Question about steak

To all those who are professionals in cooking, how difficult is it to cook steak properly? I am seriously wondering about this. As a home cook I cook steak on the grill and cook it the way I like it and it's really not a big deal. When I eat out I order my steak medium rare, sometimes rare. Often I'll order it rare in the hopes that it will be at least medium. Very often I end up with a steak that is medium well, if not well done. I'm not talking about the highest end places, though my wife had an experience with an overcooked steak at a high end restaurant in Louisville some time back. But I'm also not talking about the least expensive places either. If I go to a chain like Logan's (which I haven't in years) I expect the worst. However, it seems that no matter where I go, I'm going to end up with overcooked steak. AmI missing something on how difficult this is or are my expectations unreasonable?

Cooking a steak is not difficult.

Cooking 25 steaks to different temperatures at the same time while you're also cooking 10 chickens and 5 pork chops is pretty difficult.

Granted, if that is your job, you should still be able to get it right most of the time.

John, it's really not that difficult to cook a steak correctly. I also like my steaks medium-rare and I've experienced very few problems having them cooked correctly. Don't know where you nearly go, Longhorn is where we typically get steaks, if we go to one of the higher end restaurants, I'll normally order something other than steak.

When you receive a steak that is not cooked correctly do you send it back? You showed because having your steak cooked correctly should be high on their list of customer satisfaction issues!

IMO, key to the process is getting as high a heat as possible.

IMO, key to the process is getting as high a heat as possible.

Yup.

There should also be a 'cold side' of the grill for the non-presentation side.

Getting at the OP- that's the oddest thing, you may just be the unluckiest of folks. Medium Rare is the most common of cook temperatures for steak (and my favorite, too.)

If I went through about four or five dissapointing experiences, I'd be saying a little something like you are right now- just to vent.

Apparently there is a shortage of good, experienced grill cooks going around. In the past couple of months, I get at least one or two calls or texts a week from chef buddies looking to see if I know someone to send their way. With the glut of new restaurant openings and foodservice being a very transient occupation, I was wondering when this was going to happen. I think we might have reached a critical mass.

Good restaurant help is hard to find guys. I don't blame anyone jumping to a new job for a little more money or a better situation. In my experience, it doesn't matter if you are front or back of the house; if you are a known quantity in the "Bizz" (this is a very tight knit culinary community) with a desirable skill set and work ethic, you can pretty much work wherever you want. Provided you haven't torched any bridges along the way...
Unfortunately some, but not all, restaurants put a strict limit on what they are willing to pay anyone for a given position, no matter how much experience that candidate may have. It was becoming more and more apparent to me when I was still hiring people a few years back, that you really do get what you pay for in labor. Lot's of folks out there have the chain of thought(and I can't say I really blame them) to "do minimum work for a minimum wage".

So think about this when you are hiring and the candidate wants an extra dollar an hour than what you are willing to pay. Would it be worth it to hire the experienced, dependable grill guy for an extra $2,100 a year and have your food prepared better with a minimum of send backs or complaints; rather than the warm body willing to take whatever you're willing to pay, that wastes food, shows up late, can't cook to temp and ultimately winds up costing you more in food cost than what you weren't willing to pay the better person?

Dan, I agree with your take on penny pinching.

I like my steak medium-rare, and I have no hesitation to send it back. That has to cost more than an extra buck or two for a competent grill cook.

This has happened to my wife and to me enough that it's really begun to get on my nerves. I rarely send them back----which in reading this forum I am realizing is a mistake on my part. I often think of steak as a higher ticket item for restaurants and I was raised to never waste food and I hate that my complaining would waste food. On the other hand, I am paying for it.

I've never had a problem at Longhorn's. Interesting enough, Tuckers in New Albany always gets my steak right. I don't like their seasoning so I get it without the seasoning and it's always to my specification. I think from now on I'll send overcooked steaks back.

I too have a problem cooking a steak to my temp (medium rare). I have gotten better with my Green Egg (it's much easier with pro gear) but I'm scared to order steaks at med rare at most places unless I know they know how to cook it. Most of the time it's either burnt or still mooing. Very few places know how to do it and yes, like Dan said, it takes talent to work the grill properly and a good grill cook is worth every penny.

This has happened to my wife and to me enough that it's really begun to get on my nerves. I rarely send them back----which in reading this forum I am realizing is a mistake on my part. I often think of steak as a higher ticket item for restaurants and I was raised to never waste food and I hate that my complaining would waste food. On the other hand, I am paying for it.

I've never had a problem at Longhorn's. Interesting enough, Tuckers in New Albany always gets my steak right. I don't like their seasoning so I get it without the seasoning and it's always to my specification. I think from now on I'll send overcooked steaks back.

Steaks in a non steakhouse are generally a lower profit margin item. I have a steak on my menu that is $22.95, but it costs me after the steak, salad and sides $10 to put that steak out, add in labor cost and overhead and we really don't make as much off steak sales as we do off other items.

That being said, I am finding it harder and harder to find any qualified help these days. With my current staff, I only trust myself and one other cook to cook steaks properly all of the time. I would kill for another good grill cook. I have to adjust my schedule so that either me or him are there at all times.

We generally get steaks right, if we mess up an order it is usually not cooked enough for the customer. If a steak is served in my restaurant that is not to the customer's liking, I want the customer to send it back. Waste or no waste, you are paying for it. The only time that doesn't apply is when a steak is ordered extra well done and the customer complains about it being too tough or too dry. Then I just scratch my head and say "Of course it is, that is how you ordered it."