Frank’s Steak House
The Sizzler at Franke Steakhouse in Cambridge is what I call a magnet item. I am just automatically drawn to it when I hear it sizzling. It's like my warm-up music. I take off my jacket, I high five the owner, and I hold my fork and knife up to the heavens to salute Frank.
This thing continues to sizzle while it's on the plate. It's a perfectly cooked sirloin, about 15 oz. It just stays piping hot the whole time you eat it. This is why you need to come to Frank's. The Sizzler is what made Frank's Steakhouse back in the days. I mean, I still have a menu from the 40s that the Sizzler was on, and it's a strip sirloin, a very good strip sirloin. It just comes out sizzling like a rattlesnake.
Oh, it's so much fun bringing it out, because you'll see the smoke and people will turn. They want to check and see what's coming out there. It brings a smile to everybody that orders one, even if they've had it 100 times. Owner George Ravenous is my kind of guy. He played baseball at BC. He has great bourbon recommendations, and he's forgiven me for calling him Frank the first 20 years of our friendship.
Frank Steak House was originally opened across the street in 1938. It moved here in 1940. My family bought it in 1974. It is the longest-running steakhouse probably in New England, definitely in Massachusetts for sure. I describe Frank's as a place you can go for a steak, enjoy the heck out of it, and not lose your wallet when you do that. It offers good old-fashioned comfy home service, nothing really fancy at all. It's good old-school retro. We're not old, we're older.
Some people don’t get it and say, “Oh, this place is old,” but then the next hundred people come in and say, “I love this. It feels like growing up with my parents and going out and being comfortable and just enjoying a good meal and good service.”
To me, garlic bread is maybe the most comforting of all appetizers. Here they take it to another level by adding melted mozzarella cheese and a dipping sauce of marinara. The most famous appetizer here is definitely the onion loaf. This is like meatloaf having a baby with onion rings. They even invented their own frying contraption so they could produce this.
If you could smell it, you'd come here right now. We used our imagination and had a metalworker build a fry basket in the shape of a square. We spread the onion rings, put them into it, fry it, open the door, and you’ve got a big square onion loaf.
The Tomahawk is the ultimate showstopper—three and a half pounds of ribeye, with tons of fat and flavor, served with the bone on. If you have a special occasion or you're trying to close a big deal, you want this.
I like to order what the chef or owner eats. In this case, I’ll tell you for a fact George gets the pork chop. This is a relatively new addition to the menu—really high-quality pork. You can see those beautiful grill marks. It’s served bone-on and it is delicious. We serve tomahawk pork chops. I have it like two or three times a week, and I’m not embarrassed to say that I’m at the end of the bar, eating real quick, picking the bone up and chomping on it.
Most restaurants only do prime rib occasionally, but at Frank’s they do it seven nights a week. It’s a big, beautiful cut of prime rib, 22-ounce king cut served with au jus. My prime rib is ridiculous. That’s 22 ounces of meat, and sometimes you get even more. It’s incredible.
A big draw here is the value. I’m going to estimate this place costs about half what it costs to eat at a Back Bay steakhouse. Forget about the chocolate lava cake—you want the homemade grape nut custard. It’s super sweet, with a nice crust, and it’s just comforting and great.
When customers come in the door, they’re going to feel welcome. You’re not ignored at the front. We have people working the front of the house, and I’m walking around all the time. Sometimes a server will introduce me, and I’ll go over to the table and we’ll shoot the breeze for a while.
There’s a reason why we’re the oldest steakhouse in Massachusetts. If you want a great steak without breaking the bank, you’ve got to go to Frank’s.
