THE STEAK. It's the last meal for a condemned man at his execution; a popular dish at birthday celebrations; the dinner of choice for closing many important business deals; the staple at football tailgates; and the standard for backyard barbeques. Nowadays, it's also found as a fast food steak plate! THE STEAK is everywhere!

Personally, the steak I like is a strip steak (e.g., NY steak, Kansas City steak) choice grade or better. Even though some people might say that a rib eye steak is the ultimate, it sometimes tends to be too fatty. You also can't beat a nice thick top sirloin for flavor, but it lacks in tenderness. On the other hand, the filet mignon or tenderloin steak cuts like butter, but lacks in flavor. That is why, the strip loin steak, in my opinion, is the best of all the meat cuts. It has everything going for it.

If you're really serious about cooking a steak, there are many web sites with information. Just go online and type in "How to cook a steak" -- it's as simple as that.

For me, nothing beats a charcoal fire (e.g., kiawe, mesquite) at a medium high heat. As for the thickness of the cut, a one-inch to an inch and a half cut is perfect -- thick enough so that you can get a nice crust and color on it.

Should you season your steak before or after? I like to lightly salt and pepper the meat first, so that the seasonings stick to the steak instead of bouncing off the crusty exterior after it's been cooked.

To cook the steak, you need to first sear one side of the steak on the hottest part of the fire until it's nicely browned and crusty. Turn it over and sear the other side, then move the steak away to a medium heat to finish cooking. Don't fool around and make those criss-cross markings. Go to a great steak house for that.

How do you know when it's done? Your steak is ready to eat when it's blue (seared), rare, or medium rare. My opinion is that if you prefer anything after medium rare, you shouldn't be eating steak…you should be having a nice pot roast instead.

For most people, medium rare is the norm, but I always choose to err on the rare side. Someone's medium rare might be well done to another person, so it's better to undercook at first, rather than overcook. You can always cook a steak longer, but you can't “un-cook” it to someone's particular preference. Here's another tip if you like your steak cooked medium rare. After turning the steak (by the way, guys, please use a tong, not a fork...and that would be a metal tong, not a thong -- that's what the girls wear when they go to the beach), you will see a bit of blood coming to the surface of the steak. That is the signal to take it off the fire. It's done.

Okay, I know you're hungry, but resist cutting into that beautiful steak for at least 5-8 minutes. Why??? To get the pleasure of having a nice juicy steak, you need to let it rest, and let the juices in the steak settle down and redistribute throughout. Cutting it too soon will ruin the effect. If, by chance, you get a little too eager, you'll see what I mean…and I guess you can just chalk it up to experience.

Now, let's say the weather outside is too terrible to start a fire. In this case, a good pan-broiled steak is awesome! Just make sure you have proper ventilation and a working exhaust fan. It is very important that you open the windows. A non-stick pan or cast iron pan are very good choices. You basically need a flat pan so that you can sear the steak evenly. Follow the same procedures as above, adjusting the stove heat as needed. The one thing you'll have to do is drain some of the drippings from the pan, because you're searing, not frying, the steak.

There's one more steak that I forgot to mention! The Porterhouse (T-bone), which is the strip loin and tenderloin with the bone in between. This steak is delicious because of the bone. After eating the meat, guys like to chew on the bone just like in the caveman days. This is best done in the privacy of your own home, and besides, when I eat it at a restaurant, it gets cold rather quickly.

Well, that's my spiel on steaks. I could go on and on, but I know that you're ready to indulge on THE STEAK. Follow my instructions (or those given on the web sites) and you'll be guaranteed many happy hours of steak eating!