Finding a good butcher

In article <[email hidden]>,

Tony23 said:

Just wondering if anyone has any suggestions on how to find one. Most of
the grocery stores around here only sell select, and a few of them carry
choice - but none have prime. It seems to me that a good butcher shop
might carry prime.

Yellow pages can help - but how to find a GOOD shop, vs. just any shop?

As people you know who live in your area for a recommendation.

Tony23 said:

Just wondering if anyone has any suggestions on how to find one. Most of
the grocery stores around here only sell select, and a few of them carry
choice - but none have prime. It seems to me that a good butcher shop
might carry prime.

Quoted message said:

Yellow pages can help - but how to find a GOOD shop, vs. just any shop?

In my experience you have to hit the pavement and check places
out until you find the one or two places that are genuinely good.
Doing this on a more or less ongoing basis, you'll be fortunate
to identify a few truly worthy butchers per decade. And then
you gotta hope they stay in business.

It's not necessarily true any more that you need USDA prime; a
lot of the best grassfed beef is from small producers who don't
bother to go after the prime rating. But probably for cornfed beef
prime is still king.

Steve

Tony23 said:

Just wondering if anyone has any suggestions on how to find one. Most of
the grocery stores around here only sell select, and a few of them carry
choice - but none have prime. It seems to me that a good butcher shop
might carry prime.

I live near a city over a half million population. Guess what
.....there ISN'T a butcher shop. A genuine butcher shop is about as
rare as finding a buggy whip store.

We have a gourmet food grocery that has a "counter". Prime is not
available retail but I know it is available at Flemmings Steak House
and at Ruth's Chris. They don't get it from 'round here. Has to
be shipped in.

Ward Abbott said:

Tony23 said:

Just wondering if anyone has any suggestions on how to find one.
Most of the grocery stores around here only sell select, and a few
of them carry choice - but none have prime. It seems to me that a
good butcher shop might carry prime.

I live near a city over a half million population. Guess what
....there ISN'T a butcher shop. A genuine butcher shop is about as
rare as finding a buggy whip store.

We have a gourmet food grocery that has a "counter". Prime is not
available retail but I know it is available at Flemmings Steak House
and at Ruth's Chris. They don't get it from 'round here. Has to
be shipped in.

There is only one butcher shop that I'm aware of in Memphis, Charlie's Meat
Market. It's located on Summer Avenue near what used to be the best
vegetable market around, Market Basket. Market Basket closed to make way
for yet another strip-mall. I have to wonder if Charlies' won't be next.
It's damn hard to find a butcher shop these days. What a shame.

Jill

Ward Abbott said...

Quoted message said:

Tony23 said:

Just wondering if anyone has any suggestions on how to find one. Most of
the grocery stores around here only sell select, and a few of them carry
choice - but none have prime. It seems to me that a good butcher shop
might carry prime.

I live near a city over a half million population. Guess what
....there ISN'T a butcher shop. A genuine butcher shop is about as
rare as finding a buggy whip store.

We have a gourmet food grocery that has a "counter". Prime is not
available retail but I know it is available at Flemmings Steak House
and at Ruth's Chris. They don't get it from 'round here. Has to
be shipped in.

I had a great butcher at the Foodsource afoodsource.com gourmet market.
They had every kind of meat you could want.

They had their own dry-aging room. They got me hooked on buffalo. Dave was
a great butcher. We were on a first name basis. I could just call him on
the phone, place a buffalo order and without question everything would be
ready by 1pm the next day for pick-up.

I never did try their USDA prime, I just stood there staring and drooling.

They just closed July 1st. I just about called the cops about a crime being
committed. 🙁

Andy

In article <[email hidden]>,

Tony23 said:

Just wondering if anyone has any suggestions on how to find one. Most of
the grocery stores around here only sell select, and a few of them carry
choice - but none have prime. It seems to me that a good butcher shop
might carry prime.

Yellow pages can help - but how to find a GOOD shop, vs. just any shop?

Me? I'd start with the yellow pages, then call the one or three closest
to me and ask some questions: what's their specialty, where does their
meat come from, can they do special cuts, how much lead time do they
need, do they have chicken feet and backs for soup (OK, maybe you don't
care about that), do they make their own sausage ‹ whatever you're
interested in knowing before you try their products.

Then I'd buy something at the first one I visit. If I was happy with my
purchase, I'd come back. Or maybe I'd try the second one closest to me
and do the same.

I live in the Minneapolis area and usually shop in the neighborhood
supermarkets ‹ I'm not a meat connoisseur so it's all pretty much the
same to me. We have a chain of meat markets around here, Von Hanson's
and I know the answers to some of the questions I suggested above, and I
also know that I damn near had a stroke when I bought four steaks for a
July 4 cookout a couple years ago. Expensive. And when I want short
ribs (I wanted them last week) I plan a visit to my sister after I stop
at Ready Meats in NE Minneapolis (she lives a mile from there). I
remarked to Dave the Butcher that I hadn't seen a bone in a chuck roast
in *years* ‹ their round bone arm roasts were $4.19/lb and weighed about
4# (I don't usually see them larger than about 3# at Cub). And $4.19/lb
was only maybe 20-30 cents more/lb than what Cub sells. AND, Dave and
the other guys behind the counter are helpful and congenial; customer
service is important to me. Next time I'm over there (gotta get more
raspberries from Sister Julie in a couple days) I believe I'll pick up
one of Dave's roasts.

The short answer to your question, Tony, is trial and error. Or trial
and success. But trial, for sure.
--
-Barb, Mother Superior, HOSSSPoJ
http://www.jamlady.eboard.com - story and
pics of Ronald McDonald House dinner posted 6-24-2007

Tony23 <[email hidden]> dropped this turd
news:[email hidden]: in rec.food.cooking

Quoted message said:

Just wondering if anyone has any suggestions on how to find one. Most of
the grocery stores around here only sell select, and a few of them carry
choice - but none have prime. It seems to me that a good butcher shop
might carry prime.

Yellow pages can help - but how to find a GOOD shop, vs. just any shop?

We've been using the same butcher shop for... well a couple 3 decades now.
I suppose you could say we learned about him word of mouth. Steven's
father used them and that's how we found out about him. The fish monger
too. As for supermarkets and prime meats, we use 2. Ladue Market and
Straub's. I've used Straub's since I first moved to St. Louis in the early
80s. I've used Ladue Market since we moved to the 'burbs about 7 years
ago. Learned of both of them word of mouth also. Ask some friends and
neighbors.

Michael

--
Due to recent cutbacks - The light at the end of the tunnel has been turned
off.
~unknow author

Melba's Jammin said:

In article <[email hidden]>,
Tony23 <[email hidden]> wrote:

Then I'd buy something at the first one I visit. If I was happy

with my

Quoted message said:

purchase, I'd come back. Or maybe I'd try the second one closest to me
and do the same.

I live in the Minneapolis area and usually shop in the neighborhood
supermarkets ‹ I'm not a meat connoisseur so it's all pretty much the
same to me. We have a chain of meat markets around here, Von Hanson's
and I know the answers to some of the questions I suggested above, and I
also know that I damn near had a stroke when I bought four steaks for a
July 4 cookout a couple years ago.

The thing is, if butchers can't sell, they go out of business and then
you are stuck with what the supermarket WANTS to sell you. I get
frustrated at how narrow the SM choices become. Lamb chops and legs,
but no minced lamb. Steaks but no roasts. Things that once were cheap
cuts get minced and become ground this or that and so many great recipes
are impossible to make.

Maybe it makes a point to go to the butcher to order and buy the old
fashioned cuts like breast of veal and lamb, like leg cuts for osso
bucco, as well as the once in a great while high end steak? SM will
always sell steak. It's the great peasant cuts that disappear in the
hurry to make money.

It gives me pleasure to ask for and watch the cutting of a turkey breast
off a turkey that the butcher can name who grew it and where.
Expensive? Yes, but really good and nothing like the boring factory
farmed breast you find in the SM. I also have found new joy in pork
since buying it from identifiable sources. I just eat less but eat much
better.

--
Posted via a free Usenet account from http://www.teranews.com

In article <[email hidden]>,

Tony23 said:

Just wondering if anyone has any suggestions on how to find one. Most of
the grocery stores around here only sell select, and a few of them carry
choice - but none have prime. It seems to me that a good butcher shop
might carry prime.

Yellow pages can help - but how to find a GOOD shop, vs. just any shop?

Lots of phone calls...

I was pleased to find one in Kyle.

They listened and cut to order for a good price.
--
Peace, Om

Remove _ to validate e-mails.

"My mother never saw the irony in calling me a Son of a [censored]" -- Jack Nicholson

In article <[email hidden]>,

Giusi said:

farmed breast you find in the SM. I also have found new joy in pork
since buying it from identifiable sources. I just eat less but eat much
better.

Indeed. There's a pig farmer who comes to my local farmers market in
the summer months and he'll ship from his farm in non-summer months.
His bacon rules.
--
-Barb, Mother Superior, HOSSSPoJ
http://www.jamlady.eboard.com - story and
pics of Ronald McDonald House dinner posted 6-24-2007

Ward Abbott <[email hidden]> wrote in
news:[email hidden]:

Quoted message said:

Tony23 said:

Just wondering if anyone has any suggestions on how to find one. Most

of

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

the grocery stores around here only sell select, and a few of them

carry

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

choice - but none have prime. It seems to me that a good butcher shop
might carry prime.

I live near a city over a half million population. Guess what
....there ISN'T a butcher shop. A genuine butcher shop is about as
rare as finding a buggy whip store.

We have a gourmet food grocery that has a "counter". Prime is not
available retail but I know it is available at Flemmings Steak House
and at Ruth's Chris. They don't get it from 'round here. Has to
be shipped in.

Check out the phone book...butchers even try food lockers (from before
there were home freezers)...there are still a few around. Find out where
hunter's take their deer.

--

The house of the burning beet-Alan

It'll be a sunny day in August, when the Moon will shine that night-
Elbonian Folklore

(Steve Pope) said:

Tony23 said:

Just wondering if anyone has any suggestions on how to find one. Most of
the grocery stores around here only sell select, and a few of them carry
choice - but none have prime. It seems to me that a good butcher shop
might carry prime.
Yellow pages can help - but how to find a GOOD shop, vs. just any shop?

In my experience you have to hit the pavement and check places
out until you find the one or two places that are genuinely good.
Doing this on a more or less ongoing basis, you'll be fortunate
to identify a few truly worthy butchers per decade. And then
you gotta hope they stay in business.

It's not necessarily true any more that you need USDA prime; a
lot of the best grassfed beef is from small producers who don't
bother to go after the prime rating. But probably for cornfed beef
prime is still king.

Steve

Costco (yes, Costco) is known for its excellent meat. But then,
requiring the very best from all of its vendors is what earns them
their reputation. (no, I have no connection with them.)

Stan Horwitz said:

In article <[email hidden]>,

Tony23 said:

Just wondering if anyone has any suggestions on how to find one. Most of
the grocery stores around here only sell select, and a few of them carry
choice - but none have prime. It seems to me that a good butcher shop
might carry prime.

Yellow pages can help - but how to find a GOOD shop, vs. just any shop?

As people you know who live in your area for a recommendation.

I don't know anyone who lives around me and who also knows that there
are grades of beef 🙁

Tony23 said:

I don't know anyone who lives around me and who also knows that there
are grades of beef 🙁

I thought there were only two grades of meat... waiting to be cooked,
and waiting to be eaten. Am I missing something here? ::big grin::

--
Zilbandy