Roma's Butchery
It all started with pigs. Elizabeth Roma had taken several of the pigs she had raised to The Royal Butcher in Braintree. Eager to see the slaughtering process, she asked the owner, Royal Larocque, if she could stand to the side and watch. Royal answered, “Sure, if you can handle it.” Not only did she handle it, but that day also changed her life.
Roma went back later in the week to watch the crew break down the carcasses and stood over the shoulder of the head butcher, peppering him with questions. By the time she left, the owner offered her a job whenever she wanted it. She took him up on it and spent two years at The Royal Butcher before continuing her self-education at other slaughter facilities and butcher shops in Vermont, Maine, and Italy. Equipped with these skills, she offered on-farm slaughter for farmers and homesteaders raising their own livestock.
“Custom butchery is not something you learn overnight,” Roma notes. “It took years for me to gain the experience and get to the point where I am now.” Fun fact? She’s Elizabeth or Liz when home with her husband, Russell, and their three daughters, and Roma while at the butchery.
Roma’s Butchery opened in March 2021 in the former Fox & Harrow restaurant along Route 14 just outside South Royalton. The stately 19th-century brick building now serves as home to her whole animal custom butchery and retail shop. Refrigerated cases are filled with locally raised, pastured meats and poultry. The livestock are slaughtered at The Royal Butcher on Mondays, and on Thursdays, Roma and her all-women team break down the whole and half carcasses into fresh cuts ready for home cooking and grilling.
“I think people should understand how meat and poultry are processed,” Roma states. That’s why she offers occasional hands-on workshops that teach participants how to break down whole chickens into familiar parts. She’s partnering with Vermont Technical College, offering classes on whole animal butchery both at the butchery and at another location in Waitsfield. “A lot of my customers are homesteaders who want to know how to work with their own pigs they’ve raised, so I’m offering short tutorial workshops this summer and fall to help people understand what they’ll get out of a family pig.” Roma is also hosting a chef and pig workshop, “Beyond Chops and Sausage,” that suggests fun ways to prepare pork for dinner.
An old-school meat grinder, one of
the whimsical decorative touches
sprinkled throughout the retail shop.
“My goal is to create a butcher shop that feeds our community fresh, local meat. Our farmers do a beautiful job raising high-quality livestock, and our team has the privilege of taking it to the next level.” –Elizabeth Roma
In addition to beautiful cuts of pork, lamb, beef, and chicken, Roma’s specializes in unique house-made fresh and smoked sausages, including kielbasa, chorizo, and linguica. “Sausages are definitely my favorite thing to make,” she says, eyes bright with energy. “I have a custom-blend hot dog made with beef and pork in a lamb casing. They fly out of here!” Sausage flavors include blueberry breakfast, garlic and cheese, paprikash, lamb merguez, la picante, and a bratwurst-style made with pork and veal. “We’re always coming up with new flavor combinations, which keeps it fresh for us and for our customers.” House-cured bacon comes in several styles. And judging from the enticing aroma that greets you upon entering the shop, rest assured that Roma’s offers a variety of meats smoked over hickory and apple wood chips.
The shop is stocked with value-added products that complement meat cookery such as spice rubs, sea salts, barbecue sauces, mustards, maple products, and wooden cutting boards. Roma’s friends around New England make them all. She also brings in a rotation of local baked goods including breads and croissants from Wild Fern Bakery, pretzels by Whispering Moon, and treats from Local Donut. “If people can stave off their appetite with a snack, they’ll take better care cooking or grilling the meat!” she laughs.
“My goal is to create a butcher shop that feeds our community fresh, local meat,” Roma concludes. “Our farmers do a beautiful job raising high-quality livestock, and our team has the privilege of taking it to the next level.”
Roma's Butchery is conveniently located along Route 14 just outside South Royalton. The retail shop is open from 10am to 6pm Wednesday through Sunday.
