Barb, founder of Barb's Butchery.

Barb is a math nerd whose thoughts crystallize into Ven diagrams. She is also your freshest local butcher, who sees meat as "a giant puzzle". The puzzle for Barb isn't just how the steer fits together or comes apart, it's how people want to buy it,  when they want to buy it, and how much they want to pay for it. But she hasn't always had visions of poultry and pork. In fact, Barb was a math teacher before she decided to learn how to become a butcher and open Beacon's first butchery in December 2014, Barb's Butchery at 69 Spring Street. Well, Beacon's first butchery during these times. Perhaps twenty years ago there was a butcher, but for those living here now, word on the street was that Beacon needed a butcher.

NOT JUST ANY BUTCHER
People are wanting a butcher who can cut local meat that is heavily researched and approved of by a person they trust. They want to know that the chickens are actually running around a farm like one hopes they would, not the horror stories from links that go viral with disturbing pictures. Farms Barb sources from include include Fazzios for chicken, Meiller Farms for beef, pork and lamb, and Dashing Star Farms for lamb. And if you don't feel like cooking your own, Barb's Butchery is a supplier to Poppy's for burgers, and Dogwood for the burgers, lamb, sausages and "pub grub", and Quinn's for pork and sometimes pork bellies. Barb's Butchery has also started serving lunch and dinner - albeit in limited hours. Dinner is from 5pm - 7:30pm so you better get there quick so as not to miss the hand cut and fries and beer battered onion rings.

THE KID CONNECTION
Barb's 3 year old daughter was her biggest connection to her first customers. A lot of the parents of little friends of Lila were craving local meat where they knew where it came from and how it was treated.  Trendy in Beacon is to "buy a cow". If you don't live here, that sounds odd, but people really do go in on buying a cow together from a local farm, and are given cut or ground pieces to store in a giant freezer in their basements. So friends of little Lila were in a Facebook group to put in their requests of what kind of meat they wanted Barb to cut for them when she want on a buying spree. Before she opened the shop, Barb had a loyal clientele.

"I see overlaps in math, it's terrible."
Barb states this like it's a nuisance, but it's wonderful for business. Barb is in tune with with people's needs, and knows that they need meat fresh, fast and for dinner. But they can't always get out to get it. She can calculate her costs and profits quickly, so she is constantly whipping up different deals and meals that people can buy. Like the February Special that can include 2 5oz filets, 2 6oz sirloin steaks, 4 bone in pork chops, 1 whole chicken, 6 all beef hot dogs or 4 fresh sausages, and 2 Beacon Pie Company Hand Pies (your choice of Apple, Blueberry or Cherry), all for about $49.99 (for the grain finished version). Dinner for the week…DONE.

BUSINESS IS GROWING, PLANS TO MOVE?
Businesses in Beacon are hard to pin down. They either open up shop, and don't catch the vibe of Beacon needed to stay. Or they open up shop, business booms, and they move to a larger location down the street. Just look at Beacon Bubble, Beacon Pantry, The Hop, and Ellas Bellas who expanded next door almost immediately. Will Barb's Butchery move? Probably not. Barb and her husband bought the building they opened the store in, and totally renovated it before opening. Under a dual loan - one for the business of owning a building and another loan for the business of a butchery - they are all in. And sure enough, Barb is already needing more space to store meat as their sales increase.

HAVE TRUCK WILL TRAVEL…AND DELIVER
Refrigerated truck to the rescue! Barb has a truck that can store meat, which makes it more convenient for her to actually purchase more meat directly from farms and skip the step of farms taking it elsewhere for storage.

More importantly for the rest of us, Barb's Butchery is going to deliver - if you want it. For those of us in Fresh Direct Withdrawal, Barb's Butchery can drive up to your house in their big truck to deliver your meat order of $50 or more, within a 10 mile radius of the store, and east of the Hudson River. Do you want it? Let her know - seriously - by going to her Facebook page to tell her. For a more in-depth look at how Barb funded the butchery - and the building its housed in - see this article.

And now...for pictures.

This is Porkchop. Yup, Barb called his references and that really is his name. He's trying to make it legal.

This is your sausage maker. Making lots and lots of sausage for Sausage Fest 2015, a kielbasi filled day on 2/28/15 Barb cooked up to introduce more than 21 sausage varieties.

 

A doodle on tile in Sharpie marker by Porkshop in the kitchen.

Teamwork. There are 7 employees total.

My lunch of a roast beef sandwich with swiss cheese. I ate all of the fries before I remembered to take a picture. Also pictured here is my trusty pink glitter notebook for notes that made its debut on a treadmill.

Congratulations, Barb! And thanks for opening!