Don’t Miss These Deals! 68% off Beef Ribeye Roll, 60% off Idaho Trout!
Another week, another bunch of deals we have found from your distributors. We know that it is common knowledge that frozen is less than fresh and that certain brands cost less. But these deals are often opportunistic, and it takes time to find them - time you don’t have. We want to make it easy for restaurant and food service operators to know what potential deals are available.
Any time you are looking at product alternatives, the fit always depends on your situation. You will know best if the alternatives we identify can work for your business, kitchen, and customers. Now you know exactly where to look!
We also know that you don’t always want to change your vendor. All the opportunities below are from within single distributors! So here are the deals this week:
tl;dr
The most significant potential savings this week are in Produce (54%), Seafood (53%), and Meat & Poultry (50%).
Great deals are available from single vendors (44%-53%) and a wide range of savings across vendors (38%-65%), so if you are working with multiple you may want to do some comparison.
Potential Cash and Carry savings stays consistent (53%). You know if it is worth the drive.
Brand
Keeping most attributes consistent, there definitely are trends in several product categories where you can find better deals with some brands than others. There were fewer deals based on brand differences this week. Here are the average percent savings on a cost per weight basis we are seeing right now:
| Category | Discount |
|---|---|
| Breaded Chicken Breast | 59% |
| Mahi Mahi | 52% |
| Frozen Whole Chicken | 40% |
| Ribeye Lip On | 34% |
| Shell Eggs Fresh Large AA | 32% - 35% |
| Duck Breast | 24% |
| Chicken Wing | 24% |
| All Purpose Flour | 15% - 20% |
Frozen
Frozen options are always at a discount to fresh, but the current market’s volatility is leading to more last-minute fresh to frozen (F2F) products from distributors. If a frozen option works for you, this can be an excellent opportunity to get your normal product at a huge discount. Frozen product can also give you a buffer with uncertain traffic.
| Category | Discount |
|---|---|
| Beef Short Ribs | 84% |
| Bacon | 73% |
| Beef Patties | 70% - 80% |
| Beef Ribeye Roll | 68% |
| Cheddar Cheese, Shredded Fancy | 66% |
| Beef Strip Loin | 30% |
| Chicken Breast | 23% |
| Pork Tenderloin | 23% |
| Whole Duck | 15% |
Odds & Ends
There are often price differences when there are different attributes with similar products. The grade, size, source, and a long list of others impact the price. You made decisions on what you would source when you first decided on the menu item, but how often can you check what is going on with prices now? Can you make a slight adjustment to save money without negatively affecting the end dish? Here are some of the products where you may want to look at your options:
| Category | Discount |
|---|---|
| Fresh Farmed Trout Idaho vs Colorado (for our Colorado folks) | 40% - 60% |
| Dill, Baby Fresh Limited Qty | 66% |
| Kale Non-Organic vs Organic | 50% |
| Beef Outside Round Select vs Choice | 32% |
| Beef Short Ribs Limited Qty | 38% |
| Ground Beef Grass Fed vs Grain Fed (Must be a surplus of grass fed on hand) |
60% - 70% |
| Chicken Wing Non-ABF vs ABF | 49% |
| Bacon 16-18 per # vs 18-20 per # | 14% |
| Avocado 48-70 vs 40-48 | 22% |
| Avocado #2 vs #1 | 32% |
| Russet Potato #2 vs #1 | 27% - 34% |
| Yellow Onion #2 vs #1 | 28% |
Remember, this is all a price per weight comparison.