"That's the old-fashioned part of it. You can still talk to the butcher," he said.
Frani O'Neill of St. Davids said she liked the personal service and the special attention she received at the shop.
Strommer can also butcher specialty cuts not available in most supermarkets. And he will debone a turkey bought at the store at no charge.
And since opening the shop in the summer of 1990, Strommer has introduced nine types of homemade sausage. "When I first opened up, I made only breakfast sausage, because I always had it at home," he said.
After several requests, he introduced two more types, hot and sweet Italian sausage, and on the suggestion of a Sicilian customer, followed those with Italian garlic. Strommer now makes bratwurst, onion and green pepper, onion and mushroom, apple, and lamb with rosemary, which range in price from $2.98 to $3.79 a pound.
Strommer fine-grinds the sausage meat, which has very little fat and no artificial ingredients or filler. He will also make sausage according to a customer's recipe.
"It's tasty. It's lean and fresh," said O'Neill of the sausage.
Strommer first became involved with the butchering business when he was 12. ''I started raising rabbits," he said. "My parents said, 'If you're going to get rabbits, you have to do something with them.' " So, Strommer showed his rabbits at 4-H shows, later selling them to breeders and butcher shops.
At 16, Strommer got a job at the butcher shop where his parents shopped. ''I apprenticed under a lot of old-timers. . . . They taught me a lot of the old techniques, how to do different cuts."
From there, Strommer went on to manage a meat shop, then he worked for a wholesale meat firm. But having a shop of his own was always Strommer's goal. ''I like the retail end of the business, dealing with the customer. . . . (it's) really the most gratifying part of the job," Strommer said.
Shop hours are Tuesday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Saturday, 8 a.m. to 7 p.m., and Sunday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information, call 687-5882.
DAVE STROMMER'S BREAKFAST SAUSAGE
5 to 7 pounds pork shoulder butt
1 tablespoon sage
1/2 tablespoon white pepper
1/2 tablespoon nutmeg
1/2 tablespoon thyme
2 tablespoons salt
Debone pork butt and trim of fat and sinew. Grind meat once or twice on a fine or medium blade. Mix next five ingredients. Wet hands with water and knead mixture into meat. Form into patties, or stuff into sausage casings and twist into links. Makes about 5 pounds.
