Compound Butters

• Compound butters emerged with French cuisine, and are one of the first toppings to become synonymous with steak. Compound butters comprise butter, a squeeze of lemon juice and chopped herbs formed into a 2-inch cylinder. This forming makes possible portioning and topping an a-la-minute, or "in the minute," technique, a French term for finishing a dish with an ingredient at the last second.

  The most well known compound butters include maitre d'hotel buerre, or parsley butter, parsley-and-minced-shallot butter, tarragon butter and fines herbes butter, or butter mixed with chervil, chives, parsley and tarragon. To make compound steak butter, soften the butter and add chopped herbs and a squeeze of lemon juice. Place the butter on a sheet of parchment paper and roll it into a 2-inch cylinder. Wrap the roll of butter in parchment paper, slice off a 1-inch-thick disc using a warm knife and top the steak with it just before serving.

Bearnaise

• Bearnaise sauce is in a class all its own, because unlike other classic steak sauces, it's an emulsion, similar to hollandaise and mayonnaise, and requires a special technique. Bearnaise sauce and broiled or grilled steak is an institution, a staple of every French steakhouse and every high-end American chophouse. This is mainly because grilled or broiled steak, unlike braised or roasted meats, doesn't create its own sauce with pan juices.

  Just because bearnaise has its roots in classical French cuisine and is commonplace in fine dining doesn't mean it isn't as approachable and easy to make as basic gravy. Combine about one big spoonful each lemon juice and minced shallots in a 1-quart measuring cup along with a pinch of salt. Add a couple egg yolks and mix using a stick blender. With the stick blender operating, slowly pour in about 1 cup of hot, melted butter. Stir in as much chopped tarragon as you like and spoon it over the steak just before serving.

Classic Sauces

• Diane, au poivre, Stilton and regular table steak sauce: all steakhouse classics, all easy to make at home. You might have everything you need to make classic steakhouse table sauce already in you refrigerator. Cook equal parts ketchup, Worcestershire, white vinegar, and chili sauce over low heat along with a handful of raisins, orange zest and 2 tablespoons each Dijon and orange juice for 20 minutes, then blend. Stilton, or bleu cheese sauce, consists of butter, bleu cheese, minced garlic and heavy cream, all heated together and seasoned with freshly ground black pepper.

  To make Diane sauce, from the classic dish steak Diane, saute sliced mushrooms and shallots in a little oil and the pan drippings from the steak, deglaze the pan with brandy, and stir in heavy cream, Worcestershire and a little Dijon mustard. To make steak au poivre with sauce, make a crust by pressing the steak in cracked black peppercorns, cook it in a pan to the desired doneness, then deglaze the pan with brandy. Add butter and season with kosher salt.

Greens and Other Toppings

• Fresh, crisp and light, microgreens and baby greens contrast the smokiness and beefiness of steak with a pleasant crunch and splash of color. A simple salad of watercress or arugula dressed with olive oil and lemon juice and mixed with thinly sliced, fried fingerling potato chips melds fluidly with a fatty ribeye. Flash-fried whole herbs, such as basil and tarragon leaves, add a crisp, aromatic flourish, and thickly sliced, beer-battered onions rings are easy to make and look right at home on top of a thick-cut sirloin or strip. And don't forget the classic fried topping of all fried toppings: a generous handful of pomme frites, the thinly sliced, deep-fried potatoes similar to American fries but thinner, almost like julienned potatoes.