LOCALadk Magazine

Winter 2018 LOCALadk Magazine 65 LOCALadk It's mid-November and I am excited to be traveling to War- rensburg, New York. It snowed a bit last night, but the roads are bare. At 14 degrees outside, it might be a bit cold for this time of year, but such is life in the Adirondacks. Why am I excited to be traveling on the Northway to War- rensburg? Well, I will be visiting the famous Oscar's Smoke- house, and spending time with the manager, Joq Quintal. Joq is part of the third generation ownership of this success- ful butcher shop/smokehouse. Even though I have lived in the Adirondacks for 40 years, this is my first visit to Warrensburg. I turn off at exit 23 and follow my GPS to the Oscar's Smokehouse sign with the smil- ing pig. I have a real affection for mom and pop operations, and how important they are to American culture. When that busi- ness also produces and sells extraordinar y ham, bacon, fresh and smoked sausage —and for that matter nearly anything smoked— I am excited. So here I am at Oscar's—finally! This has been a destination on my bucket list for far too long. The sign on the door immediately intrigues me: "Over 8 million pounds of bacon sold." Any chef knows that ever y- thing is better with bacon, and that is a ton of bacon. As I open the door, the intoxicating smell of hickor y and apple wood smoke sets the stage. One step in the door and I am greeted by a member of the Oscar's staff with a "good morn- ing." I like it already. As I wait for Joq to break away from his work, I walk the shop. The usual Black Forest Ham, maple cured ham, smoked pork chops, and baby back ribs are accented with the not- so-usual smoked duck, pheasant, venison sausage, wild boar sausage, and a full array of smoked cheese from regional producers, smoked at Oscar's. Interested in jerky? Oscar's makes a lot of this leather y treat. Joq waves me behind the counter and shows me to his of- fice. He is proud of the business—this is apparent from the first moment that I shook his hand. Mid-sentence, while we are walking to the back of the shop, he stops to greet and chat with a regular customer. It is this moment that I know what direction our inter view will go. We sit down, and I start: "Tell me your stor y." Nearly an hour later Joq is still talking. I barely had to say a word; he was anxious to tell me about the Quintal legacy. Joq's grandfather, Oscar, founded the butcher shop back in 1943. He was from Canada, and his wife from Long Island. Warrensburg was a good halfway point, thus they settled there. After some time butchering for local farmers, Oscar saw that smoking was the next logical step, and so he began his then-small operation. He hand built the two brick smokehouses that were used until a fire in 2009 destroyed the facility. The family rebuilt the operation in five months with tremendous support from the community that they ser ve. So now it's time for the real Joq in center with staff members. Portrait of his grandfather and father in the background.

• Cover