Meat the king of the grill: Brisbane's New York-style steak house

My dad - God rest his soul - taught me cooking steak requires constant, frenzied attention. Turn the meat every minute, push down hard with tongs to get rid of all those pesky juices (ie: flavour). Eventually, you'll end up with leather (as we got older, we kept dad away from the barbecue).

I'm pleased to report: the head chef at The Lex didn't receive training from my dad. On the contrary, I have never tasted meat like this. But then, the chef de cuisine, Pawel Klodowski, trained at three-Michelin-starred Noma. He's considered a king of the grill.

Brisbane's W hotel hosted uber-trendy Three Blue Ducks since its 2018 opening until last year. Now the W has turned its spectacular third-floor dining space (how does an entree of Brisbane River through floor-to-ceiling windows sound?) into a New York-style steak house, The Lex (as in Lexington Avenue). I start with cocktails at the new bar lounge - then cocktails mixed tableside, perfect with tater tots with Avruga caviar and The Lex's interpretation of a hot-dog: barbecued octopus served on a bun with spring onion and apple. The Charcoal Eclair - grilled Mooloolaba prawns with chilli and finger lime - is next, all before my main; though there's a delicacy about these dishes that leaves space for more.

Read more on Explore:

Just as well, because now's the mind-blowing part. The seafood's great, but the steak... oh, the steak. It's what you're here for, folks. There's dry-aged local (Warwick) Wagyu if you fancy a splurge, dry-aged Tomahawk if you like to eat like Fred Flintstone, but the Warwick Flat Iron Steak served with smoked bone marrow and charred shallots won't break the bank ($52) and it's enough for two (after three entrees).

It's as far from dad's leather as steak gets. It's sliced into thin strips I chew slowly, tiny bite by tiny bite, to savour it for as long as I can - so long that I'm too tired for dessert. It doesn't matter: there's no steak in any of dessert choices any way. thelexbrisbane.com