Best L.A. restaurants serving classic and creative steak au poivre
Steak au poivre is a bistro classic that’s as timeless as French fries or a certain Gruyère-topped onion soup. Its intense, savory flavors strike a balance of richness and heat — the ideal comforting and hearty bite on a crisp fall evening. But across Los Angeles, the peppery dish is getting a second life and its bold flavors are spicing up everything from burgers to ice cream and cocktails. And, of course, its signature sauce is still being poured over plenty of steaks too.
“Au poivre is a flavor people already know and love. It feels classic and a little indulgent, and right now people want food that’s comforting and familiar,” says chef Patrick Costa, who recently added an au poivre cheeseburger at his new restaurant Sous Sous in Silver Lake. “It’s the steakhouse nostalgia people are craving, but approachable, with no white tablecloth required.”
At Compass Rose, a cafe and bar in West Adams, beverage director Danny Rubenstein crafted a cocktail that celebrates France with au poivre flavors. “I found it a fun challenge to try to turn a creamy au poivre sauce into a cocktail,” he says. “The pepper infusion plays nicely with all the flavors, and it’s an unexpected pairing that doesn’t clash. We also sneak a little bit of lactic acid into the cocktail to mimic a creamier, rounder mouthfeel.”
While steak au poivre likely originated in 19th-century late-night bistros in Normandy, France, various Parisian restaurants have laid claim to its invention dating back to the 1920s. The classic recipe was introduced to American audiences in 1961, when Julia Child featured it in her “Mastering the Art of French Cooking” cookbook, and the dish quickly became standard on steakhouse menus. Hand-crushed peppercorns are pressed directly into a cut of boneless beef to form a flavorful crust, and then the dish is finished with a silky, rich sauce made with more peppercorns, a reduction of cognac, heavy cream, beef stock, Dijon mustard and various aromatics like shallots or thyme. It’s spicy, savory, creamy and comforting all at once.
Around L.A. lately, French bistros happen to be exploding. Over the past year, we’ve seen revamps of classics like the 40-year-old Mistral in Sherman Oaks and a menu update at Pasjoli in Santa Monica, plus debuts like Mar Vista’s Electric Bleu, Sous Sous in Silver Lake and Pico-Robertson’s Marée, all of which play around with traditional French techniques and flavors while pulling local and global influences.
Here are 12 of the most notable au poivre dishes around L.A. right now, including a few creative, non-steak items: