New SLO meat market offers high-end beef, seafood and more. Take a look inside
Ricardo Tovar grew up around traditional Mexican meat markets on the Central Coast.
Now, he opened his own on Broad Street in San Luis Obispo with his wife Marissa Huitron.
Premium Meat Market had its soft opening March 29. Tovar said that his family has been operating meat markets since the early 1900s, but his is different from traditional markets.
“The style is more finer cuts like Japanese A5 rib-eyes, Australian wagyu, mainly all our USDA Prime products,” Tovar told The Tribune.
Finding a spot on Broad Street was a stroke of luck, Tovar said. He showed the place to his father, an experienced meat market owner, and went “all out on it.”
“My father gave me the pointers on how to basically set up everything,” he said. “Mind you, my father’s father, my father’s uncles, grandparents, they’ve all had meat markets their whole lives so they know their stuff.”
Premium Meat Market offers atypical grocery store products, Tovar said.
Octopus, large lobster tails, tomahawk steaks and wagyu are all in stock, and the store also sells handmade corn tortillas and imported spices.
“The cuts that we offer, especially the prime and most of our beef, is all Harris Ranch Beef,” he said. “Everyone knows Harris Ranch is known for the phenomenal quality that they have.”
Besides the premium meats and seafood, Tovar also offers fresh fruits and vegetables and Mexican candies.
Tovar said the price range for meat and seafood are more affordable than what can be found online, especially for exotic goods like octopus.
Premium Meat Market will have its grand opening the first weekend of May, where Tovar will be raffling barbecue pits and three to five pounds of meat of choice on USDA Prime cuts, he said.
For more information
Premium Meat Market, located at at 2252 Broad St., Suite 130, is open Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., Saturday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information about the meat market, visit its Instagram.