The Butchers is back. Well, almost. Despite rumours that meat monger Marlon Pather had skipped town to avoid flack for his now-notorious couponing debacle, he’s revamped and re-opened his north Toronto store. It’s now called Marlon’s Meat. And it has chandeliers.
Pather tells us that after 10 years of operating as The Butchers, it was simply time for a change. In any case, the new space has been completely opened up. It was an 800 square foot store before; it’s 1,300 now. The basement, which was once a “dungeon,” now houses coolers and preparation areas. There’s marble on the walls and hardwood on the floors. And all the product is, apparently, still organic.
Also new is a walk-in, climate-controlled aging room. It’s the first of its kind in Canada, Pather says, the back wall being lined with Himalayan salt bricks from Pakistan. The salt absorbs moisture and imbues the meat with flavour. Pather is going to start putting it to use next week, aging beef for a minimum of three to six weeks. He’s also selling new products like charcuterie (imported from Spain and Italy), prepared foods (like chicken and ribs) and pâté. Prices, he says, haven’t gone up.
But what about the coupons? Pather says that many were refunded during the store’s two and a half-month renovation process. For the rest of them, he’s extended the expiry dates for a year, but prefers not to redeem them in-store. Now, customers are urged to go through the companies that issued the coupons; those companies will contact the store, which can then prepare the order for pickup or delivery. The system is designed to prevent any more in-store “madness.”
As for future coupons, Pather says he’s done.
“It was an experiment I tried that went wrong,” he says. “I’m done with coupons.”
Marlon’s Meat officially opens tomorrow.
Marlon’s Meat, 2636 Yonge St., 416-483-5777