Hollywood's Steak Wars

6:00 AM PDT 4/30/2012 by Degen Pener

The knives are out as the town's chophouses compete for the allegiance of the industry's biggest dealmakers (and their expense accounts).

In Hollywood, steak always has been the power meal of choice: Alfred Hitchcock once ate three in a sitting, while Orson Welles preferred to enjoy his two at a time served rare, with a pint of scotch. Today's most carnivorous players continue the gout-defying tradition. Nothing signals that you have a stomach for tough negotiations like tackling a 33-ounce rib eye at Mastro's ($60) or says you're flush like ordering the sirloin sampler of Kobe-style American beef, dry-aged Prime and Australian Wagyu at Wolfgang Puck's Cut for $135.