Beef prices are on the rise\u2014and so is the cost of steak on your plate.<\/p>\n
The price of beef is up 14.7 percent in 2025 compared to 2024, while overall food costs have increased by just 3.1 percent year over year, according to data from the Consumer Price Index. That ballooning figure has caused U.S. restaurants to increase the price of steak on their menus, The New York Times reported<\/a>.<\/p>\n The price of USDA choice boneless steak, for example, has gone up by 20 percent this year, with the price per pound sitting at $14.13, the Bureau of labor Statistics reported. Most fine-dining restaurants have not received many complaints about burdening costs, according to the NYT, though that doesn\u2019t stop them from worrying about feedback.<\/p>\n \u201cWe had to raise prices or we weren\u2019t going to be able to cover costs,\u201d Tommy Hall, owner of Halls Chophouse, a high-end steakhouse<\/a> chain dotted across South Carolina and Tennessee, told the publication. \u201cEvery time we do a price increase, I have butterflies in my stomach wondering how customers will take it.\u201d Hall\u2019s restaurants recently increased the price of its eight-ounce filet mignon to $61, while a rib-eye went from $82 to $85.<\/p>\n At the family-owned Jess & Jim\u2019s Steakhouse in Kansas City, Mo., they\u2019ve been reluctant to raise prices but have had to of late and manager Debbie Van Noy has noticed a few customers changing their ordering habits. \u201cNow, they\u2019re sometimes getting the chicken or the pork chops,\u201d she said told The Times. \u201cThey\u2019re limiting their steak purchases a little bit.\u201d<\/p>\n One of the biggest contributors to those rising costs is a lack of cattle. The U.S. is dealing with its lowest cattle inventory since 1951, with severe droughts affecting supply, according to CNBC<\/a>. Americans\u2019 craving for beef hasn\u2019t waned, either, with customers expected to enjoy an average of 58.5 pounds of beef in 2025, the U.S. Department of Agriculture predicted in August. That high demand, in addition to rising costs overall for farmers, creates a perfect price-increasing storm.<\/p>\n Recently, President Trump assembled a group of his top advisors to figure out ways to combat the soaring beef prices, The Wall Street Journal reported<\/a>. This task force formed on the heels of the announcement of the government\u2019s $12 billion aid package to farmers, which is expected to land in February. A VP of the National Farmers Union said that the payout \u201cis just a lifeline, not a long-term solution,\u201d according to Reuters<\/a>, with government officials saying that the package is meant to be a stopgap until the effects of Trump\u2019s spending bill passed this July come to fruition.<\/p>\n More from Robb Report<\/p>\n Best of Robb Report<\/p>\n Sign up for RobbReports’s Newsletter<\/a>. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook<\/a>, Twitter<\/a>, and Instagram<\/a>.<\/p>\n