The Modern Butcher
A whole animal butcher shop with all of its pasture-raised meat sourced from local farms, The Modern Butcher (226 Merrimac St., Newburyport, Mass., 978-465-6500, themodernbutchershop.com, and on Facebook @themodernbutchershop) is owned by Warren Means and his fiancee, Lisa Nichols. Means, who spent about a decade in the medical field as a pathologist but has always had an interest in food, said his original inspiration came from viewing an episode of Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations, in which the late celebrity chef visited a butchery in Burgundy, France. He later worked an apprenticeship at Sutter Meats in Northampton, Mass., before an opportunity arose for the couple to open their current storefront. The Modern Butcher’s logo incorporates both Means’ and Nichols’ backgrounds — a cleaver for her career in restaurants and a scalpel for his in medicine. The shop is known not only for its unique custom cuts of meat available at any given time but also for its creative takes on handmade sausages, charcuterie boards, broths, sauces, marinades and “sandwich of the day” specials. Sausages are in a constant rotation of flavors, from Korean spicy pork and Philly cheesesteak to spicy honey butter and Nashville hot chicken, and you’ll never know what else Means and Nichols might come up with. As for the “sandwiches of the day,” those are posted daily on social media and available in limited quantities until they sell out. The roast beef sandwich is by far the most popular, according to Means, but other recent sandwich options have included a play on a chicken bacon ranch with Cool Ranch Doritos-crusted chicken and Buffalo sauce, and an adobo-rubbed chicken thigh sandwich with melted colby jack cheese, Mexican slaw and chipotle and avocado lime crema. The Scene recently spoke with Means about what it’s like to operate a whole animal butchery and some of his favorite items at the shop.
How long has The Modern Butcher been around?
We opened Feb. 2, 2019.
What makes The Modern Butcher unique?
We’re getting whole animals brought to us by local farmers themselves, so that means we’re quite literally getting an entire pig or cow or chicken as a whole. Nothing is frozen or broken down into boxes, so that gives us complete control over how the meat is broken down and what we do with it. … So with that, there are all kinds of possibilities. We make our own sausages in all kinds of unique flavors, we make our own charcuteries, and we can do custom cuts. The sandwich thing we started doing probably sometime in the summer that first year, and it’s really taken off. We only offer one sandwich every single day, and it’s a pretty solid rotation, sometimes a week or a couple of weeks apart. On Fridays it’s always the roast beef sandwich.
What is your personal favorite thing that you offer?
The Korean-marinated Kalbi ribs, just because we eat a lot of Asian food, especially Korean barbecue, and they are so good. I love the sausages too. There have probably been a couple hundred flavors at this point that we’ve done. Our lives revolve around food, and we’re always constantly looking for something new to try.
What is something everyone should try?
That’s going to be either the sandwiches or the sausages, which are definitely our most popular [items]. We want to be a butcher shop first and not a sandwich shop, which is why we only do one sandwich a day. A lot of people come in for the sandwich and then buy some sausage or steak.
What celebrity would you like to see coming into The Modern Butcher?
I would’ve said [Anthony] Bourdain. [Chef and restaurateur] David Chang is absolutely amazing, and also [chef] Grant Achatz. I’d probably faint if he showed up. Dario Cecchini, who is a famous butcher from Italy, is another one that I would love to have.
What is an essential skill to running a butcher shop?
Flexibility and being able to pivot. You also need to do your best at ensuring that everyone who comes in feels like family and has a good experience.
What is your favorite thing about being on the Seacoast?
I love being near the ocean. It’s just one of those things, for me personally, that gives me a sense of calm and feeling at ease. The food here also just tastes better for some reason, when you’re by the ocean and have beautiful views while you’re eating.
— Matt Ingersoll
Featured photo: Courtesy photos.