From Town & Country
Red meat got a bad rap for a while, but it’s made a comeback in the last decade, thanks to the rise of low-carb diets, and research that shows that, in moderation, a burger or steak is nothing to worry about. In fact, beef consumption is way up this year, thanks in part to people staying home and cooking during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Chefs and home cooks alike have been motivated to source, cook, and eat better meats,” says head butcher Alex Jermasek of L.A. restaurant and butcher shop, Gwen. “Whether it’s grass-fed, certified-organic, non-GMO, hormone- and antibiotic-free or otherwise, people have begun to care about where their meat is coming from and how it was raised.”
Many butcher shops now deliver nationwide, making it easier to get great quality meat even in smaller cities.
Here are a few of our favorite butchers and delivery services where you can stock up on top notch proteins.
The Best Beef
Chicago Steak Company
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In keeping with Chicago’s tradition of excellent meat, this company specializes in hand-cut, midwest-raised, USDA prime beef. Expect finely aged meats from local heritage herds and Kobe-style Wagyu beef. Chicago Steak Company also boasts the largest dry-aging room in the country and pride themselves in their old-world techniques which have become scarce through time. They “really do provide the Ultimate Steak Experience.”
Holy Grail Steak Co.
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The only online purveyor in the US certified by the Kobe Marketing Association, this is the place to go to get a real taste of highly coveted A5-grade Japanese Kobe beef. Of course that’s not all they carry—you can also get your hands on USDA prime Black Angus as well as American-raised Wagyu steaks: everything you need to have a true beef taste-off.
Snake River Farms
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Family-owned-and-operated Idaho purveyor Snake River Farms sells its signature American Wagyu beef (tomahawk rib-eye and filet mignon are two popular cuts) and Kurobuta pork (their bone-in chops are a must) to discerning customers. “We are involved in the production from start to finish,” says Dave Yasuda, the brand’s director of marketing and ecommerce. “We like to call it a ‘ranch-to-table’ approach since we have control of key steps from genetics all the way to final processing.”
DeBragga
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This New York-based butcher is a favorite of some of the top steak restaurants in NYC, and for good reason. The butcher shop, which was founded in the early 1920s, has specialized in top-quality meats for close to a century including everything from perfectly dry aged beef for a rich meaty flavor to silky Wagyu (available in American, Australian, and Japanese varieties) as well as pork from prized Iberico pigs and apple-raised lamb chops.
Porter Road
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If you’re looking to simplify your butcher shop shopping, Porter Road offers specialty subscription boxes of their pasture raised, antibiotic free meats, with options like grill-master favorites, breakfast stand-bys, and weeknight basics, so you can get regular deliveries of your protein staples.
Omaha Steaks
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Want a one-stop-shop for your meat needs? In addition to the lush, perfectly-aged steaks you’d expect from this Nebraska-based butcher, the brand also offers everything you need to put together stand out meals; from sausage, poultry, and seafood to sides, sauces, pre-prepped skillet meals, and even desserts.
ButcherBox
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Like a food subscription box, but specifically geared toward meat, this monthly delivery subscription offers plenty of options for every kind of carnivorous dining, including a custom box made of your favorite cuts of grassfed beef, free range chicken, and heritage pork, as well as an all-beef box, a beef and pork box, a beef and chicken option, and a mixed box of carefully chosen tastes—all raised free of antibiotics and added hormones.
Belcampo
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The West Coast-centric Belcampo was founded in 2011 by Anya Fernald and Todd Robinson after they spent years trying to figure out how they could best foster the growth of the sustainable quality food movement. The company’s 18,000-acre organic ranch houses 2,000-plus organic, grass-fed cattle and thus the meat produced has a very short supply chain. “People are learning how diets rich in quality animal-based foods can be amazing for your health,” says Fernald, Belcampo’s CEO. “Customers are now paying attention to provenance and to the importance of eating minimally processed foods.” And so, Fernald has been following their lead and is currently focused on easy and fast-to-prepare offerings like meatloaf mix and pre-made kebabs, along with adding more seasoned products to make it easier for customers to get dinner on the table.
Pat LaFrieda
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The Brooklyn-born butcher shop (now located in New Jersey), which offers delivery, has been in business since 1922. Its new 36,000-square-foot facility has two dry-aging rooms that house over 80,000 steaks at any given time. LaFrieda’s superstar beef can be found at such steakhouse stalwarts as Peter Luger, Porter House New York, and Minetta Tavern—and your dining room.
Allen Brothers
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Allen Brothers’s 123-year legacy in sourcing only the finest in USDA Prime Beef from the stockyards of Chicago has forged long-standing relationships with restaurants and access to the highest-quality product that you can’t find at your local grocer. The purveyor ages its grain-fed and pasture-raised products for 60 days as part of a patented aging process in which the beef is dry- or wet-aged prior to cutting. “People are seeing that if they are going to spend good money on a steak, then it has to be the best,” says John DeBenedetti, the brand’s director and EVP of Protein (yes, that’s his real title), who’s noticed an increase in demand for gifting options this holiday season.
Mr. Steak
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A one-stop shop for your grilling needs, this online butcher shop not only offers succulent, pasture-raised steaks, but also seasonings and grills to complete the carnivorous package. The service allows you to get hands-on with your selections by building your own box of favorites like marbled ribeyes, tender filets, mega-sized cowboy steaks, and rich burgers made from ground brisket—or get a variety with one of their curated boxes. As a feel-good bonus, all of your meats are delivered to your door by carbon neutral shipping in a biodegradable cooler.
Kansas City Steak Company
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Kansas City Steak Company was originally a small, family-owned storefront in Kansas City known as S&S; Meat Company, which over 80 years has evolved into the delivery mogul known today. All beef is sourced from local Kansas stockyards and they’re so confident in their exceptional service and taste that they’ll reimburse your order if necessary by 100%. They “Stop at nothing to ensure our our beef and service remain a cut above.”
Gourmet Meats and More
Harry & David
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Purveyors of gourmet gifts and monthly clubs, Harry & David provides exceptional delivery service of premier fruits, vegetables, beverages, meats and cheeses. An age-old family business, Harry and David Rosenberg (son’s of an acclaimed 19th-century Seattle Farmer) have defined the gold standard in luxury food delivery, since the 1930’s. And because agriculture is at their roots, Harry & David focuses on responsible farming behaviors in the foods they harvest. They claim to have a reputation “for unmatched quality and customer service.”
D’Artagnan
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It was poultry that made this culinary powerhouse famous, launching in 1985 as the first purveyor of game and foie gras in the States, and it remains a top notch choice from the brand’s online store, though it’s no longer the only mainstay. From Thanksgiving turkey to squab, charcuterie to caviar, this gourmet selection has everything you need for a decadent (and ethically-sourced) feast.
Fossil Farms
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For those craving a taste of something truly unique, Fossil Farms offers an online menu full of esoteric options from all walks of the animal kingdom. Whether you want something classical like Scottish game meats or something really off the beaten path—think: yak, kangaroo, alligator, and ostrich—this New Jersey supplier has you covered.
Creekstone Farms
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Creekstone Farms’s choice hormone-and-antibiotic-free Duroc pork and Black Angus beef selections are processed in the brand’s state-of-the-art, 450,000-square-foot facility in Arkansas City, Kansas (which processes 7,000 cattle weekly). To give you a sense of how picky they are about their genetics, less than one percent of all cattle harvested in the United States makes it into their facility. Chef Michael Sullivan, formerly butcher and charcutier at Blackberry Farm, is now overseeing the menu offerings at the 25-year-old operation, with sales totaling $560 million in 2015. The innovative company has even collaborated with Dr. Temple Grandin, an expert in the field of animal welfare, to create a set of humane guidelines for handling its cattle.
Murray’s Cheese
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A tradition founded in New York City’s eclectic Greenwich Village, Murray’s Cheese boasts gourmet cheeses from around the world. The purveyors of luxury cheese and charcuterie have passed through multicultural ownership from its Jewish roots, to Italian, and most recently American. In addition to delivery services, Murray’s has storefronts across the country, and provide classes.
Brodo
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Bone broth has been a hot commodity for the last few years, but for those who want to try the trend (or are already committed) but don’t want to spend the time slowly simmering their own broth, James Beard Award-winning chef Marco Canora makes it even easier by selling his signature broth blends online—frozen and available to ship around the country.
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