A vacation prompted a detour through Hutchinson, Minnesota for a stop at Benny’s Meat Market at 221 Main Street South. Benny’s is under new ownership and undergoing a name change; it was formerly Lang’s Old Fashioned Meat Market, “Cut the way it used to be.” Walking in to Benny’s it was clear that it is a no frills meat market serious about meat. They sell 50 pounds of ground beef for $195. They have other large meat order specials lining the walls as well like another 50 pound pack of different cuts of meat in 10 pound increments for more than $300. It is a simple shop with an L-shaped meat counter towards the back and a large frozen section in the middle.Benny’s sells a variety of cuts of meat, not much bacon, many kinds of snack sausages, and a few styles of bratwurst. They do wild game processing promising that the meat you bring in is the meat you will get back. Those of you who do this know that this can be a big deal. Some shops won’t necessarily give you back the meat from the animal you bring in which is disappointing considering the work you put into your kill. They will also send someone out to a farm of your choice to do a kill and processing.For this review we tried Benny’s bacon, sirloin steak, and pizza bratwurst.

Bacon

Benny’s only offers one kind of fresh bacon. Keeping with the no-frills atmosphere it is a simple bacon, cured and ready to cook. Bacon strips come about 11 inches long and appear to be very fatty. It cooks well although the extra length can be a challenge even in a 12 inch pan. Fully cooked they measure in at 7.5 inches. As for taste, it’s not anything to rave about. If you are looking for a simple, no frills bacon, then this fits the bill.

Sirloin Steak

Their sirloin steaks come pre-rubbed, 6 inches long and about 1 inch thick. We cooked ours medium. It was a fabulous steak! It had very little fat on it. Very juicy. Very tender. Tasty rub. Easy to cook. Cuts are about six inches long and an inch thick. Ample portions. Minimal amount of fat.

Pizza Bratwurst

Pizza and bratwurst. Pizza is the perfect food and bratwurst is a perfect sausage. Imagine my head exploding when I saw that someone had found a way to combine these two pieces of perfection into one package. I couldn’t wait to get home and try it! The brats ooze mozzarella cheese when cooking. I was so excited to take the first bite. When I finally had a chance to eat one, the flavor wasn’t what I was expecting. It tasted like a very spicy Italian sausage. Neither of my junior Bacon Scouts could take more than a bite or two of their sausages because they were too spicy. I don’t usually get heartburn, but I was afraid that I would if I had another. If you like your meat really spicy, then you should try these bratwursts. If not, I recommend that you choose something else.