After I finished undergrad and started working, I naturally had more disposable income to start enjoying things I couldn't afford to while I was attending college. One of my greatest passions in this world is fine dining and there is nothing more I look forward to on a weekend than to eat at my favorite restaurant or to try a new one. During a period of time when I lived in Orlando, Florida, my brother and I began the search for the best steakhouse around. Every couple of weeks, a few self-acclaimed food critics including ourselves, would head to another local steakhouse and indulge our appetites. Now keep in mind this way before the days of online restaurant review sites such as www.yelp.com. Not that you can constantly trust those reviews, but sometimes they are at the very least a good starting point on where to go. So needless to say we had our fair share of tasting and dining, not only looking for the highest quality steak, but the most flavorful along with delicious appetizers, side dishes and desserts. Service was also important; when you're looking for a fantastic meal and an enjoyable night out with friends or family you expect a level of exemplary service. Each other trip or so would seem to crown a new king until we found Morton's The Steakhouse in Orlando, Florida. We made several more attempts at finding a restaurant worthy of toppling our experience at Morton's but have continuously come up short. Several years later and 3,000 miles further, Morton's is still my steakhouse of choice no matter what the occasion is.



When I moved to Los Angeles, California in late 2004, I decided to take a couple of friends out to dinner for helping me with the relocation process and giving me a couch to sleep on until I closed escrow in Irvine. I figured I'd make it worth their while and didn't think twice than to book a reservation at Morton's in Los Angeles. The service and food I have grown accustomed to in Florida was a shared experience on the other side of the United States. Fast forward now to five years and many steakhouses later on the West coast and Morton's still reigns supreme. It is much to my delight that the city I now call home has a Morton's just minutes away in Anaheim, California.

For more on this article, please pick up the second issue of Vantage Magazine!