Bringing back the butcher-client relationship, Quarter Master is a bit like eating right there in the butcher shop, as Bones & Blades is next door to this 20-seater eatery. You are encouraged to pop out, after ordering a glass of their Pinot Noir perhaps, and have a gander to select the cut of meat or type of sausage you would like to chow down on back in the adjacent restaurant.
Choosing your meat while you chat about its origins has a modern-day appeal in our collectively growing mindfulness about what we are eating and where it comes from. This style of exchange, which encourages conversation further than just pointing and purchasing, can also extend your life; apparently, social interaction plays a large part in becoming very, very old. Plus, eating grass-fed meat is an excellent life choice not only for the happiness of the cows but also for the good, clean flavour of the beef. Bones & Blades also represent a socially responsible enterprise that aims to use the entirety of each animal. Using leftover pork fat to cook up their piggy fries, they also have an in-house French charcutier whipping up homemade head cheese, rillettes and pâtés to take home. They make their own sausages, cure their own hams and have a great, friendly neighbourhood hang-out vibe going on.
Grass-fed Australian OBE tenderloin, sirloin, Wagyu rib-eye, T-bone and a classic burger are all ripe options for the picking. The butcher kindly offered up the hanger steak for our consumption. It was saturated with intense flavour. We also sampled a Mangalica pork (a rare breed from Hungary prized for its strong flavour and thick layer of fat) Cumberland-style sausage, a breakfast sausage with a bit of maple syrup crafted right into the meat and a spicy Italian sausage that were all hits across the board. There is a BBQ pulled pork sandwich that we will be back to devour at some point, and they also offer a daily cheese selection – we were tempted into a Comté that was so moreish we fought over the last piece.
Quarter Master provides a great meal, at a great price, with a comfortable, community-friendly feel. We loved the people, the space and the ethos. If you’re shopping around for a new butcher that’s in it for a committed, long-term relationship, you’ve found ’em.
Quarter Master + Bones & Blades, 1 Second Street, Sai Ying Pun, 2517 4366
