prepare it, how to fire and serve it. his attempt at frites was meh just ok but the boy knew how to cook meat ;)

Yeah Right

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121198074#Comment_121198074

The whole point of a ribeye steak is the marbling of fat running through it. Same goes for wagyu/kobe beef. This fat renders, tenderises the meat and provides flavour to the steak. You can only achieve this by getting the fat up to about 55-60 degrees, which is basically "medium" in a steak.

Anyone ordering a ribeye steak cooked rarer than medium is a fool and hasn't a clue what they're talking about.

Widdensushi

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121196943#Comment_121196943

Not sure if you are joking, burger meat is mince and has been exposed to the air, possibility of bacteria etc,I would always cook a burger well,steak blue,my kids all love it , I haven't eaten out much in the last few years, prefer a nice cowboy steak at home to be honest, more often than not eating out is a disappointment,I am not likely to send anything back but speak with my feet.

Hotblack Desiato

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121197160#Comment_121197160

Complete rubbish

You can't get sick from eating a rare steak (as opposed to mince or burgers).

Hotblack Desiato

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121197221#Comment_121197221

A rare steak is about 2/3rds RED when you cut it. What you describe as rare is medium!

Risteard81

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121198349#Comment_121198349

I rarely order ribeye, although I make sure to eat everyone at the table's fat.

fits

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121197911#Comment_121197911

Agree. I never order steak out because it inevitably disappoints compared to the steak I get from my proper old school butcher. He simply can’t be beaten.

dxhound2005

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121197981#Comment_121197981

Yes, the vast majority.

Santan

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121198299#Comment_121198299

Here we have the prefect example of the type of person I'm talking about, "I know what I'm talking about, so you must be an idiot if you don't understand" attitude. So you have a chef that can get it right by touch 100% of the time, not once did I say this was some miraculous achievement such as turning water into wine. I said that so many chefs believe that they can do this when in reality they cannot, and end up either over or under cooking a steak but will not just admit they cannot do it by touch. I have worked with one chef who was very good at doing it, but never 100% accurate, but having worked with probably over 50 chefs over the years, I am convinced that most of them, is really just guess work, I know that they are not trained sufficiently and are really cooks and not chefs, but have the arrogance of a fully trained chef. Similar to the arrogance displayed in your response.

John_Rambo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121198204#Comment_121198204

Nope. I go to good restaurants but if they're not speciality steak restaurants I don't order steak in them as I can cook it just as well as a regular restaurant at home. That's me. That's all. No biggie, as you said it's not speciality stuff cooking a regular steak.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121198324#Comment_121198324

Days? Weeks? 😅

I think you misunderstand how fast the FSAI operate. If you report suspected food poisoning on a restaurant this evening they will be there tomorrow.

what they’ll be checking is the rest of the meat that hasn’t been cooked or served yet, one piece of steak can’t have food poisoning bacteria and the other steak doesn’t. There’s tons of other things they’ll check such as traceability, temperature records etc etc

believe me you won’t get away with it in Ireland. The food safety authorities and laws we have here are very strict

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121198396#Comment_121198396

In that case I apologise I mistook what you meant, but in fairness your post wasn’t exactly clear that you didn’t mean all chefs 😅

ah look there’s plenty of ego hazards cutting about serving dishes you wouldn’t find in a prison and acting like they’re Gordon Ramsey. That said for some of them lads even a probe couldn’t help them, seeing as even that requires a skill set to get it in the right spot 😂

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121197393#Comment_121197393

sorry but I wish I could thank the part about curries 5 times… I’m so tired of ordering a curry from a takeaway on my way home from work and just being met with what I suspect is chicken, fairly bland curry sauce (definitely from a packet) & chips.

Wheres me veg!? No onion? No peppers? Celery? Carrots? SOMETHING! 😰

listermint

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058316881/why-is-it-so-hard-to-get-properly-cooked-steak-in-ireland

Evidently this is an absolute spoof account and a spoof post.

Whethespoons do not cook steaks to perfection this is absolute waffles

listermint

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121196973#Comment_121196973

And how do you know it has to be cooked there than reheated....'whatever'.

Be specific. Pub A.. has reheated whatever because I just know.. whetherspoons must be cooked because I just know...

tayto lover

I don't eat out much anymore but steak is something I wouldn't order anyway as the best steak is the one you cook yourself to your own standards. Very hard to get a good steak out. I always ordered something different when out and something I wouldn't cook or get at home just for a change.

sprucemoose

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121198453#Comment_121198453

maybe order something a bit more interesting than chicken curry & chips so........

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121198593#Comment_121198593

what takeaways do you visit that have such an extravagant menu beyond the usual?

all the ones I’ve been to it seems the closest you get to veg is lettuce on a burger or chips.

Kat1170

What's to be learnt from this thread.

1. Everyone who works in the business think's everyone else in the business is completely wrong.

2. Order the complete opposite of what you want. Rare gets you welldone. Welldone gets you rare and every country is better at cooking than the Irish, apart from all the ones that aren't.

🙄🙄🙄

Hungry Burger

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121198497#Comment_121198497

How can you have a medium rare steak just sitting there for an hour and re heated in a microwave 😂

sprucemoose

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121198605#Comment_121198605

there are a fair few around cork anyway that have interesting menus. might pay a few euro more than the standard type of places but can be worth it. can also be pure sh1te too unfortunately

most 'asian'-style places will do a number of different curries that will include some veg, rather than your standard local 'chinese' take away. i personally much prefer it without tbh but whatever floats your boat

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121198670#Comment_121198670

pickings are slim at 11pm unfortunately:(