Omaha Steaks Revisited: Time To Go Public With Their "Private Reserve"!

By: Anne M. Raso

In the six or seven months, I have become a almost daily consumer of Omaha steaks and even blogged about them here a few months ago. In NYC, it's actually cheaper to order Omaha Steaks than to purchase them at local supermarkets (where the better cuts of steak are $17 to $20 a pound) and Omaha's quality is much better. The amount of fat on their steaks is visibly lower than anything you will see in a supermarket refrigerator case. The Omaha folks also have non-steak items including tender, fast cooking chicken breasts which totally need to be in any health-conscious person's freezer. I will say that the superstar of Omaha Steaks, not surprisingly is their beef tenderloin, aka filet mignon, which is so tender, you almost do not need a knife to cut it--and you get the filets in perfect portions of four, five or six ounces, so you won't overindulge. Everything is frozen and delivered in a large white styrofoam container (which some customers keep and use for storage or even a bait and tackle box later on) and you can keep all Omaha meat in your freezer for up to a year. The packages are vacuum sealed, so there is no chance of freezer burn, and you can defrost any piece in a half hour by thawing it in cold water (still in its plastic packaging).

I recently tested out the fancier line that Omaha Steaks offers, simply called Private Reserve. I got my hands on the Private Reserve Grand Trio, which includes two 8 oz. Private Reserve Top Sirloins, two 6 oz. Private Reserve Filet Mignons and two 11 oz. Private Reserve Boneless Strips. It regularly sells on omahasteaks.com for $179 and they often offer it at the discounted price of $119. (Once you start ordering from omahasteaks.com, you will be sent coupons for $20 off any purchase and you will also get weekly or biweekly emails for other special discounts and packages.) So many Omaha Steaks fans, myself included, have wondered if the Private Reserve is worth the money since the "regular" Omaha Steaks are so terrifically tender and juicy to begin with...I mean, how much better can they get?

 I cooked all three types of steaks in cast iron (since Manhattan co-ops rarely allow grilling and using a George Foreman Grill for a fine steak is out of the question). I like my meat medium rare and all cuts did turn out to be juicier and more tender than their "regular" Omaha Steak counterparts. We loved the 2 1/2" thickness of the Filet Mignons--to make them cook even faster in our cast iron pan, I sliced them down the middle. What can I say but that all three cuts are worth the extra money. You're not going to find a better steak even in New York's finer restaurants, and we consider ourselves pretty knowledgeable on the subject matter since we've visited about 20 Manhattan steak restaurants (including the finer chains that are here and in other parts of the country). All of the Private Reserve cuts are very lean, making them a healthier alternative to lesser quality steaks, so you are not only paying for tenderness and juiciness, but for less fat!

I still love the regular line of Omaha Steaks and I can't resist great variety package deals like The Grand Pack (28 items for $79.99 including chicken, pork chops, steak burgers and filet mignon), but I will be splurging here and there on the Private Reserve Grand Trio just because it's nice to always have a melt-in-your-mouth" prime steak in the fridge, especially when you are suddenly getting company and don't have much time to cook. (Yes, contrary to popular belief, residents of Manhattan do actually cook now and then even though their kitchens are the tiniest in the world and dishwashers are still a rarity)! My next Private Reserve steak fantasy is actually the T-Bones and Porterhouses (have never had them before) and I love the fact that they are so large (20 and 24 ounces, respectively). Then next, will be the Private Reserve Bone-In Rib Roast (my excuse being that I got a new meat thermometer at a recent Williams-Sonoma press event and still haven't put it to use)! Simply put, I honestly think that Omaha Steaks Private Reserve should have the first word changed to OH-maha!

***Giveaway***

Congrats #3 and #34- ninamcclain93 and Pat!

Omaha Steaks wants to give TWO lucky readers each a $20 gift card to try a steak on them!

There are THREE ways to enter
1. REQUIRED: In my comments section, tell me how you like youe steaks cooked. Also please include your email address so I can contact you if you win!
2. Follow Finance Foodie on Twitter (leave separate comment telling me this)
3. Reblog / Retweet this giveaway (leave separate comment telling me this)

Contest ends Tuesday, September 20, 2011 at 5pm EST. Winners will be chosen via random integer generator on random.org announced on the financefoodie.com site shortly afterwards that night!

Full Disclosure: The  prize pack has been provided by Omaha Steak. I was not compensated for this post. Photos: Omaha Steak