I was in the Spryfield No Frills the other day and was surprised to find a whole bunch of unexpected items in the meat section: fresh goat, three kinds of tripe, several kinds of liver, ox tail, cow hooves, and pig trotters. What on earth had happened, I wondered.
So I called up Mike MacIntyre, who manages the store. He said he’d been experimenting with the new items for just a few weeks. They became available through the No Frills supplier, so he thought he’d give it a go. He said he couldn’t say yet how well they’re selling, although I told him I noticed the goat disappeared over the course of a weekend.
I asked Mike if he knew who’s buying the specialty meats. He replied he wasn’t sure, but he doesn’t think it’s restaurants. In fact, he thinks the No Frills is attracting a new customer base than its old incarnation as a Superstore. It seems to be getting more ethnically diverse customers than it used to, and the store is now stocking more “international” foods. Mike’s theory is that No Frills has a reputation within Ontario for low prices and a good international selection. So people in the Halifax area who know about that reputation are coming to see what he’s got.
Me, I’m still waiting to see what happens to the tripe.
