Lorah Family Meats

Lorah Family Meats is a full service butcher shop operating from a stand inside the Fairgrounds Farmers Market at 2934 N 5th Street Highway in Reading, Pennsylvania. The business has held a spot at the market since November of 2011 and sells fresh pork, beef, lamb, veal and ground bison, along with a substantial line of house made smoked meats, sausages and traditional Pennsylvania Dutch specialties. The shop can be reached at (610) 929-5483.

The operation is family run in the literal sense. Eric Lorah owns the business and brings more than twenty years of experience in the meat industry to the counter. His wife, Shereen, handles the bookkeeping and works the market stand when extra hands are needed. Their son Jeremy is learning the trade and has taken on a working role in the business. The Lorahs have four children in total, and the family presence at the stand is part of how regular customers have come to know the shop.

Products and Specialties

What separates Lorah Family Meats from a supermarket meat case is the volume of products made on site. The business operates its own smokehouse right at the Farmers Market, which means smoked sausages, smoked pork chops, smoked cheese and other smoked items are produced in house rather than brought in from an outside processor. Homemade scrapple is also made at the market, a point of distinction in a region where scrapple remains a staple breakfast item and where most versions on sale are produced by large regional packers.

The specialty list is long and reflects traditional butcher shop craft as much as it does Berks County food tradition. Items made or prepared by the shop include:

• Homemade scrapple
• Homemade liver pudding
• Homemade sweet bologna and bag bologna
• Homemade beef jerky
• Smoked cheese from the shop's own smokehouse
• Ham loaf and meatloaf
• BBQ boneless pork ribs
• Shish kabobs and stir fry meat
• Pin wheels

Sweet bologna and liver pudding in particular are closely associated with Pennsylvania Dutch foodways, and finding them made by the same people who sell them is increasingly uncommon.

Beef

The beef case covers both everyday cooking cuts and items that require a butcher's attention. Customers will find a full line of roasts and a full line of steaks, plus brisket, short ribs, shin meat and stew meat. Ground beef is offered at several levels, including lean ground round, lean ground chuck and 80 percent ground beef, which gives cooks a choice depending on whether they are making burgers, meatloaf, chili or a leaner dish. Beef patties are also available. The shop carries grass fed, hormone free beef for customers who want that option, and ground bison is part of the regular lineup.

Pork

Pork is a strength of the shop. Lorah Family Meats produces seven varieties of its own fresh sausage and three varieties of its own smoked sausage. The pork case also includes boneless hams, bone in hams, pork chops, filled pork chops, smoked pork chops, pork roasts, baby back ribs, flat spare ribs, country ribs and ground pork. Lamb and veal round out the protein selection.

Because the shop does its own cutting, special cuts are available on request. Customers who need a particular thickness on a chop, a specific trim on a roast or a cut that is not sitting in the case can ask at the counter.

Freezer Packages and Bulk Buying

For households looking to reduce their cost per pound, the business offers a large selection of freezer packages as well as bulk purchasing options. These include:

• Beef quarters
• Whole pigs
• Half pigs
• Grass fed, hormone free beef

Any meat purchased can be vacuum sealed upon request at no stated extra step for the customer, which makes long term freezer storage more practical and helps prevent freezer burn. For families who cook at home regularly, hunters and outdoorsmen who already keep a chest freezer, or anyone stocking up ahead of the holidays, bulk buying through a local butcher is often a more economical route than repeated grocery trips.

Location and Practical Information

The stand is located inside the Fairgrounds Farmers Market on North 5th Street Highway in Reading, just north of the city in Muhlenberg Township. The market is a long standing indoor farmers market with parking on site, and shoppers typically combine a visit to the meat counter with stops at produce, baked goods, deli and other vendors under the same roof. Because Lorah Family Meats operates within the market, its hours follow the market's schedule rather than those of a standalone storefront, so customers planning a first visit or a large bulk order should call ahead at (610) 929-5483 to confirm days and times.

The location draws from Reading and the surrounding Berks County communities, including Muhlenberg, Temple, Laureldale, Wyomissing, Shillington, Fleetwood, Leesport and Blandon, along with shoppers who travel in from farther out specifically for the market.

What Customers Can Expect

Lorah Family Meats functions as an old fashioned service counter. Rather than selecting pre packaged trays, customers speak with someone behind the case, describe what they are cooking and get the cut and quantity they need. That format allows for questions about preparation, portioning for a crowd, or which sausage variety suits a particular dish. It also means the people selling the product are the same people who cut and smoke it.

For holiday meals, the shop's hams, roasts and specialty items such as ham loaf see heavy demand, and placing orders in advance is advisable during November and December. Larger requests such as a half pig or beef quarter generally require lead time as well.

Summary

Lorah Family Meats has built its place at the Fairgrounds Farmers Market on a straightforward model: a working butcher with decades of trade experience, a family operating the stand together, an on site smokehouse, and a product list that combines standard beef and pork cuts with regional specialties like scrapple, sweet bologna and liver pudding that are made in house rather than purchased wholesale. Combined with bulk and freezer package options, vacuum sealing and the ability to request custom cuts, the shop serves both quick weeknight shoppers and households buying meat in quantity.