‘It blows my mind people actually buy these’: Grill expert issues warning about steaks being sold in parking lots

A grilling expert called attention to a deal that seemed too good: 20 ribeyes for $40 from a truck in a parking lot.

The warning video comes from the Grillin with Dad TikTok account (@grillinwithdad). Since the TikToker posted it on Saturday, it has gathered more than 142,600 views. In it, he shows a truck emblazoned with the Prime House Direct logo. According to its website, Prime House Direct is a company of "meat purveyors" based in Union City, Georgia.

What does he say is wrong with the deal?

The creator begins, "I'm sure you guys have seen these steak trucks at your local malls or in parking lots advertising cheap steaks. I'm here to tell you that it's junk and to stay away from them. And to prove to you that it's junk, I went out and I bought a box of these cheap steaks. Let me show you what we got."

He does an unboxing and reveals thin, individually shrink-wrapped steaks. He later does the math on them by weight and figures the sellers priced them at about $10 per pound. As he points out, "If you go online or to your local butcher [or] grocery store—anywhere, you can find choice ribeye steaks, an actual steak that's just beef with no other additives, for about the same price. So when you kind of break it down that way, this is not a deal."

He also points out that the steaks come with something unusual for steak—an ingredient list. "It's showing that these were tenderized with bromelain. And for your ingredients, there is beef, water, rice starch, salt, [and] plum juice concentrate, which probably is there to give a better color."

That leads him to dub the product "mystery meat."

He also contends that once the sellers draw in customers by the promise of cheap steaks, they attempt to upsell customers with more conventional meat offerings.

How do they taste?

He puts the steaks to the test, leaving two unseasoned and using an all-purpose rub he markets on his site on the other two. Upon grilling them over charcoal—requiring just a minute per side—he finds they're as disappointing as he expected.

"It's a little bit off," he reports. "Doesn't really smell like grilled meat. You can smell the charcoal, smell that char, but you don't really smell that kind of grilled beef flavor like I would expect."

He declared the unseasoned ones "super bland." With the seasoned ones, he stated, "I can only taste my seasoning, a little bit of the char flavor, but I get no meat, no beef taste at all."

He ends with a less discerning taste tester, giving one of the unseasoned ones to his dog.

@grillinwithdad If you see someone selling steaks in a parking lot, stay away!!! ???? These people are trying to scam you by selling garbage meat and trying to upsell to super expensive steaks when you show up. And why do these steaks have a pretty lengthy ingredients list?? It should only be beef. And I get it, 20 steaks for $40 sounds very appealing. But when you break this down to $ per pound, it’s the same as your local grocery store. So no, there is zero value here. These people are just trying to take advantage of you by selling you this garbage. #grillinwithdad #steak #beef #meat #themoreyouknow ♬ original sound - Grillin With Dad

We've seen this before

Back in April, the Daily Dot reported on a similar 20 for $40 deal that a shopper tried out. In that story, a TikToker warned people that the steaks were "lab-grown" meat, and he ran into conflict over his attempted public service.

"When something sounds like a really good deal…it’s usually ’cause there’s something wrong,” he reported. “My last video shows what was wrong with the steaks so I had to come down here to warn others of what they’re buying. The guy didn’t like me talking to his customers so he called the cops…”

That story also warned of something called transglutaminase, also known as "meat glue," which Healthline reported was "a controversial food additive that many people avoid due to health concerns." However, it added that it's a naturally occurring enzyme that "plays a role in various bodily processes, including blood clotting and sperm production."

However, the article notes that "it’s also commonly used to create one piece of meat from multiple pieces."

Commenters are aghast

The video resulted in the recoil from some commenters you might have expected.

"It blows my mind people actually buy these," one said.

Another chimed in, "They usually don’t know until it’s too late."

Someone else offered, "I’ve never seen a steak truck, now I know to not go on one."

One commenter noted, "I’ve always been so tempted to stop by the truck but never have, it all makes sense now. Thanks for saving many people," adding, "Grocery butcher all day."

The creator responded, "Just trying to spread the word."

In his own words

In an email to the Daily Dot, the TikToker said, "I was happy the video was so well received and has mostly very positive feedback. My goal is to not only share recipe content but also potential scams and to use my platform in a positive way."

He then added, "I think most consumers just don’t know about the quality of the meat and are roped in by what seems like a very [low] price, 20 steaks for $40. Which I break down in the video, isn’t actually a deal at all!! And once you go there to buy, they try to upsell you to some very, very expensive steaks. And once they do purchase them, they’re stuck with the meat and can’t really do anything else about it. I received so many DM’s after I posted my video from people who purchased them and regretted that decision after they got home and cooked the first steak."

Then, he concluded, "They are basically taking advantage of those who don’t know about beef or steak prices and what to look for when shopping for steaks."

The Daily Dot reached out to Prime House Direct via online contact form.

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