I'm indulging in a quart of commercial mint chocolate chip ice cream and limited cable, mindlessly flipping through channels, when a clip of Rahm Fama effortlessly cutting into perfectly seared lamb at some Korean steakhouse pops up. The "Meat and Potatoes" host, with his insatiable appetite for meat of all sorts, goes on to proclaim it the best lamb he's ever had. He proceeds to drop his utensils, pick up the chop with his fingers, and tear the meat from its bone with his teeth. My paper container of ice cream doesn't seem so appealing anymore.
That was two years ago. I had slowly forgotten about those chops although they had initially clung to my memory like no other dish featured on my beloved Food Network. I craved them desperately during the days that ensued, but had forgotten where the place was or what it was called.
Fast forward to Sunday, and I'm sitting at Prime and Beyond, coincidentally the restaurant that houses the very lamb chops Rahm had barbarically gnawed on as I watched in jealousy, all thanks to a voucher...and fate?
***
Our ticket offered us two starters, two entrees, and a shared dessert.
The panko bread crumbs provided jumbo scallops (slightly rubbery) with a good crunch. The soy-yuzu sauce was savory and light but lacked the balance more acid would have given it.
The panko bread crumbs provided jumbo scallops (slightly rubbery) with a good crunch. The soy-yuzu sauce was savory and light but lacked the balance more acid would have given it.
The chilled duck, texturally dull, came with more-savory-than-sweet terriyaki sauce, pink peppercorns, and orange zest for a fruity finish. An interesting take on a terriyaki that I enjoyed.
The main event finally arrived. These lamb chops were everything I had expected and more with its gorgeously magenta center and concentrated lamby-ness. Rahm had not been sweet-talking in front of the camera that afternoon.
A micro mound of a potent medley of chili peppers, yuzu peel and salt, sat quietly in the corner of the plate and went almost unnoticed. One cook appeared from behind the open kitchen and approached our table to courteously explain the components of the yuzu pepper, or yuzugoshō. It paired perfectly with the fatty meat with its hot, citrusy and salty layers and uniquely tingly aftertaste.
A micro mound of a potent medley of chili peppers, yuzu peel and salt, sat quietly in the corner of the plate and went almost unnoticed. One cook appeared from behind the open kitchen and approached our table to courteously explain the components of the yuzu pepper, or yuzugoshō. It paired perfectly with the fatty meat with its hot, citrusy and salty layers and uniquely tingly aftertaste.
Our 14 oz. wet-aged ribeye was copiously fatty and butter-tender. I wasn't much of a steak person before but I realized it's because I'd been eating terribly mediocre diner steak my entire life. And maybe it was this sharp transition that intensified my appreciation for this slab of goodness, but regardless I enjoyed it thoroughly. It wasn't heavy on the spices yet yielded tremendous flavor, proving good quality beef stands on its own. Like the lamb dish, it came with smoky flash-charred vegetables.
We both surrendered to serious meat comas after our entrees, but there was still dessert! The caramel cheesecake, sprinkled with crunchy flakes of sea salt, came with unneeded artificial-tasting chocolate sauce. It's hard to follow two nearly perfect entrees with a worthy dessert, but it was a solid effort.
The meal wasn't perfect (although the service was pretty much near so), but far exceeded my expectations of the place given all the mixed reviews. I left semi-seriously considering converting half my future apartment into a butcher shop with aging compartments so I can savor comparable meat uncivilly within the confines of my own home.
Prime and Beyond
90 E 10th Street
New York, NY 10013
90 E 10th Street
New York, NY 10013
