Meat Feast at Le Marais NYC

By: Finance Foodie

During my Wall Street days, my fellow banker friends and I used to treat ourselves (on the weekends where we managed to escape the cubicle) with food trips to the finest steakhouses in Manhattan. From Delmonico's to Wolfgang's, we'd drink, chat and dream of the day we would never have to bind another pitchbook.  Even though most of us have luckily moved on from that rat race, the tradition has remained. This weekend, we decided to try Le Marais for lunch, a Kosher-French butcher shop/steakhouse combo located in the heart of the Theater District.  

Before we started lunch, Le Marais' owner Jose Meirelles (a former banker himself) was kind enough to give us a tour of the aging rooms for their meats. Besides being a steakhouse, Le Marais’ also houses a premier butcher shop, which provides one of the largest selections of kosher, tender meats that NYC has to offer. Stocked with a wide variety of specialized meats, from smoked veal sausage to prime ribs to lamb roast, this in-house butcher shop makes it easy for those who want to purchase quality meats in the City.

Now that we saw where our lunch was being stored, it was time to eat! I started off my lunch with the Salade de Tomates et Fruits d'Éte ($14), an Heirloom tomato salad served with peaches and a basil vinaigrette dressing. The tomatoes were fresh and tart - and a good pair to the sweetness of the peaches. I thought this was a very light fresh way to start the meal.

I was feeling a bit adventurous that afternoon, so I decided to order the La Surprise ($38), basically the butcher's choice, for my main course. The steak ended up being a center cut sirloin - which was quite lean but still tender. The salad was pretty standard and boring, but the fries (or frites) was ironically the real standout on the plate. Soft on the inside and crispy on the outside with a light dash of salt - this was truly one of the best fries I've had in NYC.

Our party was stuffed from the generous servings of meat, but of course we couldn't skip dessert! Thankfully, we managed to save some room in our stomachs to try the Opera chocolate and mocha cake ($10.50) and the Fraises Roties ($11.50), roasted strawberries served on top a shortbread cake with almond creme. I'm not the biggest chocolate cake fan (this was my dining companion's choice), but Opera blew my mind! It was super moist and velvety - but not overbearingly sweet. I didn't love the roasted strawberries on the Fraises Roties, as they were a bit too tart for me and I wasn't a fan of its lukewarm method of preparation, but the shortbread it was served on top of was delicious and buttery. 

The only downside to La Marais is that it's quite a pricey option for lunch (guess that's the price you pay for being Kosher). However, the quality of the food is excellent  - so if you are looking for a fantastic Kosher steakhouse, Le Marais is your best bet!

La Marais
150 W 46th St 
New York, NY 10036 
(212) 869-0900 
www.lemarais.net