(and you can't have any pudding if you beat R.J.'s meat)

So we’re back at Eastern Market in Detroit — and across that little catwalk of a bridge is a Butcher Shoppe like no other in Snuff Box (Michigan is often referred to as a hand, and if Michigan was the back of your left hand, Detroit would be located where gentleman from another time poured snuff.)

Anyway: Welcome to the Gratiot Central Market. Inside this little market is a collection of butchers and meat dealers that offer the best deals and best meat in Michigan.

$8.95 for a pound of beef tenderloin (which when cut up creates Filet Mignon.) And that’s the pricey stuff. You can grab Prime Rib for a mere $6.95 per pound. Or pork chops, ribs and just about anything else that was once on an animal and will be on your plate. If God didn’t want you to eat it, he wouldn’t have made it so tasty.

Now everyone has a favorite in the building, as these vendors are all side by side. Our’s is RJ’s, which is all the way at the end on the right. The people behind the counter are helpful and will give you all of the advice you might need for a BBQ.

However, this is definitely a place that you can go broke saving money. There are lots of deals, and if you have a big freezer, you can certainly stock up for lazy day grilling on weekends.

If anything, RJ has taught us that Beef Tenderloin can be used for anything that requires beef. Tacos, salads, Philly Cheese steaks, all of them taste better if you’re using one of the finest cuts of meat known to man kind. (A typical tenderloin weighs about 7 pounds, and you have to buy the whole thing, so be prepared to shell out up to $60 for the loin, which RJ will cut for you.)

We’d also recommend the Center Cut Pork Chops, the bacon, the stewing beef, the Delmonicos and Ribeyes, as well as the flank steak and brats. Oh, and the hamburger is to die for — well, at least a cow died for us.

The only thing that can be difficult at the market when it’s busy is finding someone to start up your order. You have to be quick. There’s no number to take or any kind of line — just people shouting over the counter and other people taking orders. So speak up or go hungry.

Now if you’re visiting Detroit, you may not have a need for 10 pounds of meat, but there’s still plenty of good eats all around the market place. And there’s a real city feel to the market. It’s worth a stop, if just for the people watching.

The busiest times are Saturday from about 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. During the summer, well, it smells like a butcher’s shop, and that’s not all that great.

Tags: Detroit, Eastern Market, meat, RJ's