In Select Theatres July 17 and August 28
There's nothing better than a great steak. Even an avowed vegetarian has to occasionally give way to that almost primordial craving for a good piece of meat. That's sort of where filmmaker and steak connoisseur Franck Ribiere and his favorite butcher, Yves-Marie Le Bourdonnec begin their adventure; searching for the world's best steak.
It starts with the premise that their native French Charolais cattle, lack the firm texture and distinctive, mineral taste and marble fatty distribution that make American steakhouse beef so delicious and desirable. Both agree, as do a couple of other producers they meet in other countries along the way, that Peter Luger steakhouse in Brooklyn, New York, is the best overall steak dining experience to be had anywhere. Nsmrf best steakhouse in New York City for the past thirty years, this Williamsburg mainstay was also named the first James Beard Foundation Classic in 2002.
German born Perter Luger founded the restaurant in 1887 with his nephew Carl as the chef. The basic idea was to create a place for the predominantly German working-class people in his neighborhood to eat a good, cheap, tasty meal. In those early days it was billed as "Carl Luger's cafe', Billiards and Bowling Alley." When his son put the place up for auction in 1950, it was purchased at private auction by a frequent customer, and the rest is history. Third generation owner Judy Storch serves as restaurant manager. She personally learned the business under the tutelage of her mother. who trained her in the meat packing plant from school-aged years on up in the business of cutting, grading and selecting the meat that is finally used to grace the plates of Peter Luger's diners.
Rebiller and his cameras then head to Argentina, Scotland, Japan, Italy, Sweden and the western U.S. in search of the world's best steak. The interviews he conducts with chefs and producers are revealing. Not only do they recount the mechanics, myth and science behind great beef production, they also touch upon history, religion, philosphy and myth in the process. All that mumbo jumbo you hear about Kobe beef is true. The filmmaker interviewed one producer of Kobe beef who actually does play Mozart music to his cows throughout the day to sooth them into great meat production. He also alludes to the fact that he may massage some of his more prized cattle with Sake to loosen up the meat and relax them. The practice of massaging with Sake oil spray is a daily practice at the producers of super-soft Amiyaki beef in Matsuyama, Japan. The husband and wife team there take the practice to the extreme. The maker of the film is brought to tears as he visits as local restaurant and samples the highly fatty, exquisitely marbled beef that is prepared in a ritual only matched by a Buddhist temple rite.
Wagyu beef produced in the American West is another surprising topic. The cattle were brought directly over from Japan and are nurtured with all of the mystique and ritual of their forebears in Reviewed by Dwight Casimere
In Select Theatres July 17 and August 28
There's nothing better than a great steak. Even an avowed vegetarian has to occasionally give way to that almost primordial craving for a good piece of meat. That's sort of where filmmaker and steak connoisseur Franck Ribiere and his favorite butcher, Yves-Marie Le Bourdonnec begin their adventure; searching for the world's best steak.
It starts with the premise that their native French Charolais cattle, lack the firm texture and distinctive, mineral taste and marble fatty distribution that make American steakhouse beef so delicious and desirable. Both agree, as do a couple of other producers they meet in other countries along the way, that Peter Luger steakhouse in Brooklyn, New York, is the best overall steak dining experience to be had anywhere. Nsmrf best steakhouse in New York City for the past thirty years, this Williamsburg mainstay was also named the first James Beard Foundation Classic in 2002.
German born Perter Luger founded the restaurant in 1887 with his nephew Carl as the chef. The basic idea was to create a place for the predominantly German working-class people in his neighborhood to eat a good, cheap, tasty meal. In those early days it was billed as "Carl Luger's cafe', Billiards and Bowling Alley." When his son put the place up for auction in 1950, it was purchased at private auction by a frequent customer, and the rest is history. Third generation owner Judy Storch serves as restaurant manager. She personally learned the business under the tutelage of her mother. who trained her in the meat packing plant from school-aged years on up in the business of cutting, grading and selecting the meat that is finally used to grace the plates of Peter Luger's diners.
Rebiller and his cameras then head to Argentina, Scotland, Japan, Italy, Sweden and the western U.S. in search of the world's best steak. The interviews he conducts with chefs and producers are revealing. Not only do they recount the mechanics, myth and science behind great beef production, they also touch upon history, religion, philosphy and myth in the process. All that mumbo jumbo you hear about Kobe beef is true. The filmmaker interviewed one producer of Kobe beef who actually does play Mozart music to his cows throughout the day to sooth them into great meat production. He also alludes to the fact that he may massage some of his more prized cattle with Sake to loosen up the meat and relax them. The practice of massaging with Sake oil spray is a daily practice at the producers of super-soft Amiyaki beef in Matsuyama, Japan. The husband and wife team there take the practice to the extreme. The maker of the film is brought to tears as he visits as local restaurant and samples the highly fatty, exquisitely marbled beef that is prepared in a ritual only matched by a Buddhist temple rite.
Wagyu beef produced in the American West is another surprising topic. The cattle were brought directly over from Japan and are nurtured with all of the mystique and ritual of their forebears in Japan. Another visit to a cattle producer in the Scottish highlands, with steer that more closely resemble giant Mastadons than cattle; some as tall as seven-feet high and 14 years old!
The beef producer in Corsica, which has its Mediterranean roots in both France and Italy, offered the most sublime summation of the quest for the perfect beef cattle and in turn, the most desirable steak. His expression of his desire for perfection was almost poetic in its eloquence and lent a philosophical weight to a film that, on the surface, might otherwise seem self-serving.
Frank Ribie're has pedigree to spare. He was raised in a family of cattle breeders and served as a fashion phtographer's assistant in New York before embarking on a career as an executive producer of documentaries.
Steak (R)evolution a Kinbo Lorber Production
A Film by Franck Ribie're
French with English subtitles
2014
1 Hour, 50 minutes
Opens July 17 at New York's IFC Center, and
August 28 at Quart Theatre, Los Angeles, Opera Plaza Cinemas, San Francisco, Shattuck Cinemas, Berkeley, CA, E Street Cinema, Washington, D.C. and Esquire Theatre in Denver.
Japan. Another visit to a cattle producer in the Scottish highlands, with steer that more closely resemble giant Mastadons than cattle; some as tall as seven-feet high and 14 years old!
The beef producer in Corsica, which has its Mediterranean roots in both France and Italy, offered the most sublime summation of the quest for the perfect beef cattle and in turn, the most desirable steak. His expression of his desire for perfection was almost poetic in its eloquence and lent a philosophical weight to a film that, on the surface, might otherwise seem self-serving.
Frank Ribie're has pedigree to spare. He was raised in a family of cattle breeders and served as a fashion phtographer's assistant in New York before embarking on a career as an executive producer of documentaries.
Steak (R)evolution a Kinbo Lorber Production
A Film by Franck Ribie're
French with English subtitles
2014
1 Hour, 50 minutes
Opens July 17 at New York's IFC Center, and
August 28 at Quart Theatre, Los Angeles, Opera Plaza Cinemas, San Francisco, Shattuck Cinemas, Berkeley, CA, E Street Cinema, Washington, D.C. and Esquire Theatre in Denver.
Wagyu beef produced in the American West is another surprising topic. The cattle were brought directly over from Japan and are nurtured with all of the mystique and ritual of their forebears in Japan. Another visit to a cattle producer in the Scottish highlands, with steer that more closely resemble giant Mastadons than cattle; some as tall as seven-feet high and 14 years old!
The beef producer in Corsica, which has its Mediterranean roots in both France and Italy, offered the most sublime summation of the quest for the perfect beef cattle and in turn, the most desirable steak. His expression of his desire for perfection was almost poetic in its eloquence and lent a philosophical weight to a film that, on the surface, might otherwise seem self-serving.
Frank Ribie're has pedigree to spare. He was raised in a family of cattle breeders and served as a fashion phtographer's assistant in New York before embarking on a career as an executive producer of documentaries.
Steak (R)evolution a Kinbo Lorber Production
A Film by Franck Ribie're
French with English subtitles
2014
1 Hour, 50 minutes
Opens July 17 at New York's IFC Center, and
August 28 at Quart Theatre, Los Angeles, Opera Plaza Cinemas, San Francisco, Shattuck Cinemas, Berkeley, CA, E Street Cinema, Washington, D.C. and Esquire Theatre in Denver.
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