Oct. 21, 2021

Casey Remmers and Troy Grocott took their hobby of cooking good food and turned it into a business to help other people do the same.

They opened Creekside Meats in Hartford last week, cutting and selling fresh beef and pork, along with items such as bratwurst, sausage and jerky made on-site, marinated chicken breasts, wings and frozen prepared foods such as soups and cinnamon rolls.

“My business partner and I have a passion to do a lot of cooking for events in our community,” said Remmers, who works day-to-day in the meat market. “We’ve been talking for the last couple of years that it would be nice to have our own place to do our own thing and supply others.”

Remmers had been working in manufacturing since college, and Grocott raises cattle and hogs along with owning Pork Central, which brokers hog sales for Hutterite colonies.

Much of their meat comes from area processing plants such as J&B in Minnesota and DemKota in Aberdeen, Remmers said. He and another meat cutter work in the shop’s processing area to trim the cuts.

“We have almost every variety of steak you could think of,” he said. “Right now, we’ve got rib-eyes, T-bones, New York strips, filets and bacon-wrapped sirloins.”

The shop has been busy since it opened, Remmers said.

“So far, they’ve been selling so fast, I haven’t had to freeze any.”

Creekside’s refrigerated and freezer cases are filled with other items such as the beef sticks, ring bologna and smoked brats that are made on-site, grass-fed beef, chicken grillers and larger packages of chicken strips.

The shop bakes fresh buns every day, and Remmers makes up his signature seasoning.

“I have my own personal spice that I’ve been using for years. I like it on steaks and burgers,” he said. Before buying a jar, customers can try a sample size for a dollar. If they’re buying a steak, he’ll throw in a sample.

Eventually, Creekside Meats will sell bundles of beef and pork, and put together special packages that will include different meats such as lamb so people can try something new, he said.

He’s also hoping to have enough time in the coming weeks to cook up pulled pork and brisket and sell it in 2- and 5-pound bags. His wife, Sheila, made up packages of meatloaf for the opening and plans to cook up other take-and-bake meals.

“She’s been helping a lot, and she’s not on the payroll,” he joked.

In addition to the full-time meat cutter, there are seven part-time employees, include his two teenage sons and Grocott’s daughter.

The business partners built their store at 217 W. South St., next to Hartford’s Fire Hall. The building has 12-foot ceilings and 4,000 square feet of space, with more than one-third of that for retail, so there’s plenty of room for customers to browse, Remmers said.

“I’m a big guy, so I like open spaces.”

Hours are 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday.

“We wanted to be open later because we know how many people are traveling to and from Sioux Falls for work every day,” he said. “I know that was a big thing for my wife. She’s working from home now, but she used to work in Sioux Falls, and it was a struggle to find something still open in a small town.”