A Coffee with Dave van Leeuwen, Owner of Ben's Meats

The Ben's Meats Story: A Legacy on Stony Plain Road

Join us for a coffee and chat with Dave van Leeuwen, the third-generation owner of Ben's Meats. We dive into the fascinating history of this Edmonton staple, started by his grandfather in 1953 in the town of Jasper Place—before it was even a part of Edmonton. Dave shares how the original storefront was a small living room in his grandparents’ house, and how the business has since grown into a beloved community fixture.

This episode is about more than just a butcher shop. Dave tells us how he knew from the age of three that he would one day own Ben’s, and how he’s carried on the family legacy while adapting to the modern world. We discuss the dying art of breaking down animals and the importance of traditional butchery in a world of machines and pre-packaged goods.

Perhaps most inspiring, Dave shares the personal story of how his own diagnosis with Celiac disease transformed the business. What began as a small adjustment to the shop’s offerings grew into a full-scale mission, leading to the creation of their popular gluten-free cafe and making Ben's a safe haven for those with dietary restrictions. It's a story of family, legacy, and a business that continues to evolve to serve its community.

Let us know your thoughts in the comments and leave us a review!

Follow Coffee in the Park with Jennifer and Cam on our social medias

Instagram: https://instagram.com/coffeeintheparkwithjenandcam

Website: https://www.coffeeinthepark.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/coffee-in-the-park-podcast/

Transcript

0:00

Hi, I'm Dave van Leeuwen, and you're listening to Coffee In The Park with Jennifer and Cam. Well, today, we're recording this on the very first day of fall, and it feels like fall. It was very cold this morning. We went from like 30 degrees to like 7 degrees this morning. The leaves are now yellow and falling off the trees at a rapid pace. Can I just say, the leaves are everywhere, and we know people listen to this podcast around the world, so if you're listening to this in a very warm climate, it's getting cooler here, and it's the sign that winter's on its way. You know, I like fall, but here's the challenge. You have to dress in multiple layers. No, you're absolutely right. You get up in the morning, you're going to wear your plus 27 clothes, but you freeze when you go outside, so you put jackets on, and then by the afternoon, you're sweating already. Exactly. It's layers. It's layering, Jennifer. It's layering. Well, anyway, welcome everybody to another edition of Coffee In The Park with Jennifer and Cam, and we're coming to you live from the Wall Coffee Roasters in the heart of beautiful Downtown Acheson. That's right. So if you hear any noise in the background, some coffee machines whirring, kids screaming, people talking, all that kinds of stuff, it's because we're in a coffee shop. So that adds to it. That's what it's all about. So anyway, thanks for listening to us, everybody. Jennifer, it's great. And they have new fall flavors of drinks at the Wall Coffee Roasters. They do. They are... There is the Apple Spice Latte. Apple Spice Latte. And the Maple London Fog, Cam. And I've had both. Have you had both? I have. And you know what? They're actually pretty good. They're not bad. A little fall perfection. As you sit by the fire and sip your Maple Fog... Watching the leaves fall off the tree. Watching the leaves, your Maple Fog Latte. Although in beautiful downtown Acheson, there's not a lot of trees. There's not a lot of trees to go sitting by. But anyway, take it home, sit in the backyard, enjoy it. It's great. And we have some very important people we want to tell you about. First of all, Coffee In The Park with Jennifer and Cam is brought to you by Wing Snob. That's right. The best wings you're going to find anywhere in the city of Edmonton, in my opinion. And do you know why, Cam? Why? Because their wings are fresh, never frozen. Fresh, never frozen. They are some of the most amazing wings you've ever had. Sixteen flavors, four rubs. And I mean, what's your favorite flavor? I ask you this every show. What's your favorite flavor? I know. It's still snobby Q. Still snobby Q? Yes, for the sauces, but the rubs. You like the? I love the dill pickle. The dill pickle rub. Ah, yeah. And we were with Mike Chadi the other night. And we're going to have Mike on once a month. Mike's going to come on and do Flavor of the Month. That's right. So I'm pretty excited about that. So, hey, listen, if you're looking for somewhere to go for dinner tonight, like, hey, say you don't want to cook or whatever the kids are out doing, something you want to just get a quick, great, fantastic supper, go to Wing Snob, ten locations in the city of Edmonton. And you can go to www.wingsnob.ca to find the location nearest to you. Tell them Jennifer and Cam from Coffee In The Park sent you. Yes, absolutely. And enjoy your wings. You can get, like, just a 8-pack or a 12-pack or a 50-pack or a 125,000-pack, whatever you want. Whatever you want. I think the 125,000 you should phone ahead, because that will take a bit of prep time. But nonetheless, Wing Snob, a great place for wings in the city of Edmonton, boneless and traditional, or you can have both. You can order the 50-50. That's right. Try it out. It's an awesome place to go. Also, we want to tell you about Mprint. Mprint printers. Mprint Sign and Print Solutions, located here in Acheson. And they are, Cam, the preferred printer of Coffee In The Park. They're amazing printers. They'll do business cards, they'll do pamphlets, they'll do brochures, they'll do booklets, they'll do wrapping. Yes. They wrap. Not Christmas wrapping. Not Christmas wrapping. No, let's not getting confused. Not that kind of wrapping. They do like, they'll wrap your vehicle for you. They'll wrap your motor home for you. They'll wrap your semi truck for you. Whatever you can think of, they'll do it. They'll wrap your submarine for you. I don't think they've done a submarine. But they'll wrap it all. It's pretty incredible. Mprint, amazing printers. And they do fantastic work. And listen, if you need something printed, I would definitely check out Mprint. Check out their work quality. Check out their prices. You won't be disappointed. I guarantee it. No, absolutely. Jan and Don, the two owners at Mprint and their team do a fabulous job. And they will find the right product to do the custom job with unique solutions. Absolutely. Non-profit or for-profit, doesn't matter. They're going to treat you like you are their best friends. Mprint.ca, located right here in Acheson. That's right. All right. I'm excited about today. I am. I really am, Jennifer. So why don't we kick it off and let's get going. Okay. Our guest today is Dave van Leeuwen, who is the owner of Ben's Meats. Welcome, Dave. Oh, thanks for having me. Now again, Ben's Meats for those, and we do have listeners all around the world. So those of you who aren't here in Edmonton or surrounding area in Alberta, you may never get to go to Ben's Meats, but you'll want to. When we're done today, you're going to fly into Edmonton to go to Ben's. So welcome. Good to have you. Let's kick er off. Dave, tell us a little bit about you and then we'll get in to Ben's Meats. So tell us a little bit about yourself. Where were you born and where did you grow up? I'm a local boy, born and raised in Edmonton. You're an Edmontonian! Born at the Royal Alexander Hospital. Wow, okay. The last three guests we've had, I think they've all been born at the Royal Alex. It was the baby hospital. Oh, that's right, yeah. So 1973, I was a bit of a surprise. My mom didn't know she was having twins. Out came me second, so I was a little bit of a surprise. Yeah. So my parents lived in St. Albert, so I grew up in St. Albert my whole life. Back when it wasn't trendy to live in St. Albert. Right. We didn't say that. Gravel roads, you know. Yeah, that's right. I think it's a little more trendy now. They paved the roads, so things are good. It's a little better now. Yeah. And so I grew up in St. Albert, so I'm just a local boy, born and raised. And what high school, you went to? St. Albert. Okay. Yeah. The Bellrose Composite High. So you went to... Did you play any sports? I'm always curious about that. You're a bigger guy. No, they should have put me in football. My son plays football, and he played for that high school. But no, they didn't put me in any sports. I played soccer as a kid. Yeah. Okay. But Cam, I have a question. Yeah. Because the whole twin thing is fascinating to me. Okay. Yeah. Identical? No. Not identical. No, because I have a twin sister. Okay. Well... I love it. But I don't know about... Good try. Yeah. No. And how much older is she than you? Nine minutes. Nine months. No. Nine minutes. Nine minutes. Not nine months. I was going to say nine months. That's not a twin. That's a whole other baby. But I do get that asked all the time. People hear have a twin sister. Are you identical? Yeah, no. No. Poor girl. Do you look alike, though? No. I'm six foot two. She's five foot four. Really? Okay. That's interesting. So people would probably not know you're twins by taking a look at you. Yeah. Does she hold the nine minutes over you? Does she like... She used to until she turned 20. Yeah. Now it's kind of disappeared. So your mom wasn't ready. Or my mom had no clue. Had no clue. That must have been interesting. Yeah. They had one crib at home. Were there other siblings before you guys? I have an older sister. You have an older sister. So your mom was ready. One crib, one set of clothes, one... All that. Now you come along. Wow. Yeah. That must have been... Yeah. A little surprised. Yeah. And what did your mom and dad do? What were they... So my dad owned the store. Oh, that's right. Okay. Yeah. Yeah. So my mom and dad ran Ben's Meats. Okay. Wow. That... I mean, that's... Nowadays, I don't think that would happen. They would know you're gonna have twins, right? They only did ultrasounds back then, when they thought you were having twins. Right. Right. Yeah. My mom got told, one big baby. One big baby. Really big baby. Yeah. I find that fascinating. But the nurse thought, just before she went in, said, did the doctor say anything about twins? And my mom's like, no. One big baby. No. And sure enough, the nurse like, I knew I should have brought the second bassinet. I just knew it. So like your mom and dad were totally, like everybody, even the doctor didn't know. No. They didn't know. Man, that's just... Out came a little one and the doctor said, I think there might be one. There might be another one in there. And the big baby was me, of course. The big baby. Yeah. Yeah. That's right. They're yanking Dave out. Yeah. That's really incredible. Okay. So now you had twins in the house. That must have been interesting for your mom and dad. That must have been a lot of fun. Yeah. And yeah. So then you grew. You went to high school and? Went to NAIT. Okay. What did you do at NAIT? You retail meat cutting. Did you? Yeah. I said since I was about three years old, I was going to own Ben's Meats. Okay. Yeah. So my grandfather started Ben's Meats in 1953. Yeah. It was the town of Jasper Place. It was not Edmonton. The town of Jasper Place? The town of Jasper Place. Really? On Stony Plain Road. Yeah. Okay. Now, I grew up in Edmonton. But I must have... In the 60s, early 60s, Edmonton annexed and Jasper Place went bankrupt and Edmonton annexed Jasper Place. I didn't know that. I didn't know that. So it would have been like a little... Like a community in itself, like a little town. It was its own town. It had its own town hall. Really? And Edmonton annexed that and brought it in. Well, they took over, yeah. They kind of swallowed it up in the 60s. Jasper Place kind of was going bankrupt. Yeah. They kind of just took it over. Okay. So I think to put this all into perspective, probably is a good time to start talking about Ben's Meats. So you own an amazing... I call it a delicatessen butcher shop, dry goods that are absolutely amazing, kind of everything store that's here in Edmonton. And it started, tell us, your grandfather started it. So it started as my grandfather as a meat cutter. And your grandfather was from where? So from Holland, the Netherlands. Holland, yeah. He was born in Utrecht in the Netherlands. And they came across in 1950. And he was working at Canada Packers in the meat plants. And then he decided, him and my grandma, Ben and Lenie van Soest decided to start Ben's Meats. And the first was in Jasper Place? Yeah, 15726 Stony Plain Road. Where your store was before we moved to now. Is that right, eh? So that's been there that long. But that location had a house. It was a house, it was not the building that we're in now. So it was a house, and the reason why it was on Stony Plain Road is because they had plumbing. The houses in behind didn't have plumbing yet. I think it's good that a butcher shop has plumbing. I'm just saying, you know what I mean? So the later part of the store was the living room of a house, and they lived in the back of the house. So you grew up? No, this is 1953. Or it's your grandparents. It's 1953, so my grandparents. And then your grandpa decided to retire or just brought your dad into the business? 1953 is in this house. 1956, they built that other building over top in three stages. And they built it off, first the Ben's Meat side, then they had another side, and then they built the back. My grandfather actually operated out of the caboose laid in front for three months. And he sold meat out of the caboose. Is that right? And he bought a house just down 158th Street. Yeah. So they were living in the house when I grew up, young, young, on 158th Street, right behind the store. Yes. So was that the time pre-big supermarkets? Oh, way before. So everybody went to the butcher to get their meat. And you had your favorite butcher, and probably because he did it the way you liked it or whatever. And so... My grandfather had a black book. People could come in and buy their groceries. They marked it down. At the end of the month when they got paid, they came in and squared up. Oh my goodness. For all you young kids out there listening, that's like so foreign. That's like... They don't do that anymore. They would never do that. Yeah, no, I'm just wondering if I... My turkey that I'm buying, if I can write it in the black book and pay you at the end of the month. Well, we'll make some work for you Cam. I know where you live. Yeah, you know where I live. That's right. Wow. I mean, that's amazing, eh? That's fascinating. And so I have a question. Why did they decide initially to set up in that area? Did they know people in that area? Was it a big Dutch community? Very big Dutch community. Is that right, eh? And he also helped start a church on 163rd Street. He started... My grandfather was one of the base people who started Ebenezer United Church. Is that right? Okay. Wow. They're very community people. Very involved. Why did they come to Canada? For a better life after the war. But you got to remember, my grandparents came to Canada a little different than some immigrants. They came to become Canadians. Okay. They changed their names. My grandfather's name was Barrent, not Ben. But when he came to Canada, he changed his name to Ben. My grandma's name was Lenche. She went by Lenie. Really? They just wanted to fit in. They wanted to learn English. Their kids went to school. They got taught English. You know, that kind of stuff. They wanted to become Canadians. They became Canadian citizens. I mean, they're still proud of their heritage and proud of where they're from. But when they decided to come to Canada, they figured they're going to become Canadians. Wow. That's incredible. And so there was a big Dutch community, you say, in that area. And so they knew that. So were they catering specifically to Dutch people? Or they were? Everybody. Yeah. Wow. That's incredible. So then your dad, so they had the butcher shop. When did they move into the store part of it, or did it add in all the other stuff? So the butcher shop was 1953 to 1956 was the house. 1956, the building is a 40 by 90 building. So Ben's Meats was 16 by 90. Okay. And the other side was 24 by 90. Okay. So Ben's Meats was 16 by 90 all the way till 2007. To 2007. Wow. So my granddad, was some 1400 square feet. So my grandfather ran it that way. My dad ran it that way. So my dad started working there in 1967. Right. So my dad is the son-in-law of Ben and Lenie. Okay. So he married Erica, which is the oldest child of Ben and Lenie van Soest. That's my mom. So my mom and dad took over in 1976. They bought it. Okay. And so in 1994, when I was working for my dad, I'd started in 91 after NAIT, in 92, sorry, after NAIT. And my dad renovated the store and kind of pushed things back and expanded the front a little bit. But it was still 1400 square feet. Wow. That's pretty incredible. So you said since three years old, you were three years old, you knew you were going to be or wanted to be a butcher. 100%. Yeah. And my dad pulled me aside many times saying, hey, it's okay. That was kid stuff. Yeah. You can do what you want. And I said, no, I'm going to own the Ben's Meats. So obviously you worked in the store growing up. Yeah. So since I was 13, I was allowed. I was always in the store when I was allowed. If I had a day off school, I went with my dad to work and I hung around the store. And since 13, I was allowed to work on Saturdays, it was Saturday afternoon, clean showcases, wash floors, clean up, that kind of stuff. And eventually started helping certain customers. I was allowed to, if I made a mistake, it's no big deal. That's really cool. What about your sister? Was she involved at all? So I have two sisters. So my older sister worked first at the store before me on Saturdays, and she couldn't work for my dad. So she ended up going to work elsewhere. And then my twin sister, same thing, I had to share off one Saturday with her, one Saturday with me, and that only lasted about two months. And then she went and found something somewhere else because she couldn't work for my dad. But you hung in there. That was your day. And my dad's just, it's his way. He's the boss, so you gotta do it his way. Sometimes when you're working for a parent's a little harder to fathom. Kind of reminds me of Spinelli, Teresa Spinelli's story. Yeah, for the Italian Center. Very similar story. That's cool. That's really cool. You went to NAIT to take... Meat cutting. I wanted my certificate. Before my dad taught me the European way, I wanted to learn the Canadian way. So what made your dad's way different? What is like... It is a different way of cutting, just breaking animals and stuff. The biggest thing is they do it all boneless. So they basically bone it all out pretty well, other than T-bones and rib eyes and stuff. They lay it on the block instead of hanging on the rail. It's more seam work. It's more that kind of stuff. Just a little bit different. I mean, it's the same animal. It's the same cuts. You yield. It's just in sometimes a different order. In Canada, they take the hip bone out in two pieces. In Europe, they take it out in one. Wow. This is amazing. I didn't know any of this. Cam's looking like he wants to go on a field trip. I do, I think, because as Dave knows, I come into the store every now and then, and I love the meat. It's like, this is pretty fas... I love the science of it. Is that the right word, the science of it? There's more to it than just buying a steak. It's an art. Yeah, it's an art. Yeah, absolutely. That's pretty cool. Absolutely. So obviously, business grew. And as Edmonton grew, you know, the store and the customers, obviously, you had more more traffic coming in the store, loyal customers, I would imagine over the years. So things have changed quite a bit. I've seen quite a bit because I've been in the store, if you count part time and full time, 39 years. Wow. So I've seen a lot of changes. Yeah. I saw when my dad first took over that kind of stuff. He was mostly a meat shop. Then in the early 80s, he started selling Dutch imports. Right. Was there a request for that? Was there a demand for that? There was a demand for it. People were asking for it. He got a hold of, or a wholesaler got a hold of him. His name was Rick Roehrink, called Double R Imports. He had come to Canada and he started a wholesale and he brought in Dutch imports. And he stocked my dad up. It was kind of almost like another employee because he put the specials out. He stocked the shelves. He brought in the cheese. He set the specials for my dad, all that kind of stuff. The Gouda! So it was Rick who started my dad on the trend of selling a lot of Dutch products and we kind of got known for the Dutch products. That black licorice. That black licorice. I never knew there were so many different kinds of black licorice. We have 100 bulk bins, 98. Yeah, and a lot of them are just black. No, but a lot of them are. And I honestly didn't know there was, for people who have never had black licorice, I love it. But I really love it. And you go to Ben's Meats and they have everything there. Whatever your taste buds require, it's there. It's pretty incredible. Salty, sweet. Plus a whole bunch of other candy. You guys got tons of other candy. I'm more for the candy now. Yeah, yeah. I was, I emceed Dutch Wedding this summer, and a bunch of people came over from Dutch Land over there, and they just loved their, they had a little candy bar. Did they have the candy bar? Oh yeah. They always have the candy bar. And half of the candy bar was black licorice. I was in, I was in my glory just down in the black licorice. It was pretty cool, but yeah. Well that's, okay, so that's, your dad brought in kind of the grocery items and that sort of thing. So when I took over the store and I started working for him full time in 91, 92, and we started doing more things in house, making a little more sausage in house, that kind of stuff, when he brought me on. And then I took over from my dad in 1999, November 1st of 99. That's when I bought the business. Can I just go, how long, how long is the course at NAIT, the meat cutting course? Six months. That's it. When you took it, was there a lot of people, was there a lot of people taking that course? 17. Yeah. Yeah, that's all. Do you feel it's a dying art? They're changing the course because they have to. Right. So it is a dying art, because the dying art is how to break down animals. Yeah. Most animals nowadays, like when you go to a meat shop or whatever, they're not carcasses. Yeah. They're block ready. Right. So the packing houses are doing the breaking down of the animals. Yeah. Okay. You don't, they're hard to get, even sides of beef nowadays, right? Because it's almost all coming from the packing house. The packing house is doing the breakdown for you. Right. Right. And so everything is coming in block ready chunks. So nowadays, like I have a young guy working for me that went to NAIT a year and a half ago. And yeah, they show them how to break down an animal, but they don't get the skill. Yeah. And it took me over a year after leaving to be comfortable to do it myself anyways. Yeah. Right. You need to be doing it to be able to feel comfortable doing it. Yeah. It's like pork is easy. So that's, you know, it's just breaking down big animals like beef or bison or something. It's not done much anymore. And so it's done at packing houses. Well, it's because most of us go to the big box supermarket. Right. And most of that meat isn't processed there. It's processed somewhere else, brought and whatever they do, they do it, which I could get into a whole thing about that, but I'm not going to because I, anyway, but that's what we miss out, I think, on a lot of things by not coming to the butcher who knows how to do all these things that you're talking about. And it's about aging your meat properly. Right, it's about, there's lots of shortcuts, there's a lot of hidden things people don't realize. Yeah, exactly. We're from Alberta, I only sell Alberta beef. Oh, love it. So we're only going to support Alberta. Yeah, wherever you're listening to us today, Alberta beef is the best. I mean, I know Texas people think they have great beef. They're number two. They're number two, and I know the Argentinian people think they have great beef. They do? Did you know that? Oh yeah. I didn't know that. Oh yeah, yeah, they rat and rave about their beef all the time and I still come back to it. And the New Zealand grass-fed beef. New Zealand grass-fed beef. And I still, I've had beef all around the world and you can taste the difference from Alberta beef, right? And I've had some really good Texas beef, don't get me wrong, it's good beef. Yeah, me too. Oh yeah. But I'm still an Alberta boy and I grow up on Alberta beef. Me too, I agree. And so I think that's, it is really great meat. So now you got this, now you took over in 1999. Yes. And you got, it's a going, I was young. You were young. 26. How many staff did you have? Me, one other full time and then I hired a part time. And hired a part time. So were you married by now? I was. I got married at 20. Was your wife, oh you got married at 20. Yeah. A good Dutch wedding at 20, that would be a good time. Almost 21. And how did you meet your wife? Where did you meet her? Just with friends. Oh, okay. Thought maybe met her at the butcher. No. At school. That's cool. Well, yeah, I don't know. Maybe she might have been a customer. Maybe she was a customer. I don't know. There was one girl cutting meat at an NAIT. Was there? Yeah, okay. You fell in love right away or did it take a while? No, right away. Right away. And she was okay with you being a butcher. Obviously. Yup. No problem. Yeah, it's good. Well, just saying. Oh, I know. Her mom's from the Netherlands. Oh, okay. Do you speak Dutch? A little bit. A little bit? Yeah. Okay. I can get by. You can get by. With the Dutch. Do you, Cam? No. I tried. I learned three phrases for the Dutch wedding I emceed. And when I said them, they all started laughing. So I'm figuring it didn't go well. Which three phrases? Oh, I don't know because now I want them. I'll find them and bring them to you, because I think it was like, welcome, thank you for flying all this way, da da da da da. And they just looked at me and then just started laughing. And so I thought, I don't know what I did right or wrong, but anyways. Okay. So this is kind of cool. So the story's growing. I can see Cam trying to say something. Yeah, go on, go on. So the store's growing, obviously. Did you have a bigger vision? Did you, would you like, yeah, so I now I'm going to, I had a few struggles with my dad at times because I'm seeing different things that I'm, you know, and my dad, my dad is a little more old school. Yeah. He's still around. He's 84 years old. And he loves the new store. But at the time, my dad does not like change. Right. So, and never has. And so it was hard sometimes to get things to change. Sure. And, but now he's open to it. Yeah. And he's doing a lot better. I'm always like, I'm the same. My family came from Germany and my grandpa had his ways. Like that was it. That, what do you think? Is it, is it culture, is it money? I think it's culture. Yeah. Yeah. I think it's just the way they were raised. That things work, you leave it alone. Yeah. You know, so we had a few struggles, you know. It took me three years to get debit card in the store. My dad had credit card by the old hand zip. Remember we talked about that. Somebody looked at us like we were on another planet. Yeah. They had no idea. I had to sick the customers on them and say, you know, they're running next door to the Esso to go get the debit machine, the card. And I'm like, yell at him, tell him you need a debit machine. Tell him you need a debit machine. And then when we did get a debit machine, it was on our phone line. Oh, yes. But you couldn't even take an order. Yeah, you couldn't even take, right. It took a very two hours to get a download going. So the very first thing I did when I bought the business was add internet to the building and have a dedicated debit machine. Yeah. So that building that you're talking about, that you were in on Stony Plain Road, tell us about the neighborhood, that neighborhood at that time. Because the neighborhood, I'm sure, well, it had changed significantly. Stony Plain Road has gone through its ups and downs. Sure has. I've seen it all. Yeah. I always like to tell people, I've seen it all on Stony Plain Road. We were talking about that before you came. We said, we bet Dave has some great stories to tell about Stony Plain Road. I've seen it all. Yeah. But I've seen it. Yeah. I mean, there used to be lots of street walkers. When I was a kid, there used to be, there was a lot more sex shops at one point. There was a lot more. Then the city looked like they were really trying to work on the neighborhood, and it was coming, and they re-did the sidewalks. We worked with them to take the parking out front that we had, and then put the parking lane in. And they were really coming along, and then COVID hit. Yes. And things went really bad. It didn't help, because now all of a sudden these people have money for more drugs and stuff. So we saw a big difference at that. Wow. And it doesn't help when you try to throw an LRT down the middle. Oh my goodness. Yes, so people, again, if you're not familiar with Edmonton, the city, in its infinite wisdom, and it's arguable, so I'm just saying what I think, decided right down Stony Plain Road to put our LRT light rail transit train system right in front of Dave's store. It missed my store by a block. Yeah, oh, that's right, by one block. It was right in front. It comes and it turns me. So, it's changing the whole makeup of that area. And I always wondered how your store would do. So, all those businesses lost their parking out front. So, there's no more parking on Stony Plain Road. Right now, it's been a mess with all the road closures and access with construction. I don't understand it because they said three years they'd be done and that was three years ago and now they say they're gonna be two more years. So, I really feel for the businesses. There's no tax breaks. Yeah, no, the city does nothing, no, no. So, I really feel bad for those businesses. I did not realize, to be totally honest with you, so people don't know, we moved three months ago, so June 10th, we moved into our new facility. I was looking for a new facility for four years, not because of this, but because of growth. We were really busting at the seams. So, Ben's Meats expanded in 2007. I bought the whole building from my dad. So, that 40 by 90 foot building, 3,600 square feet, became all Ben's Meats. So, that's how you've seen it. Yeah, yeah, that's right, yeah. And so, we did really well. We bought a 30% increase that first full year. And we were growing and growing and growing. My daughter and son-in-law came on, and my son came in. And my son now started making all our own sausage and everything in-house. So, we added a new smoker. We started making everything in-house. We've been really growing and expanding. And in about the last 10, 12 years, I've been adding more and more gluten-free items. Yeah, tell us about that. Yeah, tell us about that. Yeah, because that, you do have... A huge selection. I think out of all the stores I've been to, you probably have one of the largest selection of gluten-free foods. Both frozen, fresh, and packaged. Yeah. So, 38 years ago, my mom found out she's celiac. We had no clue what celiac was. Nobody knew what celiac was. So, it's an allergic reaction to the brow ingredients, in the grains, and the meats, and that kind of stuff. So, I found out 17 years ago, I'm celiac. Okay. So, I have celiac disease as well. And so, in the store, we started shifting things a little bit, because we had a couple of lunch meats that had. There was a mac and cheese loaf. Yeah. You know, so you dirty the slicer, you'd have to now clean the slicer between somebody that has to have celiac disease. And so, we cut out all. I just cut that loaf out, made it a cheese loaf, and took the noodle out of it. And all of a sudden, all our lunch meats are gluten free. So, we've started, people started to come in more, because hey, the slicer is gluten free, these meats are gluten free. We started now switching all our marinades to gluten free. All our, we make veal birds, which is like a German rouladen, without the pickle or mustard in the middle, but it's got gluten free breadcrumbs in it, instead of regular breadcrumbs. So, we started shifting. Anything we could shift a little bit to accommodate more people. Right. We did. We also then added a gluten free deep fryer, a dedicated frying fryer, and we started doing more lunches. Because we should tell people, you do luncheon. So, in the new store we opened up, we actually added a gluten free cafe. I'm going to tell you this. I saw you on Saturday. I was with you getting ready for the gala Saturday, and on my way home, I got hungry, and I thought, I'm going to stop at Dave's, at Ben's, to get a sandwich. So, I stopped, I pulled in, I walked into the store, and I'm telling you, the store was packed. It was packed. I didn't have the time. It's the only reason. I just looked around and went, I want to, and I'm watching what people are eating. I want to eat here, but it was too big. I had to leave. But anyway, I was excited because it was packed. It was packed on Saturday. We've been doing very, very well. Yeah. And it gets back to you. What kind of stuff do you serve? Do you serve sandwiches? You serve? So we have gluten-free subs. French fries. So we have gluten-free subs. We have gluten-free French fries, chicken strips, spring rolls, wonton, poutine, donair poutine, fish and chips. The cafe's got cinnamon buns, sticky buns, cheesecakes, cookies, brownies, all gluten-free. How come i've never seen those. Where are those? We make regular sandwiches as well. Yes. We are doing gluten-free and non-gluten-free croquettes. Yes. So you can come in for croquettes. So not everything is gluten-free. So everything behind, when you walk in the new store, everything behind the long showcases is all gluten-free. We have done something a little different. Nobody has done before. We have what's called gluten corner. So we stick the people that need gluten in the corner. So we have a segregated spot in the corner where we make regular sandwiches. You're mad at me. You're right. We're building regular sandwiches and regular fryer food. It's got its own sandwich station, its own fryer and everything for regular croquettes. So there's no cross-contamination. There's no chance. So the back production room is all gluten-free, the sausage room is all gluten-free. We do have gluten on the shelves. There is some Dutch import cookies and that kind of stuff. But like all our marinades, our rubs, our sauces that we sell are all gluten-free. So we have a barbecue section now selling smokers and barbecues. Yes, you sell smokers in the back. I saw that. I thought this is the best. They got smokers. This is the best. So we're doing a little of everything. So when we expanded into the whole building, it was 3,600 square feet. This new building is now 7,100 square feet. Wow. And it's beautiful. It really, it's like walking into this, not a supermarket, because I don't, supermarkets drive me crazy. It's like walking into this great place where you can get whatever you want, whatever you need to have a great dinner, a great lunch, whatever it is. Somebody gave me a reference last week of what my store feels to them. And it was a great compliment to me. Is if you've ever been into Amsterdam or Netherlands, they have these little store called an Albert Heijn Store. And what it is is in the Netherlands, everything is walkable. They have lots of little tiny stores here and there. You don't have the really big box chains or any of that kind of stuff. You want your groceries, you go walk to a little tiny grocery store. And they said it felt like an Albert Heijn Store. Like it felt like the little meat market deli, sitting area, groceries, and you can just get what you need, and you're five minutes from home, and you're right back five home in five minutes. That's what it felt like, a European little small market, not a supermarket, no, a little market. Yeah, I don't know about you Cam, but those are the best. They are the best, aren't they? And you like when I walked in there in there on Saturday, it's you walk into a supermarket and it's quiet and they have their canned music playing. Nobody's talking. You walked into Ben's Meats on Saturday. It's lively. It's people are having conversation. They're sitting at the cafe. They're looking at the goods. They're standing at the meat counter, which I love. I love that because and what I love is your staff is so knowledgeable and we'll get to that in a second, but it's just a great feel. Yeah. Like it's a community feel. It's somewhere you want to go on a Saturday just to hang out with some people. It's really cool. And I appreciate that. Well, we don't have much of that anymore, right? I'm blessed because they always say if you love your job, you're doing the right job. And I've been doing it for 39 years, part-time and full-time, and I love my job. Yeah, and the new store just adds to it. You have a great freezer section with frozen foods, so people can go in and stock up if they need to for the week or whatever. I think that's really cool. Okay, but we have to talk about, because people have known it from Stony Plain Road, Dave, where is the new location? That's a great point. The new location is on 105th Avenue and 184th Street. It's about five minutes west of the old location, just down from the CTV that's been there forever. It's down from the big Josh Classen sign. There it is. Josh, it was our guest a couple weeks ago on the podcast. Turn at the sign. Probably Josh is going to, I'm going to tell Josh, I'm going to text him, he said, text me anytime. Josh, go for lunch at Ben's Meats. CTV has been coming. Okay, there you go. They did an article on us when they moved, because when does a 71-year-old established business move? You know, the other thing I appreciate about your new store is the parking. I'm just going to say. Some people still complain, because during the week, I know, but during the week, it's a little tighter because the businesses are open. Well, yeah. But on Saturdays, all the other businesses are closed. And so the whole complex has 110 parking spots. So we're good. The Stony Plain store, I come on a Saturday, it would drive me nuts going around the block three times. Okay. That was reason number two why we moved. And then what did Joanna say to me one day? She said, just park in the back. I said, it says no parking. She goes, just park in the back. I'm like, oh yeah, then i'll get towed away. But anyway, no, I love the parking. It's great. It's a great store. It's you guys have done marvelous. You made it out well. I think so. I hope so. Yeah. It's been operating very well. I've been told it's good flow by other people. Sure. It was my design for the for the foot print. Yeah. I went back three or four times. My one contractor designed something and I threw that in the garbage because they obviously have never ran a meat shop before. And so they stuck my office in the corner and in the very back. And I'm like, nope, can't have that. And that's right. You're at the front, aren't you? Yes. Right by the cashier. The new store actually has two, the upstairs, the warehouse bay was empty when we bought it. It's a four-year-old bay. The upstairs was developed and has two offices, a staff space and kitchenette and everything done. And that was nice. And somebody said, well, which office is yours? And I said, no, I can't be upstairs. Yeah. I have to be in the thick of things because I have to, I talk to my customers. They look for me. They want to say hi to Dave and they want to talk. Absolutely. And I have to keep an eye on my store. And so I'm right by the tills. There's a little tiny spot under the stairs. They didn't know what to do with. So they stuck me under the stairs. Right. Yeah. So it's a great layout. It's your meat counter. It's now I love, I love meat. I just love it. I love steak. I love any kind of meat. I love coming to your meat counter is like, reminds me of when I was six going to Toys R Us. It's unbelievable. Like, well, no, it's like, it's so, and it's just laid out so well. But the best part is if you want to steak, you have some cut. But if you need something a little different, the guys will ask you, they'll cut exactly what you want. And did you see what they're cutting on with exactly what you want? On your butcher blocks? It's my grandfather's butcher block. Is it really? That he bought used in 1956. Yeah. So it's an old maple cutting block. I had to take it with me. I had to take it with me. I saw that. And I like that is incredible. So all the other counters are new, except for my grandfather's butcher block. And they're all saying, what's this space for? I'm like, that's my grandfather's butcher block. And that's coming with us. And watching those guys cut the meat and everything, it's like surgical precision. We do have a cutting room in the back now. So it's a refrigerated room. We're the sausage making, the grinding and the saw. But we still hand cut steaks for you up front. It's phenomenal. And you do the beef jerky, the pepperoni, the honey garlic. You do the all that stuff there. You can get whatever you want. About 20 different sausages. If you're a carnivore, it's a carnivore's delight. But it's so cool. It's just so cool. The only comments I've heard from some people and they don't understand at first was, why did we go to, it's more of an industrial area. And we didn't have a choice. But it's not like you're deep in an industrial park. But there's a reason why. No. And we chose on purpose, a busy road, 184th Street, which is Ray Gibbon Drive, like it's a very busy road. And I chose the store for this accessibility, the location. Henday, Yellowhead, Ray Gibbon, right in the middle. But the biggest reason is we have a smokehouse. And the city of Edmonton has rules. You cannot just put a smokehouse in here. So we were grandfathered in our old location. Right. But now, because there's residential behind our old location, you cannot have a smokehouse. So for all you people who are complaining that Dave's a little bit out of the way, and he's not, he's two blocks off the main Road, just be thankful he ain't your next door neighbor and you're smelling smoke all day. Well, they made us, so it's a condo building, I bought the bay. But they made us put a power exhaust in 36 feet up in the air. So you don't smell it. That's right. All you complainers out there and whatever. They could be in beautiful downtown Acheson where we smell dog food. One day? Champion pet food one day. The Wall Coffee Roaster next. Or on a unique day, both smells come together. Coffee caffeinated dog food. I'd rather smell coffee. Yeah, so this is really cool. So how many, currently, how many staff do you have? So once we moved, we had to hire three more, because that's how busy we got since we moved. We went up about 60% business in the last three months. We have 15 employees. And who all in your family is working for you? I have my wife, who's running the cafe. I have my daughter, who's doing all my marketing and online and coming in on Mondays. I have my son-in-law doing all the ordering and shelf and receiving and shipping. I have my son doing the production room in the back, doing all the jerky and that kind of stuff. My dad just still comes in and gives his opinion once a week. It's just great, it's just great. He's been very positive and very energetic and he's been very supportive. I love that my dad still comes in once a week, gets his groceries, and he loves to talk to the people he misses and that kind of stuff. Then I have a fellow who's like a brother to me. He's been with me 17 years. So Paul's been my meat manager. Then I have my son's best friend from high school, John's been working for me now for quite a while. And he's like a second son to me, so yeah. We're wrapping up and we're gonna, we got one, Jennifer's got a final question. But before, I just want to say on that point, there's something about family heritage and- Well, they're on four generations now. That's amazing. Let me tell you right now, there's no generations at Superstore. I'm just saying. I'm not just saying. I'm sure somebody's gonna phone me. No, there is. No, there's not. Because what you're doing, I think, is just that's the heart of business. It's the heart of culture. It's the heart of community. It's what makes our communities. So kudos to you, Dave. Kudos that you have not given in to the big block type of thing. Well, my dad in the 80s had a lot of pressure. Yeah, I bet he did. Because the big stores came in. Yeah. And a lot of meat shops. Like I think between, they said, between 124th and 170th, there was like 8 or 10 meat chops at one point. And then there was one. Yeah. Right. And so he was in the test of time and stayed. Yeah. And the only reason I think that is, is because, and I wouldn't be there today, if we didn't have fantastic customers. Yeah. It's our customers. So we have great people. Your story is absolutely amazing. I love it. It's a great story. Wow. Final question already Cam. I know. But can I say I'm hungry? I know you can. So this is a question that we ask all of our guests. I should have done my homework. No, no, no. We like this to be a surprise. We never tell them. That's right. What is the best piece of advice you've been given, either personally or professionally, that you carry with you to this day? Be yourself. It's good. Be yourself. Yeah. Don't be a fake person. Just be yourself. Not everybody is going to like you. No. And that's okay. Yeah. And I'm not going to like everybody and that's okay, too. We'll all get along, but just be yourself. Be yourself. Have fun. Enjoy life. It goes fast. It's great. I think a long time ago when I just decided, about 19, I decided to be myself and just be me. Because you get all these pressures everywhere to do this or go like this or be like this or be like that. Don't worry about it. But that's a good word because the reality is, if you're trying to do that, you're trying to be like everybody else. You'll never be happy. You'll never be happy because you never can please everybody. No. So, and you've obviously been successful at what you've done. And folks, listen, if you live in this area, you got to check it out. You've got to. It's a gem in our city and I mean that. Sincerely, there's not many of these gems left. There is another one, but it's way across town. So I'm going to mention their name because I don't think it's a competitor, but K&K Market on Whyte Avenue is where my grandfather used to take me when I was a little boy. It's a German store and we used to go there. They're still there. So I go between there for something and but I go to yours mostly because you got the best. Plus every one of my family, I'm just saying this folks, every one of my family outings or my family holidays, Christmas, Thanksgiving, Easter usually now, we get a turkey and I buy the turkey for my family and I always get it at Ben's Meats because it's the best turkey and my family raves about it. Dave, they rave about how if we were to get a different turkey, they'd know it and they'd kill me. They'd be like, you're going to be the sacrifice turkey this year. It's amazing and thank you for taking care of me. When you get a farm fresh turkey from the Hutterites, they're beautiful. And it's got to be big. I think this year I asked for a 27 pounder. I don't know if we'll get one, but we're going to do our best. My family is growing, but folks, if you've never been, give us the address one more time. 10516. And do you have a website? 184street. bensmeats.com. bensmeats.com. So you've got to check them out. We've got to go there for lunch. We are. One day. Not on Saturday, but... Come on Wednesday. Anyway, we can't thank you enough, Dave. Thank you so much. What a great story. I love it. That's what Coffee In The Park with Jennifer and Cam is all about, the story behind the story. So thanks, everybody. Want to remind you, tonight, if you didn't stop by Ben's Meats to get anything... Well, Mondays are... They're closed on Mondays. That's why you're here. So, go to Wing Snob. Go to Wing Snob on Mondays. That's right. You can go to Wing Snob on Mondays and get wings, 16 flavors, 4 rubs, cornbread and parm fries. Tuesday, you could go to Dave's at Ben's Meats and get everything you want there. And Wednesday, you can get your printing done at Mprint. And let me throw a little plug for Wing Snob. I'm gluten free, like I told you, and they do look atfer me very well. They do. Mike Chadi. Yeah, Mike Chadi. Awesome. Oh, that's awesome. Oh, that's fantastic. So hey, if you're not hungry, well, if you are hungry, you won't be able to go to Ben's till tomorrow, but you go to Wing Snob. That's right. That's fabulous. Thanks, everybody. Hey, listen, make sure you tell everybody about the podcast. Our numbers are growing. Thank you, listeners. Thank you. Yeah, our numbers are growing. Considerably. We're all over the world in a number of cities. Listen, tell your neighbors, tell your friends, tell your coworkers, tell your enemies even. And if you don't have a friend, why don't you make one just so you can tell them about the podcast and you can get it wherever you get your podcast or at www.coffeeinthepark.com. That's right. So thanks for listening, everybody. We appreciate it. Hope you enjoyed it. And we'll see you next time. See you next week, everyone.