Meatopia: You say "meat," I say "opia"

I had fun at Meatopia. I had fun judging meats and meeting various folks. Other responses seem to vary from utter fulfillment of the promise of a utopia of meat, to a sunstroked Clara Peller starring in a reboot of Shutter Island. As LT Chronicles suggests,  graph of  satisfaction w/ the event would mirror a graph of arrival time. I arrived at about noon, and got an inkling that crowds would be a factor when I saw the line for the ferry to Governor's Island. However, that part moved pretty fast. In the early going, lines were scarce to nonexistent, and I scarfed some Hill Country brisket, the famous duck tacos of Sue Torres of  Sueno, and an underrated chicken chorizo sandwich from The Smoke Joint. I took a breather, enjoyed a Six Point Ale, and found some shade. By the time I was ready for Round 2, the complexion of the event had changed, I did get in some smoked meat from Mile End, and the lamb from Illi, but at many stations, lines stretched all the way across the rough circle where the food stations were. I had to finagle a little bit to get at the Caja China pigs from Smokin' Joes. Unfortunately, the layout meant that folks waiting in the lines had no shade at all on a hot day. Next year, I hope the Meatopians change the layout to take advantage of the shade. 

A few observations: people complain about lines, but one of the most compelling reasons for getting in a line is the existence of a line. From what I saw, it seemed as if people were looking for where they could get in a line, rather than where they could get a bite to eat.

This behavior also suggests the way the event reflected NYC's interest in celeb chefs. The folks I talked to on the way over spoke of specific chefs/restos they wanted to hit (Campanaro, Freytag, Waxman). What with the event taking place on a Sunday in July, when folks who can pull it off are likely to have escaped the city, the demo of the crowd skewed a little bit younger and broker than it might otherwise. Thus, lots of food nerds eager to try food from places they likely cannot usually afford to try seemed to amp up the line dynamic. Thus, the editorial assistant/aspiring charcutier from Red hook who showed up at 2:30 with a three bite ticket and an agenda would likely be frustrated.

That said, there are lessons to be learned here from Jazzfest. If you go to Jazzfest hoping to hear acts x, y, z for one low(?!) price, you will be disappointed. Seeing the Meters, Dr. John, etc, outdoors is not at all like seeing them at Tipitinas. If, instead, you treat it as its own thing, walk around, enjoy the music, and marvel at the magical process by which your twenty dollar bills turn into crawfish boudin and pints of Abita, you will have a good time. Similarly, if you go to Meatopia 2.0, arrive early,  take eating opportunities as they present themselves, you will have a good time.

In terms of attendance and response, Meatopia seems like it was a success -- the biggest issues are a function of the event's popularity -- and for a first-time event taking place on an island in the middle of the summer in NYC, there could have been more and bigger snafus. It will be interesting to see how this event evolves. Meatopia is a public iteration of what used to be Josh Ozersky's birthday, but I can imagine better, less hot times of year for eating meat and drinking fancy beers.

Comments

[Nursing tops]

This provides an enormous asset for marketing, for research, for word or mouth, and most importantly for listening to customers

[Marco]

You get some weird ass comment sources. I ate fried whole belly clams on two occasions in East Matunuck-Jerusalem RI early in the week. Pure nectar of the sea. It wasn't much cooler there.

[JL]

Were you at the Matunuck Oyster Bar, Marco? Everybody loves them these days. I haven't been so far this summer (once last year) but will probably get there soon.

[louis vuitton purses]

If that's not good enough, consider the Tim Allen corollary to Ibsen's famous dictum that if you