YamChops is not like any butcher you’ve ever visited.
First off, there’s no meat.
Secondly, the design is clean and modern, with no blood-stained aprons in sight.
Sausages are made from veggies encased in plastic (which some customers have tried to eat, so you have been warned) and burgers are made from beets. Open in June 2014, within a week of opening they were running out of food on a regular basis.
This family business takes the recipes of Michael Abramson and makes vegetables the star of the show. Daughter Jess Abramson develops the juice line “Au Jus” which she affectionately calls “her baby.” Located in Little Italy, they already have daily requests to open a second location. The family that butchers together, stays together.
We tasted our way through the specialty shop, asking Jess and Michael questions in between delicious mouthfuls.
Are you a vegetarian family?
Jess: No! My mom is a flexitarian, but my dad has been a vegetarian for almost 40 years. As my dad got more into vegetarian cooking, he wanted to bring his food to a broader audience rather than the friends and family that begged for dinner invitations.
Why a butcher and not a restaurant?
Jess: I think we settled on a vegetarian butcher because it gives a prepared food-to-go option for veggies and vegans and flexitarians who are looking to make a meat-free choice. While there are many vegetarian restaurants, there’s not really a quick place to get healthful veggie options that you can take home.
Michael: I had the aspiration that it would look like a proper butcher. It’s a great space. We wanted people to walk in and say: “Holy smokes!” The “meats” in the front are intentional.
Are people confused as to what you’re about?
Jess: YamChops has a novelty that attracts people. A butcher is a place where you get your centre-of-the-plate protein option. Our base is not animals, but plants. The shock of the name is a positive thing. Generally people will walk in and see things they recognize as meat: burgers, sausage links and chicken strips. Their curiosity is a way for us to introduce them to the different ways vegetables can be prepared that are filling and taste amazing. It is a great teaching moment.
Not that we aren’t enjoying sampling your salads and ice cream and juices, but is this just a press perk?
Jess: Every customer will be offered samples. That’s how we work. You get to taste and experience the food. See if you like it and expand your horizons.
We’re going to have to take some to go. How do you get non-meat materials to taste so meat-like?
Jess: We use a lot of different bases. Non-GMO and organic tofu stands in for crab, our cabbage works as pulled “pork” and chickpeas stand in for tuna on our tuna-less tuna salad. The lox is a stroke of genius. My dad took carrots and marinated them in the smoke spice that is used to make smoked salmon. It is topped with cashew sour cream, capers and dill.
How is it really to work with your family?
Michael: When the girls first wanted to work with us at the agency [my wife and I ran], I was against it. My wife Toni was for it and she won. During that time, we learned how to respectfully talk to each other. We work well together. We really do.
The family harmony is obvious in the delicious food. We fed our purchases to meat-eaters and didn’t tell them they were vegetarian. Amazingly, no one could tell.
Whether you’re part or full-time plant-based in your diet, YamChops is full time delicious.
Insider tip: YamChops also makes takeout lunch boxes that can be delivered across the city.
Courtney Sunday from Toronto, Ontario
Courtney Sunday is a writer, yoga teacher, Pilates instructor and Thai massage practitioner. She teaches corporations in Toronto the fine art of breathing deeply, and travels too much for her own good. She likes to cook meals from scratch using ingredients from her garden, and would mill her own flour and make her own butter if she had more hours in the day. You can find out more about her at www.courtneysunday.com.
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