I have no axe to grind here, nor do I have a well informed opinion about the below linked article (although my one experience with Crowd Cow was decidedly mixed, but ultimately was resolved satisfactorily to me), but I thought this was worth posting to AR members. Better informed is a good thing.
Smokin-It 3D
Weber Kettle with an SNS
Masterbuilt kettle that I call the $30 wonder grill
Bullet by Bull Grills gasser
Anova WiFi sous vide machine
Thermoworks Thermapen and Chef Alarm
Thanks for passing this on. They have changed a bit since I started purchasing from them a few years back. I make 2-3 purchases a year from and the sam from Porter Road.
the availability of cuts from CC has become limited as of late, I wonder if this is why.
We have so much good beef in this part of the country that craft meats just aren't very attractive to me any longer. I still buy heritage pork form purveyors like Porter Road (even they have been hit or miss) but tend to shy away from the others. It comes down to price and poor service. Crowd Cow screwed up too many orders for me, so I just swore off them altogether.
I can understand if you're in the middle of nowhere that getting a great steak or a Berkshire pork butt is nearly impossible any other way, but again I will continue to source locally and stay away from the trend to cherry pick craft meats. You just never know what exactly you're going to get in the box !!!
My toys:
Weber Summit Charcoal Grilling Center (WSCGC) aka Mr. Fancypants
Pit Barrel Cooker (which rocks), named Pretty Baby
Weber Summit S650 Gas Grill, named Hot 'n Fast (used mostly for searing and griddling)
Weber Kettle Premium 22" named Kettle Kid, eager to horn in with more cooks in the future
Camp Chef Somerset IV 4-burner outdoor gas range named AfterBurner due to its 30kBTU burners
Adrenaline BBQ Company Gear:
SnS Low Profile, DnG, and Large Charcoal Basket, for WSCGC
SnS Deluxe for 22" Kettle
Elevated SS Rack for WSCGC
SS Rack for DnG
Cast Iron Griddle
Grill Grate for SnS
Grill Grates: five 17.375 sections (retired to storage)
Grill Grates: six 19.25 panels for exact fit for Summit S650
gasser
Grill Grates for 22" Kettle
2 Grill Grate Griddles
Steelmade Griddle for Summit gas grill
Fireboard Gear:
Extreme BBQ Thermometer Package
Additional control unit
Additional probes: Competition Probes 1" (3) and 4" (1), 3 additional Ambient Probes. 1 additional Food Probe
2 Driver Cables
Pit Viper Fan (to pair with Fireboard Fan Driver Cable)
Pit Viper Fan new design (to pair with Fireboard Fan Driver Cable)
Thermoworks Gear:
Thermapen MK4 (pink)
Thermapen Classic (pink too)
Thermoworks MK4 orange
Temp Test 2 Smart Thermometer
Extra Big and Loud Timer
Timestick Trio
Maverick ET 73 a little workhorse with limited range
Maverick ET 733
Maverick (Ivation) ET 732
Grill Pinz
Vortex (two of them)
18" drip pan for WSCGC
Ceramic Spacers for WSCGC in Kamado Mode: 2 sets each 1/2", 1", 2". The 2" spacers work best with the 18" drip pan. The 1+1/2 inch spacers work best with the 14 inch cake pan.
Two Joule Sous Vide devices
3 Lipavi Sous Vide Tubs with Lids: 12, 18 and 26 quarts
Avid Armor Ultra Pro V32 Chamber Sealer
Instant Pot 6 Quart Electric Pressure Cooker
Instant Pot 10 Quart Electric Pressure Cooker
Charcoal Companion TurboQue
A-Maze-N tube 12 inch tube smoker accessory for use with pellets
BBQ Dragon and Dragon Chimney
Shun Classic Series:
8" Chef Knife
6" Chef's Knife
Gokujo Boning and Fillet Knife
3 1/2 inch Paring Knife
LSG Adjustable Grill/Smoker, MAK Pellet Grill, Large BGE with Several Attachments from the Ceramic Grill Store, Weber Gasser, Cast Iron Pans & Griddle, Grill Grates, Mostly Thermoworks Thermometers, Avova SV Stick, BBQ Guru Controller and Fan
Interesting read. Thanks for posting. I just took delivery of my first ever meat delivery from Porter Road. It all looked pretty good, I got ox tails, tri tip, some lamb sausages, lamb neck and a slab of ribs. Other that the ribs, which looked better that what is available around here right now, I think I can get comparable stuff at my local butchers. They threw the curry lamb sausage in, but we didn't really care for it. If I order again, it will be for something that I want to try (like lamb neck) that I can't get around here.
Interesting article. My experience of Crowd Cow has been good. But I have only made about 5 purchases.
Sounds like their lack of experience in the industry caught up with the need/desire to make a profit and their responsibility to come through for investors. In business choices must be made along with adjustments to the realities of the business environment and with those choices/adjustments come results/consequences.
I remember many years ago asking the owner of the company (HVAC Contractor) I worked for why he did not pursue larger contracts and jobs. His response was "I have been a part of a large construction firm. The price is too high and I will not do that again." I really admired his decision to stay small and make less money to keep his values and well being intact.
I guess what I’m saying is it’s a balancing act and unfortunately in business our values and goals can conflict with profit. Like most everything in life there are often no simple answers, especially when dealing at such a large scale like Crowd Cow is. I think the statement in the last paragraph of the article speaks loudly. "One thing that we have learned is the importance of keeping laser focus on our own goals and core strengths, even if it means saying no to business." Have they lost focus? I don’t know really what their goals are or where. At the end of the day it matters not what I said but what I did.
Funny, after reading this article a few days ago what pops up in my inbox? An offer from Moink to reactivate my account and get free ground beef for a year, lol.
I’ve always been suspect of their philosophy since when looking at what was available most of the animal yield is nowhere to be seen. If they were "tipping" whole cows, where was the rest of it going? Now I see them as no different than anyone else, except that the few orders I placed ended up "C-" at best.
Last edited by Polarbear777; January 18, 2020, 07:33 AM.
Cattle business is FULL of shysters and charlatans, and n'er do wells. 50 years ago a hand shake was a bond better than a contract drawn up by a lawyer. NOW it doesn't really matter if it is a handshake or a contract as honest men are taken every day. Witnessed it myself with a family member who believed he was dealing with a friend and trusted the hand shake. My fondest dream is to have breakfast one day with that friend and have a nice long talk with the rest of the small community listening in.
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