Dittmer's Gourmet Meats & Wurst-Haus
Dittmer's has cut, smoked and stuffed everything on site at this El Camino counter since 1978, and its own site lists the lamb merguez as 2026 Grand Champion at the California Association of Meat Processors competition.
Why go
Dittmer's has run as an old-fashioned butcher shop and delicatessen on this stretch of El Camino since 1978.1 The work happens in the building: the shop cuts meat, makes its sausages, smokes its meats and makes its own lunchmeats.1 In 2026 it entered the California Association of Meat Processors competition and its own site lists the results: Grand Champion for the lamb merguez, Reserve Grand Champion for the bratwurst and weisswurst, Champion for the pepper bacon.1 Those are the shop's own postings, and nobody outside the shop has confirmed them yet.
Order this / avoid
- Order: the lamb merguez, the shop's 2026 Grand Champion by its own listing.1
- Order: bratwurst and weisswurst from the same competition slate.1
- Avoid: Monday and Sunday. Both are closed under the hours that started 9 June 2026.1
Good to know
- Hours: Tuesday to Friday 10am to 6pm, Saturday 9am to 4pm, closed Sunday and Monday.1
Verdict
could-visit — Nobody outside the shop has written it up, so the case rests on 48 years of continuous trading and the work done in the building, cutting, smoking, sausage-making and lunchmeats all on site. The 2026 competition results are the shop's own postings, and nobody outside the shop has confirmed them. A working smokehouse behind a retail counter is rare on this stretch of El Camino, and a critic's visit would settle whether the merguez earns its banner.