"The Elusive Carnivorous Quest: Unraveling the Mysteries of the Vanishing Rare Steak"

August 28, 2023

In developing cultures, we look to Sophocles, Shakespeare, Rembrandt, and Van Gogh as the masters who carved the grand arches of our civilization. However, it seems a dire miscalculation to exclude the humble steak from this pantheon of cultural milestones on par with every grand statue and marble column. And, like numerous cultural landmarks that have been able to stand long centuries, it too faces the dangerous whispers of extinction. For in an age of avocado toasts and quinoa salads, we ominously encounter the chronicle of a vanishing icon - the rare steak. This essay endeavors not only to capture the fickle spirit of this reclusive masterpiece but also to unravel the enigma surrounding its puzzling exodus.

Much like a fugitive spy ebbing into the misty alleyways of cold-war Berlin, the rare steak retreats into the shadows of culinary arts, disappearing faster than our very ignorance of its rich, unprecedented heritage. We see it, we savor it, we relish it, then- poof - it too ends up in the annals of overlooked genius simply because it seems much easier to roast a bird than to give a chunk of meat the reverence it deserves.

A prime rare steak is an understated canvas of seared elegance and succulent wisdom, a culmination of centuries-old traditions, far removed from the cacophony of supermarkets, and closer to the heart of our ancestors who first tamed the fire. Yet, an alarming number of self-proclaimed food connoisseurs today, not unlike those who would daub a still-wet fresco with tomato sauce, stand in line for hours for a bowl of kale while this noble, carnivorous fiesta withers away into obscurity.

But how, one might ask, process the lofty title of “fine-dining” when the very symphony of tastes – the rare steak - is being softly snuffed out beyond the ornate cutlery and crisp tablecloths? How can we, with a clear palate, electrocute our tongue with a Kardashian-approved potion of chia seeds, while the rare steak, a Van Gogh’s “Starry Night” in the food world, drowns in the abyss of forgotten flavours? Clearly, there appears a jarring discrepancy in the discourse – a stray note in the serenade of dining sophistication.

Now, it may be prudent to note that this endangerment of our culinary cornerstone isn't without its melodramatic narratives. Whispered tales echo in the rustic kitchens and hushed dining rooms - tales of people who lost their stomachs and not just their hearts to a bloody steak; tales that transform an item of decadent indulgence into a clandestine assassin. Yet, we gulp down vodka and absinthe, don’t we? Both danger and delight, indeed, reside in the same house. So, why abandon the latter for fear of the former?

This treatise is not a battle cry resounding in the dining rooms and culinary institutes; it is a humble plea to save the rare steak from becoming a mere flicker in the grand tapestry of the culinary arts. An appeal to the true devotees of taste and gastronomic curators to bring back the rare steak from its misplaced exile and let it roar (or gently moo) on plates worldwide. After all, in the words of Virginia Woolf, "One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well," and how can we claim to have dined well if we've let the rare steak slip into oblivion entirely?

In the end, the rare steak is not just a culinary trend or an outdated chef's delight, just as the Mona Lisa is not merely paint on a semi-aged wooden board with a faded smile. It is a testament to our rich gastronomic history, a testament that we should preserve, not abandon. A tale of the elusive carnivorous quest, an unsung hero of our plates, and a narrative worth savoring for the generations to come. So, may the wish be granted that the rare steak will once again find tongs willing to wield it like the paintbrush it truly is, turning the mundane dinner table into an awe-inspiring, smoky canvas.