Edgar M.
Yelp
Grass Fed Rochester is a vegan butcher shop (I know, it sounds like a contradiction in terms). They offer a variety of faux meats that are all made in-house. I attended their grand opening event and bought three items: Shaved steak, pastrami, and linguiça sausage.
Pros: The items I bought were very good. Everything they offer is vegan. There is a large variety of products being offered. The staff were all friendly.
Cons: The prices are really high. Parking is difficult. Ordering food is confusing, because there are no deli tickets and no obvious line in front of the counter.
I'm always happy when a new all-vegan business opens in Rochester, and I'm especially happy when the food is really good (as it was in this case).
My spouse used the pastrami to make us sandwiches with sauerkraut, vegan Swiss cheese, and creamy horseradish sauce on pumpernickel bread. We both loved the sandwiches. Delicious!
I grilled the shaved steak with some onions, mushrooms, and cheese (so like a Philly cheesesteak) served on a roll with some A1 steak sauce. These sandwiches very good, too -- my spouse and I loved them. Really excellent stuff. I wish that they served this in restaurants.
However, my favorite item was the linguiça sausage. It was so much better than anything you can get from Tofurkey or Field Roast. The sausage had a very nice flavor and texture, and it was nicely filling.
The major drawback with Grass Fed is that their prices are very high. The pastrami and shaved steak cost me $23.99 per pound. The sausage was $14.99 per pound. I didn't buy the ropa vieja, but one of the staff told me that it's made with soy curls (which are pretty cheap) -- and it still costs $14.99 per pound. With prices like these, I can't afford to shop at Grass Fed except maybe for special occasions. (They also seemed to have a lot of staff working at the same time, so I wonder if they can cut expenses by running a leaner operation).
There is no dedicated parking. You either have to park on Monroe Avenue or on one of the side streets. Monroe Avenue is pretty busy, so crossing the street is not always easy.
When I walked into the shop, I saw a bunch of customers standing around waiting, but there wasn't any clear line formed, and I didn't know where I was supposed to stand to get service. There was no ticketing system of the type used in delis. It was all a bit confusing and awkward. Because this is a new business, I expect that they'll work out the kinks soon, so I'm not really holding this against them.
"Grass Fed" is an unfortunate choice for a name. I get that the owners are trying to be clever, but the name gives the wrong impression and may mislead potential customers into thinking that the business is a real butcher shop.
Despite the prices, I still expect to shop there, but probably only a few times per year. I wish them the best of success with their vegan business.
