The best way to eat local is to support these shops

Jervis Bay has an astounding selection of retailers who stock local, fresh, ethical and wholesome food. Discover some today, and while you’re at it, scroll down for a link that helps you search for a public bbq in a spectacular location.

Vincentia Craft Butchery & Sanctuary Point Craft Butchery

The tradition of a local butcher’s shop is alive and well in Jervis Bay, thanks to Ben and Natalie in Vincentia and Patrick in Sanctuary Point, hand making award-winning sausages and burger patties, smoked goods, herbaceous roasts, and game meats alongside fresh produce from local egg farms, honey farms and green-thumbed neighbours.

Ben and Natalie became the new owners of the Vincentia premises about 18 months ago and are building a family business. Already they have a swag of awards and their Christmas orders are coming in strong – Ben smokes hams, rolls pork roasts, and takes advance orders for most of their products till two weeks before Christmas.

The shop focuses on sourcing their products as locally as possible. They make delicious and award-winning smallgoods like chilli pepperoni, marinaded kebabs, patties, sausages and even jerky on-site. ‘Dad’s jerky’ as the kids call it, was four years in the making, with Ben experimenting to perfect the flavours.

Natalie emphasises community over convenience, and she has nailed it. The couple like to get to know their local customers, and take pride in being able to offer them anything from a super-sized Christmas ham to a couple of sausages.

In just a short time in the business, Vincentia Craft Butchery is supplying restaurants including the renowned Bangalay in Shoalhaven Heads and Taj Indian Restaurant in Huskisson, plus several local cafes and bakeries. They assemble meat trays for the raffles at Bud’s Tavern and supply the Friendly Grocer tiny supermarket, both in Husky.

Among the fresh produce you will find the freshest eggs from Aurora Farm in Falls Creek, and honey from Parnells farm in Tomerong (bring your own glass jar or there’s often some clean, recycled jars available in the shop). Locals sometimes bring in their excess, such as herbs, tomatoes or even turmeric.

Ben and friends will be bbq-ing some delights in front of the shop at the Vincentia Festival on 2 December, a great way to taste-test the food philosophy of this classic butcher’s shop.

https://vincentiacraftbutchery.com/

Ben and Natalie at Vincentia Craft Butchery are winning awards with their pepperoni, patties and bacon. Photo: Samantha Tannous

Over at Sanctuary Point Craft Butchery, there’s some extra magic happening. Proprietor Patrick has finally seen two years of work culminate in a very special ‘wild game’ processing and retail business.

On the menu is venison – caught as wild deer – that is expertly butchered into flavoursome cuts, sausages, and in line with the no-waste ethos, pet food. Soon the hides will also be tanned at a place in Berry.

Patrick’s vision to create an ethical wild game business started a bit further down the Coast when he went rabbit shooting with his uncle. Their Italian heritage prompted Patrick to question why the rabbits, essentially meat, were thrown away rather than eaten. That launched a journey through the complexities of licensing for harvesting and processing wild game. So passionate about the ethics of food production is Patrick, his business name, Tegrideer, incorporates the word ‘integrity’, and now that it has achieved its official stamp from the inspectors it’s processing the deer right here in Sanctuary Point.

Along with butcher Michael, the Sanctuary Point Craft Butchery is proud to offer a selection of locally sourced products, handmade sausages, patties and marinated kebabs.

https://www.tegrideer.com/

Patrick is processing and retailing venison at Sanctuary Point Craft Butchery. Photo: Samantha Tannous

Bunya Wholefoods

So much more than pantry staples, Bunya Wholefoods is a community hub for food the way it used to be – organic, local, ethical and delicious. Owner Bronte wants customers to think about it differently. “We buy in bulk so you can buy what you need,” she says, whether it’s 100g of dried chick peas or a refill in your bathroom cleaner bottle.

A recent addition to the “bulk” produce is milk in a keg from Tilba Tilba, housed in a special fridge and topped with a tap. Just one keg stops the production of up to 9,000 plastic milk bottles, which is a staggering number. The keg itself can be re-used by the dairy around 800 times. Bunya is selling 1L glass bottles, in the classic milk bottle shape. Or customers can bring their own bottles and pay for the milk per 100mL.

Fresh veggies, dairy products like cheese and yoghurts, and frozen take-home meals are also part of the Bunya product range, sourced from small family-run businesses in Australia who share the values of Bunya. The ranges include vegetarian and vegan options as well as gluten free options.

Fresh breads, including from Husky-based Kraken which is synonymous with sourdough in Jervis Bay, and seaweed foods from Husky’s PhycoHealth are also available. Bring your own containers and buy olive oil, maple syrup, honey… you will be pleased to know that price-wise, Bunya’s range is often a little cheaper than the supermarkets, with the added bonus of less packaging waste and you can buy what you need.

Since taking over the business 18 months ago, Bronte and her family are seeing their big visions for Bunya take shape.

At the moment, Bunya has a mini-café, with organic coffee from Nowra roastery, The Bearded Brewer, accompanied by some house-made cookies, wraps and toasties, and incredibly delicious nutty and fruity slices from Wellness by Tess (all gf and df). A chef is coming on board in the next couple of weeks, to expand the café menu with salads and other simple, summery items, with more on the horizon.

Brand new shade sails now offer a comfy outdoor seating area which is very popular with parents, and will be even more popular with kids from next month, once the “mud” kitchen and other sensory play equipment is installed on the lawn.

As one of the supermarkets says in their commercials, shop here first!

https://www.bunyawholefoods.com.au/

https://www.facebook.com/BunyaWholefoods/

Bronte has created a community hub of wholesome, ethical and delicious food at Bunya Wholefoods in Vincentia. Photo: Bunya Wholefoods

Jervis Bay Shellfish Market

The retail outlet for South Coast Mariculture, growers of Jervis Bay mussels, the Shellfish Market is the best place to buy locally grown blue mussels, along with cooked and green prawns, freshly shucked oysters, and a range of sauces and condiments.

Mussels are one of the most sustainable foods on the planet, and those grown right here in Jervis Bay are among the most delicious – and easy to prepare.

Just in time for Christmas, elevate your grazing boards with the new marinated range of mussels in both natural and chilli flavour. And speaking of Christmas, the shellfish market takes pre-orders, which are carefully boxed and chilled ready for you to collect on the last day of business before the family feasting day.

https://www.jervisbayshellfishmarket.com.au/

https://www.facebook.com/jervisbaymussels

Up your grazing board game with marinated mussels now available at the Jervis Bay Shellfish Market. Photo: supplied

Cook it Yourself

If you fancy some seaside al fresco dining, there are plenty of outdoor cooking stations sprinkled around Jervis Bay. The free bbqs are well maintained and sit in some astounding locations. White Sands Walk in Husky, Plantation Point and Greenfields Beach parks in Vincentia, Callala Beach, Paradise Beach Reserve in Sanctuary Point… Shoalhaven Council maintains bbqs in over 50 locations and you can find them and other facilities on this handy council list.

https://www.shoalhaven.nsw.gov.au/For-Residents/Sports-Recreation/Parks-Play-Equipment