All in the Family
The Holsinger team (left to right) Richie Holsinger, Nick Sprecher, April Spessard, Ben Moreland, Tosh Smith, Amy Bragunier, Jacqueline Plezia, Cyrus Biesecker.
For nearly 150 years the Holsingers have been Hagerstown’s go-to for everything meat
By April Bartel
Cruise to the junction of Maugans Avenue and Maugansville Road and you’ll find a building crowned with a life-sized fiberglass steer. It's a landmark as recognizable as the savory scent of smoke drifting from the back of Holsinger’s Meats & Deli. The place is part specialty butcher shop, part sandwich haven, and entirely a family affair since 1876.
The iconic steer atop the Holsinger building on Maugans Avenue near Maugansville Road.
Sixth-generation siblings Richie Holsinger and April Spessard manage the business, but their parents, Trish and Robert Holsinger II, can also be found bustling behind the counter. Trish retired from a career in finance last December, and jokes, “I decided that bird watching just wasn't going to cut it for me. So, I come in to help.” She is the company’s “master wrapper,” but she smiles with pride watching her children take the family business into the future.
Originally founded in Cearfoss, Holsinger’s came to its current spot in 1964. April and Richie’s grandparents, Regina and Robert “Bob” Holsinger Sr., built the structure still in use today.
“We have a lot of history in this area,” Richie says. “Our job is just to keep doing what our parents and grandparents always did—and try not to mess it up.”
That humility belies a meticulous operation. Holsinger’s is known for small-batch processing of beef, pork, lamb, goat, and a variety of wild game like farmed deer, buffalo, and elk.
“If you raise your own animals, we can process them, too,” Richie says. “We do everything from scratch.”
They cut, grind, season, and roast or stuff every sausage on-site. The market’s reputation for smoked meats is especially strong. The family uses a computerized smokehouse and German-made stuffing machine to produce customer favorites like bacon, jerky, hot dogs, ham, and snack sticks.
Refrigerated cases stocked with meats processed on site at Holsingers.
“Our hot dogs aren’t like anybody else’s,” April says. “They’re lean, made from real meat, and they snap when you bite into them. We’ve added cheese and jalapeño varieties, but the original is still our best-seller.” Even their hamburger beef (pure shoulder chuck) is ground in small batches for ultimate freshness and perfect for summer grilling.
Seasonal surges keep the team on its toes—especially fall hunting season, when Holsinger’s processes thousands of deer. Through the Farmers and Hunters Feeding the Hungry program, they also donate processed meat to local food banks.
“We care about our customers and our community,” Trish says. “That’s why people keep coming back.”
It’s not just the meat that brings people through the door. The deli has exploded in popularity. April lightheartedly calls herself the “Sub Slayer.” She and the counter crew serve made-to-order subs, burgers, hot dogs, and ribeye sandwiches, often paired with regionally famous hand-cut fries.
“We’ve quadrupled our sub sales in the last few years,” she says. “On a slow day, we go through 15 to 20 packs of sub rolls.” That’s about 90 to 120 full subs. Many of the deli’s lunchmeats are house-made, including roast beef, baked country ham, and their holiday-style bone-in City ham, seasoned and smoked on site.
“We eat what we make,” April insists. “If we wouldn’t serve it to our family, we won’t serve it to yours.” The smoked sausages are her favorite.
Loyalty runs deep—among staff, customers, and even across generations. At times, four generations of Holsingers worked in the store at once. Some customers, too, have been coming in for decades, since they were kids shopping with their parents. Trish ribs her daughter, “when I try to help people they’ll say, ‘No, April knows what I want.’”
Refrigerated cases stocked with meats processed on site at Holsingers.
April and Richie are proud to carry the business forward. “We don’t change anything that isn’t broken,” April says, offering an example. “People come from hours away just for our chicken salad. It’s still my grandmother’s recipe, and they get mad if it’s not here.”
Even the meat that’s not raised locally is sourced from U.S. producers, inspected, and choice grade or higher. Folks can find everything from lamb rib chops to buffalo ribeyes to smoked pork chops and country ham slices, even salads, cheeses, drinks, and eggs. Customers may find a trio of meaty specialties known as ponhaus (scrapple), pudding, and souse alongside a variety of deer bolognas.
And if you ever wonder what’s in the smoker, just follow your nose. “People will walk in and ask, ‘What are you smoking today?’” says April. Sometimes, it’s a thousand pounds of bologna.
At Holsinger’s, every cut, every sub, and every smoked sausage tells a story—not just of skill and seasoning, but of deep local roots and dedication. “We’re lucky, we’re fortunate, and we’re blessed,” says April. And judging by the ever-busy store front and devoted customer base, the feeling is mutual.