Honest Review of ButcherBox – Not Sponsored

Are you thinking about trying out ButcherBox? I have seen lots of people talk about Butcher Box (some people use two words), but if they are also selling the service I don’t always buy their opinion. I had to try it out for myself. There are some great things about it and some not so great things. It’s a mixed bag (or box), but I’m continuing my subscription.

Read the things that make Butcher Box great and what I wish they would change so you can decide if it’s worth it for you in 2021.

One of my biggest questions – Is Butcher Box a good deal? It’s sort of like going grocery shopping and there are no prices. You get to the end and they tell you the total, but it’s hard to determine the value if nothing has a price. I will break down the value of my box and how it compares to grocery store prices.

Pros of butcherbox

Convenience – I happen to live in a city where just about every cut of grass fed beef can be bought in the grocery store. BUT if I didn’t, this would be the biggest advantage of Butcher Box. You can get grass fed beef, wild caught seafood and free range, organic chicken. The convenience of this service is the best thing about it. Having high quality meat delivered to your door without a trip to an extra store is valuable to me.

Great Packaging – The packaging for the frozen contents is nothing short of amazing. The box is so well made you feel bad throwing it away. There is no doubt that the contents are still frozen when they arrive. This takes away any concern you might have about food safety.

Delicious Ground Beef – I’ve compared grass fed ground beef from all my local grocery stores, Kroger, Trader Joe’s, Tom Thumb, Central Market and Whole Foods. Butcher Box’s ground beef is the most delicious. Their grass fed ground beef is my favorite burger.

Great Selection of Hard to Get Grass Fed Cuts – When you go to your regular grocery store the choices for grass fed beef are limited. For example, it’s hard to find grass fed flank steak and chuck roast. The most widely available grass fed cuts to come by in a store are ground beef and one type of steak like the New York Strip. I like the variety of having ten choices.

It’s A Good Deal – This one took a bit of number crunching. The bottom line is that I saved $71 on the contents of one box. Here’s how I broke it down. I looked at the contents of my last box which cost $171 and priced out the same items at my local grocery store. This is the only way to compare since you can’t compare individual item costs. My box contained ground beef, filet mignons, New York Strips, stew meat and bacon. If I had purchased the same items at the grocery store the total would have been $240.

Fish Alternatives – I didn’t realize that fish would be an option when I looked into the Butcher Box. They offer wild caught cod, sockeye salmon and sometimes halibut. I added the cod to a box recently and made these amazing cod cakes which my entire family loved, even though they “don’t like fish”.

Cons of Butcher Box

Mediocre Filet Mignon – I have cooked and eaten many filets and these are not the tastiest. I don’t know if it’s because they are grass fed and I often cook filets that are not. I’ve also never had filets that were more like a strip of meat instead of a mound. They look like a regular round steak inside the packaging, but when you take them out, they aren’t always.

Thin New York Strip – The New York strips are approximately one inch thick. The ones I used to get at the store were about 50% thicker. I prefer the thicker steaks.

Frozen Meat – If you have frozen meat, you have to be a planner. I HATE defrosting meat in the microwave. It ruins the meat. Does anyone else feel like this? It takes at least 24 hours to defrost in the refrigerator so planning ahead is a must. Thicker cuts take longer. If you don’t like to plan ahead Butcher Box may not be for you.

Bags Can Leak When Defrosting – I read in the instructions from ButcherBox that you should put the frozen meat in a container and I thought to myself, that’s stupid. The bags are sealed. Wrong! I put the first meat in the fridge and awoke to blood all over my refrigerator. They warn that the bags can leak and it’s very true. It’s Murphy’s Law. I haven’t had a bag leak since I started defrosting in a container.

is butcher box worth it?

Butcher Box is worth it for me because of the convenience and the cost savings. I hate going to two grocery stores, especially during COVID. I like to shop at Trader Joe’s. Unfortunately, their grass fed beef is not my favorite. I like the price, but not the flavor. Sorry Trader Joe’s, I love you for most other things.

Based on my detailed calculation, buying the Butcher Box saved me $71 and it was delivered. That’s worth it to me.

Is Butcher Box Better Than Omaha Steaks?

If you want grass fed beef, Omaha Steaks is not for you. Omaha Steaks are amazing BUT they are expensive and they aren’t grass fed. At the beginning of 2021 Omaha Steaks only offers two grass fed options – ground beef and ribeye.

Omaha Steak is really a special occasion gift and not an everyday meat source because it’s too expensive.

I hope this helps you if you’re trying to decide whether you want to start a ButcherBox subscription. If you have any questions, please email me and I’m happy to answer.