Longtime Yankee broadcasting legend John Sterling was known as a “man about town” by those in the broadcast industry that knew him well. When he was not broadcasting Yankee games on the radio for over 35 years, he had a penchant for participating in the night life of NYC and other cities he traveled to — frequenting fine restaurants and Jazz clubs.
Sterling — evidenced by his retirement ceremony at Yankee Stadium at the age of 84 in April of 2024 — was a family man with 4 grown children, including triplets born in 2000. Sterling divorced from his wife of 12 years in 2008. Being a broadcaster however, meant constant road travel, so one might imagine he had the opportunity to eat a lot of fine and not-so-fine restaurants across the United States during his career.
Sterling began broadcasting Yankee games in 1989 — and at that time was a veteran, known by many NY’ers for broadcasting NY Islander games in the 1970’s (with his famous “ISLANDER GOAL!, ISLANDER GOAL!” call), then went on to broadcast for the hockey and basketball teams in Washington DC for a decade.
Then came 35 years as Yankee radio announcer during which time he became a legend. He was most certainly well paid for his work, so one might suppose money was not too much of an issue in picking places to eat — although he did have 4 kids to support.
When asked in a 2017 interview on the Michael Kay “Centerstage” what his favorite meal and favorite restaurants were, he replied:
Favorite Meal: “Probably one of the many great steakhouses in the country, and have martinis and salad and steak, and .. like that.”
Favorite Restaurant: “Well there’s one in Baltimore that I adore, “Prime Rib”, and another one in Seattle, called “Metropolitan Grill” — those are two of them.”
The Prime Rib in Baltimore
The Prime Rib restaurant is located in downtown Baltimore, at 101 N Calvert Street. They are a 4-dollar-sign ($$$$) restaurant in terms of price. Their website is here: https://theprimeribs.com/
Metropolitan Grill in Seattle
The Metropolitan Grill calls itself The Met, with slogan “The Best Steak in Town”. It is located on 2nd Ave and Marion Street in Seattle, Washington. It is housed in the historic Marion Building, which dates back to 1903. It also is a 4-dollar-sign ($$$$) restaurant in terms of price. Their website is here: https://www.themetropolitangrill.com/
“I’ve been to the Metropolitan Grill in Seattle,” said John Snyder, publisher in the Marine industry who does a fair bit of travel himself. “Great steak restaurant and love their wedge salad. Fond memories. Hard to get back up the hill to the hotel after dinner. The hill is like a 45-degree angle.”
Interesting reading is the Story of the Metropolitan Grill on their website: https://www.themetropolitangrill.com/our-story/
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