In 100 years, many will look at photos of The St. Regis Longboat Key Resort with wonder.  Historians may mark it as an era of extraordinary opulence. Architecture students will marvel at its distinct achievement in coastal harmony. Interior designers will reimagine its high-end decor for a new generation. Anyone who visits today, however, will likely remember one of the best meals they ever had. And that’s thanks to the incomparable menu at C.W. Prime, the resort’s high-end steakhouse concept. The kitchen is helmed by Executive Chef Drew Adams, whose work history includes Michelin-starred Rose’s Luxury, Bourbon Steak and The Dabney, all in the D.C. area. More recently, he co-owned and operated the celebrated Adeline, which won awards aplenty in its three-year run. At C.W. Prime, we find a fine-dining chef with impeccable taste given license to deliver dishes made from some of the most exclusively sourced ingredients on earth. 

The menu opens with a flourish of creativity. The tuna crudo is a delicate marvel, featuring razor-thin sashimi tossed in a savory-sweet blend of tamari, sesame, and fish sauce, finished with a nice crunch of breadcrumbs. Grilled oysters showcase a “nose-to-tail” culinary approach, repurposing some wagyu steak trimmings to create a luxuriant mignonette of rendered fat brightened with local starfruit.

If you prefer your beef raw, the beef tartare offers a sophisticated profile, using chipotle pepper to add a ghostly hint of smoke that perfectly complements the rich egg yolk and sharp shallots. This is served with a small plate of crispy housemade crackers. Of course, the steaks are the true stars of the beef offerings. At the pinnacle, Sanuki Olive Wagyu, an A5 beef from Kagawa Prefecture. More specifically, it comes from an olive-producing region on the Japanese island of Shikoku. There, black wagyu cattle are fed high-fat olive mash from the island’s olive oil producers. This results in a buttery, decadent cut. C.W Prime is one of only two restaurants in the state of Florida to offer it, and there are fewer than 20 that can get their hands on it in the country. At $65 per ounce with a three-ounce minimum, it’s best eaten slowly, with a clear mind and cleansed palate.

Larger cuts come from Blackhawk Farms in Caldwell County, Kentucky. Known as one of the best producers of American wagyu, they also grow their own feed and finish their beef on a corn-heavy diet for 500 days—twice as long as most beef cattle. Chef Adams opts for a 5-6 marbling score to spotlight more of the beef over the fat. The Blackhawk offerings are ribeye and N.Y. strip, while the rib cap is the longstanding chef’s cut that sells out every night. For primal extravagance, a 36-ounce dry-aged tomahawk might satisfy, with more traditional cuts—filet mignon, hanger, etc.—also on the menu.

Sourcing, while key for high-end steak, is only as good as the product on the plate. To attain the perfect sear and temperature, the kitchen employs a Josper grill. This pricey piece of Spanish-made equipment is a hybrid of grill and closed-door oven, fueled by charcoal that imparts a hint of smoke. The real magic, however, lies in its ability to generate extraordinary heat. It allows even the thickest cuts to cook perfectly in less time. Salt and a dash of pepper are all that’s needed, though Chef Adams is no saucier slouch, offering a Pedro Ximénez and beef jus reduction, classic chimichurri, Béarnaise and sweet onion au poivre.

A standout seafood entree is the cobia. This local catch is cooked sous-vide first before being seared with a scratch-made BBQ glaze. It’s served on a bed of Sea Island peas from Anson Mills, which specializes in preserving heritage and heirloom crops. It comes atop an allium sauce of reduced garlic, shallot and ginger combined with the aforementioned BBQ glaze. 

The sweet potato entree, meanwhile, satisfies just about every dietary restriction and showcases Chef Adams’ dedication to vegetables. This is no mere menu filler, however—it eats about as heartily as any meat entree. A smoky salsa macha (made with pasilla peppers) provides a nutty, crunchy contrast to the sweetness of the potato and the bitterness of the accompanying Chinese broccoli. This is a complex plate—salty, sweet, nutty and bitter with a dash of kick. Noteworthy sides include the crispy potato pave, a perfect steak pairing, poached in butter and served with truffle aioli that essentially eats like the world’s most luxurious hash brown. Meanwhile, the roasted sunchokes offer an earthy, nutty alternative to artichokes, elevated by a pronounced ramp and mustard aioli.

Naturally, the beverage program is as curated as the meat locker. The Caroline 400 is a lavish riff on a French 75, made instead with Hennessy Paradis (one of the priciest production cognacs on earth) and Krug Grande Cuvée. It’s served tableside in hand-cut Waterford Crystal, and comes with a full bottle of Pierre Paillard “Les Parcelleres” champagne to take home (or up to your room if you’re a guest). It’s effervescent and spritely and complex, and will lessen the burden of an overstuffed bank account. 

The Lucerillo is a wonderfully complex and smoky mezcal-based drink mixed with corn liquor, dusted with chili and topped with shaved cacao. For those who crave the island lifestyle with an elevated twist, the Belafonte is a clarified banana daiquiri that goes down as sweet as a dessert and light enough to sip poolside. And do not miss the simple pleasure of the croissant brioche.