We were in Long Island City for their artists open studios where Jodi participated and so I could not miss the occasion to go back to M Wells Steakhouse, few steps from the Court Street subway station.

Open kitchen at M Wells Steakhouse in Long Island City

i love this place that is not your classic steakhouse: the decor is like being in somebody’s backyard and I could not stop peeking at the open kitchen where the staff creates the magic. The menu is also not classic: this time, they had for instance a dish made with goat liver that I was close to get but finally chose the NY strip that was made with a maple bulgogi rub and a XO sauce. The steak, more medium than medium rare, was really good, tender, juicy, with the outside being nicely charred and even slightly caramelized.

But this is not how we started our meal. No, we first ordered some cocktails: jodi had a non-alcoholic one called “pretty in pink” that was indeed pink and made with a citrus spritz and rose water.
On my side, I was looking for a drink with whiskey and picked the “Hudson to Haiti”, thinking that the combination between the Hudson Manhattan rye and the Boukman rum Agricole was an interesting combination. But it was strong for sure and I was glad they brought some bread so I would not dip it on an empty stomach!

We then shared an appetizer: the gnocchi Roquefort accompanied by a braised nut ragu and crispy black trumpet. These gnocchi were divine: very light and melting in your mouth, you got immediately the taste of Roquefort cheese and I thought that the whole dish was quite superb, the ragu adding some nuttiness and the mushrooms some texture on top of the delicious flavor.

Then, as I enjoyed my steak, Jodi got a cheese plate made with three kinds of cheese:
- Lait Bloomer, a soft pasteurized cow cheese.
- Bay blue, a semi-form cheese made from pasteurized cow milk.
- Aged goat Gouda, a firm cheese made from pasteurized cow milk. Interestingly, with the description of the cheese, they mentioned it was a special for “goatober”, that was I guess their way to celebrate goat and explaining the goat liver.

She also ordered the Brussels Sprouts with cherry but without Bacon, a side they propose that they gracefully agreed to make vegetarian.

Brussels sprouts at M Wells Steakhouse in Long Island City

And I should mention the pommes aligot I wanted with the steak: it is like mashed potatoes with tons of cheese, close to what my mom use to make when I was a kid. After trying this, you will never see mashed potatoes in the same way.

Last was dessert and we hesitated as the waitress described each and every one of them with such a mouth watering way. Finally we went for the maple pie that was made with a maple custard. It was so good: soft and not too sweet.

Maple pie at M Wells Steakhouse in Long Island City

So yes, M Wells does not disappoint, and I should mention that this time our wait staff was much better: courteous, checking on us to make sure we did not need anything and that we liked the food, but also not making Jodi feel bad that she is a vegetarian in a steak place...On top of that, you may think that this is far away, but it is only few stops with the E train (there are other lines) to Court Street, so it could take as much time to go there than going to other areas of Manhattan, depending where you start from, and the trip is worth it. Trust me on this one!

Enjoy (I did)!

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M Wells - 4315 Crescent St, Long Island City 11101

M Wells Steakhouse never disappoints

Jean-Philippe Gerbi