Named after the French word for “craft,” Métier Cook’s Supply on South First Street aims to engage food lovers of every level who want to expand their taste and hone their skills.
The retail store features floor-to-ceiling bookshelves lined with more than 2,000 cookbooks and a wall of specialty knives. In addition, Métier offers high-end, unique and vintage culinary items, such as barware and homemade finishing salts.
Husband-and-wife team Jessica Maher and Todd Duplechan opened Métier in 2014, two years after launching their restaurant LENOIR next door. The couple met in culinary school and had dreamed of opening a knife store—a concept that eventually evolved into a community-based kitchen store with items individually selected for their form and function, Maher said.
“There’s something here for people who just love cookbooks; there’s something here for people who just love barware, [for example],” Maher said. “We really try only to carry things that we would use ourselves at home or at work.”
Maher said the store’s concept is focused on practicality and enabling everyone, from home cooks to professional chefs, to improve their craft.
Duplechan has a background in Japanese-style cooking, resulting in an appreciation of and fascination with Japanese knives, which tend to be lighter and sharper, he said.
Like many of the items found at Métier, the shop’s knife collection is something customers can personally interact with before making a purchase.
“You can buy anything on the Internet, but a knife is very specific to someone’s hand,” Duplechan said. “I think that’s a niche that was not being filled.”
After opening Métier, Maher and Duplechan found the space organically became a hub for the local culinary community and pop-up events.
The store has hosted a variety of social gatherings, from book signings to chef demos, in addition to Duplechan’s regular knife-sharpening workshop.
“It’s been shaping over time into this place where people use us as a launchpad for their own businesses,” Maher said.
Maher and Duplechan said knives and cookbooks are still the heart of Métier, but said they are happy to see the store morphing into a space that meets the greater needs of the community.
“I think we saw an opportunity … to provide something to the community that doesn’t already exist,” Maher said. “The community has more or less told us what it needed, and we’ve built it up from there.”
Upcoming events at Métier
March 3: ‘Bien Cuit’ book event with Bien Cuit and Easy Tiger chefs: Chefs Zachary Golper of Bien Cuit and David Norman of Easy Tiger join guests at Métier Cook’s Supply where Golper’s book, “Bien Cuit: The Art of Bread,” is available for purchase from 5-6 p.m. A happy hour in the LENOIR wine garden follows at 6:15 p.m. and features various breads from the “Bien Cuit” cookbook. Free
March 5: SPUN ice cream pop-up event: SPUN Ice Cream hosts a pop-up event at Métier Cook’s Supply and features a flavor specially created for Métier. 1-4 p.m. Free; ice cream available for purchase
Métier Cook’s Supply owners Jessica Maher and Todd Duplechan share their passion for all things culinary through their kitchen supply store and complementary restaurant, LENOIR, in South Austin.[/caption]
