Willowside
Great Meat and Fair Prices at Santa Rosa’s
Old-School Custom Butcher Shop
by Torrey Douglas
When he was 16, Chris Peterson loved hunting, but not the cost of paying someone to process the deer he brought home. To keep that money in his pocket, he got a job in a butcher shop, not realizing the after-school job would turn into his full-time career.
Chris honed his skills in the years that followed. After 20 years, he felt that the time had come to move on, and envisioned a quiet life raising cattle for his next chapter. It was about this time that the previous owner of Willowside Meats in Santa Rosa had reached out. He was ready to retire and asked Chris if he was interested in the business. At the time, Willowside Meats was in a steep decline and had only 2 employees. Chris had been part of building up a successful custom butcher shop before, and was intrigued by the challenge of doing it again.
In the seven years since Chris acquired the business, Willowside has grown to 24 employees and opened a second location in Rohnert Park. From May through December, cold storage space is scarce at the processing facility in Santa Rosa due to the high volume of custom “cut & wrap” orders. Most customers seeking custom butchering are local ranchers raising only a few animals at a time. Willowside processes a variety of farm-raised animals, including lambs, goats, hogs, and cattle.
Hunters with both California and out-of-state tags are also vying for fridge space. Willowside breaks down deer, elk, wild pigs, and bear, as well as processing wild turkey, duck, and goose meat into sausage and snack sticks.
Custom cuts are popular, like extra-thick pork chops that can be sliced and stuffed with blue cheese and walnuts prior to grilling. Willowside will also smoke the meat and make custom sausages if requested. Farmers often take special care in raising their animals, so they value the skill and attention to detail Willowside offers. After months and years of hauling hay and feed, mending fencing, maintaining water lines, and otherwise keeping livestock healthy and safe, it’s gratifying to receive a collection of cardboard boxes filled with the requested cuts, all cleanly wrapped in white butcher paper or vacuum sealed and ready for the freezer.
Chris did not jump into Willowside alone. For the first two years, he partnered with veteran butcher John Taylor, who managed the mobile slaughter side of the business. John retired five years ago, after servicing ranches all over Sonoma, Marin, and Napa counties for more than 30 years. Before that, he trained the next generation on how to provide on-site slaughter for ranchers, a harvesting option that is less stressful for the animals and leads to higher-quality meat. The Willowside Mobile Slaughter truck is the only refrig- erated truck in the area—an essential feature since the hot months are also the busiest.
You don’t have to raise your own animals to enjoy meat from Willowside. The shop has an extensive variety for sale, including smoked and marinated meats, sausages and jerky, and harder-to-find options like duck, rabbit, and lamb. Since the custom cut & wrap team doesn’t have the capacity to keep up with demand, Chris purchases the highest-end product he can find, often sourced from outside the area, from locales as far away as the East Coast and even New Zealand, where he sources elk and venison. “More and more people are looking to find quality meat for a good price,” Chris says.
“I try to treat my customers how I want to be treated,” he continues. He notes that big chains, with their hefty buying power, should be easily beating his prices. Yet he consis- tently sells Willowside’s high-quality meats for less than chain stores, and sometimes on par with Costco. Chris could certainly raise his prices, but he says his eye is on “the long dollar, not the quick dollar.” The strategy is clearly working. Some of his customers have been with him for the full 27 years of his career.
A huge part of success on the retail side of the business is name recognition and word of mouth. Chris takes pride in donating generously to kids’ sports, 4H clubs, and local schools, and the support Willowside Meats gets back in return is unmatched. He is a huge advocate for youth. He reflects, “Anything that goes back to the kids is where it’s at for me. I like kids off their iPads and running around, being kids.”
Willowside is an excellent resource for discerning carni- vores who find themselves in the Santa Rosa area. Whether you are raising an animal on your own, doing some fall hunting, or just want to swing by and grab some meat for the grill, this local butcher shop is a cut above.
Willowside Meats, LLC
3421 Guerneville Road, Santa Rosa
(707) 546-8404 | willowsidemeatsllc.com
Open Mon - Sat 8am - 5pm
Jerky and Chris photos courtesy of Willowside Meats. Sign and interior photos by Torrey Douglass
