Best of Boston

2011 Best Butcher

Savenor’s

The exotics section—black bear, kangaroo, rattlesnak—may score all the novelty points, but it’s the top quality of the more-conventional meats at this family-run business that has won the dedication of home cooks and area chefs alike (including Julia Child). The vast majority of the offerings are free of hormones and antibiotics, and they’re local, too: Vermont Berkshire pork, Maine-raised sirloin from alfalfa-fed herds.

92 Kirkland St., Cambridge, 617-576-6328,