Western Beef and the Meat Room

bluedove wrote: Where's Western Beef?

Go up washinton across e pkwy and down the hill. you will come to empire blvd. western beef is there

Yes, Western Beef. Before we got hitched my wife lived a few blocks from it. The place rocks if you enter the meat room. Everything else is of fair quality, but the produce...iffy.

Yeah, just head to the rear of the store.

Double entendres aside, the meat room at Western Beef is extraordinary. It's more about quantity than quality, but if you're in that "I'll have two of every animal" kind of mood, it's a great place to stock up for a churrascaria. They are good for cheap "dry goods" type staples too. They also have a fish vendor that seems to be an independent contractor that rents space in the store from them (you pay separately too). The quality of the fish is a little sketchy, but it's very cheap.

Anonymous wrote: I'm just curious what makes the quality of the fish vendor sketchy.
Have you purchased the fish and tried it. Did Zagats survey it? Do the scales shine or are they dull. Does that vendor sell on the weekend the same quanityt as on the weekdays? Does the ice (That encapsulates the fish) seem discolored; Brownish?
Don't just stop with sketchy, elaborate.
You are beginning to sound like some of my conservative political buddies

I'm not sure if you really want an answer or are engaged in your usual M.O. of unprovoked antagonism, but I'll answer in good faith:
The entire fish area was an unpleasant olfactory assault. The eyes on the whole fish were all opacified. The gills were not red. The scales were dull. And this was on a non-Monday weekday (I forget which).
Despite all this, I did in fact buy shrimp there, figuring they were all frozen anyway. The shrimp were acceptable, although a few were a little iodine-y.

But don't take my word for it, anonymous guest. I encourage you to try it for yourself and form your own opinion, preferably by making sushi so you can really appreciate the quality of the fish.

Subject: Re: ahhh, memories

cowgirly wrote: (not for the queasy, really, kids can be gross)

I have an old memory of Western Beef-- the Queens location (grew up nearby).

My mom was shopping, so my brother and I went into the meat room where we found the top shelves holding plastic-wrapped pig heads. We found a pencil and took turns jumping up to plant it in the pigs snouts.

It was really fun at the time.
Wonder if it's experiences like this that made me give up meat?

Awesome! As soon as I get out of work, I'm running straight to WB to molest some pig snouts. 8)

bump on general awesomeness principles.

He does now!

Seriously, though- it seems like there's a bunch of people new to the neighborhood and/or new to the site who've started posting lately. I think Western Beef is a good local resource that people might want to know about.

Also, it (like so many threads from that period) contains another example of AG obnoxiousness.

I agree that the quality at Western Beef is not tops, but shopping carefully can yield good value.

Ribs:

Season liberally with a dry rub and set in the fridge for a few hours or overnight.

Wrap in aluminum foil with a braising liquid and place in a 250F degree oven for 3 plus hours. Do not seal the foil completely in order to prevent bursting.

Yeah, Stacey, that'll work. I've used dark ale and molasses for braising.

I left out the last step in the recipe above:

When the ribs are done, collect the braising liquid in a pan and reduce to a syrupy consistency. Coat the ribs with the sauce and broil for a minute or two on each side.