The Benefits of Visiting a Butcher Shop for Your Meat

If you are used to getting your meat from the local grocery store, you may be curious as to why people would go out of their way to get meat from a butcher shop. Sure, this brings in some old-world charm that is a lot of fun and can inspire the imagination, but is the meat really that much better for you to enjoy?

There are a lot of benefits to visiting a local butcher shop the next time you need some high-quality meat. Some of these benefits include:

  • Better Quality and Taste: When the quality and the taste of the meat is important, then going to the butcher shop is always the best option. If you have never gone to a local butcher, than stop by and order something. You will quickly notice a difference in the taste, even between the same cuts, when you compare to the grocery store. One taste and you won’t ever want to go back.
  • Can save money: While individual cuts may be more expensive when you go to a butcher shop rather than to the grocery store, if you choose to purchase in bulk, you can actually save a lot of money. Butcher shops can offer different cuts and bulk rates depending on what you need.
  • Your money goes to the community: When you purchase from a grocery store, the money goes to the CEO, who may not live anywhere near your area (most of them are high net worth). But when you purchase from a local butcher, your money goes to the local community. This can help enhance your area and promotes small business owners around you.
  • Better selection: Your local butcher shop will provide you with a better selection than you can find at the local grocery store. They will have more options and can sell stuff that may not go as quickly at a grocery store. Grocery stores try to find what will sell the most for many customers, which can cut down on what you can purchase. A butcher has more options available.
  • Unique cuts: There are some cuts of meat that the grocery store may not be able to sell. The market for them may be too small or they may not have the right permits to sell them. This is different with a local butcher, who is able to go through and get some of the cuts that are unique so you can try something new or find a cut that you have been searching for.

When you are looking for a local butcher who will provide you with the best cuts of meat at affordable prices, and with the best customer service, then don’t forget to stop at The Piggery in Ithaca, NY. This butcher shop brings in some of the best in old-world charm with many different cuts of meat and some of the best options around. Stop getting your meat from the grocery store and worrying about the preservatives or time on the shelf and order it fresh from The Piggery today.

Post written by Roberta Walker. She is a frequent contributor to Investopedia, Serious Eats, and Dominion.

Making a Visit to The Piggery in Ithaca, NY

A Busy Place to Visit 

When you walk into The Piggery, you will quickly notice that they are busy. It doesn’t seem to matter the time of the day or night that you decide to step in for a sandwich or some meat to make dinner that night, there is often a line out the door and the owners, as well as their staff, are hurrying around to provide some of the best to each and every customer. One bite of some of their products and you will see why this is the place to go.

If you would like to get some of the best Christmas hams and turkeys around the holidays, make sure to place your order as soon as possible, or you will be out of luck. In fact, the Piggery Butcher case is known to sell more than 1200 pounds of Christmas hams and 450 turkeys to residents of Ithaca, making them one of the more popular butcheries in the area.

When doing a taste test compared to going to Walmart or some of the other large chain grocery stores, you will quickly see why The Piggery is the right place to go. Their meat is free-range and some of the best around, giving you some of the tastes that will bring the whole family together.

Of course, all of the sales that The Piggery makes during the holidays doesn’t always mean that they are bringing in the big dollars and profits. It doesn’t take much research to find that out of all the industries out there, the meat processing industry does have some of the lowest profit margins. It takes some good investment in skill, time, and money in order to raise pastured and healthy pigs to share with the customers. But the owners of The Piggery in Ithaca, NY are passionate about their work and can’t wait to share it with their customers. 

Making a Visit to The Piggery in Ithaca, NY

Whether you are from the area and are looking for one of the best places to get your meat for any time of the year, or you are visiting the area and want a chance to see some of the old world and learn more about where your meat comes from, The Piggery in Ithaca, NY is one of the best places to stop. The staff is friendly, the meat is all locally-sourced and well-taken care of, and the food tastes amazing. Grab a whole ham or turkey or stop by for a quick sandwich while you tour the city and see why The Piggery is one of the best places for you to spend your time in Ithaca.

How The Piggery is Different From Other Butcher Shops

Locally Sourced and Low Waste

One of the things that a lot of customers enjoy about The Piggery in Ithaca, NY is that they know exactly where their food is coming from. When you hit some of the major food chains out there, the meat can come from a lot of different locations and there is no guarantee that the meat is fresh and doesn’t have a ton of preservatives attached to it. These can make the meat less healthy and really does influence the taste.

When you step inside The Piggery, you will see that this place is different. Brad and Heather have taken the time to use locally-sourced meat and even raise some of the pigs they use on their own. They also like to use all of the different parts of the pig, and other animals, providing a more minimalistic approach to butchering and reducing the amount of waste that you are able to find as well. For customers who not only want delicious tasting food, but want to be more conscious of the environment, The Piggery is one of the best places in the Northeast to make this happen. 

The Atmosphere 

There is nothing that can beat the atmosphere that comes from visiting The Piggery. When you walk in the door, you will feel like you are right back at home, especially if you have a large family. The butchery is often busy and full of a lot of different people, with plenty of noise, laughter, and love at all times. The employees are helpful and it is never too much to ask a question, get a special sandwich made, or just stop by and say hello to the owners of the establishment.

This is one of our favorite spots to stop by when we need a quick bite and want to see some old friends. The owners are good with faces and it only took a few times stopping in before they began to recognize us and ask about family, work and more. This is a personal touch that you just can’t get with some of the major chains out there.

How The Piggery is Different From Other Butcher Shops 

There are a lot of things that make The Piggery different from your local butcher shops around the area. This is why people flocked to it and were excited to have some fresh meat, whether they purchased it on its own or decided to stop by for a sandwich.

One of the first things that stands out about The Piggery is that it brings some of the old world to the new world. Even if you have never been to Europe before, you will feel like you are transported back in time, enjoying some of the flavors and excitement of Europe when you walk in the door. The décor, the friendliness, and even some of the people will remind you of a little butchery in Germany, and that is some of the charm that will bring you through the door of this establishment.

The other thing that makes this butcher stand out from the crowd is that they work to locally source all of their products. They are best-known for their wide selection of meats, but there are other products available as well. All of these are locally sourced and promised to be some of the best in the market, without GMO’s and other harsh chemicals that can make the meat unhealthy for you to consider.

Review of The Piggery in Ithaca NY

From the moment you walk into The Piggery in Ithaca, NY, you will feel like you were taken back to the Old World and a blanket of comfort will surround you. Hitting up a local butchery is a fantastic way to get food and experience all wrapped up in one, and The Piggery has an abundance of all. Looking for a nice ham to bring home for Christmas or are in the area and need a quick bite to eat? Then stop by and have an experience unlike any other.

Brad and Heather are the owners, and they are ready to welcome you in the door from the moment the bell tingles. Get ready for a great experience for lunch or when you are ready to restock on some of the best meat in town.

 

How The Piggery in Ithaca, NY Start?

The Piggery in Ithaca, NY has an interesting start and is not quite what you would expect. The Owner, Bad, is actually trained at the French Culinary Institute and was able to learn the importance of using the whole pig, to prevent waste and to provide more options to the customers. It was in 2003 that Brad, on a whim, decided to go onto Craigslist in Berkley, CA to purchase his first pig. At the time, it was part of the experiment of working with genomes in California, and his wife, heather, was selling homes.

That first pig was sent to the butcher and they had it cut into primals, which included the shoulders, belly, loins, and whole legs that would then need to go through more processing before it could be cooked. That was when the fun began. Brad took on the task looking at different methods of processing the meat to see what he could come up with.

To start, Brad dried a lot of it, using an age-old preservation technique since he knew that he and Heather would not be able to eat that much meat on their own. They took it to the next level working with the skin, the liver, the head, and more. Over that time, Brad was able to make a ton of different dishes with the mat including pork chops, roasts, and sausages, giving him some of the experience that he uses today.

Over time, this translated into Brad opening a number of different butcheries around the country, including the popular The Piggery in Ithaca, NY. He and Heather work hard to find new avenues and markets to help share some of their message of not wasting the food that we have and more. Brad is currently working on a food blog and a new cookbook that will help people access all the different cuts of meat, like those that are used in his butcher, and how to maintain a minimalist lifestyle to get ahead.