steaks

Emeril Lagasse and Donald Trump have new competition in the steak business, Pat Boone. The singer has entered the meat market with Pat Boone All-American Meats, a new line that features thick-cut filet mignon, ribeye, top sirloin, New York strip, T-Bone and Porterhouse. The steaks also give back through the Five Percent for Hunger program which donates five percent of the purchase price to the Pat Boone Foundation which supports organizations actively addressing the problem of world hunger.

The company is a brand of Worldwide Premium Packers, Inc., headquartered in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Products are flash frozen and shipped via FedEx in reusable, insulated containers, packed in dry ice to ensure they arrive fully frozen. According to an article in the Gazette the company's key demographic is Christian, conservative women over age 55 who aren't just buying steak, they are buying into Boone's value system. That demographic may also include cowboys. The brand recently announced a partnership with the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association to have the steaks as the "Official Steaks of the PRCA and Wrangler National Finals Rodeo."

Ottomanelli Brothers is the winner of the Readers' Choice Award for Best Online Meats. Since 1900, it has been catering to the carnivores of New York City with its unbeatable steaks, filet mignon, steak burgers, prime rib, lamb, veal, seafood and more. Savvy New Yorkers traveling throughout New England are easily spotted by the Ottomanelli's green thermal bags they carry, which are filled with the butcher's delicious steaks, steak burgers, chicken, sausages and more. As Ottomanelli die-hards can attest, once you've been spoiled by eating Ottomanelli's meats, it is impossible to dine on anything else.

A family-owned and operated business that dates back to 1900, members of the Ottomanelli family are still found clad in their white aprons behind the counters of their butcher shops. Today under the leadership of the fourth and fifth generation of Ottomanelli's, products are enjoyed by discerning consumers across the country and around the world. Family patriarchs and co-chairmen, Nicolo and Joseph Ottomanelli are credited with turning the family meat business into a multifaceted mini-empire, which includes meat markets, cafes, packaged goods, bakeries and a thriving online operation.


The Ottomanelli brothers butcher shops are located on the upper east and upper west sides of Manhattan with a third location located in Flushing, N.Y. New Yorkers who'd rather sit down and order a delicious grilled steak can frequent one of the family's restaurant locations on Manhattan's upper east side.

All products are flash frozen and packed with dry ice in a reusable "keep fresh" cooler and shipped via FedEx Priority Overnight Service. Ottomanelli's also offers a selection of BBQ sauces (hot and mild are both offered), delicious steak sauce and wonderful pasta sauces (including marinara, white clam, red clam and Alfredo varieties). Orders can be placed online or by calling Ottomanelli's toll free number at (888) OTTOBRO.

Since 1887, Peter Luger Steak House has served the finest of steaks. For 26 consecutive years, Peter Luger has been the number one steak house in New York, according to Zagat's, and its customers have included a host of celebrities, from Alfred Hitchcock to James Cagney and Robert De Niro.

Fans of the New York institution rejoiced when the esteemed steakhouse entered the cyberworld of online meat purveying with the launch of PeterLuger.com. It is easy to understand why Peter Luger is nominated for a Readers' Choice Award for Best Online Meat Company.

Peter Luger Steak House offers only the finest USDA PRIME meat available. The selection process is crucial and is done only by members of the family who visit the wholesale markets on a daily basis.

A new online ordering service allows Peter Luger customers to order its famous USDA Prime Dry Aged Steaks, including its famous Porterhouse cuts. All meat packages are shipped via FedEx Overnight. Shipping rates are calculated upon check out after the shipping destination has been entered. All shipping is done Monday through Thursday. Meat orders received by 11AM will be shipped that same day for next day delivery. All orders received after 11AM Thursday will be shipped overnight the following Monday.

Peter Luger Steak Sauce is world-famous and can be ordered online. It is available in boxes of six ($34.20 a box, plus shipping) or twelve bottles ($57.90 plus shipping). The online butcher shop also offers steak knives and cutting boards.

Vote for the Online Meat Company that you believe is the best of breed. The voting period runs through July 31 and winners will be announced on August 1.

According to Weber, one of the leading manufacturers of grills, hamburgers, hot dogs and steak are the three most popular grilled foods.

But where are the best places to buy meats for an unforgettable backyard barbecue?

To figure out the best of breed, we asked Luxist readers to nominate their favorite online meat companies. Each of the top five finalists has one thing in common---they all offer only the finest USDA prime meat available---and they all ship to locations throughout the United States (and elsewhere in some cases).

The top five finalists are:

Allen Brothers
Chicago Gourmet Steaks
Lobel's of New York
Ottomanelli Brothers
Peter Luger

Chicago-based Allen Brothers, which provides meats to some of the best-known steakhouses in the country, while Chicago Gourmet Steaks was one of the first steak companies to offer mail order. Lobel's of New York has been owned and operated by the same family for five generations while Ottomanelli Brothers is a New York institution with customers around the world. Peter Luger---famous its steak houses---is now selling its meats to customers through a new online service.

Lobel's of New York is a nominee for a Readers' Choice Award for Best Online Meat Company.

The family-owned and operated business is located on the Upper East Side of New York. Ten years ago, Lobel's launched Lobels of New York (www.lobels.com), an online butcher shop, enabling its customers to order and have its products delivered to their door in all 50 states.

The Lobel family have been in the business for five generations. It all started back in the 1840's when Nathan Lobel began raising cattle in Austria, and with the help of his son, later added a slaughterhouse to the business. Nathan's grandson Morris joined the famly business as a boy, and in 1911, at the age of 17, he emigrated to the United States. He eventually settled in New York where he opened a butcher shop, first in the Bronx and later at the current location at 1096 Madison Avenue (at East 82nd Street) in Manhattan.


Service and quality have always been the hallmarks of the Lobel's business. Morris' sons Leon, Nathan, and Stanley, followed in their father's footsteps. Stanley remains active in the store, while his sons, David and Mark, as well as his nephew, Evan, have emerged as the fifth generation of the Lobel family to work in the business.

I recently wrote about Allen Brothers for their new Emeril Lagasse branded steaks but the Allen Brothers main brand is also worth mentioning especially since grilling season is officially underway. Allen Brothers sells USDA Prime beef, the prized meat used by the nation's premium chop houses. Less than two percent of all beef in the country is graded Prime, and only the best of that top two percent is deemed good enough by the master butchers at Allen Brothers.

With Father's Day coming it's the perfect time to treat your favorite dad to some prime beef.For Father's Day, Allen Brothers has a large number of selections that are fit for the king in your life – everything from burgers to gourmet steak dogs to lobsters, filet mignons and ribeyes. One great option for Father's Day is Breakfast on the Grill with Allen Brother's Petite Breakfast Steak Sampler, which includes two 4-ounce filets mignon, two 6-ounce sirloin strips and two 8-ounce ribeyes.

Another option, and one of the newest items for Spring 2010 just in time for Father's Day, is "Todd's Prime Assortment" – named after Allen Brothers' President Todd Hatoff. The selection includes two 6-ounce filets mignon, two 6-ounce center-cut eye rib steaks™ and two 6-ounce baseball-cut strip steaks.

We are giving one lucky Luxist reader a shortcut, one winner will receive an Allen Brothers prize pack. The package features two Wagyu long Bone Ribeye steaks 30-34 ounces each and 12 Great Steakhouse USDA Prime Steak Burgers, 10ounces each. The Allen Brothers' Wagyu Long-Bone Ribeye Steak has rich marbling and is thick-cut from their rib roasts. These individually packaged patties are made from hand-selected USDA Prime ground beef for exceptional quality and flavor.

* To enter, leave a confirmed comment below.
* The comment must be left and confirmed before June 5, 2010 at 5:00PM Eastern Time.
* You may only enter once.
* One winner will be selected in a random drawing.
* One winner will receive two Wagyu long Bone Ribeye steaks 30-34 ounces each and 12 Great Steakhouse USDA Prime Steak Burgers, 10ounces each, a total value of $259.90.
* Open to legal residents of the 50 United States and the District of Columbia.

See complete giveaway rules here.

This contest is now closed. Thank you for your participation.

I'll confess, I'm not much of a meat-eater, in fact, I was vegetarian for years. So when the folks from La Cense Beef offered to have me try out there product I wasn't as overjoyed as some might be. Nevertheless when I do eat meat, I do want it to be worth the experience so I decided to check it out. La Cense went one step further, offering me the help of a cook, the charming Sylvia Reiman of Lets Get Cookin. Sylvia and I took over a friend's kitchen for an afternoon of delicious meat eating.

Sylvia came prepared with a ribeye steak, a filet and four thick burgers. Everything was vaccum-packed and Sylvia reported that it the products had come packed in a heavy cooler with dry ice and were frozen solid when she got them.

Why does grass-fed beef matter? For cows, grass is natural food. Cows that are raised for beef are often fed corn and soy with added hormones to help them grow faster. Grass is low in starch and high in protein whereas corn and soy have high carbohydrates and low fiber. Meat from grass-fed cows has more vitamin A and E making it a better choice for those who want to be healthy but still eat meat because it offers more nutritional benefits.