Tip Top Meats

"Tip Top Meats was started by butcher “Big John” Haedrich back in 1967, and it runs the same way today that it did back then — there’s a shop full of German goodies, including chocolates, cheese, beer, wine, and pretzel rolls from the old country, and in the back, there’s a deli counter where you can get a steak, a schnitzel, a stroganoff, or a whole plate of European sausages for very reasonable prices. Sadly, their lease will end in September with no firm plans for the future of the beloved Carlsbad institution." - Candice Woo, Helen I. Hwang

"This butcher shop and restaurant specializes in top notch meats with European flair. Even better, the dinner menu has a few items that might satisfy cravings from the old country, like beef stroganoff, stuffed cabbage rolls, sausages (bratwurst, hungarian, knackwurst, and Polish) served with red cabbage and German potato salad, plus a long list of grilled and slow-roasted meats." - Roxana Popescu

"The grocery portion of Carlsbad institution is stocked with German pantry items like spaetzle, crisp bread and kippers but the real highlight is the meat counter. The full-service butcher sells bratwursts, Polish sausages, bacon as well a bigger cuts of meat." - Darlene Horn

"This restaurant has moved to a takeout model but the grocery section is still open. Sausages, grocery items plus beer and wine is for sale." - Darlene Horn

"Launched by a German sausage master in 1967, this North County institution combines a European market and delicatessen with a restaurant serving hearty platters of meat, potatoes, and sauerkraut." - Candice Woo