Beloved New York Steakhouse Keens Just Got A Major Award
This is a huge deal. The James Beard Foundation was named for the cookbook author and teacher (James Beard) and seeks to educate and inspire Americans interested in our country's culinary tradition.
Basically, if you like to eat, you should know what the foundation is buzzing about. Everyone in the food world does, anyway.
Five restaurants win the Classics Award every year. This year, along with Keens, the winners are Kramarczuk's in Minneapolis, Frank Fat's in Sacarmento, Prince's Hot Chicken Shack in Nashville and C.F. Folks in Washington D.C..
Here's what James Beard said about the Classics Award and Keens in their press release (h/t eater):
New York, NY (February 28, 2013) – Today the James Beard Foundation announced the five recipients of its 2013 America's Classics Award, presented by The Coca-Cola Company. The America's Classics Award is given to restaurants that have timeless appeal and are beloved for quality food that reflects the character of their community. This year's honorees will be celebrated at the annual James Beard Foundation Awards, the nation's most prestigious recognition program honoring professionals in the food and beverage industry, in a ceremony taking place on Monday, May 6, 2013, at Lincoln Center's Avery Fisher Hall in New York City.
"The America's Classics Awards are always a highlight of the ceremony," said Susan Ungaro, president of the James Beard Foundation. "Our honorees come from all walks of life. We have the privilege of hearing their unique stories, which celebrate the great variety and authentic flavors of America's culinary scene. These local hangouts, neighborhood diners, and family restaurants truly bring communities together, a concept James Beard would have loved."...
New York City specializes in new restaurants, not old ones, and local interest in them is generally measured in months instead of years. So it's nothing short of astonishing that a 120-something-year-old restaurant has managed to stay both relevant and wildly popular in the middle of Manhattan.
Albert Keen, a theater producer, opened the restaurant in 1885, when the Herald Square Theatre District thrived. Actors came in for a drink between acts. Today, the walls are decorated with over 50,000 clay pipes, from celebrated customers like Teddy Roosevelt and Albert Einstein, souvenirs from a era when smoke clouded many restaurants. George Schwarz, the current owner, took over in the late 1970s, investing much money and sweat equity in reviving the restaurant.
What Keens has always done well is to age and grill meat. They were one of the first restaurants to dry-age beef. It's a terrific place for a prime T-bone steak, well-charred on the outside and juicy within, served with a tangy-sweet house steak sauce. But their most famous cut of meat is not beef: it's the 26-ounce mutton chop. In one of their few nods to modernization, the mutton is now lamb, but it's still accompanied by homemade mint jelly.
The menu is stocked with classics like shrimp cocktail, iceberg wedge with chunky blue cheese, and extra-thick slices of smoked bacon, served unadorned on a plate. And the bar at Keens is one of the more democratic places in the city. Yes, it is a destination for Wall Streeters, artists, and fashion editors, but it also draws shoppers from nearby Macy's. The bar room is especially welcoming in the winter, when the fireplace roars and regulars nibble complimentary chicken wings or drink their way through the 275-plus selection of single-malt scotches.