Openings

Butcher Shop Definitely Coming to Harlem, Probably to Murray Hill

Meat for everyone!
Meat for everyone!

Blogger Harlem Bespoke reports on a business called Harlem Shambles set to open in the new Livmor condos at 2131 Frederick Douglass Boulevard, rumored to be a butcher shop operated by a trainee of Joshua and Jessica Applestone at Fleisher’s in Kingston (the same spot where Tom Mylan of the Meat Hook picked up some knife skills). It seems to be a busy time for butchers — you may even recall that Fleisher’s is opening a retail store at 192 Fifth Avenue in Park Slope this fall.

We contacted Harlem Shambles owner Tim Forrester, who confirmed an “early- to mid-August” opening. The shop will not necessarily be steeped in old-timey butcher paraphernalia, he says; it’ll just be a clean, white-tiled space where he’ll butcher whole animals from Fleisher’s to start, adding that he eventually wants to sell grass-fed beef from Kinderhook Farm. They’ll also sell meat pies and Cornish pasties.

In other whole-hog news, a tipster notices that Resto in Murray Hill seems to be expanding into the space next door. A real-estate listing says that Belgian beer and offal palace Resto has an eleven-year lease at 113 East 29th Street, noting its main (and current) entrance at 111 East 29th. Rumor is that the restaurant will use the new space for breaking down whole animals, and they’ll set up a butcher counter as part of a separate storefront; according to Buildings Department filings, the building’s first floor and basement are being renovated from residential to commercial use. Both Resto owner Christian Pappanicholas and chef/co-owner Bobby Hellen (who was last seen cooking veal-belly gyros this past weekend at Meatopia) declined to comment on the expansion.

Of course, no matter how this pans out, this new wave of butchers will also be a major score for the city’s dogs, who know that great meat means better dog food.

Harlem Shambles Arriving at Livmor [Harlem Bespoke]
For Dogs, Entrees From Same Butchers Who Feed Their Masters [NYT]

Butcher Shop Definitely Coming to Harlem, Probably to Murray Hill