Uncle Beef's Story
Family owned and runWell Steve, a true Springbok Supporter, has always been excited about Fire, Sport and Meat. So much in fact, he was always found next to a Braai, watching sport, cooking and feeding people meat. So, one day his nephew said “Hey, Uncle Beef, what you got cooking this week?”There are no truer words than those from a child’s mouth!
Steve was born in South Africa and departed when he was 18 years old with his love for rugby, meat, Braai’s and South African specialities ingrained in his DNA. When Steve arrived in the UK in 2003 with only £500 to pay rent and find a job, there was little amount left for homemade treats to lessen the feelings of home sickness.
With limited establishments in the UK producing quality South African produce, Steve started to explore his own methods of meat drying following the same footsteps of his late Grandfather, Alan Livens, that had a “Chippy” in Umkomaas (South of Durban). Alan was an Englishman that served as a chef in the Merchant Navy and sadly, Alan is now surfing the waves in heaven, but his memory lives on with the methods of food making and home produce that have been passed down through two generations. Without Alan Livens we wouldn’t be here? Cheers ALAN.
Steve Livens
Founder Director
Louise Lewis
Butcher Assistant & PA to SteveBorn and raised in London and partner to Steve. Louise worked in the city as a HR professional for 14 years before devoting her time to becoming a full time mum to Spencer & Stanley. Louise has a vast amount of experience in recruitment, vetting and HR . Acting as a PA to Steve and general day to day admin tasks. Louise is also responsible for all HR,vetting and recruitment matters within the firm and general Housekeeping of the shop . Occasional meat packing during busy times and management of all online parcels and she also manages stock control and any butcher sundries that need to be replenished.
Bradley Cowup
Logistics Co-ordinatorAfter trying Biltong on his first visit to Uncle Beef, Bradley became a regular customer and got to know Steve well. When he was looking for a delivery driver, Bradley, who has been out of work for a couple of years, jumped at the chance. He spends his days delivering meat and Biltong around London and Kent and is an integral part of the Uncle Beef family.
Awards
Original & Chilli Droëwors
Did you know…
During the summer 2020…We had a famous tuba player working in our shop to help with demand. We are very grateful to have had Jonny however he is now doing what he does best – playing the tuba!
Jonathan (Jonny) Rees has been a professional tuba player for over twenty years. He plays with most of the professional symphony, chamber and opera orchestras in the UK. and has been in the bands for the critically acclaimed West End shows ‘Chicago- the musical’, ‘The Scottsboro Boys’ and ‘The Boyfriend’. When not lurking near an overly large brass instrument, Jonny loves cooking the wide range of quality produce from Uncle Beef for his family. Jonny is currently on the UK. and international tour of ‘Chicago- the musical’
Our Location
16 Crayford High Street, Crayford, DA1 4HG
Memberships
We pride ourselves in being the best in our field and have the following memberships
National Craft Butchers Association
National Catering Association
The Institute of Meat
Suppliers
We are very fortunate to have great suppliers that fully understand our passion and quality of meat that we require weekly. Our beef is handpicked in Scotland and so is our lamb, pork & poultry from our alternative supplier. We have only just recently met our farmers face to face at a meat festival in London and it was great to feel the connection for three things we had in common; meat, fire, and having a good time. Our partnerships are very strong and we are confident that they will continue to go from strength to strength as we grow the business.
Since working with Steve and the team at Uncle Beef, we quickly learned that they are looking for a very specific type of beef. Through constant communication and feedback we managed to fine tune our selection process to ensure the quality was consistent every single week. We focus on 2 particular farms – J. Brown of Gaindykehead Farm in Airdrie and B. Capper of Auchans Farm in Johnstone when selecting beef for Uncle Beef. At these particular farms, the cattle are fed the right amount of grass to give them the rich yellow fat colour with plenty of marbling that gives Uncle Beef’s product the unique flavoured steaks as well as their incredible biltong!
Jason Ward – John Scott Meat
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BA (HONS) Business & Management , IOSH Health & Safety & Risk Assessment, Level 2&3 Food Hygiene.
Born in South Africa , Steve came to the English shores at the age of 18 . He spent 17 years working in the city within the Security Industry and achieved an honours Degree in Business and Management.
However, Steve’s real passion is food, mainly meat and outdoor cooking, on fire (Braai ). Steve has been making Biltong, Droëwors/Drywors and Boerewors for the last 18 years and has been working on different recipes and spice mixes since 2003.
“ I am a devoted Springbok supporter and can be found playing tennis and golf occasionally to keep my hand. On days off ,I try and spend as much time with my two very active boys (Spencer & Stanley).”