For Greg Riddell and Maegan Parry, owners of recently opened King Street Pantry Butcher & Grocer in St. Catharines, Ont., scarcity was the mother of invention.
After the pandemic drove the couple back to the Niagara region after a stint working internationally, Riddell joined the team at Restaurant Pearl Morissette as senior sous chef. He basked in RPM’s ethos of direct-to-the-farm sourcing from small-scale local producers, which paralleled his experiences overseas. Pre-pandemic, he cooked at The Kitchin and Fhior in Edinburgh and Inati in Christchurch, N.Z., with Parry working front of house at The Kitchin and Inati. Newly ensconced back home, the couple began to wonder: Why aren’t there any purveyors working directly with Niagara’s artisan farmers and growers? Why is there no nose-to-tail butcher and deli? “And my wife said, ‘Why don’t you open the kind of place you wish we had here?’ ” says Riddell. After almost three years of planning and regulatory snafus, the shop opened in October, with the addition of co-owner Michael Perez. Prepared foods include exceptional terrines and pâté en croute, plus lunch-able takeaways like Scotch eggs, sausage rolls and pork pies. Riddell aims to introduce customers to the joys of offal with dishes of lamb kidneys on toast and ox tongue schnitzel.
I’m excited to showcase classic British cuts such as rolled and stuffed lamb saddle, Barnsley chops and pork collar bacon, as well as featured cuts for Sunday roasts.
Plans are afoot to attach a full restaurant adjacent to the shop. –Staff
