Meat Cute is tucked into the brick façade of the alley, a cheery little striped awning above evoking a charming historical feel—it’s been here for generations. The inside has been remodeled in the last decade, post fire, with a rebrand to keep it in step with modern Hollygrove. A black and white check floor welcomes those grabbing a sandwich at one of the three tables, leaning into the classic mid-century decor people might expect from a small town deli.

A long glass counter shows off the cooler with the to-be-cut slices and specials of the day. You want fish, they’ll point you a few blocks down. There’s a flap door that goes to a kitchen prep area, and the cold locker in back. Everything seems very clean and well kept up.

There’s a soda machine on the customer’s side of the counter, and all one’s napkins and sundry arranged neatly at a self-serve station, along with takeout menu for customers. There is a special menu when asked, one regulars order off of frequently. Music plays on the radio, genre changing depending on who is working.

Local History:
The family goes back quite a ways in the history of the area coming from nova Scotia as furrier/trappers. The shop was opened in 1913 by Jean Paul Mercier as Mercier Meats. Later it was passed down through the family. In the early 90’s it was passed to Martin, who has a very gregarious personality and is the sort that can remember which pickles you got last time and even regular tourists’ names.

Martin changed the name to Meat Cute after the shop and the neighboring business recovered from fire damage. He’s never left town but his younger brother took off leaving Martin to run the shop solo. When Martin fell ill 3 years ago his nephew Eddie returned to become a co-owner and run things day to day.