Food Site Experts Say This Place Is Illinois’ Best Steakhouse

A friend once compared pizza to sex by saying that "even if it's not that good, it's still good." Another friend added that he felt the same way about a steak, but was countered by the first friend who told him that his steak-to-sex comparison was stupid because of the price-point.

Which, despite the stupidity of two companionless dudes pretending that they do anything more than eat, kind of makes sense.

A good steak dinner is a bit pricier than a pizza, so maybe we should be a bit more discerning.

There's Certainly No Shortage Of Steak Restaurants (or, Steakhouses) In The Rockford Area And Throughout The State Of Illinois

And I would absolutely welcome the opportunity to have someone else pick up the check while I stopped into each and every one of them to give you a review. However, management has shot down that idea (but they did offer me a BOGO coupon for a steak and cheese sub).

So, we'll have to go with someone else's take on Illinois' best steakhouse.

Mashed.com Took A Look At The Steakhouses In All 50 States In Order To Name The Country's Best

I wonder how hard it was to talk their staff members into hundreds of free steak dinners to compare for their piece on the best steakhouses. I'm betting it was pretty easy.

Here's how Mashed.com went about picking the best in each state:

While there are definitely some wonderful national steakhouse chains, there's a good chance that your favorite steakhouse is a local eatery that knows the ins and outs of the region. That knowledge of the neighborhood is very difficult for a chain restaurant to replicate. With that in mind, we researched to find the best steakhouse in each state in the country by sifting through reviews, accolades, and recommendations from various sources.

So, which steakhouse reigns supreme in Illinois? I will tell you that if you had a Chicago steakhouse in mind, you're wrong. Mashed's choice of Illinois' best is located in Lake Zurich. Here's a look a some of their fabulous fare:

Yep, I'll definitely take one of those.

And a couple of these.

Gotta have that one, too.

I can see where it would be hard to decide what to order at Beelow's.

Here's what Mashed.com had to say about Beelow's:

While Chicago is most definitely a food town with its own traditions and a lot of outstanding steakhouses, you need to go about 45 miles away to the city of Lake Zurich to find the best steakhouse in Illinois. Beelow's Steakhouse has roots that date back to the 1920s and reviewers are almost universally in love. On their menu, Beelow's Steakhouse gives you hints about what you should pick by pointing out their favorites. These favorites include a 24-ounce bone-in ribe-eye, baby back pork ribs, and BBQ bacon burger.

And, here's a look at Beelow's.

If you're thinking road-trip after looking at some of these photos, you'll be happy to know that it's a pretty short ride if you're coming from Rockford. According to my check on Google, Beelow's Steakhouse is about an hour and 15 minutes away (63 miles).