KALAMAZOO — Bacchus Wines and Spirits gets an order of 10 types of rye bread every Wednesday from Canada. Some customers insist on buying the bread to pair it with something else at the store that they are even more fond of — artisan deli meats.
They favor four types: Black Forest ham, which gets a distinctive flavor from being smoked over juniper; Westphalian ham, which is dense; Nuss Schinken ham, which is smoky; and Lachsschinken ham, which is smoky and has a softer texture than the rest.
“It’s amazing. Everyone has their favorite,” said Brian Caplan, owner of Bacchus. “I especially hear that when we’re out of something.”
That’s one among several indications that there’s a greater variety of artisan meats than ever before at specialty food shops, and independent restaurants are featuring more artisan meats as well, mostly pork.
To promote Russian products on shelves, Tiffany’s Spirit Shoppe featured several Russian artisan meats on April 17 among other Russian items in a Russian food tasting. The store carries about 300 different Russian food items.
Nuss Schinken ham is a top seller at Tiffany’s, just as it is at Bacchus.
Restaurants are also carrying more artisan deli meats as chefs take a personal interest in cooking with the meats and exposing customers to them.
Zazios chef John Korycki puts Speck, a powerfully flavored Italian-style smoked ham, in the tomato sauce for his ravioli. He also puts Speck on his “Trento” pizza, which also has provolone and Gorgonzola cheeses, figs stewed in red wine and freshly chopped pasta.
Similarly, the restaurant Salt of the Earth in Fennville tops a pizza with Sopressata, another Italian-style meat. They make the cured, dry-aged Sopressata at the restaurant, in part, because “we wanted to offer something with a bit more integrity and craft than pepperoni,” said Executive Chef Matthew Pietsch.
And at Cafe 237 in Paw Paw, Chef Bill Sutcliffe recently took beef briskets normally used to make corned beef and made pastrami. While pastrami is a common meat, it is unusual for a chef to cure and smoke a brisket to make the meat for customers.
“I do it because I can,” Sutcliffe said about his ability to smoke and cure meats. “Not everyone can do it, it’s sort of a lost art. It sets us apart from the rest. Many restaurants go freezer to fryer and that’s not us.”
On the deli side, Caplan explained he has a strong, older European following that favors the German-style hams, but that he’s also noticed an increase in the purchase of the hams among younger customers. They spot the meats in the case, taste, then come back for more in their next visits.
“The concept with them is to eat a little better, but not as much,” Caplan said.
His artisan meats are perfect for that as one thin slice yields loads of flavor.
Customers don’t eat the meats in sandwiches but rather lay slices of the meats on a plate and casually eat the slices with fingers. Along with the German-style bread, customers also favor a squiggle of Thomy mustard, which comes in a tube, rather than a jar.
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