3 Free Services You Shouldn't Leave Whole Foods' Butcher Counter Without

Though Whole Foods is an international grocery chain, it definitely maintains a homey, organic appeal. You can thank the store's signature brown paper bags, hot bar, and green color scheme for that. In the past, the store had a reputation for being, well, not like your average grocery store. However, since being acquired by Amazon in 2017, the grocery store has become a bit of an odd bird in the grocery game, melding Amazon's big business reputation with Whole Foods' focus on organic products with a personal touch. You can pop into the store to buy a steak or pick up an online Prime purchase, depending on what you need. With all this change, some of the core services offered by the chain might have gotten lost in the noise.

Whole Foods still offers some pretty neat personalized services, which you should definitely take advantage of on your next grocery run (or package pickup). For example, the Whole Foods cheese counter offers quite a few free services. However, one of the chain's most helpful services can be found behind the butcher counter, where you can not only get your hands on an array of meat cuts and processed meat products, but also a variety of helpful and free services. The three standout free services that we wholly recommend are the custom meat cutting, the poultry deboning, and the seasoning/marinating of meat. All three are real time-savers and you'll be thankful you asked about them come meal time.

At every Whole Foods you'll find a few things without fail: Delicious smelling soaps, a vast selection of kombucha, and a butcher. That's right, every Whole Foods location employs a butcher on site, and many others also employee apprentice butchers to assist. This means that, rather than being stuck with whatever cuts of meat are laid out in plastic wrap, you can actually order custom cuts of meat.

This free service is especially helpful when it comes to cuts of roast or steak. Say you are cooking a roast for a particularly large or super small party — you don't want to be stuck with a cut that doesn't fit your needs. This is also true if you prefer a more fatty or lean cut of meat. You can ask for cuts based on your preferences, which can come in very handy if you are particular about your meat.

This service is also a great way to discover lesser known cuts of steak, such as a spider cut, oyster blade, or Denver steak. These steaks might be hard to find over the counter at your grocery store's meat section, so having the option to order a specific or custom cut of steak can really help to widen your cooking horizons. Additionally, you can request your cuts to be a specific weight, or with more or less fat content, which means that you can cook according to your own tastes and not your grocer's availability.

Even if you're in the mood for chicken rather than a steak or roast dinner, you can still benefit from the free services offered at Whole Foods' butcher counters. This is because, in addition to custom cuts of beef, the store's butcher counters also offer cutting services for poultry items. You can pick out a chicken from behind the butcher counter and have the butcher break down the chicken into pieces to cook. You can also order specific pieces, such as wings, legs, breasts, or thighs, to be cut from the chicken of your choice. Additionally, you can request that your poultry is deboned, which is particularly helpful for those who want fresh butchered poultry without the usual accompaniment of bones.

This service can also be helpful for home cooks hoping to use more adventurous preparation methods. Spatchcocking, for example, is one particularly handy service offered by the butcher counter. Spatchcocking is the process by which the chicken's backbone is removed and the remaining body is flattened. This technique helps chicken cook more evenly, but it is also intimidating for those who aren't fully comfortable breaking down a chicken. For this reason, the Whole Foods' butcher counter is a great place to help explore new cooking methods (without messing up your entire kitchen counter or using your house scissors where they ought not be used). 

The services offered at Whole Foods' butcher counters go beyond cutting your meat in different ways. We love this next free service because it really helps take your home cooking to the next level: Your local Whole Foods butcher offers marinating and seasoning services for their meats. So, if you find a cut of meat that you find particularly desirable, you're not stuck having to season it yourself when you get home after a long day at work. This service is particularly helpful for home cooks who find themselves to be short on time but still want something tasty on their plate.

Of course, Whole Foods does offer pre-marinated and seasoned cuts of meat and poultry at the counter. However, just be sure to remember that your choices are not limited to what is set out. Rather, you can pick out your own cut and then select the seasoning or marinade to suit your tastes. The folks behind the counter can also assist you in finding the absolute best seasoning for your meat and poultry of choice — why experiment with different combinations when there's an expert who will do it all for you? And did we mention that it's totally free of charge? Next time you're in a Whole Foods, make sure to ask the butcher about these incredibly handy free services.