A steakhouse, steak house, or chophouse refers to a

restaurant A restaurant is a business that prepares and serves food and drinks to customers. Meals are generally served and eaten on the premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services. Restaurants vary greatly in appearan ...

that specializes in steaks and chops, found mainly in

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and th ...

. Modern steakhouses may also carry other cuts of meat including

poultry Poultry () are domesticated birds kept by humans for their eggs, their meat or their feathers. These birds are most typically members of the superorder Galloanserae (fowl), especially the order Galliformes (which includes chickens, qu ...

, roast prime rib, and

veal Veal is the meat of calves, in contrast to the beef from older cattle. Veal can be produced from a calf of either sex and any breed, however most veal comes from young male calves of dairy breeds which are not used for breeding. Generally, v ...

, as well as

fish Fish are Aquatic animal, aquatic, craniate, gill-bearing animals that lack Limb (anatomy), limbs with Digit (anatomy), digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and Chondrichthyes, cartilaginous and bony fish as we ...

and other

seafood Seafood is any form of sea life regarded as food by humans, prominently including fish and shellfish. Shellfish include various species of molluscs (e.g. bivalve molluscs such as clams, oysters and mussels, and cephalopods such as octopus an ...

History

Chophouses started in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

in the 1690s and served individual portions of meat, known as chops. The traditional nature of the food served was zealously maintained through the later 19th century despite the new cooking styles from the

Continent A continent is any of several large landmasses. Generally identified by convention rather than any strict criteria, up to seven geographical regions are commonly regarded as continents. Ordered from largest in area to smallest, these seven ...

, which were becoming fashionable. The houses were normally only open for men. The steakhouse started in the United States in the mid-19th century as a development from traditional inns and bars. Steakhouses can be casual or formal fine dining restaurants. The oldest chophouse in London

Simpson's Tavern Simpson's Tavern is a pub and restaurant at 38 1/2, Ball Court Alley, Cornhill, London EC3. It is a Grade II listed building, built in the late 17th/early 18th century. Simpson's Tavern was abruptly closed down by the landlord on 28 Octobe ...

is regarded as an institution of London and retains its 19th century decor. The oldest continuously operating steakhouse in the United States is the Old Homestead Steakhouse in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, established in 1868. Prior to that there were chophouses in New York City such as Cobweb Hall, owned by David Pattullo, which was known for its mutton chops and offered additional menu options such as beefsteaks, lamb kidneys,

bacon Bacon is a type of salt-cured pork made from various cuts, typically the belly or less fatty parts of the back. It is eaten as a side dish (particularly in breakfasts), used as a central ingredient (e.g., the bacon, lettuce, and tomato sand ...

, and

potato The potato is a starchy food, a tuber of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'' and is a root vegetable native to the Americas. The plant is a perennial in the nightshade family Solanaceae. Wild potato species can be found from the southern Uni ...

es. Today, steakhouses are found throughout the USA.

References

{{Reflist Restaurants by type

History

See also

References