Bucciarelli’s Butcher Shop & Deli

When it comes to overstuffed sandwiches, hand-butchered steaks and outstanding Italian, there's only one name you need to know. But pronouncing it properly ain't always easy.  

"People mostly call it Buck-arelli's. They say Book-arelli, Buck-arelli. Yeah."

"I think they say Boo-carelli more than they do Buch-arelli.  At first I corrected people."

"Bucciarelli. Butch-arelli.

"Bucciarelli like a butcher shop. It's funny because Bucciarelli Butcher Shop goes together." 

And while you may have trouble saying it, you won't have trouble eating your way through Bucciarelli's 

Located on Route 1A in Salisbury, Mass just past the Merrimack River, Bucciarelli's Butcher Shop and Deli is a one stop shop whether you want to eat now, or get supplies to take home for dinner.   

"Bucciarelli's is a family-owned business. It's just a great environment to come get all the food that you're looking for meats, prepared foods, deli, sub shop.  I think people come here for meat. Then they look around. They're like, "Oh, man. We have all this other stuff here."  

At this popular mom and pop shop, you'll always find John and Judy Bucciarelli, along with their son Armando hustling to make sure their customers get the very best.

"Being part of the family business is just  There's nothing better. I get to see my parents every day. They're great to work with. I'm lucky."

"I really love working with my son. We always back each other up. It's a lot of hours. It's a lot of work. Doing it with my son makes it fun and easy. Yeah, I love it."

While there's case after case of fresh homemade goodies like stuffed peppers and arancini, customers definitely come for the sandwiches. 

"The sandwiches are amazing. You almost can't eat a whole sandwich by yourself.  I think the big thing about our sandwiches is the bread. We bake off the ciabatta bread here all through the day, so it's always a nice, crispy, soft inside ciabatta bread that people love and that really makes the sandwich. They're very big. Most people have a hard time eating a whole one or they split it. I think that we really give them a lot for their money."

And the Bucharelli sandwich gives customers a lot of flavor for their money. 

"The Bucciarelli is a traditional Italian sandwich.  It has provolone, mortadella with pistachios, soppressata, salami, sweet cappicola and prosciutto. Then we layer it with lettuce, tomatoes, red onion and banana peppers. Crunched in between that ciabatta bread, it's delicious. I think you get the saltiness of the Italian cold cuts, the fresh crunchiness of the bread and then you get that little bite of the banana pepper, which I like." 

Other Italian style sandwiches include the Pollo Panini loaded with grilled chicken, roasted red peppers, and caramelized onions on ciabatta and an oversized Chicken Parm.

"It's unbelievable. The ciabatta bread is crispy on the outside, soft on the inside and it's big. It's that big. You can make two sandwiches out of one. It's comfort food. It's something you want to fill your stomach up."

But it's the meatball sub that's nearest and dearest to Armando's heart.  

"The meatballs are homemade. My mother makes them. I think that's why everyone loves them because my mom is I'd say she's the best cook.  We get three meatballs, cut them in half, roast them in the oven, get them piping hot, put it on the Italian stick bread, maybe smother it with more marinara sauce and cheese if you want. It's what I ate growing up."

Other sandwich standouts include a Reuben stacked with thinly sliced corned beef, Swiss and Thousand Island, the Italian Grilled cheese filled with pesto, sliced tomatoes and bacon and a steak tip sub made with meat Armando butchers himself. 

"If someone orders a steak tip sub, a lot of people are surprised that we go right to our case and take it fresh out the case and then grill it in the back. There's nothing prepped or precut or anything like that. Fresh out of the case."

"We do sauteed mushrooms, caramelized onion, roasted red peppers, cheese. You name it. It's a huge sandwich. People come in for dinner all the time and get our steak tip subs. It's really worth it."

These mouthwatering morsels are even great on their own.

"I've had people come in saying, "You could practically cut ours with a fork. I think with the combination of the high quality meat that we use and the tenderness and then the delicious marinades, we've had people come in and say they've tried steak tips everywhere and they always come back here."

If you're a lamb lover, the lollipops are a must try- due to their delicious Greek marinade.

"I know we're an Italian butcher shop, but when it comes to lamb, you've got to pay your respect. You've got to go Greek. They're delicious. They're like the little lamb lollipops that you just eat them in one bite."

And even if meat's not your thing, this butcher shop has you covered with offerings like this stuffed portabella mushroom. 

"It's meaty. You can have it for dinner and it's a meatless dish. Because we're a butcher shop, we try to offer a lot of meatless dishes."

So if you looking for a quick sandwich at lunch or stuff to bring home and feed your family, the Bucciarelli family is happy to help.  

"I just feel like food brings people together.  That's really important to me because it was all about food when I was growing up in a big Italian family. This is what it's all about here. I love talking with customers and I love feeding people.”