ONTARIO — The snow pelting the Wayne County town of Ontario on this Friday night in February is intensifying, as weather events tend to do near Lake Ontario this time of year.
But the aroma of barrel-aged Scotch ale ice cream – yes, ice cream – is a reminder that springtime is coming for Bill Ritchie, who owns the eclectic Ritchie’s Market, a budding brewpub just down Lake Road from where he and his family live.
“The season’s starting up,” Ritchie said. “You’ve gotta be ready.”
Ritchie’s Market, which opened a little over a year ago, is home to his homemade ice cream, some flavors of which are based on the “beer-flavored beer” that he and brewer Steve Rowe produce on a one-barrel system from this one-time taco place and another-time auto repair shop.
Ritchie, who came to the U.S. in the late 1960s with his family from Glasgow, Scotland, also sells haggis — the American kind, not the traditional national dish that Scottish bard Robert Burns waxed poetic about in his circa 1700s “Address to a Haggis.”
But you also can stop by this off-the-beaten place for more traditional fare such as a burger, hot dog, pizza or chicken fingers.
Although he sells and makes craft beer, Ritchie said he is not trying to compete in the brewing space, although good beer is brewed there, and it’s reasonably priced at $5.50 a pint.
He is intent on making the market a comfortable space where you can bring your kids. If you want something good to eat, you can eat. If you want unique ice cream, you can get that. If you want a beer, have at it.
“My real intent is to make it a neighborhood place,” Ritchie said.
Decor, the Ritchie’s Market way
A weathered red barbecue sign Ritchie found at an old-fashioned diner in Caledonia, Livingston County, where he went looking for picnic tables, hangs over the tiny bar, which is next to the beer cooler.
Both look out over a small dining room and blue-and-white national flag of Scotland and its gold lion rampant of Scotland flag on the far wall. Ritchie also identifies with 1950s culture and loves the classic cars of the era, so he has lots of pictures.
Basically, the decor can be summed up like this: If Ritchie sees something he likes while he’s out and about, he’ll find a spot for it. Ritchie describes it as “man-cave hangout.”
Besides running the market, Ritchie also owns Mobile Craft Canning, which counts many familiar local craft brewers as customers. That’s how he met Rowe, who now also helps him on his canning runs.
That’s also the origin of the market.
Business was “incredibly good” during the pandemic years because of curbside sales of craft beer, Ritchie said. That led him to buy the brew system, with plans of putting it in his barn and learning how to brew as a hobby, with Rowe as teacher and mentor. One thing led to another, and he obtained a walk-in cooler and then ice cream making equipment and, when the former occupant, Rustic Taco, moved out to Fairport, this building to store all of it and a business was born.
“Things just fell into place,” Ritchie said.
Have a beer at Ritchie’s Market
They didn’t want to call it a brewery right off the bat, although their beer is being noticed.
“He’s like a beer scientist,” Ritchie said, referring to Rowe. “We have a similar take on life. Nothing really is all that important anymore, let’s just keep on doing what we’re doing.”
And that’s brewing the beer they have liked to drink for years, at their own pace. Rowe’s previous brewery job was a retirement gig, until it started to become like work.
Not so at Ritchie’s Market.
“This place is very casual, low-key,” Rowe said. “We brew once or twice a month and could probably sustain a bit more.”
You won’t find him making fruited sours or pastry stouts or the like, although Ritchie does sell canned products of his clients who excel at these styles.
Traditional is more of their style, which is why on this night Munich Dunkel lager, their Lake Road Lager, Scotch ale and barrel-aged Scotch ale are flowing from the four taps.
“We’re not going to do a fruited sour that’s tremendous, so why would we do it?” Ritchie said.
In addition to carrying canned beers from his clients, he also sells wine from nearby Young Summer Winery in a mutually beneficial arrangement. Over time, they plan to do more to attract the craft beer drinkers who like to take day trips and try beer at different places and be surprised. They will be surprised – promise.
“People love our beer,” Ritchie said. “The positive feedback is great.”
Homemade ice cream is a fan favorite at Ritchie’s Market
If you haven’t figured it out by now, Ritchie, who has an engineering background, is a resourceful guy. It helps when it comes to making ice cream.
While he makes traditional flavors, some of his ice cream is made with their beer, either his own or something from his canning clients.
For instance, he uses Canandaigua-based Frequentem Brewing Co.’s sours in, say, a natural fruit strawberry in ice cream. He’s done a bananas Foster using a maple coffee stout from Noble Shepherd Craft Brewery near Honeoye. He’ll also make custom ice cream cakes to order.
And the spicy cucumber ice cream?
“Everybody wants to try that. I just like creating different things,” Ritchie said. “I’m always throwing ideas past Steve, and he always shoots me down and reels me in – on the beer side. On the ice cream side, he’s got no say.”
Why Bill Ritchie is the Haggis Man
About 15 years ago, Ritchie, who is a bagpiper, learned of Tartan Day, sort of the Scottish equivalent of St. Patrick’s Day, and felt Rochester should have a celebration, which was booked subsequently.
“Whenever you do anything Scottish, everybody wants to know where you get haggis,” said Ritchie, who found a distributor of American-style haggis – big difference from the Scotch delicacy – and began selling cans of it along with Irish stews and Scottish sausages at festivals from a 10-by-10 tent. He did it for five years, long enough to earn a nickname.
“People loved it,” Ritchie said. “So, I introduced a lot of people to it, and they started calling me the Haggis Man.”
Scottish haggis has sheep lung, which is banned in the U.S. The U.S. version uses lamb liver, heart and sometimes kidney or ground lamb or beef, plus artificial casing, which the Scottish version doesn’t have.
Part of the Wayne County neighborhood
Angela Johnson and family live down the street from Ritchie’s Market. After it opened, they stopped in, mainly to get the kids ice cream but also to check it out. Now, they visit regularly, to play cards, enjoy ice cream, grab a bite to eat and sample his new beers, “which are always delicious,” Johnson said.
“We found it to be cute and cozy and kind of embraces the small-town feel we have in Ontario,” Johnson said. “We now try to stop in once a week or so. It’s a great spot to catch up as a family and unwind from the week.”
Edd and Jeanette Altavela enjoy the selection of craft beer, local wine and non-alcoholic beverages as well as ice cream and comfort food – including the air-fried tater tots and onion rings.
“It’s the kind of place you stop by with firends or family, hang out for a while and enjoy the relaxed atmosphere,” Jeanette Altavela said.
Occasionally, Ritchie hosts special events such as the Tartan Square Club’s Robert Burns Night in January, complete with haggis and whisky tasting. And when warm weather comes, the large outdoor space will be put to good use with music and just plain old, sitting in the sun unwinding.
Open three days a week now – this is somewhat of a second gig for Richie, after all – the market is a work in progress. As he progresses, he is fining out what’s works although, he laughed, he’s not sure it does work – yet.
But every day, someone new learns about Ritchie’s Market, which is all part of the master plan: Be true to yourself; learn as you go; and enjoy what you’re doing.
“We’re not looking to take over the world,” Ritchie said.
More about Ritchie’s Market
Ritchie’s Market is at 153 Lake Road, Ontario, Wayne County. Hours for now are 4 to 8 p.m. Fridays, 2 to 8 p.m. Saturdays and noon to 4 p.m. Sundays. For more details, visit https://www.facebook.com/p/Ritchies-Market-61564999787843/.
Mike Murphy covers Canandaigua and other communities in Ontario County and writes the Eat, Drink and Be Murphy food and drink column. He can be reached at mmurphy@messengerpostmedia.com. Follow him on X at @MPN_MikeMurphy.
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Eclectic market and brewpub offers pleasant surprises
Reporting by Mike Murphy, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle / Rochester Democrat and Chronicle
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
