"Caution, hot" - the swinging doors in Peter Luger's Steakhouse hardly stand still. Waiters in white shirts and black bow ties rush out of the kitchen every second with large, heavily laden plates. Steaks, burgers, spinach, mountains of fried potatoes. The smell of seared meat pervades the entire restaurant. Peter Luger in Brooklyn is known worldwide for the quality of its steaks, a New York institution that has held a Michelin star for years. For steak fans, Peter Luger is seventh heaven.

A visit to Luger's is like a journey to another time. If you take the Metro from Manhattan, you get a sense of what it must have been like to travel to Brooklyn at the end of the 19th century. At that time, specifically in 1887, German immigrants opened Carl Luger's Café, Billiards and Bowling Alley, which later became Peter Luger. Even back then, the inn and its patron were known for high quality – but also for not condoning any criticism. If a guest complained, Luger himself would taste and often refused to change the dish, so convinced was he of his meat – and he was probably right. More and more businessmen from Manhattan discovered this when the Williamsburg Bridge opened in 1903, making it much quicker and easier to reach Brooklyn, thus spreading the restaurant's reputation around the world.

Old School
Even today, the inn looks more like a German beer hall than an upmarket, modern restaurant. The walls are partly decorated with half-timbered structures and Bavarian Schuhplattler laugh from old beer mugs. The wooden tables also seem to have been here forever. Everything is reduced to the essentials. "I used to work at the Waldorf Astoria," explains 67-year-old Bernard Patten, currently the longest-serving waiter at Luger's. "But here the menu is simpler and people know what they want."

In fact, the menu has hardly changed since the veteran started at Peter Luger's 35 years ago: "In the past, it was almost exclusively steaks, served with spinach and fried potatoes. And if someone wanted a salad, we made one. There was porterhouse steak, steaks for two, three or four people, lamb chops and a shrimp cocktail." Over the years, salmon and sole were added, strip steak as well as extra thick bacon. At lunchtime, there is also a burger with more than 250 grams of meat that is freshly chopped every morning. For many, the burger is an inexpensive alternative to the steak.

What else has changed? "The old steins (stoneware beer mugs) are no longer used", explains Alexander Patten, Bernard's son and a waiter at Luger's. Today, the beer flows from the tap into chilled glass mugs. "There were actually no other changes," sums up Luger veteran Patten and smiles: "My son has been working here for ten years – that's what we call new." In short: Luger's is pure old school. Those who come here without cash, ATM card or cheque are out of luck: credit cards – no way.

Rise to new fame
When founder Peter Luger died in 1941 and the restaurant could no longer maintain its accustomed quality under the management of his son, metal goods manufacturer Sol Forman saw his opportunity. Regulars came to the steakhouse almost every day, on some days even twice. In order maintain his beloved habit it in the future, Forman bought the restaurant at auction in 1950 and, together with his wife Marsha, brought it back into shape. She became the first major buyer at the New York meat market – and certainly the only one with pearls and a fur hat. She learned what to look for from a former state meat inspector. Even today, the still family selects the meat and hangs it in a cold room for 28 days for dry-ageing.

Cult defies criticism
In 2019, the New York Times critic Pete Wells caused scathing headlines and controversial discussions. He judged the Luger-Porterhouse to be nothing more than a steak like many others and far from the best New York had to offer. Wells awarded zero points – and stabbed the icon right through the heart with a steak knife. David Berson, grandson of Sol and Marsha Forman and current manager of Peter Luger, counters: "The New York Times has rated Luger's again and again over the years. Sometimes it got the highest rating, sometimes not." But while the critics and their moods have often changed, the steaks served have always been of the highest quality. In any case, the criticism could not diminish the cult status of the restaurant: after a branch in Tokyo, they will also open a steakhouse in Las Vegas at the end of the year.

Dining at Peter Luger
A legend for decades.

Peter Luger Steakhouse
178 Broadway, Brooklyn
NY 11211
USA
T: +1 718 387 7400
peterluger.com

Founded in 1887 by 21-year-old Bavarian immigrant Peter Luger, Luger's is the third oldest steakhouse in New York. However, it only established its fame as one of the best from the 1960s onwards, thanks to legendary restaurant critic Craig Claiborne as an advocate.