The Pine Club is a steakhouse in Dayton, Ohio. Founded in 1947, it has received numerous awards and accolades through the years and garnered national attention from food writers and critics.[1]

The Pine Club
Map
Restaurant information
Established1947; 77 years ago (1947)
Owner(s)Dave Hulme
Previous owner(s)Jim Sullivan, Lloyd Meinzer
Food typeSteakhouse
Street address1926 Brown St
CityDayton
CountyMontgomery
StateOhio
Postal/ZIP Code45409
CountryUSA
Coordinates39°44′01″N 84°10′48″W / 39.733633°N 84.180123°W / 39.733633; -84.180123
Websitethepineclub.com

History edit

The Pine Club was founded in 1947. Jim Sullivan owned the restaurant from 1947–1954, Lloyd Meinzer from 1954–1979, and Dave Hulme from 1979–2018;[2] it was sold in 2018 in a private sale with the new own undisclosed.[1]

Business model edit

The Pine Club doesn't serve dessert and accepts no credit cards or reservations.[3] When Secret Service agents asked for a table for George and Barbara Bush, they were told the wait was 45 minutes.[3]

Menu edit

The menu of "classic steak house food"[4] is "virtually unchanged from the day it opened."[2]

In 2019 owner David Hulme, commenting on the unchanged menu, said, "there are no sauces or preparations that need to be done."[5] and that "onion rings go on every steak dinner for 72 years."[5]

Reception edit

National edit

In 2019 The Pine Club was featured on Cooking Channel's The Best Thing I Ever Ate as chef and restaurateur Jonathon Sawyer's choice. Sawyer said, "Complementing this perfect piece of meat is 75 years of history and wood and lighting and service and martini. It's the whole experience that's the best thing I ever ate."[5]

In 2015, Food Network named it the #2 steakhouse in the country, calling it "an unmatched blend of high-end dining and Midwest hospitality."[6][7]

In 2013, The New York Times' Style Magazine, T Magazine, named it one of "10 of the World's Greatest Old Dining Institutions."[2][8] In 2012, Michael Stern named it his favorite steakhouse in the country.[9] Jane and Michael Stern wrote in 500 Things to Eat Before It's Too Late and the Very Best Places to Eat Them that the Pine Club's hamburger "may be the biggest flavored hamburger anywhere."[10] In 2006, Gourmet named them one of ten restaurants serving the best fried potatoes in the country.[11][12][13]

Local edit

The Pine Club won three categories in Dayton.com's Best of 2018 awards: Best Classic Restaurant, Best Fine Dining and Best Steak. The Dayton Daily News called it "iconic".[2]

References edit

  1. ^ a b Fisher, Mark. "History repeats itself for Dayton's famous Pine Club". dayton. Retrieved 2020-06-25.
  2. ^ a b c d Fisher, Mark (Dec 7, 2013). "Pine Club makes 'World's Greatest' top-10 list". Dayton Daily News. Archived from the original on August 10, 2015. Retrieved July 27, 2015.
  3. ^ a b Schuster, Stefan (May 27, 2011). "Pine Club much the same since 1947". Dayton Daily News. Archived from the original on July 12, 2015. Retrieved July 26, 2015.
  4. ^ Oseland, James (May 2008). "Adventures in Good Eating". Saveur. Archived from the original on August 6, 2015. Retrieved July 27, 2015.
  5. ^ a b c "The Best Thing I Ever Ate: High Steaks". Cooking Channel. January 28, 2019.
  6. ^ Fisher, Mark (July 7, 2015). "Food Network declares Pine Club #2 steakhouse in U.S." Dayton Daily News. Archived from the original on August 10, 2015. Retrieved July 27, 2015.
  7. ^ "Top 5 Steaks in America". Food Network. Archived from the original on July 29, 2015. Retrieved July 27, 2015.
  8. ^ Stein, Sadie (Dec 6, 2013). "10 of the World's Greatest Old Dining Institutions". T Magazine. The New York Times. Archived from the original on September 8, 2015. Retrieved July 27, 2015.
  9. ^ Yancey, Kitty Bean (July 7, 2012). "Branded". USA Today. Archived from the original on June 24, 2015. Retrieved July 27, 2015.
  10. ^ Stern, Jane, Michael (2009). 500 Things To Eat Before it's Too Late:and the Very Best Places to Eat Them. New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. p. 328.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  11. ^ Dyrtn, Jsnr snf Mivhsrl (July 2006). "Monster Hash". Gourmet. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved July 27, 2015.
  12. ^ Heller, Ann (June 29, 2006). ""Gourmet" praises Pine Club's fried potatoes". Dayton Daily News. Archived from the original on April 9, 2016. Retrieved July 27, 2015.
  13. ^ Kasper, Lynn Rossetto (May 25, 2002). "The Splendid Table". splendidtable.org. NPR. Archived from the original on September 11, 2016. Retrieved July 23, 2019.

External links edit