Best Beef & Lamb Cuts For Summer Grilling

Millions of New York strips are being sold today for the millions of grills to be fired up tomorrow. But there is life beyond the T-bone.

We asked Bay Area butchers who work with whole, sustainably raised animals to recommend less-familiar cuts of meat that cook beautifully over charcoal.

The Local Butcher Shop: Mario Lopez of this Berkeley store is a fan of the velvet steak ($11 per pound), a lean, short-grained cut from the top round that has a flavor similar to flank steak. He also recommends lamb-shoulder chops ($13 per pound), a rectangular, bone-in chop that he assures us is plenty tender.

Avedano's: At this Bernal Heights shop, Mo Woods recommends two-pound picanha cuts for parties ($13.50 per pound). "It's a Brazilian cut from the top sirloin cap," he explains; the picanha takes marinade well and should be sliced against the grain, as with a hanger steak.

Olivier's Butchery: This Dogpatch butcher sells rare French cuts of beef such as the spider steak, and Hang Cordier says the shop should have plenty of entrecôtes ($21), rib eyes that her husband slices to order. 

The Local Butcher Shop, 1600 Shattuck Ave. (at Cedar Ave.), Berkeley, 510-845-6328 or thelocalbutchershop.com; Avedano's, 235 Cortland Ave. (at Bonview St.), 415-285-6328 or avedanos.com; Olivier's Butchery, 1074 Illinois St. (at Illinois St.), 415-558-9887 or oliviersbutchery.com