McArdle Meats is Louth's best known butchers' shops and the quality of their produce has been recognised on the national stage on more than one occasion.

This year, McArdle Meats won four prestigious awards at the annual trade show SHOP, Ireland's Biggest Food and Drink event for Retail and Hospitality, which was held recently in the RDS in Dublin.
For the 2010 edition of the Wee County Yearbook, we profile McArdle Meats and take a look at the success they have achieved, while also having a look at the newly refurbished premises on Clanbrassil Street, which is the original premises of the franchise that now includes a further two shops at the Marshes in Dundalk and in Finglas, Co Dublin.
McArdle Meats managing director Keith Shortt and his employees can draw comparisons to many GAA teams as they too have work hard and reap the rewards.
Winning a competitive place in the 'Top Ten Butchers Shops Nationwide' in The Star SHOP Awards which was run by the Associated Craft Butchers of Ireland (ACBI), McArdle Meats was recognised for its quality and customer service. McArdle Meats was also awarded 'Gold Overall Winner and Supreme Champion Award' in the Speciality Food Competition for its Honey and Mustard Glazed Ham.
They were also awarded Gold in the 'Sausage Competition' for its traditional sausage and awarded Gold in the 'Ready to Cook competition' for its Gourmet Burger.
The Speciality Food Competition was judged by members of the Irish Guild of Food Writers and The Star Shop Awards were judged by mystery shopper visits.
"We were delighted to be recognised for our good quality food products and for our customer service," said Keith Shortt, managing director, McArdle Meats. "We work hard at keeping our standards high and it's great that our peers compete in these events to keep us all on our toes and at the top of our game."
McArdle Meats prides itself on good customer service, good quality product, good value for money and good hygiene standards.
While many retailers have closed their shutters on Clanbrassil Street in the past year and those remaining continue to face challenges, one of the street's oldest traders McArdle Meats is optimistic about the future of Clanbrassil street and has made a significant investment in its shop in recent days with a new fit-out.
"Customer focus has, is and always will be top of our agenda at McArdle Meats," said Keith. "We are constantly investing in our food products, shops and staff to deliver the best service to our customers. We listen to our customers and we adapt to their changing needs. In order to keep at the top of our game and provide great quality products, we must continue to invest, even in these challenging times.
"We are proud of our longstanding presence on Clanbrassil Street and we encourage growth and investment here. We also acknowledge that we have invested a lot of money in an uncertain retail climate, however, we see the street as being a very good place to be in Dundalk in the future."
Choosing to invest in the new fit-out was decided after a review of the current needs of the McArdle Meats shop and of its customers. McArdle Meats prides itself on customer service and felt it hadn't enough space and variety in its shop on Clanbrassil Street. The new fit-out is designed to be more customer friendly and offer more food choice and variety. The new fit-out was completed within 48 hours and caused no disruption to customer service.
McArdle Meats has been trading on Clanbrassil Street for over 30 years. Given the economic downturn, the company has managed to retain all employees and is currently recruiting staff. 
Sponsorship is something that the team at McArdles has been keen to be associated with and they have sponsored a number of different organisations in Dundalk including the Clann na nGael minor football team.
The 'McArdle Meats Young Chef of the Year' secondary school cookery competition is back for its second year running and all secondary schools in Louth and Monaghan are invited to take part.
Entrants must be Home Economics students and are asked to create their own recipes and cook a starter, a main course and a dessert.  They must state what produce they intend to use and where the ingredients will come from, along with the cost of the meal.
The menu the entrants choose will be the one they will be required to prepare and cook and serve on competition day, if selected as a finalist. Six finalists will be short listed and they will be judged by Keith and Alan McCabe, development chef at McArdle Meats.
The competition will be held on Friday 18th February 2011. Judges on the day will be Keith Shortt along with some of his production chefs from McArdle Meats and they will be looking for the best in nutritional value, presentation, cost and of course taste. 
"We at McArdle Meats are enthusiastic about promoting cooking and culinary skills to young people and we recognise the importance of this in terms of healthy eating and nutrition," said Keith Shortt, managing director, McArdle Meats. "It's our second year running and we are delighted to work with local schools and we are keen to get as many schools involved as possible in counties Louth and Monaghan. Getting young people interested in cooking is important and rewarding for themselves. A competition like this gives them something fun to look forward to and some personal goals to set and achieve as well."
The winning menu will appear on the McArdle Meats website along with photographs of the competition. There will be 1st, 2nd and 3rd positions awarded this year & the Crystal Trophy will go to the 1st place winner, along with the all important title of 'McArdle Meats Young Chef of the Year 2011'.  First prize is a laptop for the Home Economics department of the winning school. The first prize winner will also receive a free placement at a cookery school. Other prizes will be awarded to 2nd and 3rd place positions to the student winners as well as their Home Economic departments.
Closing date for entries is Friday 7th January 2011. All entrants are asked to submit their school details, teachers name & the reasons why they should be selected. All entries are to be sent to 'McArdle Meat's Young Chef of the Year' student cookery competition, unit 36 Marshes S/C Dundalk, Co. Louth or emailed to [email protected]   
 
 
 
 
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