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“T-Bar Steak and Lounge”

Occasion:	Cuisine:	Area:	Cost:	Rating:
Night Out	New American	Upper East Side	Moderate	Great

MY DINNER AT T-BAR STEAK AND LOUNGE
This is the story of “When Shameless met Cutlets.” It’s not exactly a love story, but it’s definitely one of two meat-loving souls who I thought needed to find each other. Allow me to explain. Shameless is actually The Shameless Carnivore, a food writer and a friend of Craig’s who’s just written a book (to be released in March) called The Shameless Carnivore—a Manifesto for Meat Lovers. It’s his tale of crossing the country while eating, cooking (and in some cases hunting) 31 animals in 30 days (from elk to squirrel, and rattlesnake), plus eating every part of the bull (Yes, every part. That too. No, he said it was not good.)

As soon as I met Shameless, I knew he had to meet my friend Mr. Cutlets, aka Josh Ozersky, the city’s most knowledgeable (and hilarious) meat man, who also happens to be the editor and writer of Grub Street, and the author of eight books, including Meat Me in Manhattan, and the upcoming Hamburger: A History, an encyclopedic study of the anthropology and social history of the burger. Clearly these two were separated at birth. They needed to be reunited. And I would bring them together. (I was quite sure a Lifetime movie of the week would be bound to follow.)

I’d already made plans to have dinner with Cutlets, Craig, and our friends Glen and Steven at T-Bar Steak and Lounge, Tony Fortuna’s new incarnation of Lenox Room on the Upper East Side. I e-mailed Cutlets and mentioned Shameless, wanting to see if he would be up for the “set up.” I waited for his reply. I knew this would either be a great match, or they’d size each other up, start to growl, and possibly end up throwing steak and knives at one another with abandon. A few hours later, the e-mail came. “Shameless Carnivore sounds cool. Sure, bring him along,” he wrote. I breathed a sigh of relief. Okay, maybe they wouldn’t kill each other.

The setting of the meeting, as I mentioned, was T-Bar Steak and Lounge, a newly renovated and conceived space dressed in chic white subway tiles with dark wood floors, lush forest green banquettes, and cool, flattering lighting. The lure here was first and foremost the steak, but as we ate our way through the versatile menu, it was clear that the chef had much more up his sleeve than cow. The chef, Ben Zwicker, a young talent who started out in San Francisco at the Mand ... [more, click below]

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Posted: October 29, 2007

Other restaurants in Upper East Side :
+ Sfoglia   + Zoe Townhouse   + Accademia di Vino   + T-Bar Steak and Lounge   + Parlor Steakhouse   + Le Caprice   

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