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Why Steakhouse 22 made the SteakMap list

The man who founded this restaurant cooked at the London Chop House — the room that, in its prime, was considered one of the best restaurants in the United States and the sister restaurant to Detroit’s Caucus Club. That lineage is why a Van Dyke Avenue steakhouse is on this list.

The family

Nick Andreopoulos emigrated from Greece, began cooking in Canada and moved to Detroit in the 1960s, working his way through the city’s serious kitchens. In 1992 he opened Uncle Nick’s Family Diner in Shelby Township with his three sons, Harry, Bill and George. That diner grew into Steakhouse 22.

It is still run by the family, which shows up in the details — the Greek salad uses imported feta and a house dressing the restaurant has won awards for.

The beef

Every steak is hand-cut, hormone-free Choice Angus, and every one arrives topped with mushroom caps. Choice rather than Prime, stated plainly. Hand-cut means the butchery happens here rather than arriving portioned in a box.

Steaks come with a starter and a side included, which is unusual at this price and is the reason locals treat it as the reliable option rather than the special-occasion one.

The board covers a 6oz and 9oz filet mignon, a 14oz ribeye, a 12oz New York strip, a 10oz top sirloin, a 25oz bone-in Cowboy ribeye, prime rib au jus in three sizes, and a Chateaubriand for two built from two 9oz fillets.

Menu prices

From the Steakhouse 22 menu: Chateaubriand for two $98, Cowboy bone-in ribeye 25oz $50, filet mignon 9oz $43, ribeye 14oz $41, prime rib 16oz $39, filet mignon 6oz $37, New York strip 12oz $36, prime rib 12oz $33, prime rib 8oz $29, top sirloin 10oz $27 and ground chop sirloin 16oz $26. The Greek salad is $19.

Read the guide to the best steakhouses in Michigan.