Amano Boucherie

It appears that AB is «closed for remodeling».
Not sure what all the details are but the sign on the door reads;
Thanks…
to all of our
customers for your past patronage.
Amano Boucherie will be closed for remodeling.
Thank you,
Chris, Sam and Marco

Seems like it would be a nice, quaint little store for high quality meats and other specialty groceries. Unfortunately, the manager is dishonest and extremely rude. I purchased 2 groupons to use at the store, and brought my wife with to use 1 since I knew the voucher stated «one per visit». Yet, the manager refused to let me use it. I then figured I could come back later in the day. Once again, the manager refused because he said he put a sign on the door saying «one groupon per day», which is not what is on the terms of the groupon. The groupon is now expired, so I will have to seek a refund from groupon.
I know that these businesses are taking short term losses on these groupons, but that is no excuse for not honoring the vouchers as per the terms that were agreed to, and additionally for being rude to customers. One would also expect an owner to have more business sense than to bully new customers that he is trying to attract. As a side note, the pork chops we purchased (with the 1 groupon that he did accept) were very tasty, but this is not enough to make up for dishonesty and rudeness. I would not recommend supporting this business if for no other reason than the extremely rude, dishonest owner/​manager.

If I had to perfectly star this, it would be 3.5 stars.
I’ve shopped here a few times now. It’s been sort of hit or miss — their cheese selection especially seems to be pretty weak — I’ve gone back specifically for a certain cheese I purchased there previously and they didn’t have it, didn’t know when they would get it, and seemed a little lost in general when I asked for other suggestions.
While their staff is very friendly, with the small amount of stock, I would expect «specialty store staff» — staff should be able to discuss the products in detail, not just rattle off generic information about a farm it came from. I’m thinking of similar stores like Pastoral and City Provisions in the city and even Marion Street Cheese Market in Oak Park — staff at all these places are excited about their products, want you to try new things, and know what they’re selling. I feel like I’ve had more passionate, interested, and knowledgeable service at places like the Whole Foods meat counter than at Amano Boucherie.
I’ve picked up fresh meats and fish that have been absolutely stellar — no complaints at all. Their rainbow trout was a particular hit. I LOVE being able to go in and get farm-​fresh eggs at pretty much any time, too.
So, go for the meat, fish, eggs and some of the specialty items, but know what you’re looking for, because you probably won’t get that much assistance from the staff.

Gosh, this place looked so promising, but is quite overpriced. I’m pretty sure that the residents of Elmhurst appreciate having a conveniently located grocery store, but do people really pay these prices? I had a Groupon, which lessened the blow substantially.
Here is an example. Angelo Gelato is $ 4.99/pint at Amano. I buy it for $ 2.99 at Tony’s or $ 2.69 at Caputo’s. Some of the cheeses were also overpriced– Trader Joe’s has a far better selection.
The store is quite small and the layout is weird. I felt kind of awkward walking in, because I didn’t know where to go.
Now for the good: nice selection of gourmet pasta (if you are willing to pay $ 10) and Labriola bread (loooooove Labriola!). The cashier was also very nice.

The selection is nice and varied, some items are very nicely priced but others are out of this world. For example, honey sticks are $ 6.99 yet they are .99 cents at Trader Joe’s. The meat counter had the best deals in the store in my opinion, but that’s where I encountered really poor service.
My sister and I nosed around a bit before I decided to spend my Groupon on fresh meat. We stood at the meat counter for a while before we finally asked for help at the cashier station. Help was summoned and I made my first selection. The gal turned to get a paper towel and became engrossed in a conversation with 2 other employees for so long that I considered walking out. Meanwhile, my sister had not been greeted at all.
I was quite surprised considering this is a new venture for a seasoned business owner.

This is a wonderful addition to Elmhurst. We have been leaving town to shop for meat and fish and are so happy to shop local, especially at a business run by one of our favorite restaurants. We picked up steaks for the weekend and they were outstanding. Tonight my husband picked up some white fish and it was fresh and delicious. The shop is filled with so many amazing things and we plan to try something new every week.

I have been waiting for this place too open. We went yesterday YAHOO!!.
Very small the only reason for the four star review is it is TOO SMALL! They had pretty good selection of interesting items. Labriola bread Yeah! but no pretzel rolls. Great looking fresh fish filleted beautifully plus Tall grass beef. All in all a great small place to scan for unusal items & for a great meal. If you enjoy cooking as we do you would wish this place to be 4 times larger.
Thanks for taking the chance, We hope you get the support. Get off the train @ out of your houses and support local business.

A great and much needed addition to downtown Elmhurst from the successful proprietors of Café Amano. The Amano Boucherie, located next door, is a full service butcher shop and French market, featuring sustainable, organic, and free range meats and poultry, fish, produce, and more. They also will carry a selection of wild meats such as bison, elk, and ostrich! Marco, the owner, has also put together a nice assortment of imported spices, sauces, condiments, as well as gourmet appetizers, cheeses, and all the other wonderful things that make life so tasty! Finally, Elmhurstians don’t have to drive 20 minutes to the nearest Whole Foods.