Why buy an expensive and tasty meat and put some sugary sauce on it? No offence intended, it's just that this baffles me. The only thing I would put on a steak besides salt is black pepper if I feel feisty.
Also, the best steaks that you're getting in steak houses are honestly pretty boring (at least, until you dry age them halfway to the point of rot) and if you think that a prime ribeye is the acme of cuisine, I really recommend you go out and find yourself some birria.
That's not to say that I don't like a good simple steak, but there is nothing extraordinary about a grocery store cut of meat to warrant eating it with just salt and pepper all the time. Hell, at least goat, elk or salt water fish are gamey enough to have enough complex flavors going on by themselves. Steak is honestly, a little one dimensional.
IMO, a medium rare, dry brined and cast iron seared fatty steak with some chimichurri on top is admittedly excellent. Also, complaining about a welldone steak not being as juicy as a medium rare steak is ridiculous. But if thats what they like, then making fun of people's culinary tastes because you have a specific classist hangup about your food is snooty and stupid.
Why does anyone combine flavours and use sauces and different elements of taste?
I don't put ketchup on my steak either, but let's not pretend that the idea of sauces or combining sweet and savoury is somehow unfathomable.
With pork ribs I actually agree: I drown them in BBQ sauce and pretty much only care that they are tender.
With steak and cow cuts... hey, I'm Argentinian, we care about our grilled meat [1], the thought of just not bothering about how much it's cooked personally offends me!
[1] though not most restaurants. Given the importance beef cuts have in our diet, it's surprising most restaurants just don't care. They will either serve you meat so bloody the cow might as well still be alive, or something that is hard, chewy and not tender at all ("the sole of a shoe"). Honorable exceptions exist and tourists seem happy even in the worst restaurants, so what do I know?
Im agree with fancy restaurants cooking meat without care about it.
anyway, i think 33% is meat quality, 33% knowladge and 33% experience. 1% is the fernet or wine you are drinking while cooking.