Hear that wheel squeaking the distance? Yeah, that's me. I want to be able to cook steaks to EXACT temperatures. I ant my steaks to be exquisitely tender. I want to be able to cook a number of steaks to different degrees of doneness and all ready at the same time. I want to be able to do so with little stress that enables me to enjoy my guests. Sous vide gives me all of those things. I dry brine them individually bagged with just S&P and garlic powder for a day or so. Then into the bath set for the least degree of doneness I want for steak #1. That come out, ice bathed, labelled, and into the fridge. Raise the temps for other steaks and repeat. The precisely cooked steaks are now Pasteurized and good for up to a month. Ugly as hell too at that stage. When it is time to serve I retherm, dry well, and sear. Beautiful!
Now lets talk about that searing. Grill marks nowadays scream failure to me. The Maillard reaction that creates that lovely coloring also creates it flavor. Why in the world would I want a steak with only strips of maximum flavor? No, I want it edge to edge. Therefore I sear in a screaming hot cast iron skillet, with a torch, or directly over hot charcoal in the starter chimney. These methods take only 30-60 seconds per side.
Does anyone finish theirs teaks? Some are carved. Others gussied up in ne way or another. Sometimes I go the Ruth's Chris route and serve the steak on a platter of sizzling her butter. Some cuts such as picanha I serve with a chimichurri. A very lean but tender cut that lacks flavor will sometimes be served with a Béarnaise. Most of the times I just sear & serve though. Due to the lower temp cooing of sous vide there is no need to let the meat rest.