Zier’s Prime Meats & Poultry

I have shopped at Ziers for 16 plus years; their selection of fresh and cured meats is unparalleled. Dave will grind meat to order for you and is a wealth of information when you are looking for a specific cut of meat. His sausage case is fabulous; I alway pick up some merguez to keep on hand in the freezer. He house smokes his bacon, has fresh eggs, high quality cheese and the prices are equal to (or less) that Whole Foods with hands down superior quality. A trip to Ziers is what shopping for quality ingredients should be.

Wonderful neighborhood shop. They are meat experts, but this is more of a deli than a butcher

«bespoke» Berkshire pork bacon. Best bacon I’ve ever had. Juniper bay leaves and Syrian red pepper cured.

It’s a little pricey, but the other reviews are right. It’s very high quality. You can definitely tell the difference. I inadvertently compared their ground beef and eggs with those from Trader Joe’s when I was making a larger meal. Side by side, their beef is much tastier and looks better. The eggs from TJ’s had smaller yolks and were lighter in color than my rich yellow and robust looking eggs from Zier’s.
I haven’t sampled much from behind the counter besides beef and eggs. I can tell you, from perusing the dry good aisles, that they have an incredible selection of barbeque sauces and mustards, pretty much anything you could dream up. They carry Hecky’s sauce, if you’re interested. It may save you 15 minutes of driving.
They have a few doors of frozen stock also: some meats and soups, and things I can’t recall…
Parking is street, but it’s never been tough. I often park right in front of the store. It’s just south of Lake Avenue on the west side of Ridge Road.

This place has the best meat selection I’ve ever seen, and the flavor is unbelievable. The prices are high, but if you want quality, you have to pay for it. They have several marinated and prepared meals, and take all the work out of preparing dinner (other than cooking it on the grill or putting the food in the oven). They also have really good soups, and now that it’s winter, I may have to stop and get some again.

Zier’s has the best prime beef I have ever had. I have been a regular patron for almost 20 years. The whole family greets me by name. The beef jerky is stupendous. They grind beef for burgers daily. I feel safe in cooking it rare.
My only complaint is that I can only get the Santa sausage once a year. All their home made sausages are wonderful but that one is the best. If there is something special I want, I give Dave 48 hours and he will find it.
Living a block away, I can tell when they are using the smoker.
My kids love the veal for scallopini, or as we call it tortured baby cow.
Make holiday orders in advance and show up when they open. They are not a well kept secret, the line can go around the store and out the door!

We love Ziers. Dave and Denise are friendly, warm and welcoming. It’s such a cute old fashioned butcher. The meat is always excellent quality and so tender it all melts in your mouth. We wouldn’t buy meat anywhere else. Whether you want steak, lamb, pork, veal, sausages, turkey, cheese or just burgers, this is the BEST place. The prices are reasonable too. Everyone in the area should give it a try. You won’t be disappointed!

A shout-​out for Zier’s amazing marinated flank steak. The best flank steak ever.

This neighborhood butcher shop transports you to a time where one-​stop megastore shopping didn’t rule our culinary lives. The meat case is truly mouthwatering; you simply cannot get meat this fresh at any grocery stores in the area. The cheese selection is out of this world: i mean bacon cheddar cheese, yes please. The front part of the shop has local products you cannot find anywhere else. The staff are all extremely welcoming. You can tell they really know what they are talking about and love what they do. They are always full of easy dinner ideas and tips. During the nice summer months you can also grab a quick brat or dog outside. You are absolutely missing out if you live in the area and have not made your way into Zier’s.

I freaking love this place. LOVE it! Yes it’s old world, yes it’s dingier than a newer market, and yes it has amazing quality, fresh products. I have been shopping at Zier’s on and off for over 5+ years. Our family loves the shish kabobs (HUGE pieces of beef or chicken), burgers (they use steak trimmings so the flavor is fab), homemade jerkeys, salmon spread (to die for), potato salad, etc… Two of our family members are gluten free and Zier’s accomodates us with many offerings, even adding product to their store upon our request. Dave & Denise Zier are two of the kindest, genuine, people pleasing business owners I have had the pleasure to support. Ask for one of them while shopping in the store. You won’t be dissappointed.

Everyone at Zier’s is very helpful and friendly. We’ve gotten lots of our Thanksgiving turkeys from them and a variety of other meats as well. Everything is fantastic. Burgers and hotdogs are fresh, the kabobs are favorites in our house, and the marinated chicken breasts are always great for a quick dinner. Their sides are great as well, especially the twice baked potatoes and potato salad. We recently went in looking for ribs, having never BBQ’d ribs ourselves before, they helped us choose fantastic baby back ribs and gave some really helpful cooking tips. The ribs turned out to be amazing.

Was hopeful that this could be a neighborhood butcher shop that I’d become a regular at. I’ve seen folks eating brats & sausage outside on the sidewalk since they grill them during good weather. Sadly they were out of veal brats when I came up so I didn’t buy any.
I went in thinking I’d buy some fresh hamburger patties to grill for company that night. It was a cramped dingy looking place with some groceries in the front and a small meat section in the back with a few deli meats. I stood in the front of the meat case for a few minutes to see what they had — no one payed attention to me and when they did the guy was a big gruff.
I’m sure they have good meat and I know it’s a popular old place in the neighborhood but it didn’t feel worth the extra cost to pay butcher shop prices for a place that felt unkempt. Just think if the front is so crowded and not we’ll kept what’s it like in back where I can’t see. I left disappointed and empty handed hoping another place down the street would be better.
Bottom line: If I’m going to make an extra stop at a butcher shop I expect a very clean, exceptional knowledge, service, fresh cut meat and a large selection for a slight increase in price. Zier’s missed the mark for me — maybe time for a facelift or just a little tidy to reinvigorate the place and instill confidence that they offer good quality.

I love Zier’s Prime Meats. I have been a customer there for over 15 years. You cannot get better quality anywhere, not just the food but the service. I love that they stock there shelves with all the necessary dry goods to make dinner perfect, they have such a wide variety.
I love you older warm feel of the place. Their meat selection is incredible and can be custom cut for you specific needs either right there while you watch or can be prepared ahead of time if you call in. The homemade Salmon Spread is to die for!!! They smoke the salmon themselves. It is in ever gift basket I ever make and it has never failed to be the talk of the party.
I love the twice baked potatoes and they make all of their own sausages. They have the juiciest cuts of meats. I have had the pleasure at being at pig roasts that they cater and they are just phenomenal. They literal grill the pig in your yard and all of the kids marvel at it when they are carving it, they are so friendly and casual they let the kids try all of the fun different portions as its coming of the pig. It is such an amazing experience delivered by an amazing Family with the most amazing quality of food.

I’ve purchased meats from Ziers for 20 years and the quality of steaks, sausages and meats is always outstanding. Even my young children can tell the difference and request Ziers steaks by name. My favorite summer «quick and easy meal» is their outstanding kabobs — long skewers with large pieces of steak and veggies make a delicious meal. I recently had a fantastic thick ribeye that I marinated and grilled — yum!
The other big reason to go there — Dave and Denise Zier are knowledgable butchers and more importantly high integrity people. Buying food is ultimately about trust — I want food that is clean, healthy and properly taken care of all the way from farm to my dinner table with no short cuts. The Zier’s are quality people that I like doing business with. I highly recommend giving them a try.

I first started to frequent Zier’s about 15 years ago when I was on a quest to find a retail outlet for Prime beef. My search started in Milwaukee and ended is Joliet IL — no place far and near equals this place. The store front is very typical «old school» butcher shop from the creeky bell landen door to the jam packed storefront full of every «extra» you would need. Then a few steps further you are greeted with a 15′ or so long primary meat counter & at 90degrees to the left another 6′ or so secondary display case.
My latest trip did not disappoint, I asked for 2 Prime NY Strip steaks & 2 «kid sized» fillets. They, like any *DECENT* butcher shop, cut my steak to order. I asked for each strip to be about ¾#. Sean, a very tallented apprentice of David Zier (owner) guided me through the process. He ensured that visually the cut depth was to my satisfaction then proceeded to craft a perfect strip.
David’s wife was also on hand dolling out samples of the smoked pork shoulder (YUMM-​O!).
From handmade sausages, brats, burgers, different types of custom cut meats (which aren’t sold elsewhere — prime beef for example) and especially the true butcher feel, this place will not disappoint. Do bring your extra rubles, centavos or lyra — prime beef is priced accordingly. Certainly worth every dime!!!

Wonderful neighborhood shop. They are meat experts, but this is more of a deli than a butcher. Lots of prepared foods, great for consumption or to stick in the freezer. Great sausages, pulled pork, etc. There are lots of great surprises in the store, so you tend to add things to your shopping bag before you leave. You can buy raw meat as well, but I am curious to compare them to Norshore butchers, just down the street on Ridge.

I’ve been coming to Zier’s Prime Meats for probably 20 years now. Great prime meats, honest and informative shop owners, personalized service and they take time to help you figure out exactly what/​how much you need for a group. If you don’t see what you need, just ask! Great folks and great shop!

Not only is Zier’s Prime Meats the best place on the North Shore to go for prime meats, it is the place to go to get what you want. Do you like your steak really rare and want (need) a two inch thick steak? No problem. A pound and a quarter of ¾ inch beef cubes for a chili recipe. Okay, will do. Need chicken breast pounded flat for a recipe? You got it. Want a special cut or type of meat? Ask Ziers to try to track it down for you. Have a family sausage recipe? Give the Ziers a little time and they can probably make it for you. Need the sausage smoked? Not a problem because they have a smokehouse right in the store. Just ask, and Dave or Denise Zier will genuinely try to accommodate your requests.

This isn’t your typical brightly lit, carnivorously delightful American meat shop. It’s more of a dingier, old-​world market featuring a meat counter as well as sub-​mainstream dry goods such as spices, condiments, etc. There isn’t much selection of straight-​up meat, but they have several sausages and marinated/​prepared-​type stuff such as kebabs in the case; and veal stock, meatballs, et al in the freezer.
The service is stereotypically Euro-​gruff; furthermore, there are few signs and no prices. That makes shopping a challenge, you know? I shouldn’t have to be a regular to know what’s what.
As far as the goods:
Hot dogs: Meh
Cheddar bratwurst: Not very cheesy (though it’s better too little than too much) but good meat quality and good flavor overall
Bockwurst: A soft Bavarian sausage with chives, some combination of beef/​veal/​pork; this was my first bockwurst, so I have nothing to which to compare it, but I wasn’t impressed; it’s too soft and not flavorful enough
Italian sausage: Good meat quality, and spiced to my liking with fennel, red pepper, etc; however there was a subtle sweet taste as well… nutmeg? allspice? In any case, it detracted from the overall flavor, and I would probably get my next batch of I-​talian sassage elsewhere.
Prices were very reasonable compared to other independent shops and high-​end groceries, but for the mostly average to slightly below-​average product, it didn’t turn out to be the greatest value.

Zier’s has been around something like 20 years, and in this day and age you don’t last that long in the meat business without doing it right. I stopped by last weekend and was impressed first by the amazing smell of smoked meat inside. It’s not overpowering, but it does induce instant hunger pangs. The second thing I noticed was the owner’s focus on service and friendliness. It was obvious that a lot of his customers are regulars and love shopping there — both for the quality of the meat and just because they’re treated right by the staff.
They have beef and chicken and ke-​bobs and smoked salmon and a variety of non-​meat basics. Plus a freezer of more exotic stuff for that special occasion. I got some salmon spread and a couple kinds of sausages. Their meat snack sticks are great. That night I used one of the andoulle (sp?) sausages to make a risotto, and it was perfect. Maybe most people use italian sausage if they want a sausage risotto, but Zier’s andoulle worked great for it.
I don’t live anywhere near Wilmette, so I unfortunately can’t do my day-​to-​day shopping there, but I will be back for the service, aroma and all-​around deliciousness.