Consumer Steak Report

The 2022–23 Consumer Steak Report

As the United States’ premier independent meat purveyor and a supplier of the top steakhouses in the world, Meats by Linz has developed “The 2022–23 Consumer Steak Report” to provide a glimpse into consumers’ current sentiments around steak. The report features data and insights from a survey of 1,084 U.S. consumers about their preferences, consumption patterns, preferred cooking methods, and purchase habits when it comes to eating steak at home or at a restaurant.

To view the full report, see the infographic below:

Consumer Steak Report

In Linz’s 59 years of business, food trends have come and gone but according to the consumers surveyed in the report, steak remains a staple for many. In fact, 70% of respondents consider steak to be one of their favorite foods. A whopping 75% of male respondents consider steak to be one of their favorite foods, while 65% of female respondents consider steak to be one of their favorite foods.

Interestingly, 64% of respondents said if they could choose their “last meal,” steak would be included. Nearly half of respondents (47%) would eat steak more than 3 times per week if there were no factors preventing them from doing so.

Overwhelmingly, 80% of respondents would consider receiving premium steaks from friends, family, or an employer a “quality” gift.

“Well Done” Is Quite Rare

Unsurprisingly, “medium rare” was a clear favorite among the steak consumers we surveyed when it came to how they prefer ordering steak at a restaurant and cooking steak at home. However, when it comes to the second-most preferred degree of doneness, it varies depending on the setting—with “medium” being the second-most preferred way to cook a steak at home and “medium well” being the second-most preferred way to order a steak while dining out.

“Well done” was largely not a favorite option when dining out or cooking steak at home, with just 13% of respondents preferring “well done” steaks at a restaurant, and 15% preferring “well done” steaks when cooking at home.

The degree of doneness that you choose while dining out could be a source of criticism at your table—with 41% of consumers surveyed stating they have been critical of someone who orders or cooks their steak “well done.” In fact, 45% of male respondents and 37% of female respondents admitted to being critical of someone who orders or cooks their steak “well done.”

More than 1 in 3 respondents (34%) stated that if they were on a first date and their date ordered their steak “well done,” they would be critical of them.

Additionally, 42% of respondents said that if they were on a first date and their date ate their steak with ketchup, they would be critical of them.

Respondents' Favorite Cuts of Steak

  • Ribeye (61%)
  • Filet (47%)
  • T-Bone (43%)
  • Strip (38%)
  • Porterhouse (27%)
  • Skirt (16%)
  • Tomahawk (13%)
  • Flat Iron (12%)
  • Bavette (5%)

Consumers’ Knowledge of Steak

Over half of the respondents (53%) do not consider themselves knowledgeable about the differences in the USDA beef grades (USDA Prime, USDA Choice, USDA Select). The gender divide of respondents who do claim to be knowledgeable about USDA beef grades is quite wide, actually—with 54% of male respondents and 40% of female respondents claiming to be knowledgeable about the differences in the USDA beef grades.

While 53% of respondents claim to know what “wagyu” steak is, only 34% of respondents have eaten it. Additionally, 41% of respondents consider themselves knowledgeable about the different breeds of cattle (e.g., Angus, Charolais, Holstein).

62% of respondents do not know what the dry-aging or wet-aging processes entail—with 48% of male respondents claiming to know what the processes entail and 30% of female respondents claiming to know what the processes entail.

Sauce and Seasoning Preferences with Steak

55% of respondents typically enjoy eating steak with sauce. Of the consumers who typically enjoy eating steak with sauce, A.1. was the sauce of choice, followed by BBQ sauce and Worcestershire sauce. A total of 5% of respondents chose ketchup as their preferred sauce to use when eating steak. Mole rounded out the pack, with only .17% of respondents selecting it as their preferred sauce when eating steak.

When it comes to seasoning steaks, 47% of respondents prefer to season steaks with only salt and pepper and 44% prefer to use other seasonings. Only 9% of respondents prefer unseasoned steaks.

Top Cooking Methods Respondents Prefer When Cooking Steak at Home

  • Grilling (78%)
  • Pan Searing (48%)
  • Oven Baking (27%)
  • Air Frying (19%)
  • Reverse Searing (11%)
  • Using Sous Vide (6%)

Top Side Dishes for Steak

The classic term “meat and potatoes” certainly rings true for the consumers surveyed, as baked potato was the top side dish when cooking steak at home and while dining out. Salad was the second-favorite side dish when eating steak at a restaurant, while mashed potato was the runner-up side dish when cooking steak at home.

The least favorite side dish when cooking steak at home was coleslaw, while the least favorite side dish when eating steak at a restaurant was carrots.

Shopping for Steak

The top attribute respondents look for when shopping for steak is whether or not a USDA label is present. Following “USDA labels,” respondents also look for “prime grade,” “grass-fed,” and “Angus” as top attributes when shopping for steak.

38% of respondents stated that it’s “very important” and 50% of respondents stated it’s “somewhat important” to know where their meat comes from. 11% of respondents stated it’s “not important at all” to know where their meat is sourced.

52% of the US-based consumers surveyed stated it is “very important” that their meat is sourced within the United States, while 37% claimed it is “somewhat important” and 11% stated it was “not important at all” that their meat is sourced within the US.

Respondents’ Favorite Meats to Grill at Home

  • Steak (65%)
  • Chicken (60%)
  • Burgers (54%)
  • Hot dogs (36%)
  • Ribs (30%)
  • Pork chops (28%)
  • Fish (24%)
  • Sausage (23%)
  • Bratwurst (22%)
  • Lamb chops (12%)
  • Shellfish (8%)

To learn more about the history behind Linz Heritage Angus, click here. To browse the USDA-certified genuine Black Angus steaks from the Linz Heritage Angus program, click here.

Survey Methodology

  • Total respondents: 1,084
  • Margin of error: +/- 3.049%
  • Country: United States (USA)
  • Region: All Regions
  • Gender: All Genders
  • Gender balancing: Census
  • Age of respondents: 18–99+
  • Age balancing: Basic Census

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