The Secret to Smith & Wollensky’s Iconic Steak Isn’t How You Cook It

Editor’s Note: As more people are working from home, Bloomberg Pursuits is running a weekly Lunch Break column that will highlight a notable recipe from new cookbooks and the hack that makes them genius.

Of all the dining experiences that people miss—countless, no doubt—one of the most singular, most impossible to recreate at home is a legitimate New York steakhouse. Although Peter Luger Steak House in Brooklyn, N.Y., has just announced that its Luger Burger and steak for two are now available to go, many of the city’s top places aren’t doing delivery: A just-charred strip steak does not show its best face after traveling in a take-out container. Even if it did, there’s no apron-clad server around to slice and serve that seared rib-eye as if it’s just for you.