FreshDirect
FreshDirect Reviews - Best Online Steaks
If you live in a FreshDirect delivery zone, you can enjoy some beef from local farms at some very nice sale prices.
About FreshDirect Steaks
FreshDirect was founded in 1999 by two people. The primary founder is Joe Fedele, the former CEO of Fairway Market and the co-founder is Jason Ackerman, a former investment banker. The company originated in Queens, Brooklyn, and Manhattan, New York. Over the next several years, they expanded the operation to provide service to customers in areas in New Jersey, Connecticut, Philadelphia, and parts of Delaware.
The company is well known for offering custom online grocery orders and meal preparation for customers. Their claim to fame came from their ability to provide online grocery orders that are filled using organic, locally grown items, and items that customers would purchase at their local grocery stores. They are also well-recognized for providing kosher foods and seafood from sustainable sources, but it is their menu of steaks, roasts, and other meats we are interested in.
- FreshDirect offers over 600 cuts of meat on a daily basis. They offer beef, lamb, pork, veal, and bison. In addition to USDA Choice, they provide high-quality Prime Reserve, Grass-Fed, and Angus beef sourced from local ranches.
- All beef is received daily from local farms.
- They offer a satisfaction guarantee on all of their products.
Our FreshDirect Review
A Comparison of Three FreshDirect NY Strips
We actually purchased four, one that was fully cooked, but FreshDirect no offers it as an option. We tried a USDA Choice, USDA Prime, and a Bone-In (Ungraded) NY Strip. They were all about a pound, and they ranged in cost from $14 to $20. That translates to a slightly better cost compared to the national online steak vendors, because of the size, but we would have to say the better value isn't at FreshDirect. We could not tell the difference in marbling from the ungraded steak (which usually means Select) and the Prime steak. A trend that followed suit when it came to flavor. Now we do have to say the steaks were good, and we liked the larger than normal size too, but for a dollar or two more, we would rather buy from a company that specializes in steaks. One nice bonus was the prepared sides we show in all the pictures, making dinner easy to get on the table.
Angus Ribeye serves with sauteed diced potatoes and Steamed Asparagus
USDA Prime Reserve Local Angus Rib Eye Steak - "Delmonico Steak" 18 oz. $30
Bucket List Steak. Any shortcomings we may have had with FreshDirect's NY Strip steaks were forgotten when we had their Prime reserve Ribeye. This was easily one of the best Ribeye steaks we have ever eaten, period. We cooked six this day, and all six were worthy of a steak buck list dining experience. FreshDirect calls it a Delmonico Steak, named after a NY restaurant, but it's really a Ribeye.
There was no questioning the marbling on these, it was clearly evident and in abundance. The challenge with a steak like this is grilling it without burning and overcooking it. But if you survive that, you will be rewarded with a huge 18 oz. steak packed with flavor. FreshDirect may not be available in your area, but great steaks like these are the reason you want to source local steaks from local farms. They may be hard to find, but they are out there, and well worth the effort it time take to seek them out. And if FreshDirect does service your area, you need to load up on these treasures which are under-priced compared to what you find from national vendors.
Grilled Filet Mignon with Creamed Spinach and Cheesy Potato Au Gratin
USDA Choice Local Angus Filet Mignon 8 oz. - $18
At $18 per Filet Mignon, FreshDirect gives you an affordable option of serving two of these delicious beauties to the bigger eaters in your family or on your guest list. At 8 oz. each, two would be a full pound. In restaurants, you would see this on the menu as Twin Filet Mignons, but chances are, they would be a smaller, 5 or 6 oz. steak and they wouldn't be as good as these are.
The marbling on these USDA Choice Filets made us think they were mislabeled, but we do see this pattern when steaks come from local or small family-run ranches. Contrary to popular belief, marbling doesn't always mean a more flavorful steak. We have had Wagyu steaks with excellent marbling that didn't have a lot of flavor, but that was not the case here.
These Filet Mignons grilled up nicely and were full of flavorful juiciness after we let them rest. The meat was so tender we barely needed a knife to cut it. Now, we did vacuum-age them, to get all the water out of the steaks, and we feel our technique improved these tremendously. At $18 each, they were not even on sale! Hopefully, FreshDirect is available in your area, and you consider using this service to add to your inventory.
Grilled NY Strip served with Grilled Polenta and Grilled Seasoned Asparagus
USDA Prime Reserve Local Angus NY Strip Steak 14 oz. - $21
We are learning the prime Reserve are the steaks to get at FreshDirect, and they are far below the market price you will pay from other USDA Prime meat purveyors. The 14 oz. size is not something to overlook either, and most USDA Prime Strip Steaks will come in smaller sizes, most of them around 12 ounces. Add it up! You get a larger steak at a lower price, it all adds up to great value.
But how did it taste? Like almost all of our steaks, we vacuum-dry our steaks to make sure we get as much water out of them as possible. Water has no flavor. And it was a good thing we did because we are able to remove a lot of water from the inside of these steaks. They went on the grill with just salt and pepper and rested for 15 minutes before we plated and served them.
One guest said "Wow," while chewing on his first bite. The other said "Holy shit," after he swallowed his. I fielded the routine steak questions that normally come after, and since they both saw my preparation effort, they thought I made the steaks taste this good. Of course, I directed the credit to where it belonged: FreshDirect. All I had to do was to not ruin the steak by overcooking, marinating, or doing something other than salt, pepper, grill to 110 degrees, and rest for 15 minutes. You can do it too, and this a great steak to have in your freezer, and it wasn't on sale either.
Black Tiger Shrimp, Easy-Peel Shell, 8-12 per lb. $18 lb.
Go to any American Steakhouse and you'll find shrimp cocktail on the menu as an appetizer. When we entertain, and steak is part of the main course, so is shrimp cocktail. Now we don't buy the already cooked frozen shrimps that you just defrost and serve, nor do we get the puny ones. We always go large, and we usually get them at FreshDirect.
8-12 per pound is the size of the shrimp, meaning there will be 8 to 12 shrimps per pound. These are quite expensive, and the $18 per paid per pound is probably less than what you are paying for the largest shrimp that are already cooked and peeled. These are already cleaned and easy to peel. The reason why you want to do it yourself is that you can season the water the shrimp cook in, and it makes all the difference. We use salt and Old Bay seasoning to flavor the water. We like to serve them as shown, in a giant bowl on a layer of ice, but separated by a plastic wrap. Yes, it is a little bit more work, but Fresh Direct really most of the hard work, and you get all the credit!
Local Dry Sea Scallops $18 lb.
We have to start by saying these were 40% off when we bought them, and they weren't on sale because they were approaching their expiration date. They have been on sale every day since we've discovered them, and pick them up as often as possible because they brought in fresh daily, from the local waters.
That means the scallop is "dry," meaning it was never frozen or treated with a chemical to make it look white, as 90% if not more, of all scallops are exposed to. These treatments make the scallop retain water making it near impossible to get the beautiful and tasty crust you see on these. Dry scallops are almost always gobbled up by the restaurants, so finding them automatically initiates a "buy-as-many-as-you-can-eat" protocol. Finding them anytime you want them, and at 40%, would be something reserved for people in heaven or at least, need to be pinched to make sure they are awake. Get the Ribeye steaks and a pound or two of these dry scallops and do a Surf N' Turf!
Pan Fried Veal Cutlet served with Corn and Sous-vide Zucchini with Whole Peeled Tomatoes
Veal Cutlets $11 lb.
Now you can't have gourmet steaks every night, right? FreshDirect is a great resource for other meats you and your family will enjoy. We are particularly fond of their veal cutlets. When they are on sale, we choose the vacuum seal option and buy them for our freezer inventory. Like chicken cutlets and pork tenderloins, we always have them in "in stock" for mid-week meals.
What I like most about their veal is that they always come consistently good. Expect a perfect pink flesh and no smell at all, like it was harvested the morning you received it. They just need a dusting of flour or bread crumbs and sauteed quickly in a medium high pan.
We always make extra because one is hardly ever enough and they make excellent leftover lunches, not mention great hero sandwiches with a smear of pizza sauce and some melted mozzarella cheese on lightly toasted garlic bread.
Pan-seared Denver Cut Steak with Peppered Sauteed Zucchini and Macaroni and Cheese
Denver Cut Grass-Fed Steak - 10 oz. $9 ea.
Here is a steak we command you buy when you see them available for purchase, and FreshDirect.com has the best ones we've ever had. They look like a NY Strip, but you wouldn't expect to get one of this quality this price. Your next guess might be that it's cut from the sirloin, and that would be a good guess, but incorrect. The Denver cut comes from the chuck primal, and if we didn't tell you, you would think you were eating steak from the rib or sirloin primals.
This steak is harvested from local family-owned farms in the northeast. We pan-seared ours and finished them in a 350-degree oven until they came up to 125 degrees internal temperature. They came out with a beautiful bark on the outside and a juicy and flavorful center. All we did was add salt and pepper.
We surprised just how much fantastic steak flavor this steak packed with each bite, and it was so tender it was hard to believe it was a chuck steak. Maybe it's the farm, perhaps it's the butchering, but Kudos to FreshDirect for making a steak of this value to their customers.
Pan-seared Edge of Eye Steak with Roasted Asparagus and Creamed Cauliflower
Edge of Eye Grass-Fed Steak 1.2 lbs. $13 ea.
With the Denver cut steak being a long home run, we bellied up to the bar to try the Edge of Eye steak next, which also comes from the chuck primal. We cooked it the same way we coked the Denver cut steak but with less favorable results. This steak was too tough to eat as it appears in the picture, and its flavor was far less evident.
Luckily, we were cooking some pot roast the following day in a pressure cooker, so we thought we would toss these in the pot and make them tender. Which we did, and they came out fork-tender. But these steaks still lacked any flavor to make any of our diners want to take more than a bite, much less finish one. And we pressure cooked them in red wine and beef bone broth.
The asparagus and the creamed cauliflower were beyond delicious, but we can't give FreshDirect any credit for that. It was our first disappointment from this company and a steak we would never buy again or recommend. We fell for the same money; there are many other options that give steak-lovers better options.
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Additional References
- What is Marbling? - Best Online Steaks Blog
- USDA Certified Beef Programs - Companies certified with the USDA for the type and quality beef they sell. FreshDirect is not listed.
- FreshDirect Website