What to serve with your steak
Sides, sauces and wine for every cut — chosen on flavor logic and tradition, not sponsorship. Fat wants acid, lean wants richness, char wants tannin.
How these are picked: Classic A long-standing steakhouse or regional pairing served this way for generations. Sommelier consensus What wine professionals broadly agree on for this level of fat and char. Crowd favorite What diners order with this cut most often. Nothing here is paid for, and there are no affiliate links.
Choose a cut
Porterhouse pairings
A big, shared, fat-rich cut. Sides should be generous and the wine should have real structure.
Sides
Creamed spinach and hash brownsClassic
The classic steakhouse spread built for a shared cut.
Roasted bone marrowCrowd favorite
Doubles down on richness for a celebration plate.
Sharp green salad with mustard vinaigretteCrowd favorite
Necessary acid on a very heavy table.
Sauces
BéarnaiseClassic
Serves the tenderloin side while the strip side needs nothing.
Red wine shallot jusClassic
Concentrated and tart — the traditional bone-in steak sauce.
Horseradish creamCrowd favorite
Cuts through a big fatty portion at the end of the meal.
Wine
Bordeaux blend / CabernetSommelier consensus
Enough tannin to handle a large, fatty, bone-in steak.
Barolo (Nebbiolo)Sommelier consensus
High acid and high tannin — the traditional big-steak wine in Piedmont.
Not drinking wine? Beer: a robust porter. Non-alcoholic: dark cherry and soda over ice.