my butcher

One of my lifestyle fantasies involves having a butcher who greets me by some cheeky nickname he's made up for me as I walk through the door. He'd have a recipe in mind for whichever cut I point to, and eventually, he'd know my tastes and preferences well enough to recommend a cut and a preparation whenever I drop in...and sell the meat to me at a regular's discount. Because I'm still too poor to eat responsibly.

I also need a fish monger.

Clove and Hoof felt like it could be that kind of place. So bright, so much beautiful meat. So many jars of spices and pickled things. And a book for little carnivores. It doubles as a sandwich shop... with some pretty pricey options.

Such as my pig face cuban with rosemary molasses ham, Porchetta di testa, spicy beer mustard, dill pickles, and white cheddar on a roll and Kyle's pastrami reuben. Each $15.
But I couldn't be too concerned about it as I was trying to find a way to fit my mouth around this visually pleasing pile of pork. Look at that edible color gradient.

Loved this place to animal carcass pieces, but might need a raise x5 first. And the search for a meat man (and fish fellow) continues on. 

On quite the opposite side of spectrum ... the spectrum of.. meat markets ... I guess... Well, anyways, the opposite of meat is faux meat. Plant material made to look and taste like meat.

And Minny's The Herbivorous Butcher did a pretty solid job with those piles of "ribs."

I can appreciate this. I can appreciate soy and wheat and nut cheeses and now jackfruit. I appreciated the hell out of it when I was muscling my way through pescatarianism. So if the opportunity for faux meat presents itself.. why not. Like at The Butcher's Son when I reunited with the girl who convinced me to go down the track of vegetarianism in the first place. A magazine about bay area eating suggested the original grinder with grinder meat, chili garlic chicken, bacon, and grilled pepper jack, so that's exactly what I got. Because sometimes I'm a sheep. But sometimes it pays to be a sheep because I-can't-believe-it's-not-meat.