"Detroit's most serious steakhouse, with a 100-plus-day dry-age room downtown — book it to close a deal in Capitol Park."
9Food
9Ambience
7Value
About Prime + Proper
One hundred days and more in the dry-age room, a marble butcher counter behind glass, and a basement bar under a 1920s bank. Prime + Proper opened in Capitol Park in 2018 and quickly became the steakhouse Detroit sends its out-of-town guests to.
Executive chef Ryan Prentiss runs the kitchen for Jeremy Sasson's Heirloom Hospitality, ageing USDA Prime beef at least 28 days in-house and pushing the ribeye past 100 days for the regulars. Mains run from a $36 Berkshire pork chop to a $149 porterhouse. See where it sits in the Detroit dining guide.
The Kitchen
Prentiss and the Heirloom team treat the butchery as the headline. The shop ages whole Prime sub-primals on the bone, dry-ages lamb for two weeks, and breaks Wagyu to order, so the steak list reads by age and cut rather than by sauce. The 100-plus-day dry-aged ribeye is the cut to come for; the flavour turns nutty and blue-cheese deep the way only long ageing delivers.
Around the beef sit the tells of a kitchen that cares: a hand-cut dry-aged steak tartare, warm Parker House rolls, a tableside Caesar, and seafood towers off the raw bar. It is the Detroit room that turns up most often in our steakhouse rankings.
The Room
The dining room sits inside a restored bank with high ceilings, brass, and leather banquettes; downstairs hides a low-lit bar with its own cocktail list. Sound is a confident hum rather than a roar, lighting is dim and flattering, and tables are spaced for a private conversation. Dress is smart, the bar runs later than the kitchen, and the staff know the age of every cut on the board.
Best for Closing a Deal
Book Prime + Proper to close a deal because it does the three things a deal dinner needs: a room that signals you are serious, pacing that leaves space to talk between courses, and a steak list nobody argues with. Put the table downtown in Capitol Park, order the dry-aged board for the table, and let the butchery do the talking. The close-a-deal guide lists more rooms built for the handshake.
Not for
Skip Prime + Proper if you want a quick or cheap dinner. This is a long, $100-plus-a-head steakhouse, and the dry-aged cuts are priced for an occasion, not a weeknight.
Frequently Asked
Is Prime + Proper worth it?
Yes, for a steak occasion. Prime + Proper ages its own USDA Prime beef in-house, runs the ribeye past 100 days, and plates a hand-cut dry-aged tartare and warm Parker House rolls alongside. At roughly $100 or more per head it is a splurge, but for a deal dinner or a celebration in downtown Detroit it is the city's most serious steakhouse.
How much is dinner at Prime + Proper?
Steaks run from about $36 for a Berkshire bone-in pork chop to $149 for a 42-ounce porterhouse, with most dry-aged cuts in the $60 to $120 range before sides. Expect roughly $100 to $150 per person once you add a starter, a side, and a drink. The downstairs bar is a slightly gentler way in.
What should I order at Prime + Proper?
Start with the dry-aged steak tartare and the Parker House rolls, then order the 100-plus-day dry-aged ribeye or the porterhouse for two. Add the tableside Caesar and a raw-bar tower if the table is celebrating. The long-aged beef is the whole point, so let one person take a heavily aged cut.
What is the dress code at Prime + Proper?
Smart. There is no jacket requirement, but most diners come dressed up, and the bank-turned-dining-room rewards it. Business attire is the norm for the deal dinners the room is built around; smart-casual is fine in the downstairs bar. Avoid shorts and athletic wear in the main room.
Is Prime + Proper good for closing a deal?
Yes. It is one of the strongest deal tables in Detroit: a serious, design-led room in Capitol Park, generous spacing between tables, and a steak list that impresses without theatre. Book the main floor, mention the occasion, and consider the dry-aged board for the table. For other options see the Detroit dining guide.
Prime + Proper takes bookings on OpenTable and direct; reserve the main room ahead for weekends.
Affiliate disclosure: Restaurants for Kings may earn a commission when you book through our reservation links, at no cost to you. Our scores are editorial and never paid for.
Practical Information
Address1145 Griswold Street, Capitol Park, Detroit, MI 48226
