Why You Should Give H Mart's Well-Marbled Beef Ribeye A Hard Pass

Since its first store opened in Woodside, New York, in 1982, H Mart has gone on to become the largest Asian grocery chain in the United States, with over 100 locations. While H Mart has inarguably transformed shopping for Asian-Americans, its customer base extends across the whole country. As it has grown, the chain has increasingly gained attention for the variety and quality of its budget-friendly beef. While there is indeed some extremely worthwhile meat to be found in its aisles, it pays to be discerning, as our taste tester discovered when assessing which H Mart steaks were worth buying and which you should skip. A key takeaway was that H Mart's beef ribeye is best avoided. 

Although Tasting Table's tester was keen to avoid the most common errors made when cooking ribeye, the end result "still underperformed badly," leaving the tester resolved not to make the same purchase from H Mart again. The tester's first sign of trouble was "the not-so-great coloring on the beef," which proved to be prophetic. "It tasted cheap in terms of its flavor, but the most egregious flaw was its texture," our tester said.

What truly ruined the steak for our correspondent was the amount of sinew, which are fibrous connective tissue bands that can lead to a tough texture in meat. "I don't generally have a problem with finding some sinew here and there throughout a steak, but it made this ribeye a chore to cut and to chew," the tester said. To add insult to injury, the cost was not exactly budget-friendly at $16.49.

Our tester isn't the only one disappointed by some of H Mart's beef selections. In a thread on the r/steak subreddit, one user responded to a post extolling the virtues of H Mart steak by noting that, "If you need a variety of cuts specifically butchered for hot pot and asian BBQ style cuisine they are good for that. For regular steak cuts, including good USDA prime, finding much better options and pricing elsewhere now." Another commented, "Red and well marbled doesn't always mean good quality." While emphasizing that they liked H Mart, praising its selection of vegetables, noodles, and hard-to-find cuts, the Redditor said they decided to take a chance on the store's ribeye and ribeye cap. "Price was really good. Meat was not good despite passing the look test."

Along with the beef ribeye, our tester also advised that H Mart shoppers skip the flank steak and the chuck roast, the latter of which she described as providing nothing in flavor. However, she did recommend picking up H Mart's wagyu ribeye, wagyu beef eye round, and the New York strip. For those who are new to shopping at the grocery chain and are looking for more than beef, check out our tips on what to buy on your first trip to H Mart, including treats hard to find anywhere else, such as Plz Stir-Fried Baby Octopus, Dongwon Tuna with Hot Pepper Sauce, and Binggrae Coffee-Flavored Milk.