Hoffman’s has been a staple business in Clearview Township for five decades, continuing the family trade and preserving treasured recipes.
The business opened in 1975 under the name of Hoffman’s Meat Packers and now goes by Hoffman’s Meats and European Deli.
A local newspaper clipping from the grand opening archived in the family scrapbook reads, “Ingrid and Kurt Gerecke, who have another fine enterprise in Toronto, recently purchased the former Brown’s slaughterhouse and proceeded to enlarge it and make it into a very up-to-date plant.”
Kurt Gerecke came to Canada in 1958 to escape communist rule in East Germany and started a deli in Scarborough in 1962 before landing in Stayner.
Their son Michael is now at the helm, joined by his daughter Joelle and son-in-law Hunter Wonch.
According to family lore, Kurt was 15 years old when his father took him to the butcher across the street to ask if they had any work available. That is where he found his calling.
He came to Canada by ship with his sister and her children. They were being reunited with their husband and father who had emigrated a year earlier. Michael said Canada was considered the land of milk and honey and his father had no intention of returning to Germany.
What’s not part of the family lore is why Kurt chose the name Hoffman’s for the business as there is no known association with anyone of that name. Joelle’s theory is that it sounded more German than Gerecke.
Michael said the service of custom killing was very much in demand at the time by a thriving small scale farming community.
A serious change in the rules and regulations around food safety in the early 2000s caused upheaval in the abattoir industry. It was around the same time that Michael was becoming more involved in the business and a decision was made to cut out the slaughtering and focus on the butchering and sausage making.
Towards the end of his life, Michael said, his father would often spend time in the shop.
“He wouldn’t give up the reigns,” said Michael. “He liked seeing the customers.”
Joelle said his personal life was entwined with his professional life, so much so that the business’s phone line rang through to the house next door and it was common for Kurt to take orders in the evening and prepare them the next morning for pick-up.
The original fire brick smoker has been replaced with a modern one that meets current regulations but Michael continues to smoke meat in the traditional way with meat that is sourced and slaughtered locally to ensure quality and consistency.
Kurt’s German influence remains and Michael continues to use his father’s traditional recipes for Oktoberfest sausage, bacon, pepperettes, jerky, kielbasa, and special menu items like Leberkäse (a baked pork meatloaf), Lyoner-style bologna, schnitzel and rouladen-style roast beef.
It was around 2005, when the regulations were changing, that the European grocery section and deli was expanded to bring in more local and internationally sourced packaged foods that were difficult to find elsewhere. The grocery shelf is topped with a collection of German beer steins, most of which have been donated by regular customers, of which there are many.
Michael and Joelle acknowledge that many of their customers are loyal and multigenerational.
Michael said the business relies on good old fashioned word-of-mouth advertising but as he plans to slow down a bit Joelle has plans for a website and some growth, while keeping that small town charm.
Michael and his wife Angelika have eight children, with Joelle being the eldest, so it hard to predict how many of them will be interested in becoming involved with the business but it is reassuring to know that it will remain in the family.
Hoffman’s Meats’ 50th anniversary celebration is from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 22, at 6278 Sideroad 21/22 Nottawasaga, Stayner, The celebration will include a barbecue and a special address from the mayor at 11 a.m.
