[image]
[title]Madison Ave between 82nd and 83rd Sts
Man. Between your name and that bloody apron, you are right out of a Scorsese film. [Laughs] I used to get that when I was in school. I would tell 'em that was my uncle, sometimes.
It's somehow more believable because you're a butcher. Yeah, right? I can get a job with the mob if the butcherin' doesn't work out. [Laughs]
Where'd you get that lovely brogue?
I grew up in Ireland—in a butcherin' family. I've been at Lobel's here for ten years. I don't know if ya know, but Lobel's is ranked one of the top three butchers in the world.
In your family, is that like making it to the Olympics? I guess it would be—for any butcher—to work in one of the top three butcher shops in the world, an' especially on Madison Avenue. There's only one butcher shop on Madison Avenue.
Are your customers more interested than ever in the provenance of their meat, now that that question is so trendy? Our customers always want the best. We have celebrities and royal families comin' in.
Is it an option in your family to be vegetarian? [Laughs] No. Or to date one.
Ha—do you do your screening at Peter Luger? Not even—the first date is Lobel's steak at home.
Do you eat your vegetables? Not very much. I eat a lot of fish. Because Lobel's is the best, if I go to a restaurant and get a steak, I'm disappointed. So I've learned to eat fish.
You should look into vegetables. They're good for you. Yeah, I guess so. A lot of things are good fer ya and I don't do it. Eatin' healthy is good fer ya, not smoking is good fer ya....
Dating vegetarians is good for you. Could be. And it could be bad fer me, too.
I bet you'd make a good surgeon. Yeah, we have a quite a few surgeons and doctors come in. The thing is, I can make a mistake, they can't.
Hmm, yeah, I guess your patients are already dead. So they are.
More from Frank
"I'm from County Armagh. When I grew up there, I didn't really appreciate it, but I appreciate it more as I get on in my older years."
You might also like
See more New York stories from the sidewalk
See photos of New York street style
See more in Things to Do