ECHO & RIG Has ELV Beating His Meat

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Let’s get one thing straight right from the get go: The name Echo & Rig means nothing. There is no Mr. Echo (or his Bunnymen); there is no Mrs. Rig.

The name is made up, contrived by management and conceived by contest — a competition, we were told, among employees to come up with a unique-sounding name. The name is catchy alright, but it also tells you nothing about the establishment. Thus, is the concept, like its cognomen , more than a bit confusing.

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CARNEVINO: Grandmaster of Meat

After a meal at Carnevino and having one of their amazing 90-120 day aged cuts of meat, I’m going to have to totally agree with Mr. Curtas’ classification of them as one of the best steakhouses in the country (his repeated, vitriolic endorsement certainly motivated me).

It’s like if the cold-war era wasn’t fought over nuclear stockpiles, patrolling bombers, and space travel, but rather steaks.  And while the Kremlin was trying to cross breed a Holstein with a Pachyderm, or putting the first person to stop clapping for Stalin in an abattoir, we were perfecting Carnevino.  Behind the facade of a giant Italian castle’s dining halls, there is a well-oiled (with artisanal olive oil, of course) machine working in back and off-site to turn cows into gold.

The Head Honcho, Exec Chef Nicole Brisson is a true Gangsta for real.  I was quite pleased to find that she was doing a couple items with ramps, an east-coast seasonal foraged green, that I was interested in trying.  In fact, I ended up trying quite a few things.  I would even go so far to say, just weighing in on food alone, Carnevino could stand as a wonderfully unique and creative restaurant even if there were NO STEAKS on the menu.

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A Kvetch About Kobe

We cannot think clearly about things until we call them what they are. – George Orwell

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Let’s talk about Kobe and “Kobe” beef for a minute, shall we?

A FB friend (let’s call him Don) writes:

So….I was at Le Cirque the other night where they were charging an extra $140 for a wagyu ribeye which in the description was noted as “kobe” (yes, the quotes were included in the description). The waiter says this is real kobe beef. I questioned that since it is my understanding that real kobe never leaves Japan. I’m thinking I’m wrong or this waiter just thought I was some dumbass hick. Any thoughts?

Why yes, Don, I do have some thoughts and here they are:

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