West Seattle food news: The Swinery is open

(WSB photos by Christopher Boffoli, added 1:16 pm)
Photojournalist Christopher Boffoli is on the scene for WSB and reports, “Swinery just opened its doors. People already inside shopping. They have plenty of bacon. Bacon dogs too!” 3207 California SW (map). Website here; photos to come. 1:18 PM: Adding Christopher’s photos, including this one of the “bacon dogs,” which he reports are “selling briskly”:

Christopher also reports: “As soon as they opened the doors (at noon on the nose) there was a steady stream of people coming in the door. I left around 12:30 and it hadn’t let up. Sandwiches, cheeses, deli meats are in the front cases. Butcher case is in the back of the store as is where you take your items to pay. They also have a small fridge with drinks and some other house made specialties like fig jam, etc.”

Hours are on their main website. If you haven’t been following the Swinery saga, there’s a lot of background in Christopher’s detailed preview feature, published here two months ago. 5:17 PM UPDATE: Christopher adds that their credit-card machine wasn’t up and running as of early this afternoon – so be forewarned. He shot some video too – here’s the clip:

46 Replies to "West Seattle food news: The Swinery is open"

  • Lindsay September 22, 2009 (1:50 pm)

    I just enjoyed a Swinery porchetta sandwich, on a fresh roll with arugula and lots olive oil. Yum. I came for the sandwich, but just looking at the cases of cheese, cured meat, and fresh meat was inspirational for future meal planning. Everyone working there is knowledgable and friendly, and I’ll be back for dinner fixins later this week. Congrats on the opening!

  • cjboffoli September 22, 2009 (1:54 pm)

    Before I left the Swinery to go back and file my report to the WSB editors, I had to make a few purchases for the road. Of course I got some of their famous bacon and a few bacon dogs which I am curious to try. I also got some venison terrine (which is really fresh tasting, lean and not at all gamey) and some of their house made Black Forest ham. I have to say….what a difference between their ham and the Boar’s Head Black Forest ham I usually buy at local supermarkets. The store bought stuff must be pumped with salt brine to add weight to it and give it the illusion of tenderness. The Swinery ham has a rustic texture with a nice smokiness to it and a lovely layer of creamy fat. What a nice surprise. I haven’t left West Seattle at all today. But my palate feels like it popped over to the French countryside for lunch.

  • Danielle September 22, 2009 (2:16 pm)

    Im so excited about my dinner tonight!….Stopped by The Swinery today. Wow. What an abundant selection of delicious meats to choose from! Very knowlegable and friendly staff. And way more to choose from that I had anticipated! I chose some sausages to throw on the grill, some bacon to use in my cajun-style green beans, and some chorizo for my eggs this weekend. So happy for The Swinery crew…and so thankful they’re planting their roots in West Seattle! Lucky us!

  • Cheryl September 22, 2009 (2:30 pm)

    Yippee!!

  • James September 22, 2009 (2:48 pm)

    I, too, am completely thrilled about dinner tonight–I was cradling my package of pork goodness like a baby as a left The Swinery today. I spent more than I planned and still am picturing all those gorgeous meats I didn’t buy. The place was all smiles, and I couldn’t be more thrilled that we have a butcher here again. Between this place and the guys down in White Center (the place on 14th?) I’m in meat heaven!

  • pigeonmom September 22, 2009 (2:52 pm)

    Oh, man.. I wish payday was before Friday. :-(

  • timeslid September 22, 2009 (3:15 pm)

    What a fabulous place! They take hoof to table very seriously. Home with bacon and sausage, I will be back, I will be back.

  • rockergirl September 22, 2009 (3:38 pm)

    There blog has lots of good information about the products they are carrying – http://theswinery.blogspot.com/

  • OP September 22, 2009 (4:38 pm)

    This has been long overdue in W.S. There will be many visits to The Swinery for the sumptuous consumption of tasty grilled animals.

  • Colleen September 22, 2009 (4:43 pm)

    The Swinery is just fantastic! They will be a wonderful addition to West Seattle (fewer and fewer reasons to ever leave)… Their bacon and sausages are the best ever! Being a vegetarian is now completely out of the question.

  • roddy September 22, 2009 (5:06 pm)

    I can’t get there until tomorrow at least. Don’t run out…of anything! Can’t wait!

  • JayDee September 22, 2009 (5:26 pm)

    Christopher:

    C’mon, you have to report back on the Bacon Dog…heretofore my favorite alt-dog was a Zatz Bagel Dog…Maybe I can convince Zatz to put a Bacon-Dog inside a Bagel-Dog? That would be heaven.

  • dawsonct September 22, 2009 (5:48 pm)

    Funny, CJB, I walked out with the same as your first three items, somewhat disappointed I already had something for the grill tonight. I am certainly no Adkins devotee, but tonight’s meat with meat and meat menu IS a little absurd.
    I’ll probably saute some kale to mollify my guilt.
    With bacon, of course.

  • christopherboffoli September 22, 2009 (6:23 pm)

    JayDee: Not sure if I’ll get to the bacon dogs tonight. But really, how could they not be good? :-)

    There is something that I didn’t mention earlier that I subsequently had a chance to try: the creamy chicken liver paté. OMG! Beyond good! It is in the stand-up fridge all the way in the back corner on the left. Sells for $8 per jar.

    This afternoon I cracked it open and removed the protective layer of wax-like fat that seals it in. The paté truly is creamy. It reminds me of one of my favorite appetizers at Keith McNally’s Pastis restaurant in New York but with a lighter texture if that is even possible. It is the stuff of classic French bistro food. Spread it on a little bit of toasted rustic bread. Maybe a few spoonfuls of caramelized onions or some fig jam. Heaven. I’m embarrassed to reveal how much I ate. The heat from the bread melted it slightly. I just couldn’t resist.

  • numismatist September 22, 2009 (6:23 pm)

    Had to go opening day…..foodies will faint!

    This place is the real thing. Add Swinery in with Bakery Nouveau and Seattle Fish Company and West Seattle now has it all!

    It’s all about people who are passionate about what they produce.
    It doesn’t get better than this!

    Cheers to Swinery!

  • celeste17 September 22, 2009 (6:28 pm)

    I bought bacon, bacon dogs, blue cheese and salami. I have the bacon and bacon dogs on the stove now and can’t wait. Bacon for Mom and Bacon dogs for me.

  • Marty September 22, 2009 (7:03 pm)

    The bacon dogs are ZOMG awesome.

  • Jose September 22, 2009 (7:11 pm)

    Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyy!!!!!

  • Loree September 22, 2009 (7:12 pm)

    The porchetta sandwich is even better with the peach mustardo, and I have a pair of lovely andouille sausages that are destined for tomorrow’s breakfast. And I’m thinking impure thoughts about the lovely skin-on pork shoulder that my lack of cash sadly forced me to leave behind.

  • Ms Pam September 22, 2009 (7:35 pm)

    I CANNOT wait to try this new place out! For such a large area West Seattle really lacks unique little food places. But not any more…

  • Kelley September 22, 2009 (8:04 pm)

    This is so exciting. A real butcher with the food of the God’s–pork! I’m very proud of Gabe, Heidi and the crew. Wasn’t easy to get to this day. Swinery Love throughout Seattle.

  • Chris September 22, 2009 (8:15 pm)

    Meat is MURDER !

  • christopherboffoli September 22, 2009 (8:31 pm)

    Murder was never so delicious.
    .
    OK. I couldn’t resist trying the bacon dogs. They’re yummy, of course. I especially enjoyed the snappiness of the natural casing.
    .
    I’m officially at the point of meat overload. I feel like one of the characters in that old SNL skit in which someone has a heart attack, pounds their own chest, waits until it passes and then picks up another helping of meat. Da Bulls. Sausage. Ditka. Da Bears.

  • JohnAka September 22, 2009 (9:28 pm)

    Meat is murder–tasty, tasty murder.

    Seriously, humans eat meat. It is in our DNA. We learned to cook it, which allowed our brains to function at a higher capacity, etc, etc…

    But every animal has the right to be happy until its last, fateful day, and to not be treated inhumanely. The sustainable and humane practices of the Swinery farmers aim to raise happy, healthy animals that also taste delicious. And it is the Swinery and cooks’ aim to use that meat responsibly and to treat it with respect.

  • miws September 22, 2009 (9:30 pm)

    Don’t know if I’ve ever seen that SNL skit, Christopher, but I can also picture Homer Simpson doing that!

    .

    “D’oh! Stupid heart!”

    *Pounds on chest. Heart resumes beating. Goes back to wolfing down food* :D

    .

    Mike

  • grr September 22, 2009 (10:01 pm)

    mmm…bacon and meaty baconey goodness…mmmm

    People Eating Tasty Animals….mmmm

    ok..somewhat seriously to Chris…you should talk to Gabe and crew about the way their animals are cared for before being humanely butchered to produce food for us. They have a passion for the health and care of all animals, and not a single animal is butchered without prayers of thankfulness and immense gratitude.

    nobody’s mind will be changed. Some people ate meat, some don’t. Just know that IF you’re going to eat it, at least buy it from someone who loves and respects the creatures.

  • christopherboffoli September 22, 2009 (10:12 pm)

    grr is absolutely right. Those pigs are raised on a meticulously clean model farm. I have been present for the slaughter of one of the pigs and I firmly believe that all meat lovers should see that at least once. It gives one an appreciation for the extent to which Gabriel and his team are the antithesis of the factory farming that produces meat under plastic in the grocery stores. They take the humane slaughter of animals for food very seriously and their products reflect a desire to minimize waste by respectfully using all of the component parts of these locally raised animals.

  • OP September 22, 2009 (11:04 pm)

    Meat is MURDER !

    Tasty murder at that.

  • fluorescent carl September 22, 2009 (11:11 pm)

    I murder my meat every night!

  • Catherine September 22, 2009 (11:16 pm)

    Yum, you guys are making me hungry!

  • Voodoo September 23, 2009 (8:14 am)

    I am thinking the owners deserve to be nominated for the The Jeff Fairhall Local Food Hero Award! One of the criteria is building business opportunities for local farmers… which The Swinery clearly is!

    http://www.eatlocalnow.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/jeff-fairhall-nomination-form.pdf

  • mark September 23, 2009 (8:34 am)

    My wife and I try and limit our breakfast meat to weekends only. We walked over with the dog yesterday afternoon and bought some “breakfast sausage”. I cooked it up this morning, it was great. I cringe that something that tasty and fattening is sooo close to me. I need to change the dog walking route so I am not tempted daily!!!

  • pigeonmom September 23, 2009 (9:17 am)

    Ha ha ha ha, fluorescent carl!
    Thanks for the laugh. :-D
    At 11:11, points for that too.

  • dawsonct September 23, 2009 (12:00 pm)

    Murderously good.

  • Mike September 23, 2009 (12:22 pm)

    Murder Burger? I think I have my idea for a new business name… :)

  • bill September 23, 2009 (2:35 pm)

    We stopped in for a couple sandwiches and to check the place out. In a nutshell, we’ll be back many times I’m sure. Best of luck to them, let’s keep the Swinery here to enjoy for a long time.

  • Nati September 23, 2009 (2:44 pm)

    I bought a slice of Pate Campagneand about a pound of Hanger Steak. It tastes so much better than grocery store meats. I am Supporting the West Side

  • anon. September 23, 2009 (2:53 pm)

    I love meat, I’m not a vegetarian, but, I just think they could have chosen a better name considering all the hype and connotations of “The SWINE Flu”.

  • christopherboffoli September 23, 2009 (3:58 pm)

    Judging from the crowds of people who’ve been pouring into the Swinery in the last couple of days, I’d say their choice of name hasn’t hurt them one bit.
    .
    A year from now the news coverage of the so-called Swine Flu epidemic will go the way of SARS and Avian Flu. And the mainstream media will have to find something new by which to scare the bejesus out of their audiences. But something tells me that the Swinery will still be around.

  • grr September 23, 2009 (6:45 pm)

    I think The Swinery will soon become West Seattle’s Salumi. Wonder if Anthony Bordain will pay a visit. He loved his time at Gypsy.

    droooooool.

  • fluorescent carl September 23, 2009 (9:59 pm)

    I Murdered my meat again tonight!

  • April September 23, 2009 (10:43 pm)

    I had some bacon dogs for dinner. Yowza. Sauteed with some kale. It was fan-porking-tastic!

  • Mike September 24, 2009 (9:15 am)

    It won’t even come close to Salumi. They’d have to be more specialized and have family recipes brought into play. Salumi is known as some of the best in the world, that’s how good they are.

  • SteveRoss September 24, 2009 (11:42 am)

    I like Salumi, but I think the FLAVORINGS are too strong. That lemongrass salami with its asian flavors is just strange. And while I like the mole salami, I have to admit that the flavor of the mole dominates the flavor of the meat. The Swinery Black Forest ham is a good example of the flavor of the meat still coming through, as well as the texture of the flesh and fat.

    As for “family recipes”, the Italian classics have developed with hundreds of family recipes. I am sure that Salumi has tweaked its fair share of the family recipes, too.

  • SamGriffin September 25, 2009 (11:10 pm)

    The store looks fantastic! It used to be a rank dark dog groomer. I love how it feels like it has always been there and how welcoming it feels. Sustainable is also about building, not just food. The awning just makes me feel like I am a part of the west seattle hood. :)

  • Liza October 14, 2009 (2:44 pm)

    We just made our first visit there – entirely impressed!

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