09/27/2021
Celebrity butcher Lafrieda (Meat) mixes autobiography with a tepid defense of the beef industry in this uneven work. In 1971, at age 10, he was already assisting his father by cutting meat at Pat LaFrieda Meat Purveyors’ Manhattan facility. After a stint in the military and some unhappy experiences as a Wall Street stockbroker, Lafrieda joined the family business in 1994, a time, he claims, when “no one really cared about where the meat came from.” He describes the business’s safety measures, arguing that “meat is one of the safest things you can buy now because of federal regulations,” and supports this with a look into the USDA’s rigorous grading process and the expansion of high-quality butchers. Though he maintains he’s “just seeking the truth,” he’s hasty to surmise whether plant-based burgers are healthier than all-natural beef: “I think it’s been openly proven and accepted that they’re not.” A closing section of recipes is useful, but some tips for consumers (“When you walk up to your butcher’s counter, look around. Is the counter and surrounding area clean?”) aren’t novel, and his grandiose statements about the virtues of eating meat (“ what made us the thinking and evolved humans we are”) tend to fall flat. This account is underdone. Agent: Johanna Castillo, Writers House. (Oct.)
"A full-throated celebration of red meat from one of the nation’s major purveyors. . . . The true meat of his book is a study of how beef is brought from farm to table as well as an account of commercial success that deserves a place on any business school syllabus." — Kirkus Reviews
“The LaFriedas are to the high-end beef and butcher world what the Medicis were to the banking world of ancient Florence and the Ferraris are to F-1 racing—innovative, tactically brilliant, and always at the top of their game. Part memoir, part confessional, and part how-to manual, this lavish, entertaining volume is an inside look at this growing business by one of the great beef experts of our day.” — Adam Platt, New York Magazine restaurant critic
“Simply put, Pat LaFrieda has forgotten more about beef and meat industry than most people will ever know. Just the mention of his name attached to a restaurant’s signature meat blend is regarded as a mark of superior quality. He is part of one of the most legendary families in the meat game, and in this book he shares the fruits of the knowledge he has gleaned from a lifetime of being right where the rubber meets the road and the knife meets the meat. Dig in and enjoy!” — Adam Richman, television host, producer, and author
“Glorious Beef is a stunning one-of-a-kind book. Pat LaFrieda tells it as it is with a passionate yet even-handed account and I was captivated by the remarkable detail, history, and storytelling. I could not put Glorious Beef down and have learned things I never knew through the eyes of America’s greatest beef purveyor.” — Geoffrey Zakarian
“I have been a fan girl of Pat Lafrieda’s since my first job as a young cook in New York City. To know the man behind the meat makes me even prouder. This delightful journey through the LaFrieda family history is not only educational but inspirational. A must-read!!” — Anne Burrell, chef, author, and Food Network personality
“Four generations of the LaFrieda family have been feeding America since before World War I and no one knows more about meat than my friend Pat LaFrieda. In this superbly written, all-encompassing book, Pat lifts the veil on the entire beef industry, sharing his deep treasure trove of wisdom about how beef is raised, distributed, butchered, and how it should be cooked. This is the story of beef written by a meat man who helped usher in the modern era of cooking and dining out. More importantly, this is a book about entrepreneurship, the human spirit, caring and loving others, and the saga of an American family, and one that we all can relate to.” — Andrew Zimmern, chef and author
I have been a fan girl of Pat Lafrieda’s since my first job as a young cook in New York City. To know the man behind the meat makes me even prouder. This delightful journey through the LaFrieda family history is not only educational but inspirational. A must-read!!
Four generations of the LaFrieda family have been feeding America since before World War I and no one knows more about meat than my friend Pat LaFrieda. In this superbly written, all-encompassing book, Pat lifts the veil on the entire beef industry, sharing his deep treasure trove of wisdom about how beef is raised, distributed, butchered, and how it should be cooked. This is the story of beef written by a meat man who helped usher in the modern era of cooking and dining out. More importantly, this is a book about entrepreneurship, the human spirit, caring and loving others, and the saga of an American family, and one that we all can relate to.”
The LaFriedas are to the high-end beef and butcher world what the Medicis were to the banking world of ancient Florence and the Ferraris are to F-1 racing—innovative, tactically brilliant, and always at the top of their game. Part memoir, part confessional, and part how-to manual, this lavish, entertaining volume is an inside look at this growing business by one of the great beef experts of our day.
Glorious Beef is a stunning one-of-a-kind book. Pat LaFrieda tells it as it is with a passionate yet even-handed account and I was captivated by the remarkable detail, history, and storytelling. I could not put Glorious Beef down and have learned things I never knew through the eyes of America’s greatest beef purveyor.
Simply put, Pat LaFrieda has forgotten more about beef and meat industry than most people will ever know. Just the mention of his name attached to a restaurant’s signature meat blend is regarded as a mark of superior quality. He is part of one of the most legendary families in the meat game, and in this book he shares the fruits of the knowledge he has gleaned from a lifetime of being right where the rubber meets the road and the knife meets the meat. Dig in and enjoy!
2021-08-18
A full-throated celebration of red meat from one of the nation’s major purveyors.
“My family has worked through wars,” writes LaFrieda, “the Great Depression, the tumultuous years when New York City was dubbed Fear City, the fall of the Twin Towers, unprecedented hurricanes, and even a pandemic, and we’re still going strong.” That history began more than a century ago with a small butcher shop in Flatbush; now it involves scores of employees, a fleet of vehicles, and an extensive supply chain. LaFrieda oversaw much of this expansion, building on business opportunities by which he contacted producers and had bespoke organic beef raised just for him, then sold it at favorable rates to New York’s best restaurants. The author offers a few interesting menus and a few useful tips—e.g., “Never pepper your steak before searing or grilling.” But the true meat of his book is a study of how beef is brought from farm to table as well as an account of commercial success that deserves a place on any business school syllabus. The author emphasizes the importance of a diversified clientele: “If you have only one enormous account and that place happens to shut down, it could mean the end of your business.” During the pandemic, LaFrieda had to cut his staff by more than 40%, a crushing loss. “It took years to build our army of 180 employees,” he writes, “and my big high in life is to create jobs, not to take them away.” Of particular interest are LaFrieda’s arguments against meatless beef; though its purveyors claim a lower carbon footprint than farmed beef, he wonders whether they’re taking into account the industrial oils that they use. He also reveals that it’s cattle burps, not farts, that are introducing greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, and then only a tiny percentage.
Vegans will blanch at some of LaFrieda’s arguments and descriptions, but meat lovers will find plenty of protein here.
