3950 E. Indian School Road • arcadiameatmarket.com
If there's one thing Arcadia local Nick Addante knows, it's meat. But his journey into the butcher industry didn't start there. After graduating from college, Adante continued working in the real estate industry. After his trip to Spain, he wanted to do something that would benefit people and the food they eat. His store, Arcadia His Meat His Market, has been providing organic meat and other delicacies to the Valley for six years.
Have you ever dreamed of owning your own butcher shop?
Not at all. After graduating from UofA, I took a job with a family friend in wholesale, repair, and flipping foreclosures. Before preparing to graduate, I was also studying for his LSAT, but I didn't even want to go to law school, so when a friend offered me a job in San Antonio, I took it. I took his LSAT and moved after learning how to convert/buy and sell residential real estate.
I did that for three or four years, and then I had an accident, so I moved back to Phoenix and did the same thing until about 2010. One of my cousins is a huge health fanatic and lived in Austin while I was in San Antonio. So we got closer. When I came back here, he became an investor in my business. In 2013 he stopped buying houses.
My cousin was a silent partner in Arizona grass-fed beef (at Camp Verde). When I stopped buying real estate, I told him I wanted to join the company. I once traveled to Spain, where I met a woman who opened my eyes to organic food. She is from Europe so she knew all about it. She is an enthusiastic person and she taught me everything.
So you got involved with Arizona Grass Raised Beef?
My cousin told me that I shouldn't get involved because, in his words, “we're not making any money,” and I told him, “Yes, that's right.” There should be food here! ” I’m scared of not having access to clean food. I did all the things that didn't value myself. I was ready to change that. I was ready to do something that would give me purpose, so I wrote a letter of intent to invest in a beef company and took the money I had saved and opened Arcadia Meat Market.
Before the building was built, products were sold at the Old Town Farmers Market. People would come up and say, “This is the best (fill-in-the-blank) I've ever had,'' and I was tired of that. By January 2017, I started looking for a building. Before finding this spot, I had planned to go to the Club Pilates building (located at 38th and Indian School). The building we're in now was supposed to be a nail salon. That failed, so I signed the contract in a hurry.
Did I need to obtain any qualifications or take any courses to become a butcher?
I had zero experience in the industry and had never been a butcher. All I wanted to do was provide clean food to people. And I thought I'd learn everything else along the way. That summer, I went to the USDA factory in Chino Valley every week, slept in a fifth wheel, and worked in the cutting room with others. That's how I learned how to do my job. It was a short intensive course.
I visited every farm, met every farmer we work with at our approximately 24 butcher shops in Arizona, California, and Nevada, and researched and learned as much as we could before opening in January 2019.
Where does the meat come from?
All of our beef is imported from farms in Arizona. We have 40 producers who have signed an affidavit stating that our farms are exclusively grass-fed and only grass-finished. The name of our certification is the American Grassfed Association, so we are certified. My partner Tim has had different ranchers join our program so we can provide beef when we need it. We work with her 4-5 tribes and generations of ranchers.
Tim has six ranches and several leasehold properties where he grazes cattle and we move them around at different times of the year. That's why we always pick up cows, transport them to our factory, process them and ship them directly to consumers, our store, and other stores. Also distributed by Shamrock and Sysco.
What other products does Arcadia Meat Market sell?
All of our lamb, pork, chicken, and beef are raised in Arizona. We sell Australian Wagyu beef and domestic Wagyu beef. Our salt comes from the Jacobsen Salt Company in Oregon. Our olive oil comes from Italy. We carry salsa, Arizona microgreens, Crow's Dairy Cheese, Twisted Honey, Noble Bread, and Blue Sky Produce.
When we first opened, I wanted all Arizona products, including wine and beer selections. But the Arizona wines didn't sell well, so they rotate Napa, Sonoma and Spanish-based wines instead.
Our eggs come from a farm in Wilcox called Chiricahua Pasture Raised Meats. Josh raises turkeys for Thanksgiving and we use their pork and lamb. We've been using his stuff since day one.I wish there were 10 people like him in this condition. [laughs]. He makes really clean food.
What's the most unique thing you've had in a store?
George Lucas had a herd of Wagyu cattle at Skywalker Ranch, and I was able to obtain six or seven of them. It was very expensive and the cows were large. All the cuts flew off the shelves. It took him six months to be able to sell “Jedi Beef.” I've also had ostriches, rattlesnakes, and rabbits, but I buy them already packaged.
The Meat Case prepares a variety of sausages each week, including classic cuts, New York, bone-in, ribeye, and more. Hot Italian sausage is our best seller. Sandwiches are also available every Friday and change weekly.
What is it like to own your own business?
It's a roller coaster. There are many things, but what I love the most is our customers. Interacting with your guests, that relationship becomes valuable.One time, when I was complaining to an old producer I was buying from, “I'll be here until 3 a.m. scrubbing floors and come back at 6,” he said, “Nick, at least they are your floor.
We have to remind ourselves that this is all for the people. It's not about me. I also have a son now, so Really It's not about me anymore [laughs]. I felt humbled. There are good days and bad days.
What is my least favorite part? Scrub the floor!
What does a typical work day look like for you?
Depends on the day. On Monday, we will connect sausages and make burger patties. Equipped with grinders, mixers, and linkers to help reduce production time. Sometimes I'm a manager, sometimes I work in the factory's cutting room, sometimes I grind meat or work in the meat case.
Will celebrities come to your store?
oh yeah. Michael Phelps comes all the time. We have a lot of baseball, basketball and football players coming in, like JJ Watt. I hadn't seen him in a while, but he bought me a case of bone broth. It is sold in stores, but it is full of collagen and nutrients, which will help you heal for a long time.
Will your son follow in your footsteps?
he is only 3 years old [laughs], but I hope not. I hope he does what he likes. Whatever he does, I'm all for it. Both myself and his wife are entrepreneurs, so I feel that he will find what he wants to do when the time comes.
What do you do when you are not working?
I try to ride on trails as much as possible. Either I'm walking the trail or I'm cooking. I love a good tri tip with roasted vegetables and salad. When we eat out, which isn't very often, we like to go to places that use our cuts, like The Parlor, Pomo, The Porch, and Pala.
Future Plans?
Get a bigger ship! We need another location so we can serve more people. I'm invested in one of his ranches, and he's looking to build a ranch on the shores of Alamo Lake. We will own a farm where we will grow organic feed for our cattle, so we will be able to feed the animals that come from our partner farms on our property and sell them here.
