Prime & Pint 'filling a void' for foodies, providing meat and produce from local farmers

Sometimes the most important ingredient for a good meal is in knowing where your food came from — that it's fresh and prepared with care.

That's one of quite a few visions founder Gabe Howard and his staff carry forward at Prime & Pint, Columbia's newest fusion restaurant, bar and butcher shop at the corner of North Main and East 6th streets.

Prime & Pint recently opened its doors after months of renovations to transform the former Marcy Jo's Muletown into the modern decor restaurant and butcher shop customers see today, and it's only the beginning for the downtown corner stop.

"I'm just a big foodie, and I love food," Howard said. "And it's just about wanting to give back to our community, a community that I believe in, that I believe shouldn't have to leave Columbia to get a nice big tomahawk steak. But part of our mission is also not being known as the place that's 'too expensive for us.'"

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Howard, who also serves in many capacities locally, such as a Maury County Commissioner, said his main goal in creating Prime & Pint was to provide a high-end option that didn't require a trip to Nashville, and that (within reason) could be affordable to locals.

It's also a spot that can provide premium, locally-sourced products from local farmers, and with a quality you likely won't find in the supermarket.

"For me, when we first started this, it was about filling a void in the community. When Tallgrass closed, we felt the community was at a loss when it comes to where we get meat," Howard said. "Secondarily, are we supporting our local farmers. All of our products, our beef and other proteins, you'll know where it's coming from."

An interactive experience, transparency and passion

One thing customers will notice when dining at the Prime & Pint is the open-room setup of the kitchen, allowing guests to watch the staff work while preparing each meal.

Howard said this not only creates a certain liveliness to the atmosphere, but also presents another level of transparency, since you are literally watching the food you are about to eat being prepared before your own eyes.

The open kitchen also provides a certain aromatic flare to the experience, with the smells of cooked meats and other flavors wafting out of the kitchen as guests anxiously await their meal.

Chef Paul Sellas oversees the kitchen operations and has had a lifelong passion for preparing food, which goes back generations in his family. Though he technically arrived in Columbia from Nashville, Sellas said he has made a career cooking "just about everywhere from the East Coast to the West Coast and beyond."

"One thing that's always been a big focus for me, as far as cooking goes, is having a very local and seasonal focus, work with as many local farmers as we can," Sellas said.

"My dad was a chef and my folks owned French restaurants, and back in the day we had open kitchens like we have here. It's always been something that's a focal for me, interacting with people, because they always have tons of questions. That's something I like a lot, people can see what we are doing, see the product that we are using. That's important to me, to have good, simple, clean cooking."

Prime & Pint's menu has also been carefully curated to suit just about any taste. While a good steak with mushroom sauce might be a top menu item, there are also options ranging from burgers to chicken, seafood brunch options like crab cake Benedict and more.

And that's just the food. Dining guests can also enjoy craft beer and spirit selections from the restaurant's bar, boasting many local and regional brews, coffee and other beverage options.

Of all the items featured on the Prime & Pint menu, Howard said the best seller has been a bonified classic with the restaurant's Prime Burger, which is handmade daily by head butcher Chef John Newman.

"We have tried to have something for everyone on our menu, because even in our own lives sometimes it's a chicken menu, maybe it's a steak menu," Howard said. "And our No. 1 item is the Prime Burger ... which is hand-ground filet cuts and is truly a 'butcher's blend' for our Prime Burgers."

A good meal and a fresh market

The dining experience while visiting Prime & Pint is only the tip of the iceberg, as they say.

The establishment also operates as a full-service butcher shop, while also selling items such as farm-fresh eggs, handmade crafts and other items, many of which come from local venders at the Columbia Farmer's Market.

Newman oversees the main butchery operations, having spent more than two decades in the business and forming his own vision of what butchery in the modern world should be. Having been given the opportunity at Prime & Pint, he said, is a way to truly see that vision through.

"It's about the path of wanting to continue some old-school kind of craft, showing people that you really don't need to be buying these things from the grocery story, how the USDA operates with a lot of smoke and mirrors in the cattle world," Newman said. "But when you are dealing with a local farmer that you've known for years that has a good product, a good family and just a good operation, you don't have to deal with that kind of stuff."

Dedicated to customers

Another aspect Newman wants to bring is the ability to interact with customers, provide information on certain cuts, where the meat came from and customizing each order to their needs. And this doesn't only mean your filets, T-bones or strip steaks, but also items like sausages, prime burger patties, chicken, even packets of truffle or garlic butter.

"That's the part I like, when I hear stories from people who come back in, how everything was fantastic. That's what it's about," Newman said. "But also, this is about the continuance in the education of the practice of butchery and why we should never let that go away, how it benefits local farms and us, and just supporting a good business."

Newman added that he understands providing the freshest and highest-quality product to customers might end up costing a few extra dollars than you would spend at the store. However, the cost supports a local farming family, is fresh and without preservatives. In a lot of ways, once could call it a true "farm to table" experience you might not get most places.

"Some people get 'sticker shock,' but once they get a burger and find out that it's ribeye and filet, even if it might cost a little bit more than you'd see at the grocery store, you know that it's been ground here today, has a backstory that is very transparent, and we can even call the farmer if they have any questions," Newman said. "It just adds to the quality."

Prime & Pint's butchery and market hours are 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday and 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday. Lunch hours are 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday, with happy hour "Prime Time" from 3-5 p.m. Thursday through Saturday with $2 off draft beers. Dinner hours are 5-9 p.m. Thursday through Saturday.

To make reservation, call (931) 350-0000.

Jay Powell is a general reporter for The Daily Herald. Get up-to-date news in your inbox by subscribing to The Daily Herald newsletter at www.ColumbiaDailyHerald.com.

This article originally appeared on The Daily Herald: Prime & Pint: 'filling a void' for foodies, fresh meat and local farmers