Born and raised on New York City skate culture and punk rock, Dave Ortiz has taken his eccentric tastes to the next level, creating a clothing brand and boutique unrivaled by anything on earth. A butcher shop that sells sneakers? Unheard of, you think. Lots of people could not wrap their heads around the concept (especially the real life butcher that walked in looking for a job).

Name: David Ortiz (Not the baseball player)
Age: “Dirty-8” (or in English, 38)
Location: Money-taking Manhattan, NY
[www.davesqualitymeat.com]

DUB: For those of us that don’t know, what did you do before you started Dave’s Quality Meat?
David: Before I started Dave’s Quality Meat, I was working for Zoo York Skate Boards. This is way before the Ecko brand exploited that label, but ouch...

DUB: How many “theme shops” have you heard of today?
David: I’ve heard of many theme shops after mine. I wouldn’t give any names of these shops that bit my style…I don’t want to give props to losers like that.

DUB: You surprised kids last year with a second release of your Bacon Air Max 90s. Can we expect any more surprise AM90s?
David: Well, there is no more Air Max 90 Bacon. I can assure you on that, so if you got a pair, and you are an Air 90 fan, take care of them…don’t be like me and screw them up like I do to all of my sneakers. I guess I got spoiled owning a shop thinking, “Yeah, I’ll get another,” but when it comes to Bacon, those joints are gone, DOH! But, on a side note, there is some new stuff in production that will hit the street this summer and, boy, you guys are going to hit the floor. My partner, Chris Keeffe, and my manager, Kyle Demers, did these new designs, and they are just as hot (if not hotter) than Bacon....wait to see summer OH-8 (or in English, ’08).

DUB: What kind of wheels are you pushing these days?
David: Well, these days, I push a DQM/PISTA CONCEPT. Now, this might be funny to you guys because you might not know what kind of wheels those are, but it’s a two-wheel fixed, gear bike. I don’t drive…I get driven around in cabs. I pedal a bike. I’m trying to save the planet by being green. What can I say? I guess I’m a hippie at heart.

DUB: Parodies of bigger brands seem to be the stock and trade of many streetwear/sneaker-oriented brands. How do you keep fresh ideas amid a mire of crap?
David: The way I stay in tune is to have a decent crew of guys that are real. The guys at my shop, and the crew we hang out with, can’t be better; they don’t follow any trends…to be honest, they don’t like anything. Sh*t, they make fun of me all the time because I’m on my own trip with style, food and music. We all ride, or walk, to our own drum…that’s how you stay in true and fresh style.

DUB: Is DQM in the same location as the old Footwork store, or am I losing it?
David: Nah, we are in our own location. The Footwork store was some place else; I picked the Bowery because it was the last real place in NYC close to CBGB’s, an old hangout of mine. Dopeheads, bums, rats and Section 8 housing…that’s real New York. Now, it’s a dreamland. I love it. I miss the old style, but that sh*t was getting old, and I like the cleaner side of things. You still have the bums and dopeheads, but they are not as rude as they used to be. It’s kind of fun to see them and trip out on their vibes.

DUB: Are socially conscious collaborations—like Converse (RED)—the wave of the future?
David: With something like RED, I did it my way. I wasn’t trying to big me up because my best friends died of AIDS and that sh*t got to me. I wanted to make something so beautiful that everyone who was part of it liked what it stood for and not because my name was on it. To me, it was more important to tell the story than to pat myself on the back. The symbols on the back of the shoe stood for “Life Blood and Protection of Illness.”

DUB: I miss the old photo gallery on your first DQM site, the one that had cameos from Rosario Dawson and Elijah Wood. Do you think letting Elijah Wood hang out with you got him that part in Sin City (Dimension Films, 2005)?
David: E-wood, as I like to call him. Nah, man, he rocks…he’s a rad guy. He got that part because he’s a dark mother f*cker. Don’t be fooled by his big blue eyes. That guy played the best character in that movie. I always crank call him whenever I’m drunk. I tell him I’m in his apartment, and if he really liked that vase I broke in the front hallway; then I ask him which one of these remotes turns on the cable TV.

DUB: Any secrets or predictions you can share for 2008?
David: I think the Mets might do it this year…at least I hope they do.