You wouldn’t expect to find lightly salted zebra tarantulas and bacon-and-cheese-flavored male rhino beetles in a quiet, unassuming strip mall on Plano Road in Richardson. But that’s exactly what you’re in for when you walk through the doors at Meat Maniac. The retail shop specializes in a selection of jerkys, sauces, rubs, candy, novelty gifts, and edible insects.
After losing his job at a local restaurant chain in 2010, shop owner Torrey Morgan decided that he wanted to do something on his own. “I always loved jerky, smoking meat, and making my own barbecue sauce,” Morgan says. “I started an eBay store where I sold exotic game jerky and bacon novelty items … I started as a distributor.” In 2013, Morgan launched his own line of jerky with a co-packer in California. The edible insects came shortly after.
“I was on a road trip and stopped — I think in Branson, Missouri — and picked up a scorpion lollipop,” he says. “It fascinated me.” He discovered that Hotlix was behind the playful treat and soon became a distributor of the company’s merchandise. “I’m always doing research, and I found an insect company in Thailand,” he says. “I contacted them and introduced packaging of my own.”
Meat Maniac’s edible bug line includes cheese crickets, salted sago worms, barbecue grasshoppers, salted armor tail scorpions, and a salted zebra tarantula. “Right now, the barbecue mixed bugs are the most popular,” he says. “My personal favorite is the sago worms. They’re kind of cool; they don’t really look like bugs, which makes them easier to eat. Texture-wise, it’s like eating a cheese puff. But it doesn’t taste like a cheese puff. It’s earthy like how I imagine grass or hay would taste.” Morgan opened his storefront in Richardson in 2014, and he has since grown his business. “Two months ago, I added 10 more insects, and I’m starting to see some response.”
Naturally, I needed to purchase a variety of bugs before I drove back to Dallas, but what was I going to do with them? As I was checking out, I had the brilliant idea of feeding them to my loving and beautiful coworkers. This afternoon, live via Facebook video streaming, a handful of D Magazine staffers crunched into water bugs, giant beetles, and tarantulas. It was pretty entertaining. (You can watch the video below.) If you’re feeling curious or brave — or just really want to recreate an episode of “Fear Factor” at home — then you should absolutely stop by Meat Maniac. Who knows. Maybe you’ll discover your new favorite snack.
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The D Magazine Staff Eats Bugs
Posted by D Magazine on Wednesday, March 9, 2016
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