Ostrich meat

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Unfortunately, the fad had a serious scam side to it

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The whole dam thing was a pyramid. $1,000.00 for a single egg.

You know, they say ostrich has less fat, but you eat more of it.

Fun fact:

If you’ve ever had a “turkey leg” at Disney world, you’ve eaten ostrich.

I had it as an entree served like hamburger steak at Ralph and Kacoo's in the French Quarter in the early 90s.

Yes, it was similar to beef in taste and texture. Nothing really special about it.

LSU had some in a pasture that was located in the corner of Highland and Parker. It’s a big parking lot now. Some point in the late 80s drunk frat boy decided to wrestle one. Ostrich freaked out and broke its neck in the fence.

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Had it cooked MR at a braai restaurant in Joberg. Tasty stuff.

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I only ate beef in Joberg, because I'm a man of principle. ETA: Yes, I know the South Africans grill more chicken per capita than anywhere in the world.

However, your point about it being lean is fact. Cook it like you would bison, a wee bit rarer than you think you are comfortable with.

It wasn't anything to write home about, and I never bought ostrich again. Not worth the trouble.

Now, if you could make an ostrich the Thanksgiving bird, I would love pics.

I had it once at City Cafe in Plaquemine, of all places. It was a lunch special one day in the late 80's or early 90's. If I remember correctly small thin cut cutlets were seared and then served with gravy/sauce.

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I knew a guy that took an egg in lieu of payment for a whole day’s work. We never let him forget it.

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People who bought in perpetuated the storyline that ostrich/emu was going to be a legit protein (not the words used at that time) to compete with beef, but with a healthier nutritional profile....and it will absolutely catch on and find it's place on every menu.

That did not happen.

Also, the emu oil was going to make its way into cosmetics and topical pharmaceuticals, and there would be another huge demand there just waiting to explode.

The market only minimally responded to that, and in the end, there never really was much of a real demand for ostrich/emu products. To be fair, there are some products still out there touting superior transdermal delivery of certain compounds (I hesitate to say "medicine") into the body, due to whatever is unique about emu oil.