It caught my eye because I watched a game show and an Omaha Steak gift certificate was the consolation prize. Apparently there are lots of other folks in the business these days. I may heed Jeff West's advice and buy something local. And I won't have to buy quantity.
Jake likes his red meat, if I wasn't diabetic, I could be a vegetarian. You men do like steaks and I like them now and then.
At some point I stopped eating so much red meat. There was no real decision or reason...it just happened. I've always has this rule of not having beef for 2 meals in the same day most of my adult life. If I had a burger or a steak & cheese for lunch, I'd not have a roast or a steak for dinner...I'd do pork or chicken. These days a steak is a rarity...but I still enjoy it when I have it. I went completely meatless for a 6 month stretch once. Beans, rice and TVP, baby. I could have lived that way, but I felt deprived. And it left a big hole in my culinary repertoire...so I returned to the cow
My grandfather was a butcher, where they actually cut a sides of beef in a butcher shop. My husband was a meat cutter for over 20 years. Most meats in grocery stores are cut in other places and packed then sent to stores. Tom Thumb for instance has actual meat cutters, where hunks of beef are sent then the cutters cut them for sale. Walmart meat comes pre cut and packaged.
I know that Kroger sells beef soup bones in their frozen section. I imagine they do in-store butchering. I know that Food Lion has their own butcher, but I guess that beef might come into the store at various stages. ps: Tom Thumb's parent company has been owned by Safeway since 1999.
I've been ordering Omaha Steaks for nearly 25 years now, so obviously, I see more upside than I do downside to the purchases. I generally purchase enough meat in one order to provide between 18 and 24 meals for two of us. @Ken Anderson mentioned that I get discounted meat, which is sort of right. What I actually get are I have a "personal shopper" from Omaha Steaks who calls me whenever they offer a deal on meat or other items that I like. And he always works a deal where I get free shipping. They used to raise their own livestock, but they now buy their meat from independent ranchers, most of whom are in Nebraska, and the rest are raised in other parts of the US. Most of the cattle are grass-fed for most of their life and have grains only at the end of their lives. I forget why they do it that way, but whatever that reason is, I approved of it when it was explained to me many years ago. Some of their meat -- including Wagyu beef -- is strictly only grass-fed from day one until the end. OS cuts the beef themselves using their traditional processes they've used for a century. They train their suppliers extensively in raising livestock the way they have been doing since the early 20th century. Their meat seems to me to be much more flavorful than what I can buy anywhere in this region. They also offer smaller portions. I usually buy meat in 4 to 6-oz portions, largely because of a medical problem I have processing and maintaining protein, but also because big portions of meat are large portions of calories. I'm from the county where tri-tips were invented, and it is nearly impossible to find them up here. And it is absolutely impossible to find GOOD tri-tips here. OS sells them, which always makes me happy. Generally speaking, buying from them is less expensive than buying the same meats at the supermarket, once I factor in the free shipping, the fact that I usually buy large packages, and the reward points they give. If I were to add the money it costs to drive 60 miles to the city which has a larger selection, OS is definitely less expensive. My OS favorites are tri-tips-- which I mentioned above --as well as their filet mignon wrapped in bacon, I don't think Ken knows it, but he has had their hot dogs on more than one occasion. They are extra juicy, and if you don't gobble your food down, you can taste the difference between them and the Nathans dogs I usually buy. Their rack of lamb is delicious, though I no longer buy it due to my husband's pickiness which prevents him from eating lamb or pork chops. I also get side dishes and desserts from them. We were badly addicted to their pepper jack risotto cakes, but I recommend those to just about everyone I know. Their sticky toffee cakes, caramel apple tartlets, and cheesecake samplers are scrumptious, though I don't buy them often due to the fact that diabetes doesn't like them as much as I do. They also offer an array of seafood, and we've had their salmon, halibut, and cod, but we've not gotten their lobster, mussels, or crab because we live in Maine. Oh! And neither of us likes shellfish. They also have swordfish and mahi mahi which are on my upcoming shopping list. So these are my opinions.
Well this makes 2 good reviews for mail order steaks. Also hello to Kens wife. Don't think I'ver seen a post from you.
Thank you for the detailed insight, Michelle. Since I've been less active in m retired life, my portions have also shrunk. I'll get 2 meals out of a regular steak these days. Your tri-tip story brings back memories...so many cuts have gone by the wayside over the years. Regarding seafood...for some reason my seafood guy has gone from fresh tuna that he cut into steaks in his shop to the frozen vacuum packed stuff. Perhaps it is of better quality as he claims, but it seems to be a step back from why I shop at such places. I gotta think he did it to cut waste. The same goes for his Mahi. His scallops, shrimp and regional fish are still fresh. Maybe I need to give these guys a try. First I need to make freezer room. And I'll have to steer clear of the deserts, because it's just me in the house and I will eat them.
Hi Michele. The reason the Wagyu beef isn't finished with grain is because it is naturally well-marbled. Grain is fed to put fat on beef and the demand many years ago to get well-marbled fatty beef was what made feed lots a lucrative business. Omaha steak is a great example of this. The availability of grain at the lowest cost possible is what made Neberska famous for feed lots and well-marbled beef. Many may find it interesting that even cattle ranchers order Omaha beef. Most don't butcher their own beef because they prefer the well-marbled grain fed. I do know one around here that raises Wagyu and butchers his own beef and also one that raises Angus that butchers his own and sells off all but the brisket. Brisket tends to be better marbled on a grass-fed that the other cuts. Also Angus grass fed seems to be better than others breeds except Wagyu. One rancher here is experimenting with putting his Angus and Black Baldies on his Canola stubble in late August and by October butchering the steers which have shown an increase in marbling over fall grass-fed. We do still have some feed lots, but not like we once did. There are too many regulations in this state that feed lots owners don't care to deal with. To answer the OP, I have ordered steaks once from Omaha and was very disappointed. Since the area, I live in has many custom butch shops, the selection is good here. You can select a hanging beef and buy what cuts you want. If you select prime cuts then the price is very high, but the quality is superb. After I quit butchering my own, I would buy a whole hanging beef and then cut it up as I wanted. I would sell all but a few of my favorite cuts to friends and get my brisket, chili meat, and some hamburger for a low cost due to my labor. Now I just go to cutting parties for the brisket and cut it the way I want. I cut roast for slow cooking and then it in chunks for chili meat. Brisket is tough if not slow-cooked. In my opinion, the natural flavor is the best of any cut.
A third party bought them out few years ago. Albertsons is now getting to buy them out also. Very confusing I know. In the end all will be ownedby one company.
Yes, the meat processors have a monopoly and control the price at the store and the price ranchers get. No one controls them.
A butcher and meat processor who I spoke with, I think it was the one in northern Maine, told me that he had to pack his animals up and drive them a couple of hundred miles, each way, in order to be inspected, while the large meat processors don't have to do that, as the inspector comes to their location, and those who are members of the even larger beef producer cooperatives are allowed to inspect their own beef.
I don't know what level of government (state or Fed) governs this stuff. I do know that there are an insufficient number of USDA-approved beef processing plants in Virginia. The queue is so long that the guy makes an appointment when the critters are still calves, and grows them with that target date in mind.