Sandi S.
Yelp
I recently created a profile with Seven Sons Farms and then waited for what was in my freezer to go down. My emptied freezer just so happened to coinicide with an online sale by invite only if you RSVP'ed via email. As a result, I purchased a discounted sampler of steaks called the Legendary Cookout (in limited supply) and a new product in their line-up: all-beef hot dogs. This was in addition to what had been sitting in my cart: The Taste of the Farm Sampler.
The Legendary Cookout is a delicious variety of beef (ground, steaks, stew/kabob) that worked out to be about $15/lb. The Farm Sampler is a taste of everything: Beef, pork, and chicken. Its average price per pound was $7.75, and the all-beef hot dogs came out at $1.95/piece.
We tried the hot dogs first. These would be better marketed as summer sausage. As a "hot dog," I'm disappointed. There's no disputing what a superior product Seven Sons is producing. I knew it wouldn't it be your average greasy, salty hot dog, but the link was so dense that it was nothing like a hot dog from a textural standpoint. It was lean and flavored well, however. I will use the rest of mine sliced in discs and fried to add to scrambled eggs or jambalaya in lieu of andouille or polish sausage, not to mention paired with a good sharp cheddar on crackers. Crisis averted. (:
The filet mignon was next.. *thud* ..Sorry, my knees just buckled at the memory they were so good! I've been to some pricey steakhouses in my day but these filets buried the others. They. Were. OUTSTANDING! We cooked them stove top in a cast iron skillet basting constantly with butter 4-5 minutes each side for a lovely rare/medium rare. Seriously, these steaks were life changing. You didn't feel heavy or bloated after eating them. The color and texture were beautiful and the flavor was delicate and clean and.. Idk, is "happy" a flavor?
Next we had the bacon. This took some learning curve after decades of oven baking the thin, fatty strips of household name stuff. This bacon is thicker and while fatty as well, even the fat had nice color and texture, and the finished product was fresh, not overly salty/smoky, and damn near sweet! That was the real surprise - the soft underlying sweetness.
Then there was the ground beef turned into meatloaf. Yum! Not your boring, dry, and drenched in ketchup loaf of meat. The consistency was so clean as well as the flavor. Again, no full, bloated feeling after and it reheated just fine the next day for lunch. I'm utterly shocked how sub par the beef I'd been eating for all these years was!!!
Finally, we tackled the chicken breasts. My husband prepared them and noticed right away how lean they were and without any mystery tendons or blood spots you sometimes see in grocery chicken. He made a vegetable stir-fry with them and again, I can't sing enough praises.. Clean tasting, a softer bite, an almost sweetness.
Let me remind you, there's so much to sample if you go the bundle route! I'm especially looking forward to the inside skirt steak. I'm thinking this will produce the best arrachera tacos EVER! Oh! AND we got a complimentary dozen eggs! :D
Before deciding on Seven Sons, I researched many local farms. Seven Sons is very transparent online, especially YouTube where they educate on and share their sustainable farming practices. They provide (cheap!) group delivery service to the north side of Chicago among other areas, but also home delivery if you want something before the designated delivery date. They send frequent emails - which I don't mind for a change because they're so friendly and informative - trying to open a dialogue with their customer base as well as invite us to events, as if we're part of the family. I actually had questions about the animals when it's time for slaughter and I was answered (via email) within a business day addressing all my concerns. It was not a canned reply and treated the subject matter with respect and thoughtfulness.
Bottom line: A healthier and superior product from a local, family-run farm that's more than worth the premium.