16 replies to this topic

[Coco Bonobos]

Hi,

Just wondering where the really good meat can be found in toronto for home cooking.

I tried Oliff's steak this weekend and thought it was very tasty.

Thanks,

coco

[Marlene]

Depends on what you want to pay of course, but the SLM has great meat. I'm a particular fan of Cumbrae's meats, but they can be rather pricey!

[orangewasabi]

which cut?

I love the filet mignon from Reithers. It's a teeny tiny touch better than Cumbrae's, I think, though my husband prefers the latter.

[bobsdf]

Cheese Boutique, Cumbrae, Oliffe, Whole Foods, Pusateri...

[GordonCooks]

Cheese Boutique, Cumbrae, Oliffe, Whole Foods, Pusateri...

Ditto on Cumbrae & Oliffe for beef, White House for bison and game

[Librarian_chef]

My favourite butcher shop at the moment is The Butchers on Yonge, which sell a lot of interesting marinated chicken breasts and sausages, incredible homemade hot dogs, and some game. Not everything they sell is organic, but a lot of it is.

I have also purchased a lot from Whitehouse meats, both on Bayview and at the Market. The Boar was good and I love Emu/Ostrich. But, I prefer to get my oxtail and ribs from Korean stores.

I have never been overly impressed with Pusateri's, save when they had Wagyu beef.

Where is Cumbrae? I have never been. I keep meaning to get to the Cheese Boutique.

Mark

[Marlene]

Cumbrae's. Their meat can be pricey, but boy oh boy, is it ever good!

[Librarian_chef]

Cumbrae's.  Their meat can be pricey, but boy oh boy, is it ever good!

I see that Cumbrae's has a Bayview location. i will have to try it out.

Mark

[SarahB]

I've been really impressed by meat from the Healthy Butcher (565 Queen W, between Augusta and Portland), both when I've cooked it myself and when I've had it at Banu.

Their prepped foods are good too. El Diablo burgers on a good bun with lettuce, tomatoes and avocado were my summer treat.

Cumbrae is also reliably excellent.

I've just moved within walking distance of the Butchers so will report back once I've tried them out.

[Coco Bonobos]

Yes, thanks for all the tips. I am loving the oliffe's delmonico's. To die for!

[FlavoursGal]

I'm a fan of The Healthy Butcher's meats, and I love the atmosphere and old-world charm of the place. I bought some beef cheeks there a few weeks ago. Braised in the oven with root vegetables, they were divine.

I've just purchased some elk medallions from John Rietkerk (Second Wind Elk) at St. Lawrence North/Farmers' markets. I'm looking forward to searing them and making a simple pan sauce to accompany.

[salomonrobyn]

Last Tuesday I phoned the Healthy Butcher at Queen W looking for calf's liver. The guy who answered the phone told me that yes, they had it fresh from that morning. It was 6:20pm, so I hurried to get there before 7pm when they close. I got there at 6:50pm and there was no sign of any liver. They looked in the back -- no liver. The woman at the counter apologized, but I got really pissed off, since I could have gone somewhere else and gotten home before the big rainstorm.
Anyway, I much rather get good service than old-world charm.

I'm a fan of The Healthy Butcher's meats, and I love the atmosphere and old-world charm of the place.  I bought some beef cheeks there a few weeks ago.  Braised in the oven with root vegetables, they were divine.

I've just purchased some elk medallions from John Rietkerk (Second Wind Elk) at St. Lawrence North/Farmers' markets.  I'm looking forward to searing them and making a simple pan sauce to accompany.

[mhkhung]

I have ordered from Healthy Butcher a few times and they always jog down my name+phone and my meat is always ready when I arrive..

I got some flat-iron steak last weekend (walk-in, not pre-ordered) and oh it is sooo good..

- M

[Adrian3891]

Over the past year, on my frequent trips home to Toronto from New York, I've really come to appreciate Cumbrae's as a source for meat and poultry in Toronto. In terms of both variety and quality of meats, it's as good as anything I've found in New York, Montreal or Toronto. The central brilliance of Cumbrae's is that it offers locally farmed meats in an environment where the aesthetic is more akin to a jewelry store than a butcher shop. Anyway, to the products.

Steaks: Cumbrae's steaks are very good, sometimes excellent. Unlike mail order steaks like DeBragga in the US, you can pick out your cut at the store. Usually the best few cuts in the case at any given time are as good as you'll get outside of top steakhouses. Also, the flank and hanger steaks are excellent value as they're also given the same dry aging treatment as the more expensive cuts. I always make sure I have at least one Cumbrae steak when I'm in the city.

Pork: I first had the St. Canut milk-fed pork at Toque in Montreal and was astounded. If Cumbrae is carrying it, buy it. It's a world class product that Canada should be proud of. I grilled a loin that I bought from Cumbrae this summer and was once again blown away by the meat's clean, subtle pork flavour.

Poultry: Both chickens and turkeys from Cumbrae are intensely flavourful. It's far too easy in this world of grocery store poultry to forget just how good a roasted chicken can be. One word of warning is that Cumbrae's chickens do not contain gizzards, a shame for gravy making.

Game: For Christmas dinner this year we roasted a Cumbrae duck. They get their duck from Quebec and it was good but not great. A step down from what the better butchers in Montreal offer. I have no other basis for comparison in TO.

My only quibble with Cumbrae is that they're unwilling to sell bones for stock. They use their leftover bones themselves to make their own stock. Their prepared foods are fine but nothing to write home about. Still, I wish I had Cumbrae's in New York.

Edited by Adrian3891, 10 January 2009 - 11:35 AM.

[jayt90]

I believe bones are available at T&T on Cherry St., or any busy Asian market.

T&T does have frozen Brome Lake ducks, and they are better than many fresh Ontario ducks, even though the appearance is scrawny.

[quattro]

If you're looking for bones, the Butchers at the St. Lawrence Market all carry them as well. That's where I get mine anyway

[CoffeeAddict]

The Big Carrot on the Danforth carries a small selection of Cumbrae's Farms meats. The lat time I was at the Carrot I saw fresh chicken and fresh beef tenderloin I believe. Prices are a bit cheaper than Cumbrae's as well. For reference a small chicken was about $11 at the Carrot. Wish I remembered the exact weight of the bird or cost per lb.

They also carry frozen Cumbrae's meats as well I'm told but I didn't see any on my last visit.

The Carrot is also very close to Blackstone which apparently has very good berkshire pork.