A little shock wave of panic spread through us as we heard that Rose’s Meat Market & Sweet Shop would be closing in July for renovations, cutting out the butchery and changing up their concept to become more of a restaurant: What would that mean for foodie fans of this well known shop? How would it change and would it change for the better? Would they still have their addicting desserts?Upon reopening last week, it’s clear that the best parts of Rose’s are here to stay.
Some of the biggest changes to the interior include a counter where the refrigeration used to be, and seating in the windows where all the retail items were previously. “The space opened up beautifully,” says husband and wife owners Justin and Katie Meddis. They offer table service or you can order any item to go from the register.
Why make these changes in the first place? “The plain truth is that the whole animal butcher shop business is tough. After four years of trying to make the numbers work, we decided to switch gears,” the couple shares.Now, there is more time and creativity devoted to serving up the delicious Asian fusion dishes that patrons previously enjoyed, but until now, were not able to get every day of the week.
A lot of the noodle dishes from Friday night dinners make appearances on the menu, as well as Japanese Curry.The ramen, which was once only reserved for Wednesdays, is now a signature dish and will change often. (It was featured in Bites of Bull City’s Ramen Roundup last year.) When Rose’s reopened, they started with Tomato Ramen, switching to Kimchi Ramen over the weekend. They will also make a lot of different steamed dumplings in house, like gyoza and various kinds of steamed buns.
For those who were a fan of their meats and sandwiches, you can still get some of those too. They will continue to make the Sausage Roll from time to time as well.The bakery counter remains the same. The ice cream and ice cream sandwiches are now in a freezer behind the counter. People can order a pastry from the counter for dessert and they can add a scoop of vanilla ice cream or whipped cream. They also currently offer chocolate pots de creme as an order-in only dessert item.“We are excited for something new and different,” says the couple. “It’s fun to get back into cooking more, and we enjoy the fast-paced energy of a restaurant.”
Hours are still 11 am- 7 pm as they get things started, but the next step is to add on coffee and breakfast items so eventually they will open at 8 am. Then after a little while, they plan to add some later dinner hours and maybe close at 9 or 10 pm.Photos: Alex Caterson
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