Meat Week: Ari Miller Of 1732 Meats On Bacon And His Expanding Business
In case you haven’t noticed lately, bacon is kind of a big deal. There’s all kinds of bacon wrapped foods, weird bacon novelties, and to top it off, a website completely dedicated to bacon.
Well, we here at Foobooz are also a little obsessed with bacon (well, with all meats, really), so in honor of Meat Week, we decided to ask local bacon-maker and meat enthusiast Ari Miller of 1732 Meats a few questions about his business.
Miller began 1732 Meats about two years ago while still in law school. “I realized the last thing I wanted to be on earth was a lawyer, which was a hard conversation to have with my mother, the judge,” he said.
After making his own bacon at home, he decided to bring it to the farmers market across the street. His bacon sold out that day, so he and his wife decided to return the next week, where they again sold out. “It turned out that most of the people were returning customers, and here we are two years later,” Miller said. “It’s kind of remarkable, frankly. It’s hard to believe sometimes.”
1732 Meats uses only heritage pork, meaning it’s a humane and sustainable product with no antibiotics or hormones. “They’re happy pigs, as my girls like to say,” Miller said.
Miller cures the meat with flavors, creating his four products: Garlic Insanity, Jalapeno, Spanish Smoked Paprika, and Black Peppercorn. Unlike many producers, Miller doesn’t smoke his 1732 Meats. “The goal is that the pork we’re using is so good, I don’t want the flavors of the meat to get lost,” he explained.
Miller is focusing primarily on bacon right now, but will soon be moving toward dry-cured meats. He’s also expanding to a new facility, which will act as a distribution point so 1732 Meats can continue to grow.
“We’re looking to expand to as many Philadelphia businesses and suburban Philadelphia businesses that we can get into,” said Miller. “But we’re already looking forward to the Northeast, the Eastern seaboard. I mean that’s really where we’d like to grow our business in the next couple years.”
Although Miller is reluctant to discuss the details of his new facility (“I don’t want to jinx it,” he said), we do know it will be located in Delaware County.
As for now, you can get his products at Di Bruno Bros, Fair Food Farmstand, Greensgrow and other local stores. You can also find their garlic insanity and black peppercorn bacon on top of you burger at P’unk Burger or on your sandwich at Taproom on 19th, as well as other restaurants around the city.
1732 Meats [Official]
