Prime Meats
I love Brooklyn. Right before we walked into Prime Meats on Wednesday night, I said to Fred that I am so glad that we lived in Brooklyn although for only a short time. He totally agreed.
Jessica was born and we were living in a small one bedroom in the East Village. Thoughts of the second, Emily, were running through our head and decided it was time to move. We found a brownstone in the Heights where we were able to rent the first two floors. Rambling and old with a garden that was loaded with rose bushes on the corner of Sydney and State. We lived there for a little over two years.
My first job at Macy's was running the cosmetic department in King's Plaza which is a completely different area of Brooklyn. I'd trek back and forth by car. That was how I really got to know Brooklyn. All the people that worked for me, which was roughly 100 ladies (morning and night shifts) who lived from Bedford-Stuyvesant to Canarsie to Sheepshead Bay. Still one of my most memorable jobs. Those women just made my day.
Driving down Court Street brings back memories particularly seeing Staubitz (an amazing butcher) that we used when we lived there. I love all the local shops that run from one end of Court to the other. The feeling of community and neighborhood is right there. Brooklyn has returned to its roots. A myriad of different faces making their mark in different neighborhoods creating new economies from food to fashion to restaurants to technology. Definitely the coolest borough.
Back to Prime Meats. I liked the place the second I walked through the door. Except for the couple in the back with their parents and a screaming baby, it was wonderful. Why the four adults sitting at the table with the screaming baby thought it was okay for the rest of us to endure that torture is beyond me. We moved to the front room. A nice tight booth for four with a big wide open window that gave us a nice breeze. The restaurant feels like an old bar just cleaned up for a good meal.
The menu is bigger than I expected. We went with the share concept…my favorite. Prime Meats? We shared a rib eye for four. 36 ounces. A serious piece of meat. They show you the piece before they cook it. Nice touch. Absolutely delicious, full of flavor and juicy.
We started with a mixture of oysters from different areas up and down the east coast. The celery salad is a nice fresh starter. Thin slices of celery and radishes mixed with cider vinegar and sunflower oil. We also had the smoke trout salad which works with the celery salad. The trout salad is more like something you can spread across a hunk of bread. Nice bite. A few pieces of the bone marrow which is so good and decadent was a must. Served with toasted bread. The must have is the house made pretzel. Warm, tasty and served with an excellent mustard on the side and of course melted butter. The pretzel even worked with the marrow and the trout salad.
The side dishes with the meat were really good too. We had not only the Gruyere spaetzle, we also had the wild mushroom spaetzle. Both creamy, flavorful and hard not to keep the whole dish for yourself. The mushrooms were out of this world. We also had the Brussels sprouts. Roasted with tiny pieces of porchetta. I am glad we shared but there were a variety of things on the menu I could have ordered.
Dessert, but of course. We split the chocolate cake. Warm and gooey with a nice scoop of vanilla gelato on the side. They only offer 3 desserts and between an apple tart, creme brulee and chocolate cake you really can't miss out.
I will be back sooner than later. Keep in mind two major things. No reservations and cash only. Otherwise, get over to Brooklyn.
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Comments (Archived):
Incredible! Just saw that piece popping up in my Dashboard on Fred’s Tumblr. Looks exquisite. With posts like this, you’re making me want to jump on a plane and get back to visit the city, I have so many food places on a list by now that it would take me a year to check all of them out.Nom.
I need to spend more time checking out the restaurants in Brooklyn. Thereare so many that have opened in NYC too. An eating extravaganza!
I’m all for food extravaganza!
grumble grumble, says my stomach.mushroom spaetzle? gruyere spaetzle?I just made about 3 lbs of homemade spaetzle last weekend to go w my chicken paprikash. Big spaetzle fans in my house. I even created a Twitter hashtag for the hungarian word for spaetzle (it’s #nokedli)But mushroom….gruyere….sounds out of this world.
Just add it to your spaetzle, on top. Delicious.
Was the spaetze flour- or potato based?
No idea but it was like a thick spaghetti
Wow! You worked at Kings Plaza!!?? I grew up in Gravesend, right on Ave U and East 4th. Kings Plaza was my mall as a kid. Mill Basin, Marine Park, Sheepshead Bay, Brighton Beach, etc. Great neighborhoods and great ethnic foods. Let me recommend L&B Spumoni Gardens in Bensonhurst for some of the best pizza ever. Order a few “squares”, you will not be disappointed. Randazzo’s in Sheepshead Bay – great seafood. Roll-n-Roaster down Emmons Ave for their famous roast beef sandwiches is another must visit. I used to be a clam boy at Jean’s (no longer exists) back in the day, feeding the local mobsters and getting enough tip money to send me to the Caribbean for a couple weeks at 17 before heading to boot camp and the military. Thanks for the memory rush!!
Jeans? Wow. That is back in the day. Kings Plaza was quite the place.
Carroll Gardens feels like the place to be as a young family for the reasons you point out. It’s a great community with a nice feel of classic plus “nouveu” bklyn. Shopping is weak, but there are great dining options though bklyn. However, get used to screaming babies – though I am surprised this occured at Prime Meats since the no high chair policy is imo a signal to kinldy keep the kids out during dinner time.
It was a little nutty. The restaurant should have said something or given the kid a pacifier.
My personal policy since I have younger ones (though not that little anymore) is to (1) ask first, and, if permission granted, then (2) make ourselves scarce by 6pm when the regular folks come in.But the sad reality is, we really don’t go out anymore. We they get older we will again.And is why I enjoy reading about other people’s food.
I’m a big believer in taking the kids out so they can learn how to behave in a resrtaurant. This baby was maybe 2 months old
whoah that’s young.My 3-yr old is a maniac and not ready for prime time. Seriously hit-or-miss with her, and too stressful for me. The seven year old does beautifully at any hour.
parents should’ve watched baby at home and let the new parents have a date.
Bingo
Want to check out the restaurants of Brooklyn? I’m pretty sure you’ve been to Buttermilk Channel before, but what about…applewood (My favorite restaurant in all of NYC. Sit at the bar.)Lucali (Excellent, excellent pizza)The Good Fork (In Red Hook, amazing food and a great neighborhood vibe.)Franny’s (The best high0-end pizza I’ve ever had.)Blue Marble Ice Cream (The strawberry is the best ice cream ever made. Really.)Locanda Vini et Olii (In Clinton Hill. One of the most memorable interiors in NYC. Make sure to go with at least 4 people so you can share.)
All good suggestions. More bklyn rec’s:Bamontes, farm on adderley,Cono and son’s, destefano’s steakhouse, vinegar hill house, roberta’s pizza, henry’s end, tacos xochimolco, tacos metamoros, tanoreen, pacificana, radgast biergarden, walter foods, restorante gambrinus
I’ve only been to two of those but of the one’s I have:Vinegar Hill House — Great vibe but limited menu and I find the food a bit hit or miss. Also, since it’s remote and they take no reservations, if the wait is really long you’re stuckHenry’s End — I’ve never understood the appeal of this place. I much prefer Noodle Pudding next door. That said, I don’t think either is special enough for a trip — they’re just great neighborhood joints. But since Joanne used to live in the nabe, maybe she’ll want to check them out.Speaking of which… if you’re trying out the neighborhood places, don’t miss Jack the Horse Tavern on Hicks Street. it’s the best addition to the neighborhood in a decade.And as long as I’m here, take a look at Black Mountain Wine Bar. Tiny menu but great vibe — it’s really the very definition of hipster Brownstone Brooklyn.
Agree with your points on vinegar hill house. I find it annoying that so much of bklyn follows a no reservation policy. I should have specifically cited veal and the game menu at henry’s end.i will def check out jack the horse tavern.the “must do’s” from my list are bamontes (fave restaurant ever – been in the same family for 3 generations) destefano’s (might the best steak in williamsburg …) robertos (simply put, coolest restaurant ever) and restaurante gambrinus (russian seafood all the way down ocean parkway.) Oh, and add taci beyti for awesome turkish.
Robertos is next on our list. Seems to be the constant fave from everyone
Am eagerly awaiting your review …
Thanks Peter. Someone mentioned Applewood to me today. I am saving this list
Happy to help. And if it helps sway your dining decisions, having read your blog for several years now I think the two of us have very similar taste in restaurants.
I can tell from the list. Thanks!!
I’ve checked out your blog several times. You’re a great writer with an interesting POV, and a good photographic eye. I work with Socialight, we provide a platform for writers and artists, or companies to easily create location based apps for mobile devices. We’re kind of like Ning, but for location. It’s handy to have a guide to the world based on where you are, and very easy to tell stories about places using Socialight.Anyway, I thought I would mention it, in case you’re interested in moving your voice & content from a blog out into the world via your phone.
Thanks Beth. I will take a look.