Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
Food
Brooklyn Butcher <del>Torch</del> Cleaver Passed to New Generation
By
Hugh Merwin
Published Feb 25, 2009
Modified Feb 25, 2009
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
Tejal Rao
By
Hugh Merwin
Published Feb 25, 2009
Modified Feb 25, 2009
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
In today’s Times story Brooklyn's New Culinary Movement, Edible Brooklyn (and Edible Manhattan) editor Gabrielle Langholtz is quoted comparing the borough’s burgeoning, largely independent small batch and craft food scene to the one found in “Berkeley in the 1970s.” The article describes a wave of brewers, picklers, cheesemongers, chocolate bar makers, and a genuine return to old-school butchering at locations like Marlow & Daughters, and the upcoming Prime Meats in Carroll Gardens. Frank Castronovo (of Frankies 457, and the upcoming Delightful Coffee Shop) summarizes the approach of the food movement, which involves using (for the most part) locally produced food, as the following: “Pre-industrial revolution tactics with food.”
Never mind that the interactive map accompanying the article about “new” food producers features landmarks like the Brooklyn Brewery, which opened in 1987. A lesser-noticed food story this week is the one about Brooklyn’s longest running butcher shops. The torch, in effect, is being passed this week to a new wave of meat cutters: 77-year-old butcher Jimmy Prince of Major Markets Meats on Mermaid Avenue has been working in the same shop since 1949. The shop itself has been open since 1932 and will close Saturday. Prince, who is known as a neighborhood legend/walking historical record, previously said he'd be leaving the business in part because nobody wanted to take it over. According to the Post, there were once 16 butcher shops along Mermaid Avenue in Coney Island. “What I'm most proud of,” the butcher told them earlier this week, “is that I never had to get a roll-down gate, no matter how rough the neighborhood got."
Tagged
chefs
gabrielle langholtz
Jimmy Prince
Major Markets Meats
tom mylan
Hugh Merwin
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE food
Where are the cheapest drinks in NYC? A new report details the city's average prices.
The median price of a cocktail in the city is now $16, and $9 for a draft beer.
By
Hannah Frishberg
Published Oct 19, 2026
North African restaurants are rare in NYC. These 10 are the best.
Egyptian, Moroccan, Algerian and Tunisian food is delicious but underrepresented in the city.
By
Robert Sietsema
Food
North African restaurants are rare in NYC. These 10 are the best.
Egyptian, Moroccan, Algerian and Tunisian food is delicious but underrepresented in the city.
By
Robert Sietsema
10 dishes that demonstrate the delicious diversity of curry in New York City
By
Robert Sietsema
Frozen yogurt is back in New York City. So are the super long lines.
By
Sonia Rao
5 NYC banana puddings as good as Magnolia's
By
Hannah Frishberg
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .