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Creekstone Farms (first order)

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    Creekstone Farms (first order)

    So one of you all let us now about these guys having a special on tri tips. Since I don't really know of a good butcher shop close by, I figured I'd give these guys a shot. Especially for such a great deal (provided they are that much better than Costco tri tips). Also figured it would be a good time to try it before the weather turns scorching hot.

    So I ordered them last Wednesday afternoon and within a couple hours got an email confirming they had shipped. I chose the standard 3 day shipping and assumed I would get them this past Saturday. I also got the tracking number and delivery date from Fedex stating delivery would be by end of day yesterday (Monday). That's 5 days! I assumed that was maybe a projected date and that Creekstone knows more about these logistics than I do. Having never ordered meat online before I had know knowledge of the process, packaging, storage while in transit etc.

    So when Saturday rolled around and the delivery date still for Monday, I decided to call Fedex as the tracking info said it was in my city as of Friday. So why is the delivery still scheduled for Monday? I couldn't talk to an actual person, but had an automated option to have it held at a nearby facility. The problem with that is you had to select that and then be notified later of the delivery date. How was I to know it wouldn't keep the same date or maybe put it even farther out? So I figured I'd just let it ride and see what happens. I certainly didn't want to interfere with something I know nothing about and possibly make it worse.

    So I decided to stay home yesterday (Monday) so I could take delivery immediately and get them in the freezer as quickly as possible just in case. Creeksone's website says you can re-freeze without any problems or degradation of the quality provided the meat temp does not exceed 40*F.

    Well around noon it showed up... with all 3 hunks of meat completely thawed. Ice bags completely melted and no evidence of dried ice. They were still quite cold to the touch however. So I got out my IR gun and they read 45-55 depending on where I shot. The thinner areas were obviously the higher readings.

    So I immediately get on the phone and get transferred to the person that handles online orders. That went to voicemail. So I left a very detailed and polite description of the issue.

    After a few hours and not hearing anything back I decided to send and email with pictures detailing the issue. I know they can't take any meat back, but I didn't want to just toss them. I also don't want them taking up room in the fridge. I just needed some direction as to what steps to take in order to get this resolved. Maybe they wanted more pictures, info etc?

    So here I am at work around lunchtime and have still heard nothing. So I call again and I explained the issue again and she said the person handling online orders was out yesterday and that she can see her now at her desk while we were on the phone. Transfers me and it goes straight to voicemail. I leave another voicemail, though still polite, but maybe with a little more I-need-a-little-more-sense-of-urgency-from-you-guys tone in my voice.

    Shortly there after I get an email that they were sending me a new order at obviously no charge.

    They also stated in the email that they were making a claim to Fedex for delaying the shipment. However, on their website when you are ordering something, there's a tab about shipping details. It says there that if ordering on a Wednesday or later in the week that it will not ship until the following week (if using standard shipping). Yet, I ordered it last Wednesday with standard shipping and they shipped it the same day.

    So I won't know for sure until I get the new shipment and eventually consume it if it was worth it. As of now they seem to be doing the right thing. I just wish that someone could have at least acknowledge my issue sooner. I understand if they only have one person that handles this and maybe they were swamped. I can't speak to their operation, but it's hard to believe they only have one person that can handle things like this. But a simple email to just say they were looking into the matter would go a long way for me. Especially at those prices!

    Rant over.

    #2
    Sorry to hear that. Much like my experience with Snake River Farms, Creekstone only sent me half my order. However an email to their customer service department got a prompt reply with an offer for the remaining half or a credit, I requested the missing half of my order. Got a prompt shipment notification of the remaining half of my order. Mine didn't seem to take nearly as long as yours, still plenty frizen with reusable ice packs, not dry ice. Sorry to hear about your frustrations. I don't seem to have the best luck with ordering meat online either, I have more trouble than I do success.

    Comment


      #3
      I’m puzzled. I’ve ordered from Creekstone 3 times in the past 18 mos. & everything was just so, no problemo. Packaging was A-OK, everything frozen, dry ice packs, delivered when expected. Quality was great. And here the two of you run into Trouble & that starts with T, Tri tips. Hope things progress in a much better manner for you.

      Comment


      • Troutman
        Troutman commented
        Editing a comment
        That's because you're "special" FireMan (and I won't define special)

      #4
      That’s weird. I ordered the tri tip last Wednesday as well. Chose standard shipping. This was my first time ordering from them. They shipped them next day air and I got them on Friday. I verified I only paid for standard shipping, so I was very pleased to get them so fast. They were still frozen solid.

      Comment


        #5
        I just made my first order for 3 tri-tips. I am expecting to receive any day. We will see, this is also my first try with Creekstone.

        Comment


          #6
          Did the 3 tri-tips and the order arrived in fine shape.

          Comment


            #7
            Maybe Rod & Huskee have cooties.

            Comment


            • Rod
              Rod commented
              Editing a comment
              Cooties is what they sent me!

            • FireMan
              FireMan commented
              Editing a comment
              Well then that’s confirmed, you got cooties. Just don’t give em to anybody else.

            #8
            Sorry to hear you both are having trouble. All of my orders from Creekstone have arrived promptly (all with standard shipping) and the meat still frozen. This last tri-tip order was shipped on Wednesday and arrived late Saturday evening. All of the dry ice had melted, but the ice packs were still mostly frozen and only the points of the tri tips were slightly thawed. I am glad to hear they are taking the time to make things right for you both, though maybe not with the promptness you desire.

            Comment


            • grantgallagher
              grantgallagher commented
              Editing a comment
              Yup. That was my experience this time around as well. I got no problem with that.

            #9
            Bummer! That said, thinking this is not the norm for Creekstone Farms. Granted I have only ordered from them one time, but it went just as advertised... in fact, when the order arrived, the steaks were frozen as hard as a rock and sooooo cold it was almost like handling the dry ice itself... handling them stung.

            Comment


              #10
              I believe you said 3 day shipping on FedX, ordered on Wednesday. FedX does deliver on Saturdays but only if that service is requested. No delivery on Sundays. So in my experience a 3 day delivery ordered on Wednesday means a Monday delivery.

              Comment


              • Rod
                Rod commented
                Editing a comment
                Like I said, their website claims that if ordered on Wednesday, it will ship the following week. Probably for the reasons you just mentioned. However, they shipped it anyway. Others who have ordered on Wednesday with no problems maybe are closer. They have a shipping map highlighting the time it takes to ship to different regions.

              • HawkerXP
                HawkerXP commented
                Editing a comment
                Ahhhh, just passing what little I know on. We use FedX at work when ordering parts for the aircraft so I need to KNOW when to expect delivery. Got to keep them flying.

              #11
              Well as long as we're bashing, I have had similar Crowd Cow issues and just quite ordering from them, period. I did an order recently from Matador Prime Steaks up in Dallas, about 250 miles form my house, and it came partially thawed with zero ice in the box. Luckily it was cold enough via my thermo gun so I just re-froze. I complained non-the-less.

              Bu then again I've had really good experience with other including SRF. I think it's a YMMV thing, it's just risky sending raw meat product over Fedex or Big Brown.

              Comment


                #12
                Unbelievable! I just got an email confirming the replacement has shipped. Guess when it's supposed to arrive. Wait for it...MONDAY!

                Comment


                • Red Man
                  Red Man commented
                  Editing a comment
                  Gah! 🤯

                #13
                So I called again and left another voicemail about them repeating the same nonsense. Apparently customer service there does not like to have live conversations with their customers. All 3 phone calls I made resulted in voicemails. You'd think after this debacle someone would call and explain things personally. Not looking for any butt kissing, but come on!

                At any rate, I just got another shipping confirmation for delivery by 8pm tomorrow.

                Update: Just got the following email:

                Hello ROD,

                The FedEx tracking details for your package have been updated to xxx. For some reason the FedEx system is showing delivery for Saturday when the label is created and then for Monday when you check tracking details. We are not sure where the breakdown may have occurred in the process but we have updated the tracking details with tracking number xxx now. Thank you for letting us know and we apologize for the inconvenience. Thank you.

                -The Creekstone Farms Team
                Last edited by Rod; March 20, 2019, 01:27 PM.

                Comment


                  #14
                  Mail order fun... My insurance mandates 90 day mail order prescription for ongoing meds like, say, the insulin I have to take as a diabetic. I've had to deal with the same type of thing, with a real interesting conversation when they decided to try shipping ground from Arizona to central Texas in August. I had to escalate several levels and got to a retained MD the insurance company paid to arbitrate whether or not they would be on the hook for replacing the $1500 in insulin. I ultimately got replacements, but ever since then have been leery of mail ordering refrigerated goods.

                  Comment


                  • Troutman
                    Troutman commented
                    Editing a comment
                    Had the same issues with blood pressure meds. I just quit doing it and deal with the local pharmacy idiots who I can berate in person when they screw up . Plus I didn't like the fact that they were shipping meds in the 100*+ heat for several days before it got to me. Just gave me pause ....

                  #15
                  I have had a couple shipments from different meat merchants that have arrived thawed and warm but they have always been very good about fixing the situation and sending out a replacement shipment. And all my invoices from Snake River now have "Extra Dry Ice" all over them. Guessing that won't be as much of an issue now that I am in Washington State vs. Florida where I previously lived.

                  I am sure they know a certain percentage of their orders have issues with thawing so they have that built in to their business model.

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