Lately – I’ve been asking friends for some of their “best meals” or “best steaks” and many are often left befuddled.

How does one choose the “best” anything?

There are many factors that make up a “best” anything – taste, ambiance, price, mood, music, service, and many more… And the “best” anything is entirely subjective as each variable is viewed differently by every person; and each person adds their own variables to their definition of “best.”

Over coffee with a co-worker – they responded with: why don’t you rephrase this as “your most enjoyable [insert thing here]”?

A simple tweak to a simple question that yields a much more engaging and interesting discussion. People attach greater detail to their “most enjoyable” anything; and this doesn’t pigeon-hole them in to trying to rank their “best” against the myriad of “best” lists/listicles around the world.

So – I asked myself: what is my most enjoyable steak “in recent memory” and I have to say hands down the two most enjoyable steaks I’ve had recently have both come from LloydMartin on Queen Anne, in Seattle, WA.

The first steak was a 100-day dry-aged ribeye as part of an outstanding tasting menu. Why was this most enjoyable? My wife and I were on a date; a tasting menu that started strong and finished stronger; great wine pairings; great service; a quick chat with the Chef and more all made it extremely enjoyable.

The second steak was a perfectly cooked 16oz Nebraska ribeye paired with amazing marbled potatoes. Why was this enjoyable? Again, my wife and I were on a date; we snagged last minute seats at the bar; the bartender mixed some amazing starter cocktails and paired excellent wine with our dinner; Sam came out to talk to us during dinner and remembered us from our first visit (having twins can leave an impression); and on our way out the door handed me a small recipe book of NW restaurants, so I can try my hand at his white-bean truffle mousse.

Now those were two different nights, but have some similar elements that make them my “most enjoyable steaks” in recent memory.

I pose the question to you – what is your “Most Enjoyable Steak” in recent memory?

Now that you’ve done that – go check out Sam Crannell’s LloydMartin and eat some steak for me.