Loin Cuts

• The cuts from the loin include:

  Tenderloin
  Chateaubriand
  T-bone Steak
  Porterhouse Steak
  Top Loin or Strip Steak
  Club Steak
  

Tenderloin

The most tender of all steaks, it is all meat and no bone. It comes from the long muscle that runs along both sides of the backbone. It's underneath the strip loin (strip steak). It can be purchased as a whole or partial tenderloin, but is usually cut into small medallions or fillet steaks.
Since they contain very litlle fat or marbling, they are usually wrapped in bacon or cooked with some form of fat to add flavor.

Chateaubriand

Actually a large section cut from the thickest part of the tenderloin. It is meant to serve two people, but in actuality it can really serve three.

T-Bone

The T-bone consists of a steak which contains a T shaped bone with an oval tenderloin on one side, and a longer top loin, or strip, on the other. Some people say it is two steaks in one. It is considered to have the best of both of the cuts in one steak, the tenderness of the tenderloin and the flavor of the strip steak.

Porterhouse

The porterhouse is similar to the T-bone, but contains more of the tenderloin and the sirloin strip. The French call the sirloin strip the "contra fillet".

Strip or Top Loin

Also known as the New York Strip, Kansas City Strip, strip loin, shell steak, Delmonico, boneless loin, boneless club steak, or confusingly, sirloin strip (although it's not really part of the sirloin). It is a porterhouse minus the tenderloin and the bone. It is the second most popular steak due to its convenient size and shape. A strip steak is a very juicy and tasty steak.

Club Steak

Although really a strip steak, the term club steak refers specifically to the last steak from the rib end of the loin. It has the flavor and texture of a strip steak.