Ash Wednesday, if you don’t know, marks the start of Lent, Christianity’s season of self-denial and austerity. Some mark Ash Wednesday Eve consuming loads of meat and drinking. Here’s our short list of places to celebrate Fat Tuesday.
• Churrascaria Plataforma Brazil’s Carnivale is, with apologies to New Orleans, the biggest and most elaborate Fat Tuesday celebration in the world. Here an army of waiters comes around with one skewer of grilled meat after another, carving bits and pieces for quickly stuffed diners — all to a bossa-nova beat. 316 W. 49th St., nr. Eighth Ave.; 212-245-0505.
• Sammy’s Roumanian Steak House You might not think of celebrating a Christian holiday at such a conspicuously Jewish restaurant, but Sammy’s festive atmosphere and end-of-the-world abandon can’t be beat. Order up an enormous, juicy skirt steak, douse your chopped liver with chicken fat dispensed from a syrup bottle, and take your vodka from a block of ice. 157 Chrystie St., nr. Delancey St.; 212-673-0330.
• RUB Always a good choice for carnivorous abandon, RUB’s serves fork-tender fatty beef short ribs on Mondays and Tuesdays. And there’s always the “Taste of the Baron” platter, which includes vast quantities of a half-dozen smoked meats, including ribs, pulled pork, chicken, and pit-smoked pastrami. 208 W. 23rd St., nr Seventh Ave.; 212-524-4300.
• Robert’s Steakhouse at the Penthouse Executive Club. The ultimate in fleshy indulgence. Adam Perry Lang’s aged prime steaks compete for attention with world-class strippers, who can frequently be persuaded to feed patrons while sitting on their laps. If there’s anything more alien to the spirit of Lent, we can’t imagine what it is. 603 W. 45th St., at Eleventh Ave.; 212-245-0002.