New Stockist: Ammar Halal Meats

We're excited to announce that our newest stockist is Ammar Halal Meats in Kitchener! We spoke with Faaez, son and nephew of the family business to learn more about their store and their role in the K-W food community.

Ammar Halal Meats, owned by Faaez's father and uncle, is celebrating it's 15th anniversary this month. Until a few years ago, the store was just half the size and much more simple in offerings: the halal butcher, a couple isles of grocery, some produce and some bulk items. Today, the store has expanded into the adjacent store front and is stocked as a full grocery to accommodate the growing community that Faaez and his family serve.

After gaining recognition as a staple in the halal community, the family decided to branch out to support other local businesses and producers, which is how they decided to become a stockist of Four All Ice Cream. Faaez explains that they are now continually searching for other local businesses that they can support and stock on their shelves.

Customers that frequent Ammar Halal Meats are usually visiting for the quality experience of their halal meats butchered in store. Faaez describes the connection that people have when they are able to see their meat being cut and choose the pieces they want. The butchers in store are very experienced and offer Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cuts, as well as marinated products and sausages. This draws in a range of customers to the store with backgrounds from all around the world. "[The butchers] are skilled in knowing what somebody from South East Asia might want, and somebody from North Africa". Their offerings catch the eye of local chefs as well, searching for certain spices or special cuts of meat.

Aside from the butcher, the shelves of the store get stocked with seasonal produce from Ontario growers, which the family has fostered relationships with since their beginnings as a store. Another key part of the service that Ammar Halal Meats provides is an open dialogue with their customers to make sure they can stock the shelves with any specific items they may be searching for.

This new partnership with Four All Ice Cream is representative of the goals that Faaez imagines for the store: "I just love the idea of supporting other businesses in the community, keeping the money flowing inside of our city and getting the word out about other businesses". Imagining potential ice cream flavours, Faaez suggests that Four All could try making Booza, a traditional Syrian ice cream that's rolled with pistachio on top. Nomnom!

You can learn more about Ammar Halal Meats on their website, and see what they're up to on their Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.