White Label Burger @ Ai Fiori

Ai Fiori, the newest venture in the expanding Michael White empire, located in the brand spanking new Setai on Fifth Avenue, has unveiled a new burger - the White Label, courtesy of the ubiquitous Pat La Frieda gang. It could be that because I'm absolutely famished right now (and on my way to Shopsin's) that the video has got my drooling.

Pat La Frieda delivered to your front door

The seemingly ubiquitous wholesale meat purveyor, Pat La Frieda, will now begin delivery of their goods straight to your front door. For those of you not in the Fresh Direct delivery area, via ShopNBC, you can cop a Burger Package (as well as a Grilling and Steak Sampler), which consists of 4 - 6oz La Frieda Original Blend Burgers, 4 - 6oz Short Rib Burgers, 4 - 6oz Brisket Burgers and 4 - 6oz Turkey Breast Burgers for $85.74 + $11.99 for shipping and handling. They will arrive fresh, not frozen. Booyah! With just a few more weeks of prime grilling season left (though I enjoy grilling outdoors in the middle of winter as well), what a way to finish it off. Now only if they could stick a few Black Labels into the package for me...

Via PR Newswire:


World Renowned Meats Now Available to the General Public


NEW YORK, Aug. 19 /PRNewswire/ -- Celebrated Manhattan-based butcher Pat La Frieda is scheduled to appear on ShopNBC (www.shopnbc.com), the premier lifestyle brand in multi-media retailing. The premiere of Pat La Frieda Meats, which will be the first national roll-out of the product to the general public, will occur on Monday, August 23 at 7pm ET and on Tuesday, August 24 at 2pm ET.

Pat La Frieda, President of Pat La Frieda Wholesale Meat Purveyors, says, "For more than 90 years, my family's business, has been built upon selling directly to restaurants across North America, but never before have our products been directly available to the general public. We are thrilled to have a multi-channel platform like ShopNBC that will allow us to reach more than 76 million homes nationwide and provide their viewers with the same quality meats that top-rated restaurateurs and chefs have been using for decades."

The Pat La Frieda product line on ShopNBC will feature eclectic blends of burgers, cuts of steak, and sausage links -- all featuring the quality and flavor favored by discerning restaurateurs and chefs. The product line was developed to reflect the best of what La Frieda has to offer.

The show is part handbook for meat preparation and technique, and part memoir of America's most successful meat dynasty. With easy to follow tips on sourcing, buying, cutting and preparing meat, Pat La Frieda will entertain viewers with stories, give them the confidence to shop for and cook their meat, and provide them with reason to tune in again and again.

"We are thrilled to be working with DMA to bring Pat La Frieda Meats to the ShopNBC network," said Bob Ayd, ShopNBC's president. "The Pat La Frieda family has a wonderful heritage, and its high quality meats have earned the highest of marks as a supplier to many of New York City's finest restaurants. Because ShopNBC is the premium lifestyle brand in the multi-media retailing industry, we are always hungry to add new, unique and special product offerings to surprise and entertain our customers. Now, for the first time ever, ShopNBC viewers across America can enjoy a taste of New York's finest 5-star restaurant quality burgers, steaks, sausages and more – shipped fresh, not frozen and ready to enjoy – all at a tremendous value.

Designers Management Agency, a Manhattan-based talent representation agency connected Pat La Frieda and ShopNBC. Aaron Spiewak, Chief Operating Officer at DMA says, "I am very pleased that DMA was able to put Pat La Frieda and ShopNBC into this partnership. For three generations, Pat La Frieda Meats have been available exclusively in New York's finest restaurants. Finally, the rest of the country will have the opportunity to feed their families with the best quality meat."


About Pat La Frieda Wholesale Meat Purveyors

Located in the heart of Manhattan for more than ninety years, Pat La Frieda Wholesale Meat Purveyors services restaurants, hotels, banquet facilities, and retail outlets with a full line of meat, poultry, and associated items. The company is family owned and operated and federally inspected by the USDA. For more information, please visit http://lafrieda.com/.


About ShopNBC

ShopNBC is a multi-media retailer operating with a premium lifestyle brand. Over 1 million customers benefit from ShopNBC as an authority and destination in the categories of home, electronics, beauty, health, fitness, fashion, jewelry and watches. As part of the company's "ShopNBC Anywhere" initiative, customers can interact and shop via cable and satellite TV in 76 million homes (DISH Network channels 134 and 228; DIRECTV channel 316); mobile devices including iPhone, BlackBerry and Droid; online at www.ShopNBC.com; live streaming at www.ShopNBC.TV; and social networking sites Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. ShopNBC is owned and operated by ValueVision Media (NASDAQ: VVTV).


Link to ShopNBC here.

The Master Burger List Review Bonanza - Pt. 8 - #1 Burger (29th & 2nd)

A few weeks back, I was perusing Seamless Web looking for some delivery grub and came across #1 Burger. Trying to do some due diligence before forking over my hard earned cash, I couldn't find anything about this joint on the internet. So, I did what every reviewer does (or should do), and took one for the team.

The first thing that caught my eye was that under the #1 Burger link on the main restaurant listing page, it stated that their "delicious beef burgers are sourced directly from Pat La Frieda". Understandably, that piqued my interest, as La Frieda meats are highly regarded, especially in the burger-world. After clicking the link and arriving at their menu, I next noticed how competitively priced #1 Burger sold their ish. Things were looking good and my mouth was getting watery.

About a half hour later, my cheeseburger combo arrived.



Packaged in a neat little to-go box, things were looking promising. Here's what the burger looked like when I unwrapped it:




This is where you cue the sad trombone sound. Expectations weren't even really that high, and yet the burger failed to meet them. First off, the cheese tasted like the cheese you get on your nachos. (Those are nachos.) Second, the bottom half of the bun was super thin and was pretty much soaked through, especially where you held the burger. Check it out:



As for the meat itself, I really don't think the patty was fresh. I could be mistaken, but it had that frozen patty quality to it - where the shape and consistency was too hockey puck-like.

It's unfortunate, as the place had a lot going for it...like tater tots and Dr. Brown's soda and dollar Arizona iced teas. I'm open to giving it another chance, as the place is still relatively new. I just hope I don't get neckboned again.

#1 Burger
228 East 29th Street
New York, NY 10016
212-448-1129

Pat La Frieda Plant Video Tour

Here's a link to a short video featured on SmartMoney TV about the guys aka Pat LaFrieda who bring us the high quality meats we all enjoy in our Shake ShackBurger and Minetta Tavern Black Label Burger.

Link to article here.

Link to a previous article by A Hamburger Today about a visit to the plant here.