Gloria’s Country Butcher

Living in Downey since 1968 to 2000, this was the place to go for old fashioned friendly service and great groceries, especially the meat.
Unfortunately, times and this place have changed. No longer as friendly, the quality of the produce and meat are not that good and like everything else it seems, poor service, mediocre products and higher prices have become the norm. Sad.

The veggies and fruit are not only not fresh, they’re rotting on the shelves. The selection of tortillas & beans boggles the mind… The meat is okay, overpriced and not out of this world and the selection is more Mexican themed than «country» themed… I asked them for smoked pork chops and flank steak and the butcher looked at me like I just cursed his mom…
But it does have some good points… They have a small and limited selection of Goya products, which is good since I’m Puerto Rican. They have a small restaurant/​kitchenette that makes decent food. No lines so it can’t be that good. There’s absolutely no traffic inside so you can get in and out with little wait. The everyday items that people usually run out of right in the middle of cooking/​cleaning are REALLY overpriced (foil, wax paper, dish soap, 409, etc.), so keep in mind there’s a 99 Cent store just a ¼ mile north or the place…
If you’re an old Hispanic woman and you don’t mind wilted cilantro with no fragrance, or limes that look more like lemons or warm green onions, this is the place for you. But for me? I’m headed over to Luis Market off Imperial and Clark. Better quality meat, better prices and wider selection of Hispanic ingredients ranging the spectrum of nationalities. Not to mention platanos/​plaintains that are ripe and greener than Puerto Rico’s!

Hole in the wall place. Been going here since it was just «Country Butcher» and when they made sandwiches… way before it became Gloria’s.
Good neighborhood market to grab a few things. They have fresh meats and cooked/​prepared food.
The produce tends to be old. I’ve never seen a fresh bunch of celery there. By the time they’re there they are already soft and bendy but they are cheap. Perfect for soups or stews.

You know what they say, «once you kill a cow you have to make a burger». Just kidding. This place is a Downey jewl. the meat, poultry and veggies are fresh and so good. the prices are moderate. The satff might want to be a bit more friendly and nicer, but we don’t go to make friends. My mom is crazy about this place. Close to home and quick service. Love Gloria’s Country Butcher. They also have a kitchen with cooked food for lunch. I have not eaten from there yet, but when I do trust I will let you guys know what’s up! lol

So i went here today for one of their healthy drinks (orange, apples, carrots and beets) and of course it’s right there in the little kitchen area where all the food is so of course i HAD to have him fix a girl two small taco’s to go. two chiccarone tacos with some beans, cilantro, onions, red salsa hot sauce. Wow, was good. .bad girl, BAD GIRL. (but oh so good).

I’ve been coming here for years (since before the new ownership) and I can’t say I’ve ever had a problem with any of my purchases. I like to buy meat here and typically it’s carne ranchera for grilling and the salsas are pretty good as well. A pound (obviously varies) was around 5 bucks and some change.
I do enjoy their natural juices though. The beet juice or otherwise known as a vampire, is one of my favorites. It’s only 2 bucks, all of their juices are 2 bucks.
I’m sure their other items might be somewhat over priced compared to a large market but it’s a mom and pop type of shop so it makes sense.
Cards accepted.

This store is great, this is one of the only stores that my family buys meat from. Don’t know what the other guy is talking about I’ve never eaten meat from them that wasn’t good. And their customer service is great, if people think otherwise it’s probably them being the problem. I don’t know how they can sell you old or weird tasting beer but that sounds so unlikely, I highly doubt they kept a case of beer in the back for over a year so it can get old and just so they can mess with a customer. They always seem busy so I don’t think they can have old products there. But overall great service and great products, I had a burrito from there and it was awesome. Check it out!!!

I went here because it was recommended by a friend and after that recommendation I checked Unilocal and it had 2 great reviews. Unfortunately I will never go here again.
I purchased 3lbs of carne estrada, 3 lbs of riblets, 2 lbs of queso fresco, an 18 pack of Tecate, produce, and a bag of mexican candy.
Let’s start with the meat. The carne estrada was ok, not wonderful, not really fresh, but okay. The riblets were not that good. When I looked at them through the glass you could not tell they were old because of the marinade, but when I cooked them they tasted awful, really old. They smelled old too. No bueno.
Now let’s move on to the queso fresco. It really wasn’t fresco. It was more like queso viejo. There was no moistness to it and when I cut off a small piece I smelled it and it smelled like cleaning solution, it even tasted like cleaning solution. Bad, very bad.
Now for the beer. When I got home the first thing I did was place the beer in fridge because honestly warm beer is not a good thing. When it was time to begin the drinking there was something wrong. When opening the can there was no «pop» sound you get when opening a cold can of beer. I poured the beer into my glass along with the lime and salt and there was not much fizz to it. I drank two of these beers and then decided to stop and just drink the beers I normally have in reserve. This totally took me over the top. You can mess with my meat, my cheese, but heaven help you if you mess with my beer. That was when I decided I am not going to be visiting this store again.
There that is my review. I could go on, talk about the cleanliness of the store, the customer service from the people behind the counter, but I won’t. I think they’ve done enough damage for them selves with my first visit. Just in case they are reading this, I do a lot of cooking, especially carne estrada, and I drink a lot of beer, so by this experience they have lost out on a really big cash cow.

Great prices and good quality all around!
My quest for a hard to find horse piñata continues!
My parents buy their ranchera cuts here for their barbecues. The meat is great! The employees are friendly and very helpful.
I came here the other day since I saw tons of pinatas. A friend of mine ArmaNaco was looking for two pinatas. One had to be a person and the other a horse. I found the person (Chavo del Ocho) but there was no horse. Granted it’s kind of hard to find a horse piñata. The piñata is big. It’s almost chest high and only costs $ 13.99! To be honest 14 $ is good for a basic nice piñata! The cheapest would be 10 $ for a dinky one that is ugly! Going to the «fiesta district» on Olympic can be costly in gas and time and 3 $ and up parking fees. The pinatas here are of good quality too. Elsewhere pinatas can cost up to $ 40.00. There are tons of Mexican candy here too!!! Like my favorite Pulparindo!!! I’m not sure how the prices compare with downtown Los Angeles though.
This place is great for fiesta food and items!!!