Keep Fit - Eat Meat Every Day

This past weekend I ventured over the Williamsburg bridge for brunch at Marlow & Sons. My friend and I shared a couple dishes that included an amazing boudin sausage—possibly my favorite part of the meal (and yes, I did have bacon). Afterwards we stopped into Marlow & Daughters to check out the butcher shop where this wonderful sausage came from. Scott Bridi, manager and charcutier (and dining partner), was kind enough to give us a tour. See all photos here.

The place was packed and meat case close to empty. Scott was busy cranking out lamb sausages. Eventually there was a lull & the meat case was replenished before the shot above was taken. I was then introduced to the various charcuterie available—smoked meats, fresh sausages, patés, terrines. There is a lot of thought and care in the preparation of these items. Wine and fresh herbs are often used “to create the balance of a well composed dish,” according to Bridi. We of course had to see for ourselves... we sampled duck rillettes, pork rillettes, a Sunset Park taco-inspired pig head terrine, and sweet sopressata. Like the boudin at brunch, I could certainly eat any of these as a meal by itself. Another wonderful thing about the prepared foods is that it gives the shop an opportunity to make use of the whole animal.

Marlow & Daughters does whole animal butchering and they source their animals very locally. Their beef is from 3 farms in upstate NY. Pork comes from EcoFriendly Foods in VA as well as farms upstate including Flying Pigs. The lamb is from Elysian Fields Farm in PA. Duck and rabbit are from a farm in New Paltz. Meat isn’t all that they get locally. Fresh veggies come from Guy Jones’ upstate farm and their beans come from Cayuga Pure Organics in Ithaca. A number of groceries are sourced even closer to home: popsicles from Brooklyn Flea regulars People’s Pops, Williamsburg’s own Mast Brothers Chocolate, and Marlow & Sons’ house-made ice cream, granola, marmalade and hazelnut butter (to name a few).

This is truly your local neighborhood butcher shop... and if it's not exactly local to you, it’s worth it to go out of your way. These guys aren’t just chopping up meat. They can tell you what cut to use and the best way to prepare it. There is a flexibility and a trust between the staff of M&D and their customers. Talk to Scott, TJ or Andrew who can offer suggestions on easy, delicious dishes based on what’s available. Coming from the kitchens of Gramercy Tavern, craft, and Momofuku—these guys know how to fucking cook. So take advantage of that knowledge when planning your next meal. And don’t forget:

P.S.

M&D will soon be selling barbecue packages... Get your grills ready! (Talking to you, Rosa.) If you can’t grill, their eponymous pork sausage will be available at Summer Stage this year.

Pork Parfait

At first glance, the meat sundae looks rather odd (if not a bit gross). But the carnival concoction actually sounds pretty tasty. It consists of pulled pork, barbecue sauce and mashed potatoes. I can’t seem to think of a better combination at the moment... and aren't we all looking for easier ways to eat pork? Porky’s BBQ, the traveling vendor from Indiana that created this portable product, was most recently at the Miami-Dade County Fair. Let’s hope they hit the North East area soon...

Daily Specials

If you are in LA or NY, sign up on blackboardeats.com for “unreal deals at the best restaurants.” Today’s special for NY is 30% off at Hill Country, the fantastic barbecue joint where you can order your meat by the pound. Black Board Eats also offers “side dishes” of other deals going on around town—happy hours, tastings, brunch specials, etc.

Thankful

Thanksgiving Day is by far my favorite holiday—it's all about food (and well, family of course). My 98 year old grandmother is who I attribute my love for all things greasy. This is the woman who, on many occasions, would make my brother and I a pile of bacon for breakfast because that's all we wanted. Sadly, she had to spend Thanksgiving this year in the hospital. When I first arrived, she was asleep... as she finally began to stir, I moved in close to let her know I was there. The first thing she said? “Barbecue.” Yeah, we are definitely related.

Porktoberfest!

My favorite Brooklyn bar Sycamore has live music & BBQ every Saturday this month to celebrate Oktoberfest. This Saturday (10/17), Tom Kearny of The Farm will spit roast a whole 100 lb pig—pasture-raised of course—in Sycamore’s backyard. $25 gets you pig parts, sides and 2 beers.

Review: Smoke Joint

Drinks with dinner at Smoke Joint on S. Elliott and Lafayette in Fort Greene.

Drunken Sow (bacon infused bourbon, bitters, dark brown sugar, and muddled orange):

Note: Have I mentioned how fucking awesome their pulled pork topped how dog is?? Best dog I’ve had... ever.

Meat Water... Seriously?

This is a joke right? Meat Water, a “high efficiency survival beverage” sounds even more suspect than a “vibrancy drink.” Sure, a juicy BBQ pork dumpling sounds delicious—in liquid form, however, it does not. With over 40 flavors such as pulled pork, italian meatballs, and fried oysters, in combination with their blatant rip off of Vitamin Water, I’m going to assume it’s a joke. But you can find out for yourself tonight at 303GRAND. I’m going to pass in favor of a Purple Rain sing-a-long.

“If We Cant Smoke It, We Grill It.”

From highway 321 in North Carolina, one might think this big pink building is some sort of sex shop (even the parking lot lines were pink). But no, pink is for pig at the BBQ Man Rib Hut where you are invited to “come and get your butt rubbed.” Hmm... a bit pervy after all, Mr. BBQ Man?

I decided to pig in.

A good sign for a baconista to follow...

Barbecued pork, beef & chicken, ribs, hush puppies, sausage, sliced pork and a leg of chicken. A bit of everything which I probably managed to get through maybe a quarter of. The best thing on the plate (besides the addictive hush puppies) was the pulled pork—perfectly smokey and not sauced. At the table you have your choice of the two styles of NC sauces: tomato-based or vinegar-based. Also at the table are a bunch of piggies staring down at you as you happily devour one their own.

Cuteness Counts

As a designer, I often judge a book by it’s cover—you'll never see me reading an ugly book (I take the jackets off if they are). I’ll buy a CD if the packaging is really pretty or has a cool diecut. And I root for sports teams based on whose uniform is cuter. But when it comes to food, I tend to care more about taste than typography. However, when a restaurant’s identity is deliciously designed, it makes the experience even better. Perusing through Death by Kearning, I came across Foda Studios’ work on Lambert’s Downtown Barbecue—both in Austin. I’ve not heard anything about Lambert’s but their branding alone makes me crave “fancy barbecue.” 

Pork Off Update

View a slideshow from the Park Slope Pork Off earlier this month here. The winner was Jesse Foster with his smoky barbecued pork belly. Other entrants included dark chocolate bon bons filled with a pancetta ganache and brown sugar bacon ice cream! There was even the Filipino dish pinakbet. Proceeds of the Pork Off benefitted Filipino toxic waste victims.

Joo Know Joo Love It

Today the baconista has been mentioned on my friend Seong’s blog What Joo Say? which is (oddly enough) about fitness! Bacon and fitness, hmm... But if you are trying to get in shape he has tons of great tips to counter any bacon overindulgence. And I love that he encourages indulgence (every once in a while) on what he calls CMD. I've often joined him on his Cheat Meal Day (although that's pretty much every day for me) at our usual spot, Won Jo. And yes, he does eat bacon—extra thick, super fatty bacon! And still he manages to keep in serious shape. There is hope for us all!

Bacon Cures Hangovers

In college, the preferred food option (for those dwelling in SVA’s GW dorms) after a night out was MT Deli’s bacon, egg & cheese on a roll. Even to this day I still crave a bacon, egg & cheese—but on a croissant and usually from John’s Bakery—whenever I’ve had a bit too much the night before. But that rarely happens...

Now it has been scientifically proven that bacon cures hang overs! Food in general helps to speed up you metabolism which helps your body deal with the after-affects of boozing it up. But bacon, more specifically, is full of protein which breaks down into amino acids. Getting wasted depletes neurotransmitters but bacon’s high level of aminos tops these up, giving you a clearer head. Research shows that even the simple smell of bacon cooking is a comfort to all of us alcoholics. 

The weekend is here. It will be a sunny 83° tomorrow (in NYC)—which means barbecues, picnics, and outdoor cocktails. So drink up! Bacon will be waiting for you Sunday morning (or afternoon...)

Review: RUB BBQ

Dinner at RUB on 23rd between 7th & 8th in Chelsea.

BBQ bacon chunks:

Note: Although tasty, the portion was ridiculously small for the price.

A Bacon Filled Weekend

Friday night I had dinner at the Redhead in the East Village. I've heard good things about the food but really... I went for the bacon peanut brittle. It has a spiciness that overpowers the bacon flavor but overall I still say it's a great combination. Every thing’s better with bacon, right? Including the bacon cheese burger I ordered.

Several hours and several bars later, I ended up at the Double Down Saloon for their infamous bacon martini which did in fact come with a slim jim stirrer. Although I very much enjoyed it, I believe this was the drink that did me in. I don’t quite recall the rest of the night... 

With a massive hang over, I woke up Saturday afternoon and made my way over to The Farm on Adderly. Not even a huge side of bacon could get me out of my zombie-like state (damn you, Double Down!). What better way to deal with a bacon martini hang over than with more and more bacon? After a nice walk from Ditmas Park to Windsor Terrace, I stopped in at Hot Diggity Dog for a bacon and cheese dog. Finally I felt somewhat human again. Thanks to Lieh for taking the hot dog pics and for putting up with my pamphagous appetite for bacon!

Sunday should have been my day to rest but there was the Great Greenpoint Mac-Off which I was sure would involve bacon at some point. Unfortunately the 1st of 4 places ran out of their mac & cheese with bacon and the rest didn't include bacon. Stupid Greenpoint... 

Still hungry and disappointed, I headed over to the Smoke Joint in Fort Greene for something to satisfy my pork craving. There was no bacon here but I have never, ever had a hot dog as amazing as their black angus dog topped with pulled pork. Last month I had high hopes for the bacon wrapped, deep fried Chang Dog at PDT. What a let down... but the bacon was not a fault—Crif Dogs are really awful! Guess bacon doesn’t make everything better.

From Bacon Explosion to Book Deal

Jason Day and Aaron Chronister created a huge bacon buzz for their blog with the Bacon Explosion. They have now signed a 6 figure book deal! Eatmedaily.com reports that “Barbecue Makes Everything Better” will actually NOT include the famous bacon recipe that got these guys so much attention in the first place. 

Good for them, but if you ask me—bacon makes everything better. Now, if only blogging about bacon could get me somewhere...

More Bacon & Bourbon

As you can see, there is no shortage of bacon and bourbon lovers out there. By far one of the coolest events I’ve been to... ever... in life.

Applewood smoked bacon samples being passed around while Josh Ozersky spoke of the importance of a 50/50 meat to fat ratio in bacon. He compared it to a well balanced meal in which “the fat is the meat and the meat is the vegetables.” Ozersky also recommends Benton’s bacon and his preferred method of cooking bacon is in the oven at 375°.

Scott Smith from RUB shares with us step-by-step his recipe for making BBQ Bacon Chunks—cured, triple smoked and deep fried in lard. Note to self: Eat at RUB very, very soon!

Bacon & Bourbon—a wildly successful pairing. Read more about the event here. And check out video from The Feedbag.

Three Layer Fat

It's about 8° in New York right now and I need to build up a good layer of fat to keep me warm this winter. Regular, thin, crispy bacon is not going to cut it. So last night at Won Jo, along with our typical array of meats, we ordered Sam Gyup Sal which literally translates to "three layer fat." Exactly what I need! (I should point out that I am only about 90 lbs.) I've never had Korean bacon before—it was quite tasty! The texture was a very interesting crispy/chewy combination. But (sorry Seong!) I have to agree with my friend Eric, I still prefer good old American bacon.