Chef Michael Carrino, chef and co-owner of Pig & Prince Restaurant & Gastrolounge, in Montclair, opens his glorious meat locker and carries out half of a 285* pound Berkshire Pig. He lays the pig on the butchering table, ties on his yellow bandana, snaps on his black latex gloves, breaks out the hacksaw, and goes to work. About every fourteen days Carrino practices this near ritualistic butchering of a Berkshire pig. He harvests specific cuts to be used mainly for curing purposes, but is very methodical and makes every cut with a mind toward minimizing waste.
Read MoreEscape, Innovative Farm Dining, Opens in Montclair
A rectangular blackboard hangs on an exposed brick wall in the dining room of Escape. It's a bill of fare, of sorts; a white chalk roster of New Jersey farmers and artisans from which chef and owner, Bryan Gregg, sources proteins and produce. Gregg is source-centric.
There's a gastronomic school of thought that says, "farm-to-table isn’t a trend - it’s the way it should be," and therefore food writers shouldn't be impressed with a chef just because he uses farm fresh ingredients and local purveyors.
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