Filet mignon is actually pork in France today .... pork tenderloin. Beef fillet is "filet de boeuf" or simply "un filet". "Filet" in fact refers to any boned piece of fish or meat, in French as it does in English. Filet in old French was a kind of laced up headband and the boned meat or fish was similarly trussed up before cooking, hence the appelation.
OK teacher mode off.....:)

Oh yes and to the OP's question... I would suppose it is indeed tenderness over flavour. I'm with you 100 per cent though as far as steak is concerned, a good sirloin or a T-bone (British English here!!) beats a fillet everyday in flavour. I would hate a Sirloin Wellington though...

I disagree that filet "has no taste." It's taste is more subtle, but sometimes that is exactly what I'm in the mood for. Often times ribeyes just have too much fat. Sometimes disgustingly so.

But I also make a distinction between grass fed and corn feed beef. I'm not a huge fan of grass fed filets.

And more. Umami. The same sort of pleasant sensation as eating Ahi or diver scallops--meaty, and satisfying. And as SAT Lawyer pointed out--all the prep work has been done in the kitchen. Aging the meat adds to the experience.

I don't get the "kitchen prep" adding to the experience. Is this about de-boning? Removing the bone before cooking also removes flavor and that same umami sensation.

Don't forget about courgette! :)

Aging the meat adds to the experience. As for the kitchen prep--I want to dine, not dissect. (so for me the prep work *does* add to the experience!)

There is no bone in a tenderloin, so there is no deboning required for Filet Mignon. My hometown butcher turned me to ribeyes 7 years ago and I have never looked back!

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Like the Ahi reference-

Not sure that adding shoyu, sesame and seaweed would be the same... :p

Personally I prefer something a little bigger :o

There is cutting and trimming. I don't want to deal with anything other than eating. Filet mignon is my choice for *steak*. I do think prime rib makes for a wonderful roast beef. :)

I may just be lucky, but I've probably had over 50 filets all on UA, and all but about 5 have been cooked medium to medium rare and were juicy (and bland yes). I do like the short ribs too.

That tender meat on one side of the porterhouse (and T-bone) bone is the tenderloin a.k.a. filet (mignon). The firmer, and larger, side is the strip loin (a.k.a. NY Strip).

I've been using tenderloin to make beef stroganoff lately (wonderfully cheap in Canada, C$6-8/lb for a whole small tenderloin).

As for rib eyes (sometimes we get whole rib eyes here for C$3-4 /lb if you want 8 lbs of meat), I find the best is to sear them in a pan sprinkled with kosher salt.

Can't the same be said of any cut of meat. Why do people order <<type of meat>> when <<type of meat>> is more <<choose flavorful, tender, less expensive, leaner, etc>>

There's what, 25 or 30 different main cuts from a cow, there are probably just as many people who like one cut over another.

I guess the better question is why people pay more for the filet? It's not as good a cut as many others, yet is the most expensive.

Fast food at its best --almost no prep or cook time, and a sensational meal. When it was on sale, my Mom would buy a whole tenderloin, have the butcher trim and cut into steaks. (no silverskin). Butchers are the unsung heroes of the food world.

^ Same here. I'll take mine bloody please :D