When Jake and I first started shopping for meat, we were like most couples, grabbing whatever was on sale at the grocery store. It worked fine for a while, but every now and then, if we were celebrating or had a little extra cash, we’d treat ourselves to good steaks from a local butcher shop.
One day, Jake was researching butcher shops and came across Begley’s Butcher Block. He really wanted to try it, so we stopped by to pick up a couple of steaks for the weekend. The taste didn’t even compare to grocery store meat. After that first dinner, we looked at each other and said, “Okay, this is it. We’re switching for good.”
Around that same time, we also started shopping at Aldi for our regular groceries. By saving so much there, we actually had more room in our budget to buy higher-quality meat each week. Now, every Sunday has turned into our little routine, Aldi for groceries and Begley’s for meat.
Sometimes we’ll grab one of their meat packages, but most weeks I just buy what lines up with my meal plan. One thing I love about shopping at a butcher shop is the flexibility. If I only need two chicken breasts (since it’s just the two of us), I can buy exactly that, not a whole pack of four or five like at the grocery store.
When we get home, most of the meat goes straight into the freezer so it stays fresh until we’re ready for it. I plan our meals for the week, but not the exact days. So it’s usually around 5 p.m. when I’ll ask Jake, “What do you want tonight?” and we pull something out to cook.
The difference in flavor, tenderness, and freshness is unbelievable. My personal favorites are the filet and top sirloin, while Jake’s go-to is their center-cut bone-in pork chops. Every cut tastes like something you’d get at a restaurant, not a plastic-wrapped package from a shelf.
Begley’s describes their philosophy best:
“We are not a grocery chain. We are a specialty butcher shop. We stick with specific brands of beef, pork, and chicken you usually won’t find in most major retail stores because our focus is different. While large chains chase the lowest cost, our priorities are quality, consistency, and origin. It’s this philosophy of better sourcing that elevates our products and allows the consumer to see and taste the difference!”
And that’s exactly why we’ll keep going back every week. Once you taste the difference, there’s no going back to grocery store meat.
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