HELLERTOWN, PA, October 20, 2018—Saylor’s and Company is a family-run specialty food market featuring a wide selection of home-cooked entrées, gourmet desserts, and premium and organic meats. Owners Maria Verzino and Tim Mease are currently celebrating 12 years in business.

With shoppers increasingly seeking out alternatives to big box grocery stores, factory-farmed meat, and fast food, Saylor’s and Company has become a go-to spot for farm-to-table meats and minimally processed meals. The shop also takes custom meat and dessert orders for holidays and special occasions.

“If you really care about what you put in your mouth, this would be the place for you,” Verzino says. “We wouldn’t put anything on the shelf that wasn’t of the highest quality.”

Saylor’s meat counter is stocked daily with local poultry, pork, and certified premium beef, and their hand-stuffed fresh and smoked sausages and house-cured bacon are bestsellers. In total, Saylor’s boasts 40 different types of sausages. 

Saylor’s is also the place to go for busy people searching for a home-cooked, pre-made dinner. The prepared entrées, soups, sauces, dips, pot pies, and Italian comfort foods are made by in-house executive chef Jason Frey and sous-chef Rebecca Transue. Regular customers stop by each Thursday for the homemade pizzas. 

And then there are the desserts. Pastry chef Mark Scherer makes an array of seasonal treats daily. Pumpkin rolls are a favorite in fall and cookies sell out quickly during the holiday season.
Saylor’s also stocks seasonal foods and preserves from local farms, including cheese, cider, coffee, honey, jam, mustard, pasta sauce, and more. In particular, the shop makes an effort to feature products from local businesses. “I’m partial to local businesses. As a businesswoman myself, I feel connected to their products,” Verzino says.
Additionally, Saylor’s offers a raw diet and smoked bones for dogs. “It’s a way for us to use up every single thing. There is no waste in this store,” Verzino says.

The Saylor’s name has been in business in Hellertown since 1942. Mease, whose mother was a Saylor, is a fourth generation butcher. He previously ran a farm store and a stand at the Allentown Farmers’ Market selling fresh and smoked meats. Verzino, a former banker, ran an Italian food stand across the aisle. They eventually married and merged their businesses, establishing Saylor’s and Company in Hellertown in 2007. They live in Hellertown on the Saylor family farm.
“We took the Saylor’s farm store to a new level. We added the ‘and Company’ to show we had more to offer,” Verzino says.