Via iStockphoto / @bubbahpaints TikTok
A man shares what he thinks is the 'best' steak you can order at Texas Roadhouse. But what is Pittsburgh-style steak?
Getting a steak while dining out is always a treat. There’s something special about a slab of meat being cooked to your liking without having to do any of the hard work. Everyone thinks their way of liking steak is the superior way. But one man insists he has the best steak order from Texas Roadhouse—and it’s not only a doozy but also one you’ve probably never heard about: Pittsburgh-style steak.
In a TikTok with over 1.9 millions views, Bubba (@bubbahpaints) gets situated at Texas Roadhouse, and a server approaches to take the table’s order. Bubba gets an 11-ounce sirloin cooked to medium rare. It’s a pretty standard order, but one additional request, he says, takes it to the next level.
“Can I get the 11-ounce hand-cut sirloin? Cooked medium rare and Pittsburgh, please?” Bubba asks.
The steak comes out appearing charred on the outside.
“It’s got a crust,” the woman filming says.
Bubba cuts through the steak and sees that the chef executed his medium-rare request perfectly.
“Oh, yeah,” Bubba says after inspecting the meat.
“There’s No ‘Medium Rare And Pittsburgh’ It’s One Of The Other”
Viewers in the comments section first roasted the man for believing sirloin is the best steak.
“‘Best steak’ and then orders a sirloin,” one commenter wrote.
“Best steak and sirloin do not belong in the same sentence,” another said.
“Buddy said best steak at Texas Roadhouse then ordered a sirloin,” a third chimed in.
Others argued that medium rare and Pittsburgh-style are contradictory.
“Yooo that’s not what that means the cook saw medium rare and Pittsburgh style and they just laughed means two different things,” one commented.
“How do you ask for medium rare and Pittsburgh,” another questioned.
“There’s no ‘medium rare and Pittsburgh’ it’s one of the other,” another said.
“So Pittsburgh is a big iron/steel industry so the workers would cook their steaks they brought to work on the red hot iron/steel and it would burn the outside and be raw/rare on the outside. That’s where it came from,” another shared.
FoodRepublic reports that the origin of this style of steak is ambiguous, but theories abound, including this aforementioned steel mill theory to a restaurant kitchen worker simply burning a steak and running with it.
How Texas Roadhouse Makes Pittsburgh-Style Steak
Bubba tells BroBible this is usually how he orders the steak, and he never runs into issues.
“It’s usually how I order it, but I don’t always get sirloin. The server is the one that told us about it years ago and at Texas Roadhouse you can get it any temp,” he begins.
He shares how Texas Roadhouse makes its Pittsburgh-style steaks.
“The ‘Pittsburgh’ is more the extra seasoning on the outside that creates a crust it’s Texas Roadhouse it’s not a chef driven steakhouse,” he shares.
Bubba says he has learned that you can’t have thin skin if you are going to publicly post content online.
“The trolls are crazy but me and my wife, who also goes viral on TikTok get bashed often. You have to have a thick skin and realize even if the comments are nasty, it’s still another view,” he shares.
Texas Roadhouse also tells BroBible in a statement, “If a guest orders a steak Pittsburgh style, we cook it the traditional way in a cast-iron skillet, creating that signature char on the outside. While Pittsburgh-style steak is traditionally served rare, at Texas Roadhouse we cook it to the guest’s preferred temperature”
What Is Pittsburgh-Style Steak?
Steaks can be ordered in many different ways, the most common being medium, medium-rare, or medium-well. These order types refer to the internal temperature of the meat and the color displayed after cutting.
According to FoodRepublic, Pittsburgh-style steak entails the meat being extremely charred on the outside to the point where it appears to be a crusted black coal. The inside should be barely warmed and borderline raw.
What people love about the Pittsburgh-style steak is the intensity of the crust. Traditionally, rare steaks will focus on the internal color and temperature; the Pittsburgh-style steak heavily focuses on the outside. The majority of the focus when cooking is the char on the outside by doing an aggressive sear. This approach creates a bitter, smoky taste while keeping the natural tenderness inside that is bright pink.
The Daily Meal reports the Pittsburgh-style steak can be called “black and blue.” What makes this style popular is the stark contrast between the rough outside and tender inside. This duality has built a loyal following, and some believe it is the only way to eat steaks.