The Battle of the Butchers Product Challenge, expertly managed and implemented by the prestigious Institute of Meat, is a national event that rigorously judges elite products from across the country. Panels of esteemed chefs, consumers, and industry veterans award only a select minority of products their coveted stars—a stamp of quality that elevates these items above all others on the shelf.
Following the past success of our pork sausages, we decided to enter our homemade steak pies into the Best Hot Eating Pie category, alongside our popular cracked black pepper sausages. Because our customers are always incredibly supportive and complimentary of our hot pastries and counter lines, we wanted to see how our recipes would fare on the national stage.
The Strict Judging Process
We submitted our products to be rigorously evaluated by a tough panel of industry experts. Then, we patiently waited for the results.
To say we are absolutely delighted with the outcome is an understatement:
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Homemade Steak Pies: Awarded the maximum 3 Gold Stars! ⭐⭐⭐
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Cracked Black Pepper Sausages: Achieved a fantastic 2 Gold Stars! ⭐⭐
The Battle of the Butchers scoring system is notoriously strict. A Three Gold Star certificate is reserved exclusively for "truly outstanding creations" that demonstrate absolute perfection across taste, appearance, texture, and technical execution. To have our steak pies hit that absolute peak, while our cracked black pepper sausages secured a highly coveted two stars, is an unbelievable achievement for our team.
The panels independently judge each product strictly on its own merits and craftsmanship, which makes these results even more rewarding. The judges praised our entries highly, noting the elite standard of the ingredients and the supreme skill shown in our production. These high scores prove that both our pies and our specialty sausages are flawless examples of traditional high-street butchery.
A Word from Scott Shepley
"We are absolutely thrilled to receive Three Gold Stars for our homemade steak pies and Two Gold Stars for our cracked black pepper sausages in the Battle of the Butchers. Our customers have always been incredibly supportive of our products, but to have our work rigorously evaluated and praised at this level by the Institute of Meat judges is the ultimate honour for our team.
"I am pleased to hear that our products were praised so highly. To receive these awards shows that our recipes are up to a very high standard, cementing our reputation for bringing top quality straight to the Market Drayton community."
Taste the Winners Today!
Want to try them for yourself? The award-winning Three Gold Star homemade steak pies and Two Gold Star cracked black pepper sausages are available at Market Drayton and Madeley shops. As well as our market stalls in the Market Drayton indoor market hall which are open Wednesdays and Saturdays 8:00am - 3:00pm
Market Drayton Shop:
Monday - Friday 8:30 - 5:30
Saturday 8:00 - 5:00
Madeley Shop:
Monday - Friday 9:30 - 5:30
Saturday 9:00 - 5:00
