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Vince Gasparro's Meat Market
Category: Food Specialty Food Meat Shops Meat Shops [Edit]
857 Bloor St WToronto, ON M6G 1M3
Neighbourhood: Bickford Park
(416) 534-7122
- Hours:
Mon-Fri 9 am - 7 pm
Sat 9 am - 5 pm
Sun 12 pm - 3 pm
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Street
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
15 reviews for Vince Gasparro's Meat Market
Review Highlights
"The Mennonite chicken and eggs are free range (really."
(in 4 reviews)
"Hands down best butcher in Toronto."
(in 9 reviews)
"Steaks are always quality cuts."
(in 4 reviews)
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15 reviews in English
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Review from Melinda M.
Toronto, ON
11/11/2011 1 Check-in Here
This is an exceptionally good butcher. You get what you pay for, and at Vince Gasparro's you get high quality meat.
I bought a delicious steak here and gobbled it down very easily after cooking it on the grill. I have also gotten some beef shoulder that I made into a slow cooker beef and red wine dish that came out really well.
The guys behind the counter are exactly who you'd picture to work in a butcher shop: tough guys. They know their meat, are very friendly and helpful, and are entertaining to boot! You mention a cut of meat and they'll tell you all about it, and how to cook it if you play your cards right. Just because they look like old school butchers doesn't mean they are. They know all about farm-raised, organic, etc, etc.
Just go.Listed in: 30 Day Yelp Challenge November…
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Review from Brandon D.
Toronto, ON
10/14/2011 1 Check-in Here
Hands down best butcher in Toronto. I can't say enough good things about the family here. The boys even argue with each other while working. True family business with the best Steak, Pork Shoulder and sausage I've had in my life.
My go to butcher. -
Review from Howard H.
7/21/2011 2 Check-ins Here
This is the other real-deal butcher shop in the Bloor / Ossington hood. Vince Gasparro's has been in Toronto forever and has survived due to one consistent ingredient; greatness. This is one of Toronto's destination meat markets (No silly Yelpers! The OTHER kind ...)
Nick and Pat are expert butchers who take care not only in the cutting, but the sourcing of the products as well. Many of my friends who didn't grow up in Canada complain that the supermarket chicken has no taste and that the eggs all taste a bit past their prime. I smile and point them to Vinny G's. The Mennonite chicken and eggs are free range (really!) and OMG you can taste the difference.
Barese Sausage. Not the generic Italian sausage, but the authentic-house made-insanely delicious-different from all other sausages in the GTA-have you started out to pick some up yet?- kind of goodness. You want this sausage, you need this sausage, you better not buy all of it and leave some of this sausage. This sublime substance is incredibly versatile; great with a bit of asiago and Italian parsley in an omelette, great with some rice and lentils, great with roasted red peppers over cous-cous drizzled with a bit of olive oil. This stuff is one of my not-so secret ingredients and invariably the answer to :How come it doesn't taste like that when I make it?
The meat from Gasparro's will restore your faith in food and help quash any lingering doubts about your carnivorous ways. As great as Gasparro's is, they cannot salvage your reputation with the hot vegan if they happen to run into you on your way back home as you will invariably be carrying a carload of carrion. At least that's the way they'll see it...but time and Barese sausage heal all wounds.Listed in: Meet the Meat
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Review from Kennedy R.
Toronto, ON
6/29/2011
I've lived in this neighbourhood since I was a tot and Gasparro has always been my family's go-to man when it comes to meat.
The quality of the meat is fantastic. Gasparro's tries to source all their meat from farms that treat the animals with care. I'm not an over-the-top PETA extremist but I like to know that the meat that I plan to eat did not spend it's life in a CAFO. This care shows in the taste of the meat. I've never had an unsatisfactory cut of meat from this butcher.
The bacon is amazing. Top notch and it has the best balance between fat and meat.
The sausages are my kryptonite. I love the spicy Italian ones. They've got a bit of a kick but you can still taste the other seasonings and the wonderful, wonderful pork.
The service may just be the best part. I love walking in and hearing orders being shouted and hearing the camaraderie of the family. -
Review from Ted P.
Toronto, ON
11/7/2011
When was the last time you went to your butcher and he introduced himself, shook your hand , and gave you a baseball cap? While at the same time serving you the best free range , grain fed meats in the city. They have been in business for 40 years, which proves that great face to face customer service and quality product equals success.
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Review from Tim S.
Etobicoke, ON
4/20/2011
Fantastic butcher...I have been going here weekly for over 3 years, and i will not go anywhere else for meat. I can agree it can be a bit intimidating with the staff, it can be loud and busy, but it's worth the time and effort to get to know them. Nick and Pat really know their stuff.
Breakfast bacon is always fresh and fantastic. I can never buy store bought bacon again after this place.
I frequently buy wheels of chicken sausage, which is made in house, as are all sausages i believe.
Steaks are always quality cuts. The ribeye's are always thick and well marbled, and strip loin cuts can't be beat.
Have picked up several roasts from here for Christmas meals. I would suggest going to the website to submit the order before hand. The Prime Rib Roasts i have picked up from here have always been a favourite. Had a 9 pound boneless rib roast once that was brilliant.
Chicken breasts are quite big, and can be ground on request.
I pick up my eggs from here frequently, all are free range. Wide selection of deli meats as well. -
Review from Catherine M.
Toronto, ON
10/22/2011
Gasparro's is the Best in the City!! This Family business is what every business should be like. They remember your name, they care!!
Love it!!! -
Review from Rj P.
4/7/2011
VG's is go-to place for quality meat in Toronto.
The meat quality is top-notch - high-grade meat, well aged and cut carefully. The meat is sourced locally from small-scale farms and has fantastic flavor.
The staff are friendly and will get to know you if you come in frequently and they always have something interesting to offer or something new to show you.
If you want great meat meat - Gasparro's can't be beat!
Highly recommended. -
Review from Jennifer L.
Toronto, ON
2/7/2009
I love to eat meat. And if you do too, this place is for you!
I buy chicken from here all the time, specifically the chicken breasts. Breasts, the way I like 'em: juicy, succulent, healthy and firm. They don't have saggy and chemically induced breasts here. The breakfast bacon is also another top choice, which I happily get a half a pound of and I'm good to go.
Buffalo Mozzarella is also sold here, which is generally expensive and hard to find. It's wonderful if you want a taste of real Italy. Aside from a small variety of cheeses, you're also able to pick up pasta, pâté, canned items and other Italian groceries to accompany your sweet meat.
Buying fresh quality meat makes my day. I look forward to trips to this butcher. The service is nice and friendly. I have a crush on everyone that works there.Listed in: I Love Meat
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Review from Stephan J.
Toronto, ON
12/30/2009
What can I say about the Gasparro family butchers...they rock! I've been buying from them for over 8 years and they never disappoint. If you want real meat and poultry this is the place. Forget the grocery store, once you've had real aged meat, or free-range Mennonite chicken you'll never go back. A true family establishment, Vince, Nick and Pat are friendly and always willing to help. If you are faint of heart don't go in when the goats are hanging from the hooks!
Whenever I go in I'm greeted like I'm walking into Cheers...NORM! ...Okay, STEPH!... but you get the idea. -
Review from andrew a.
12/4/2010
What can I say about vinny G's. I feel completely and utterly at home here, I come each and every sunday now to stock up on my weekly proteins, and what a place to do so. First off, the butchers (cant remember their names) are just straight up mench's. They are always ready to give reccomendations on new cuts, recipes etc. The meat is divinely fresh and absolutely delicious, their steaks truly a "cut" above anything ive ever had in toronto (save for a $50 steak from pusateris or cumbraes) nothing else even comes close. My reccos: Steak (their NY is what I usually order, but I ve had the porterhouse (fed me for 3 days) and it was heavenly). Their lamb is the lamb of gods, Duck (once a week) is great, Chicken=unreal. ALl their meats are sourced from mennonite farms who really dont F*** around when it comes to their product. To add, the price is great! i mean great, like 1/2 what you would pay at fiesta farms. Also, deli meats are great and they have a good variety of nitrite free stuff, parma prosciutto (HHMMM) bacons etc. and some really unique olives too.
GO NOW GO NOW -
Review from Emily T.
Toronto, ON
11/18/2008
If you're having trouble deciding what to make for dinner tonight, the staff at Gasparro's are more than happy to lend some tips and friendly advice on what and how to cook any kind of meat dish.
It's my local butcher and every time I go in, I come out with a new recipe or way to cook chicken/ pork/ beef, etc... On another bright note, they support Ontario farmers, and have only free run, grain fed chicken (they don't sell chickens that were once kept in tiny cages and fed antibiotic laden food).
You will notice a significantly higher bill than at the grocery store, but for the service and excellent meat products, it is well worth! -
Review from Rita V.
Toronto, ON
1/21/2011
Excellent family-owned and operated local butcher. Like others have said, the quality of the meat is outstanding. I particularly love their lamb sausage and free-range chickens.
I have to agree with another writer that their ability to handle special orders is spotty. Has happened to us twice. Lesson learned -- go early if you want something special and don't depend on the advance ordering process. Follow up all online orders with a phone call to make sure that the email actually went through to Nick's Blackberry!
Aside from the special ordering issue, which is annoying but at least for me not a deal-breaker, the place is fantastic, we love their product and prices, and appreciate the family-owned-and-run love of the business. I make a monthly trip from across town by bus/subway to deal exclusively with them for our household meat and poultry. -
Review from Chris B.
Toronto, ON
2/23/2011
Great cuts and great prices. Two words. The bomb.
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Review from John B.
Toronto, ON
7/14/2010
I hate to say it, but I'm not sure I'll be building much of a relationship with this shop, despite their relative distance from my home. Though I think the meat is excellent quality, and the prices reasonable compared to similar quality cuts in the grocery stores, anytime I go to VG's with a specific meat request, I'm usually met with a furrowed brow on the other side of the counter. Granted, I tend to follow recipes to the letter, and if said recipe calls for a cut of meat that is more popular in the States or uses a different term to describe the same item it can be confusing at first, but I don't often get the feeling that we're working together trying to solve my problem. Instead, I find myself getting a "butcher-knows-best" kind of treatment which doesn't inspire confidence because there's little communication beforehand on what I'm trying to buy. So despite all the quality meats available to me, I feel there is a block in customer service, or a lack of faith somewhere between customer and butcher that knocks Vince Gasparro's down a point.
