New York Strip Steaks

My husband and I love our beef.  We are used to eating very good quality, hormone free, grass-fed beef that we buy as a calf that is then raised to slaughter age by one of our friends.  It is not surprising that we do enjoy our steaks.  The first dinner at our vacation home with the exception of our very first trip when we were just setting up the house, has been grilled steak.  The morning following our arrival we head into town to get groceries for a few days.  Good steaks, ingredients for a salad and potatoes are always part of the groceries the first trip.

At home we are well acquainted with local growers and know where to find the best quality meat possible.  Unfortunately, we cannot say the same about the area around our vacation home although we are learning quickly.  At home, I'm used to buying from a small mom & pop butcher shop or the abattoir aside of our annual bulk meat purchase.
We like shopping at Publix when at our vacation home although we have bought groceries at Sweetbay, Sam's Club and Wal-mart.  The Publix closest to us has just had a gorgeous make-over but it was nice before.  Their meat counter is very nice and we can get custom cut like we are used to.  Our bulk beef purchase for 2012 cost us $2.52 per lb so seeing a $7.99 price per pound was a bit discerning on the surface.  In perspective, a steak entrée will cost $25 or more in restaurants so the price per pound really is not that bad.

Aside of having nice quality meat at reasonable prices, Publix prints out the cooking instructions on the labels for their custom cut and meat counter meats.  This is an extra feature I haven't seen elsewhere.  I've seen cooking instructions on pre-packaged meats like those wrapped in plastic wrap on a styrofoam tray but not this custom print-out.  Another nice thing Publix does is if you buy a cut of meat that should be baked, they package it in an ovenproof container, something that was very much appreciated during our first trip to our vacation home when we literally had zilch as far as far as kitchen supplies and equipment.

As steak lovers we both agree that a good steak should be close to an inch thick.  Thinner cuts can quickly turn into shoe leather when grilling.  The only time we use a thin cut of steak is when delicating it or making a rolarde.  Leftover steak can be used to make wraps, stir frys or soups.

We bought two inch thick, custom cut New York strip steaks for $12.30.  New York strip steaks are cut from the short loin.  This is a muscle that isn't used much so the meat is quite tender.   Don't they look delightful?  They grilled up perfectly, just what we needed to start our fall vacation off on a good note.

Honestly, the meat counter at the Publix we go to is just as friendly as our local butcher shop and they do cut the meat to our specification.  They are quite attentive to our needs and aim to please.  It's nice that we have found a solution to our meat purchases at our vacation home.  I'd still like to find a mom & pop butcher shop there but so far have had no luck.  I think a lot has to do with the location.  The town is actually considerably larger than the closest city to us at home but it is very much geared towards snowbirds visiting for the winter months.  At any rate we shall keep looking...