Beginnings

Beginnings


Well my foray into the culinary arts started differently than I had planned. I had enrolled in Le Cordon Bleu Dallas but was unable to start on the February term because of a financial aid hiccup that should be taken care of for the April start. Before the hiccup, I had conceived of a plan to work as an intern for a butcher in Garland, Texas. I had bought some prime sirloin there before and after years of just buying grocery store steak, I was in love. I talked to the owner David Harris, a master butcher, about an internship and at first he looked at me with some suspicion. You won’t like it he said. It takes two years of apprenticeship to become a meat cutter. I said no sir, I am going to be a culinary student and was hoping to see how meat was cut and understand the different cuts.David brightened up and say sure you should know where you food comes from.


So Tuesday morning I got my two kids to school and headed for David’s Meat Market in Garland, Texas not at all sure what to expect. I had done my homework. This was not just some crack in the wall, this was considered one of the best places to buy quality steaks and meat in the Dallas - Fort Worth Metroplex. The Dallas Morning News often calls David for a quote when they run an article about steaks and steak quality. He is referred to as the Master Butcher David Harris.

The store opens at 10 am but when I got there at 8:15 the lights were on and David and his three employees were already busy cutting up incredible looking steaks. His grandson Devon saw me first and greeted me warmly. He called out to David that Minh was here. “What men?” David asked. “No Minh, the guy that is going to work for free.” David came out and also greeted me warmly. David Harris looks like the perfect neighborhood butcher; he is big affable man with big strong arms and big hands. He waves at me to come on back to the office. He shows me were the aprons are and gets me a camouflaged cap. My favorite one has the letters PETA for People Eat Tasty Animals.

I met the rest of the crew besides Devon there is Carmela and Chad. Carmela is friendly Mexican with a welcoming smile. He was wrapping up New York Strips to put in the display case. The store is closed on Sunday and Monday so they were getting the store displays ready for the day. I started simply, hoping not to get in the way and screw anything up. I was going to wrap the steaks that had been beautifully cut in plastic wrap. I am afraid David’s plastic wrap cost might go up a little this week. Watching the others, they made it look smooth, wrapping a steak tightly and quickly. I managed to tangle up the plastic wrap put the wrong side of the steak on display but was quickly and nicely set right by Carmela. So before long I was getting the simple task done right. David showed me how to showcase the side of the steak that had less fat on it and arrange them all facing the same way on the rack. I joked I looked for the fat when buying a steak he laughed and said most people look for the leaner parts. Later in the day I started to learn the different cuts of beef. What made a porterhouse different from a T-bone. They both come from the same side but the porterhouse with a telltale almost vein like were the first 2 or 3 cuts from the side and the rest are the T-bone. I learned how to trim tenderloin and why some places charged less for tenderloin by not trimming the uneatable parts out adding almost 50% to the weight. It was a lot to take in and I still of course don’t understand a lot of things but I am really looking forward to coming back Friday morning to help them get ready for the weekend rush.


What I did learn was pride. Pride one took in one’s work and what over thirty years of a craft can show. David and Pat, his wife who can break down a side of beef like a pro, are what we are losing as stores like David’s Meat Market are being replaced by huge superstores all over this country. The store is so well kept, everything in place and super clean. When I worked there Carmela was in almost a constant state of cleaning and no waste made it to the floor. During our first break Pat brought donuts and sternly yet kindly told me to only eat the back room because it was not allowed where the meat was prepped. Chad the other member of the team, a young country boy was cleaning utensils, cutting and trimming steaks with the precision of a surgeon. Devon, who I pray carries on the tradition, watched the business with an eye for detail. He greeted customers by name asking how much ground sirloin they wanted or chili or the best damn jalapeño burger patty you ever tasted. Almost nothing went to waste, some of the trimmings went into a bin for sausage meat, a bin for stew meat, some fat was stored for making chili, and all of it was refrigerated as soon as enough was there. We talked about the best way to make a steak. (Inch and a quarter thick steaks, a cast iron skillet super hot, sear on each side for 2 minutes and into a preheated oven at 500 degrees for another 4 minutes let it rest for 5 more minutes and you get 4 star steakhouse quality medium rare steak.) How David probably did not want to sell his steaks to anyone who liked their steak well done or even medium. How he came up with his own dry rub recipe. How Pat cooked a Thanksgiving like feast last Tuesday for a visiting granddaughter that turned into a family dinner for 12. Their patty machine and sausage machine were almost artifact like but looked brand new. Uncle Bill another proud craftsman came by to chat. He is a machinist for over 40 years who helped David make new molds for his patty machine.


It is not just about nostalgia or a long lost America. It is about quality and good tasting ingredients. The reason I buy from David is his steaks taste better, his craftsmanship guarantees that. They would never sell you a bad steak, EVER. Superstores are killing America’s palate. Bland is ok as long as it is fast. But it does not have to be that way. David’s Meat Market is a testament to that. I am proud to watch them work and hopefully learn a thing or two as I start my culinary journey.

M