View source for Surf and turf

{{Short description|Dish containing seafood and meat}}
{{Infobox food
| name             = Surf and turf
| image            = Surf and turf (1).JPG
| caption          = Surf and turf with [[steak]] and [[Lobster meat|lobster]] at a restaurant in Prince Edward Island, Canada
| alternate_name   = surf 'n' turf{{br}}reef 'n' beef
| place_of_origin  = [[United States]]
| region           = 
| course           = 
| served           = 
| main_ingredient  = [[Seafood]] and [[red meat]]
| variations       = 
| calories         = 
| other            = 
}}
{{Steak}}
[[File:Surf and turf.jpg|thumb|right|240px|Steak and three shrimp, served with spicy mayonnaise, salad, and fries]]
'''Surf and turf''', sometimes called '''reef and beef''', is a [[main course]] combining [[seafood]] and [[red meat]],<ref name="oed" /><ref>''McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs'', 2003, ''s.v.''</ref> typically [[beefsteak]]. While [[lobster]] and [[filet mignon]] are a standard combination,<ref name="Ruhlman" /><ref name="Stern Stern 2003 p. 192" /><ref>{{cite book | last1=Billings | first1=C. | last2=Bayer | first2=B. | title=The Maine Lobster Industry: A History of Culture, Conservation and Commerce | publisher=History Press | year=2014 | isbn=978-1-62619-410-6 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rAB3CQAAQBAJ&pg=PA65 | page=65 }}</ref> variations common to [[steakhouse]] menus include [[Shrimp and prawn as food|prawns, shrimp]],<ref name="Jackson 2015" /> [[Squid as food|squid]], or [[scallop]]s, which may be [[Steaming|steamed]], [[grilling|grilled]], or [[deep frying|breaded and fried]].

==Etymology==
While the term's origins remain unclear, the earliest known citation dates to 1961 in the ''[[Los Angeles Times]]''.<ref name="oed" />

==History==
In late 19th-century America, combining large portions of lobster and steak was popular at "show restaurants known as lobster palaces," favored by [[nouveau riche]] "arrivistes". This became unfashionable by the 1920s and only regained popularity in the early 1960s.<ref name="Stern Stern 1990" />

Surf 'n' turf was featured in 1962 at the [[Eye of the Needle (restaurant)|Eye of the Needle]], a [[revolving restaurant]] atop the [[Space Needle]] in [[Seattle, Washington]].<ref name="Stern Stern 1990" />

Surf and turf is often considered to symbolize the middle-class "[[Continental food|Continental cuisine]]" of the 1960s and 1970s,<ref>{{Cite web |date=January 24, 2011 |title=Obama's Can't-Miss Banquet Menu |url=https://www.restaurant-hospitality.com/menu-trends/obama-s-can-t-miss-banquet-menu |access-date=2024-08-14 |website=www.restaurant-hospitality.com |language=en |quote="Let’s see, surf and turf, glazed carrots, double-stuffed potatoes, apple pie — this meal seems to ignore every dietary and culinary trend of the last 30 years."}}</ref> with (frozen) lobster and steak as replacements for the middle class.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Lewis |first=George H. |date=December 1989 |title=The Maine lobster as regional icon: Competing images over time and social class |url=http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/07409710.1989.9961958 |journal=Food and Foodways |language=en |volume=3 |issue=4 |pages=303–316 |doi=10.1080/07409710.1989.9961958 |issn=0740-9710 |quote=As one moves downward in the American socioeconomic class structure, one sees lobster retain its image as a status foodstuff. To be affordable to the middle class, the actual lobster eaten usually takes the form of frozen Australian lobster tail, often served along with steak as part of a standard middle-class status meal known as "surf and turf." Thus the image of rarity and status is retained, but a cheaper product that has no relationship to Maine... is substituted for the authentic foodstuff.|url-access=subscription }} 
</ref>

In Australia, the dish was first served in 1965 at the Lithgow Hotel<ref>{{Cite news |last=Bastow |first=Ciara |date=2022-02-24 |title=The 7 Valleys' knocks expectations out of the park with popular opening |url=https://www.lithgowmercury.com.au/story/7633377/the-7-valleys-knocks-expectations-out-of-the-park-with-popular-opening/ |access-date=2024-08-04 |newspaper=Lithgow Mercury |language=en-AU}}</ref> in [[Lithgow, New South Wales|Lithgow]], New South Wales. It is now common throughout Australia.{{citation needed|date=November 2023}}

==Sandwich==
A sandwich variation known as the surf and turf [[hamburger|burger]] is prepared with ground beef and various types of seafood, such as lobster, shrimp, or crab.<ref>{{cite book | last1=Keller | first1=H. | last2=Wisner | first2=P. | title=Burger Bar: Build Your Own Ultimate Burgers | publisher=Houghton Mifflin Harcourt | year=2015 | isbn=978-0-544-79168-8 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ttxLCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA25 | access-date=July 23, 2017 | page=25}}</ref><ref>{{cite book | last=Pilz | first=D. | title=Grilling, Grilling & More Grilling | publisher=Charlesbridge Publishing | year=2013 | isbn=978-1-60734-661-6 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xBXdydPYZuIC&pg=PA79 | access-date=July 23, 2017 | page=79}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | title=Surf and turf burger at Morton's in Hackensack | website=North Jersey | date=May 11, 2017 | url=http://www.northjersey.com/story/life/food/2017/05/11/surf-and-turf-burger-mortons-hackensack/318026001/ | access-date=July 23, 2017}}</ref><ref name="Jackson 2015" />

==Reputation==
Surf and turf is often considered as an example of [[conspicuous consumption]] and [[kitsch]], as it combines two expensive foods which are not normally considered to be complementary:<ref name="stone" /><ref name="Stern Stern 1990" />
{{Quote|
Surf 'n' turf is an example of the voracious rapture that defines much classic kitsch: adding two swanky things together in hopes of doubling their value and winding up with a flatulent faux pas.
<br>
...the point of surf 'n' turf is to maximize hedonistic extravagance...
|Jane &amp; Michael Stern, 1990<ref name="Stern Stern 1990" />}}
{{Quote|
This meal is stunt food. It exists because it's a way for restaurants to package the two most expensive items on the menu&mdash;tenderloin and lobster&mdash;into one ostentatious price tag. Otherwise, these two items don't even go together. It's the most conspicuous of conspicuous consumption and maybe even a little cliché.
|Jared Stone, 2015<ref name="stone" />}}

==See also==
{{Portal|Crustaceans|Food}}
* [[Veal Oscar]]
* [[List of meat dishes]]
* [[List of seafood dishes]]
* [[List of steak dishes]]
{{-}}

==References==
{{reflist|refs=
<ref name="Ruhlman">{{cite book | url=https://archive.org/details/soulofchef00mich | url-access=registration | title=The Soul of a Chef | publisher=Penguin | author=Ruhlman, Michael | year=2001 | pages=[https://archive.org/details/soulofchef00mich/page/184 184] | isbn=1101525312}}</ref>
<ref name="Stern Stern 2003 p. 192">{{cite book | last1=Stern | first1=J. | last2=Stern | first2=M. | title=The Harry Caray's Restaurant Cookbook: The Official Home Plate of the Chicago Cubs | publisher=Thomas Nelson | year=2003 | isbn=978-1-4185-6826-9 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pHu4PQ2fd2YC&pg=PT192 | page=PT 192}}</ref>
<ref name="Jackson 2015">{{cite web | last=Jackson | first=Kate Morgan | title=A burger surf and turf | website=[[NorthJersey.com]] | date=May 20, 2015 | url=http://www.northjersey.com/cm/2.1593/food-and-dining-news/recipes/shrimp-and-burger-on-the-barbie-1.1338253 | access-date=July 26, 2015}}</ref>
<ref name="stone">Jared Stone, ''Year of the Cow How 420 Pounds of Beef Built a Better Life for One American Family'', 2015, {{isbn|125005379X}}, p. 153</ref>
<ref name="Stern Stern 1990">"Surf 'n' Turf," in Jane Stern, Michael Stern, ''The Encyclopedia of Bad Taste'', 1990, {{isbn|0060164700}}, p. 279-280</ref>
<ref name="oed">{{Cite OED|surf and turf|6547615708}}</ref>
}}

==External links==
* {{commons-inline}}

[[Category:Seafood dishes]]
[[Category:Food combinations]]
[[Category:Beef steak dishes]]
[[Category:Australian cuisine]]