Center of the Plate refers to the proteins restaurants serve every day. From beef, pork and chicken to duck and seafood, our Center of the Plate Department at Jordano’s works tirelessly to ensure they have what our customers need.
Assistant Director of Purchasing and Center of the Plate Specialist, Larry Fiscalini, built the department twelve years ago to provide expertise and management of the items restaurants need and what Jordano’s could provide. Larry stresses “Other distributors have a ‘one size fits all’ approach to buying protein. Not us. Our programs allow a more versatile approach so that we can customize our product mix to best suit the needs of our clients. Our client base is broad. We need the offerings to touch them all.”
A CUT ABOVE THE REST
Making your mark in the protein industry means consistently delivering an amazing experience to your customers. The Center of the Plate department recognizes this, and has consciously created a unique approach to purchasing through two specific programs: commodity and specialty or branded. Fiscalini believes, “Having the depth of branded programs is vital, but it’s the actual brands that make the difference. The range of quality grades we offer is where we focus.”
Thus, the reason we collaborate with top producers like Agri Beef to help our customers differentiate from the competition. The basic four principles that the Agri Beef star commitment is built on – sustainability, total quality, animal well-being, and responsibility – was a strong motive why Fiscalini chose to partner with this family-owned company. They are involved in every step of the beef lifecycle, including ranching, cattle feeding and beef processing. Agri Beef surrounds themselves with great people to which are crucial to every aspect of the business – from those on the ranch to those who deliver beef to tables around the world.
SNAKE RIVER FARMS
The first program consists of Snake River Farms, a premier producer of American Wagyu beef. Deeply influenced by the Japanese feeding methods, Snake River Farms cattle are fed an all-natural, sustainable diet consisting of ingredients, including Idaho potatoes, soft white wheat and alfalfa hay. Their animals are on feed an average of three times longer than traditional U.S. commodity beef animals. With this diet and increased feeding, the animals are able to deposit intramuscular marbling over time (the animals have a higher fat content). Marbling adds flavor and is one of the main criteria for judging the quality of cuts of meat – more flavor merits a higher grade. Snake River Farms American Wagyu Beef’s marbling is so intense the USDA grading scale is unable to capture its premium quality. Instead, they use a combination of the Japanese and U.S. grading systems.
This beef is highly desired and served in top rated restaurants throughout the world and features a buttery texture, complex flavors with a hint of sweetness and a lasting finish. With this program, Jordano’s offers a full line of American Wagyu (Kobe-Style) beef to entice diners.
SIGNATURE DOUBLE R RANCH & DOUBLE R RANCH
Double R Ranch beef is a non-breed specific, hand selected USDA Choice program. Their commitment to quality results in unsurpassed flavor and tenderness with one of the tightest trim specs in the industry. Fiscalini boasts, “It’s this quality that restaurants will see right out of the bag.”
Our Signature Double R Ranch program is also non-breed specific and contains only the top one-third of USDA Choice. The top one-third of the USDA Choice beef has a higher quality and more marbling with excellent sizing and trim.
The non-breed specific nature of these programs is no mistake. Jordano’s and Agri Beef believe that the quality of the product is a result of great breeding, excellent feed, and care for the animal throughout its life span.
PREMIUM ANGUS BEEF
We offer USDA Choice Premium Angus Beef that is produced solely from Angus cattle. No other breed is more widely recognized for its marbling and flavor. Agri Beef infuses the same high standards of quality and workmanship to deliver exceptional taste. The result is a rich, juicy and tender beef.
ST. HELENS BEEF
This is our commodity brand with a twist. Offering USDA select, choice, and prime grades, we feel we have an advantage in the commodity market. With a better product selection, our customers have less preparation time in the kitchen than traditional commodity items, thus giving them a lower food cost.
PRIDE & COMMITMENT
It’s no surprise that strong relationships are key to any business. Over the years, Jordano’s has worked endlessly to develop and maintain close relationships with our suppliers like Agri Beef. With this collaboration, Jordano’s is able to offer a vast variety of options that can improve our customers’ bottom line, profitability and overall menu presentation.
To learn more about Agri Beef’s commitment to quality visit their website at www.agribeef.com or Facebook, Twitter and Vimeo.
