12 replies to this topic

[Fat Guy]

In this remarkable pair of essays from his masterwork Meat Me in Manhattan, you can join Mr. Cutlets as he goes behind the scenes and learns how Peter Luger buys its beef. Then, thrill to Mr. Cutlets' paean to this legendary Brooklyn steakhouse.

After you've recovered, please honor Mr. Cutlets with your questions, comments, fantasies, and fears about Peter Luger. He'll be here all week to guide you in your personal journey of meat.

[kopi-susu]

I have a Peter Luger credit card, I love them so much. My husband worries about what might happen to someone who got behind on their payments...
Though you paint it as a pretty masculine place, I have to say some of my best memories are of impromtu cab rides* across the bridge with girlfriends for steak and martinis. All those tough guys LOVE to see a couple of women eating big juicy pieces of meat and asking for dessert 'mit schlag' And the next day we'd trade phone calls about how shocked and upset our respective husbands/bfs were that we'd go without them

Man oh man do I miss Peter Luger

*P.L. is the ONE spot in Brooklyn a Manhattan cabbie is guaranteed to know

[Fat Guy]

Mr. Cutlets did you know Peter Luger personally?

[TrishCT]

Nice articles on Peter Luger's meat purchasing, Mr. Cutlets.... but it still begs the question....

How come no other restaurateur does what they do? You would think someone else would want to seriously compete. Especially in New York.

[Pan]

Selamat datang ke eGullet, kopi-susu! (That's Malay for "Welcome to eGullet, kopi-susu." Kopi susu is the Malay term for coffee with sweetened condensed milk.)

[Wena]

Pan, that is the coffee shop lingo.

kopi-susu : coffee-milk (direct translation). :p

Condensed milk in malay is 'susu pekat manis'.

[Pan]

Well, if kopi susu is served with anything other than condensed milk nowadays, that's news to me. In the 70s, kopi susu and teh susu were invariably served with sweetened condensed milk. But if we're going to comment on this tangent more, we'd better start a different thread on another board.

[Mister_Cutlets]

Ahem. To get back to the original subject, Peter Luger inspires imitators all the time. MarkJoseph is little more than a tribute restaurant. Most New York steakhouses are, to some extent. But few restaurants can afford to spend what Luger spends on prime carcass meat -- even if they had the connections and infrastructure PL has built up over so many decades.

That said, Nebraska restaurant comes about as close as you can get -- the guy who owns it loves meat and spares no expense to get the very best, even to the extent of losing money. Egulleteers might consider visiting his place near Arthur Avenue in the Bronx, or on Stone Street in the Finanical district. It's not quite the same as Peter Luger, but it's so close that the distinction blurs. Plus, it has real appetizers and better side dishes. But Luger seems to be the only place that can make those kinds of prohibitive food costs pay. Their peerless brand and their mail-order service help a lot, I'm sure. In the meantime, if you go to Nebraska, tell them Mr. Cutlets sent you!

yours

Mr. Cutlets

[TrishCT]

Mr. Cutlets, for a man old enough to have advised President McKinley... you look so young...perhaps, like a Luger's steak you are dry aged....

[elyse]

They put Worcestershire on their steak?

[kopi-susu]

Selamat datang ke eGullet, kopi-susu! (That's Malay for "Welcome to eGullet, kopi-susu." Kopi susu is the Malay term for coffee with sweetened condensed milk.)

I'm so disappointed in you guys! I indulge in a rare bit of bragging and you're talking about my screen name?

I HAVE A PETER LUGER CREDIT CARD. You know the one where you have to beg the Russian bookkeeper for an application, the one with the cool old fashioned looking statements. There is nothing like the panache of SIGNING your bill at Peter Luger, while all your tablemates have to dig for cash. Sheesh.

Thank you for welcoming me to eGullet. I would reply in bahasa Indonesia, but I'd have to wake up my mom or sister to get it right. They did the expat artist thing in Ubud for about 10 years. I mostly learned food words for my visits... and about the only thing that gives me greater pangs of longing than discussions of Peter Luger would be discussions of Singapore food stalls and night markets. Torture me on the appropriate board

[pedro]

I was last January in PL for lunch, my first and only visit there. Since I was on a business trip, I was alone. My expectations were very high, and the meat was very good, but somehow wasn't the best steak I've ever had.

I know that the product itself introduces a non trivial amount of uncertainty, even when you have a well tuned selection process as Mr. Cutlets has documented. But I was wondering if the fact that I was on my own and therefore didn't order the Porterhouse, could have been the main factor affecting the result not excelling. What do you think?

The rest of the meal, was very good, with that tempting whipped cream (mit schlag?) to finish...

[Pan]

I'm so disappointed in you guys! I indulge in a rare bit of bragging and you're talking about my screen name?

I HAVE A PETER LUGER CREDIT CARD. You know the one where you have to beg the Russian bookkeeper for an application, the one with the cool old fashioned looking statements.

Whoopie for you.

No, I wouldn't know. I've been to Lugar once. Good meat for sure, but apparently unlike Mr. Cutlets, I prefer some kind of marinade or sauce on or accompanying my meat. I guess that's a heretical statement on this board.