A real butcher in Westchester?
Where can I find the old school, real thing? Custom-cut is OK but I'd REALLY love to find a guy who breaks down the whole animal, ..ya know, cuts off the hoof from a whole side hanging out back in the meat locker.
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Most of the posts on this thread are several years old .... I'd like to see if there's anything new on the butcher-front in lower Westchester. As other posters noted, the options are frustratingly limited esp for such a wealthy area.
Crisfields in Rye is really not great, overpriced and wet-aged not dry-aged.
Vinnie's in Mamaroneck is hit or miss -- I went in the other day and asked for a dry-aged piece and he had a ribeye at about 14 days. It was ok and seemed pretty random as most of hat he was selling seemed supermarket-quality.
Farmer's Market in Larchmont -- a couple of farms sell some meat frozen in plastic (apparently this is a farmer's market regulation). OK not great -- I'm looking for dry-aged and this isn't it.
Port Chester -- this is where I was hoping for find a good old-time butcher but I haven't found it yet!
Greenwich -- There's a butcher on the street perpendicular to the main drag, at the "bottom" of town, in the direction away from the train station. Forget the name, but so far this is the best around, although kinda expensive.
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re: decayny
Make the drive up to Westport, CT and check out Saugatauk Craft Butchery. It's the real deal.
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I just found Yore Butchers, 1763 Crosby Ave.
Bronx, New York 10461 thru groupon...as old school as you can get,
Sawdust on the floors, big old buter block..been there since 1928
Make their own sausage and meatballs...amazing stuff at great prices.
I live on the other side of the Bronx but it's worth the trip!!!›1 Reply -
There is a Ukrainian butcher who will butcher a deer or pig if you need. I don't think you can get off the hook in the back, but his meat is great! He is also one of the only smoke houses left in Westchester:
Yonkers Miasarnia
39 Lockwood Ave
Yonkers, NY 10701-5528
(914) 965-1665
(813) 353-1544 -
99 percent of the butchers in Fairfield Co and westchester Co do not butcher and carve whole animals.
This is most because they don't raise the animals themselves, and if they did, the FDA would require them to have a "Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point Plan" (HACCP) in effect in their plant, as well as have an FDA inspector on duty.
All our meats come from farms raise animals outside our area and are delivered wrapped and sealed in craovac plastic.
A good old time butcher will know how to age a cut of beef, but that requires special refrigerators and experience, kind of risky for development of food born pathogens.›3 Replies-
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re: Jon1856
adamclyde
Jul 24, 2009 08:28 AM
Crisfields does some of their own aging too. But, as Cheffer mentioned, they aren't butchering primal cuts from the carcass. I wonder if there's even one butcher in all Westchester that still does that.
I think they are all getting their primal cuts from the Bronx mostly.
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re: adamclyde
Jon, Cheffer, AdamClyde: As we said, it's complicated and why I try to buy farm-direct, which is do-able. Most farmers markets in the area are a place to start. Slaughtering is a problem for small livestock farmers too though as there are like 2 left w/in driving distance of the HV, one over-busy one in Pine Plains and another in Cooperstown. These distances means stress to the animals and money spent for the farmer too. A humane slaughterhouse (a la Temple Grandin) in Stafford Springs CT failed. FYI Glynwood Center in Cold Spring has a current task force on improving this situation. FYI chickens can be slaughtered on-farm.
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LoHud's Liz Johnson fixed a link on site for this:
More on Butchers
The link appears to be old on my other post, so I’m going to cut and paste the butcher story from our archives below. It’s long, so it’s going after the jump.
http://lizjohnson.lohudblogs.com/2009... -
Thanks to all of you...your leads are SUPER helpful. The strand also illustrates how complicated it is to find out about the meat you eat. The grassfedmeat.com link and Fleishers are my kind of meat ( unless you buy off the farm, there are only something like 3-5 slaughterhouse co., all of which use CAFOs so...). Distributors are one layer, custom aging/breaking down/cutting is another and what the cow eats and how it was killed is yet another.
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foodlvrzen
Jul 16, 2009 10:47 AM
loved the burgers at Manero’s restaurant in Greenwich, CT, and always stop next door to the old-fashioned butcher shop; used to grab homemade sausage and obscure hot sauces (for the humans) and knucklebones (for the 100 lb. 4 legged baby)
also, same human/puppy shopping for fresh cuts at Whole Foods White Plains, excellent value
add my vote for Mini's in Fleetwood for excellent, but tends to be sold out of items often, which says good things for their quality -
BAFU
Jul 12, 2009 07:08 AM
Forgot about these guys: I have an office in Pawling so every 1ce in a while, when I have to go up to Columbia Co on the weekends, I stop in here and buy some amazing beef. Expensive as all get out but it's the best stuff I've had in a long time. Bring a cooler! They also deliver
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I can't think of the name but if I recall theres one in Bronxville? And I think one in Fleetwood. I think they are brothers who own it. I know there's one locally since my mom in law goes there to get her meat for specail occassions since it's a little pricier than your local supermarket of course. Let me know also!
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re: Paris76
roxlet
Jul 12, 2009 09:52 AM
The one in Bronxville is called Mini's and it is the same family as the one in Fleetwood, which is somewhere off Gramatan Avenue and also called Mini's I think. Not surprisingly, the Fleetwood location is substantially cheaper. We go to Arthur Avenue and see Sal at Biancardi. Great meat and shockingly reasonable prices. Now there's real butchering!
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re: roxlet
jcmods
Jul 13, 2009 09:19 AM
I think it is in the phone book under "Mini Meateria" and it is indeed along Grand Street near the parking garage entrance. I got my thanksgiving turkey there. They put everything out in plastic though (it seems like you were trying to avoid that). I've heard good things, but I was sorta wishing they could cut meats to order.
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re: jcmods
roxlet
Jul 13, 2009 02:20 PM
Yes, I hate the plastic too, and I also hate that there are a lot of "marinated" things there. Kind of dumbed-down pre-prepared dishes in addition to the expensive meat. A friend of mine once got the lasagna and I had a taste. Apparently it is made by the mother of the two butchers. It wasn't bad, but the sauce on the one that I tried seemed under-cooked, not to say that other batches might be better...
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re: roxlet
The butcher offerings in Westchester,one of the most wealthy counties in the Northeast,totally Vex me.....I shouldn't have to drive 50 miles to Rhinebeck,or into Manhattan for good,skillfully butchered ,meat.Riancardi's on Arthur Ave. is the best option,close to lower Westchester at this point....only a 30 minute drive-get there early and go crazy.Also great for fish[Randazzos,cheeses,bread,etc.The Fleetwood Meateria is ok,but not in the league of really good butchers with a wide variety of meats.
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re: geendatz
I am assuming that the place in Rhinebeck that you are referring to is Fleischers. If so, they have closed this location and now work out of their Kingston location. FYI they have a sign on the wall listing the restaurants to whom they sell to and it reads like a whos who of three and four star restaurants,
For a less expensive experience, consider going to Adams Fairacre Farms. This "supermarket" has three locations--Kingston, Pougkeepsie and Newburgh. They buy sides of beef from a farm in Dutchess and the prices are more reasonable (but still expensive) and never on sale.. They will age the beef (it costs about 50% more) and will butcher uncommon cuts to order. They sometimes have a sale on loin lamb chops and it goes for $4.99/lb. Also, local checkens at $1.99/lb.
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BAFU
Jul 10, 2009 10:16 AM
I go to Crisfields's Market in Rye. Even though the address says 61 Purchase Street, their store is located in back in the parking lot. Great meat and v friendly as well.
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re: BAFU
Forgot about this little link from LoHud. Some info, for some reason, a bit out of date (W&I LOONG gone sad to say).
But it does include Steve’s and Rooster’s Market.
http://lizjohnson.lohudblogs.com/2009...-
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re: hauswriter
Perhaps-perhaps not.
IIWY I would at least take the time to foillow-up on some of the above.
And if none of those work, as I posted: check out places in hunting/cow country.
And now you have me wondering a bit over some aged meat I get-will have to ask just how they get it in first. -
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I did a very down and dirty search and found at least one place:
http://hemlockhillfarm.com/
Maybe more or you may have to expand your area to include some where a bit more upstate, CT, NJ and PA-where I also saw one listed.
I am thinking hunting country.›1 Reply-
re: Jon1856
Not sure how you ever made out on this. The link looks good to me. Sounds like a nice place to take a half day trip to.
There aren't many places where they raise and slaughter the cow in the same place they sell the meat in Westchester County.
Some others are saying that it is difficult to get good quality meat. Crisfields is an excellent suggestion and probably closer than Arthur Avenue. They have a wide selection of meats of very good quality. They do get depleted from time to time so if you're looking for something in particular you could call ahead. They are pretty expensive, but it is top quality meat.
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Westchester
125 Westchester Ave, White Plains, NY
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