Slater's First Class Meats — Restaurant in Oak Bay

About 4 weeks ago, we "discovered" Slater's butcher shop and purchased few cuts of meats. Steak we got was the best steak we had in a LONG time. We also wanted fresh (not frozed) pork back fat and put an order for it. At least 1/2" thick and 1 to 2 lbs. Promised delivery was 3 to 5 days. A phone call 3 weeks later - -ready for pick up. Package was already wrapped up and our mistake was that we did not insist on opening and seeing the contents. Opened it when we got home and discovered a disaster!! perfectly sliced piece about 1/4" thick folded over to look thicker. No skin (good) but an imprint of something resembling chicken wire with smaller openings. My wife processed it as usual, melting the fat for 12+ hours, but it did not smell right and it was still raw. Few more hours in the oven and than I tried to eat small amount (1/2 teaspoon). Half an hour later I had major diarrhea and didn't feel right for couple of days afterwards. Advice: Carefully inspect what you are buying, smell it, ask questions. We won't be going back to this store...

After being a steady, loyal customer (about $50 week) for many years they dropped the ball on me AGAIN ! I ordered a week ahead for a family dinner. Was told (again) “no problem, we’ll have that set aside for you”. When I showed up to collect I was told “oh yeah, we weren’t able to get that for you”. They had my number, they couldn’t call? They have lost a long time customer, and will go out of my way for word of mouth non-recommendations. Terrible business practice.**

UPDATE !! After seeing Geoff's response to my review and speaking with him I can happily say that I am satisfied and will remain a loyal SLATER'S customer. Their service and products have always been top-notch in the past, and I can easily recommend them highly for "meat and meat accessories" ....

I recently stopped by looking for beef to make jerky, and Geoff and his team were incredibly helpful with their recommendations on the best cuts for what I had in mind. I ended up purchasing over 8 pounds of eye of round, which they expertly prepped for me—thinly sliced, carefully laid out on paper, and wrapped up perfectly. They told me it would be ready after 11 a.m. on pickup day, and sure enough, it was waiting for me when I arrived during my lunch break. Slaters absolutely knocked it out of the park with this order. I can't recommend them highly enough and will definitely be back....