This New Orleans Butcher Crafts Over 2,000 Pounds Of Mouthwatering Meat Weekly

In New Orleans, good food is serious business, often centered around distinctive dishes and long-standing traditions. Whether we're talking about the city's inventive twists on the iconic po'boy or rich gumbo with unexpected toppings, this is a place where every flavor matters. And for many of these dishes, it starts with the butcher. From the various cured meats on a po'boy to the sausage in the gumbo, it's the art of crafting these products that is key. And one of the best places in New Orleans to experience this magical transformation is Cochon Butcher, located in the city's Warehouse District.

Opened in 2009 by James Beard Award–winning chef Donald Link and chef partner Stephen Stryjewski, this isn't your typical butcher shop. Yes, you'll find a variety of sausages, cured meats, and fresh cuts made in-house by five full-time butchers, who crank out more than 2,000 pounds a week. Those products not only go straight to customers and into the shop's dishes, but are also used at other restaurants in the Link Restaurant Group, including the Cajun-Southern restaurant Cochon next door. In addition to the butcher counter, you can also sit down and dig into sandwiches and other dishes made with those same ingredients, alongside a wine, beer, or cocktail.

Besides a long list of classic in-house cured meats like mortadella, soppressata, and pastrami, you'll also find some more regionally specific products at Cochon Butcher. Its freshly made boudin is one. This Cajun sausage from the southwestern part of Louisiana is made with ground pork, spices, and rice, and is actually less common in New Orleans Creole cuisine. Cochon Butcher also offers other Cajun specialties like tasso (cubed spiced pork used for seasoning) and rillons (pieces of caramelized pork belly).

At Cochon Butcher, open for lunch and dinner, you'll find New Orleans classics like muffulettas, red beans and rice, and fried shrimp. But the menu also offers more unusual fare, which highlights the shop's house-made meats. Standouts include duck pastrami sliders and the signature Le Pig Mac — a playful take on the McDonald's favorite that swaps in pork patties for beef. It's a butcher shop unlike any other, fitting seamlessly into a city known for its equally unique food culture.