Buying ready-to-use portioned cut steaks from your supplier might not be as costly as you think. As a customer, you have choices when it comes to the steaks you buy. You can buy boxed beef and cut your steaks in house, or you can buy portioned cut steaks from your distributor.
Let’s go over the difference between cutting them yourself or buying portioned cut steaks ready to go.
Portioned Cut Steak Considerations
There are important things to consider when deciding if a cut steak program is right for you.
- Why do precut steaks cost more than boxed beef?
- Are portioned cut steaks from my supplier different than those I cut myself?
- Will ordering ready-to-use cut steaks be more difficult than ordering boxed beef?
The decision to buy portioned cut steaks is based on specific needs and business models, but there are many benefits to consider when looking at a cut steak program.
The decision to buy portioned cut steaks is based on your business model, but there are many benefits to consider.
Breaking Down the Cost of Portioned Cut Steaks
Sticker shock when looking at the cost of cut steaks is not uncommon. You might be thinking, “why would I pay for that when I can cut them myself?” But when you truly break down the costs associated with portioning steaks yourself, you may be surprised at how high that cost actually becomes.
The first place to start when breaking down your cost is to consider labor. For some operators, lack of labor is the main driver for buying portioned cut steaks from their supplier. But even when there are staff available to cut steaks, it’s important to consider their hourly rate. I have met with customers where the owner is responsible for cutting steaks and will say that they are not on salary, so it makes sense for them to spend the time portioning protein.
Time is Valuable
Truthfully, in a restaurant, the owner’s time is the most valuable, and the hours spent cutting steaks are hours not spent doing other important tasks. In the case of other employees cutting steaks, whether it is the highest paid employee or not, there is still a very considerable labor cost tied to the cut proteins.
The restaurant owner’s time is the most valuable, and the hours spent cutting steaks are hours not spent doing other important tasks.
Skill and Scale Work in Your Favor
When you allow Buckhead Meat and Seafood to portion your proteins, there are cost savings passed along to you because of the scale at which we operate.
Labor costs are not exempt from this rule.
The labor associated with a cut steak produced at our facility will be minimal because of the volume of product we handle, and your employees can use their time to grow your operation in other ways.
Portioned Cut Steaks Yield Vs. Waste
Another way this volume benefits you is through yields and waste. The cost of portioned cut steaks is derived from the total weight of the subprimal piece of meat minus the weight of the waste items generated during portioning.
To use filet mignon tenderloin steaks as an example, the weight of the entire Peeled Side Muscle On (PSMO) tenderloin in the vacuum bag is the starting point.
If eight cut steaks are your target, the weight of all cut steaks is then recorded before being divided by the starting weight and multiplied by 100 to get a percentage yield of 8 ounce cut steaks.
Don’t forget to include the weight of the plastic bag, the liquid in the bag, and everything that is included when you collect your starting weight…it all counts. There will also be waste items leftover such as fat and heavy connective tissue (silver skin) that are inedible and will be thrown away.
This waste is a total loss and must be factored in the final cost of the steaks, since it is purchased, but not used.
To easily calculate your True Usable Yield for portioned cut steaks, you need to divide your Finished Weight by your Starting Weight, and then multiple by 100 to get your Total Usable Yield Percent.
Factoring in Credit for By-Products: A Way to Offset Costs
There will also be by-product items that are edible and can be used for other dishes. For example, when cutting 8 ounce steaks you will also generate 6 ounce steaks, filet medallions, and filet tips. Each of these items have value if there is a way to use them, and these values can offset the price of the target 8 ounce steak by inserting a credit value for the weight of each edible by-product.
The key here is to accurately value the by-products as well as the cut steaks for a fair comparison. At Buckhead Meat and Seafood, we routinely complete yield tests to ensure our prices are constantly updated and reflective of true yields.
We have outlets for all by-product items and will automatically add in a by-product credit so you can save money on your cut steaks without finding a use for the other items.
While the cost of portioned cut steaks is higher, when you consider labor and yield, in many cases, the price becomes the same.
At first glance, buying ready-to-use portioned cut steaks may seem like a higher cost, until you factor in your labor, by-product, and waste to calculate your True Usable Yield.
Portioned Cut Steaks Quality
Aside from price and labor cost, quality becomes the next consideration, and it is just as important to consider the skill level of who is cutting your steaks.
Our meat cutters have years of experience and expert training in portioning proteins to exact customer specifications. We employ meat cutters who are true masters of their trade and there is never any question about their skill level.
Consistancy is Key to Maintaining Food Costs
Consistent sizing of cut steaks can make or break your operation. Not only will your customers notice if the 8 ounce filet that was advertised on the menu comes out at 6 ounces, but your wallet will also notice if those same 8 ounce filets are going to the table at 10 ounces.
Quality Control Matters
Every portioned cut steak we sell is guaranteed to fall within a threshold of weight to be shipped to you. Specific tolerances are set by the facility, and you can rest assured that if you order a case of 12 ounce ribeyes, there won’t be a wallet-pinching 14 ounces of beef on your plate.
When you buy our portioned cut steaks, you can rest assured that if you order a case of 12 ounce ribeye steaks, there won’t be a wallet-pinching 14 ounces of beef on your plate.
Have Steaks Cut to Your Exact Specifications
Not only will we have quality control for size variances, but our meat cutters will cut steaks following any specification you request. If you need a minimum thickness of your portioned cut steaks or prefer less than 0.25-inch fat thickness, we can do it.
Any way you need your steaks cut is possible with us.
Simplify Managing Your Inventory
Another way that we can help you is by simplifying your inventory management. When you bring in whole subprimals and cut steaks in the restaurant there is no standard for how many steaks you will produce from each whole muscle.
While you can follow historical yields and make a relatively accurate prediction, at the end of the day, muscles vary in size from animal to animal and this prediction will never be exact. Time of year, the size of muscles, and even a different trimming style from packer to packer will all affect the final yield percent calculation. But when you purchase a case of our cut steaks, the case is filled by piece count, eliminating any variances. When you order 24 – 8 ounce steaks, you get 24 – 8 ounce steaks.
This can help with the accuracy of ordering, checking inventory based on number of plates sold, monthly profit and loss statements, and more. In addition to being easy to count and record, our cut steaks come to you individually vacuum sealed for extended shelf life and ease of use.
Our Food Safety and Quality Assurance team routinely checks orders to ensure the safest, highest quality product cut to the correct specification in each order.
Purchasing portioned cut steaks is a great option for consistent, reliable, and ready to use protein products!
Buying ready to use portioned steaks may help you with your inventory management.
It’s no secret that service is very important in the food industry. We pride ourselves on consistently providing you with the highest level of service possible.
Our portioned cut steak programs are built around constant availability of raw material. We follow a model that allows our teams to provide cut-to-order product while also being flexible enough to handle next day delivery in most cases.
Raw material needed for high demand items such as ribeyes, NY strips, tenderloins, and sirloin steaks are all kept in stock at all our locations so there is less need for special orders and long lead times. This allows us to consistently provide you with the highest level of service possible.
We aim to take the work out of providing you with the premium portioned cut steaks you need to serve your customers!
In summary:
A portioned cut steak program from Buckhead Meat & Seafood can check all the boxes for cost, quality of product, and customer service.
Want to learn more? Reach out to your local sales consultant on having us build your custom portioned cut steaks program!
Article written by Kylie Philipps, the Business Development Manager at Buckhead Central Florida. She has been in the foodservice industry since 2017 and holds both a Bachelor of Science and a Master of Science in Animal Science, with a research focus in Meat Science. After talking to her, you will definitely walk away with more interesting meat knowledge than you started with!
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