Sheila emailed with this question:
I was curious on people’s thoughts of Royal Crest products. The milk is obviously more expensive than buying it at a store, especially if it’s on sale, but they say the quality is better.
Is it a noticeable difference, worth the price and delivery?
So, Springs Bargains readers, what do you think? Is Royal Crest worth the price? What are the advantages to their home delivery service, and what are the negatives? (By the way, you can view some of the prices here.)
$1.99 for Pantry Essentials (gallon) at Safeway
We use Royal Crest in our coffee bar in Black Forest. I can definitively say that their milk is creamier, smoother, and sweeter than any other milk out there. Is it worth the price? Absolutely. For you non-fat drinkers, Royal Crest’s nonfat has about the same consistency as Sinton’s 2%. all the milk comes from a dairy outside of Longmont and it’s RGbH free as well. Yeah, you’re paying more, but you can’t beat it. Trust me, I’ve checked many, many milk providers!
Tip: try it for yourself before setting up home delivery. Farm Crest Milks are the same milks, just branded for retail sale!
Ooh, I didn’t realize that Farm Crest was the same – thanks for the tip, Ryan!
We actually signed up with Royal Crest when milk prices were rising in the stores. But now that they have become more stable in grocery stores, it just doesn’t make sense. We still have our account with them but rarely order. And honestly, their prices on everything else, cheese, creamer, etc. are higher as well. If you like the covenience of delivery to your door then I’d say do it. You do get charged $3 for that delivery though so keep that in mind. I’d say since we are trying to be frugal that it’s cheaper to go to the strore when they have milk on sale. :)
Re Milk we’ve tried it all and find that milk in convenience stores is the worst—-sours quickly—–so my next move is to get a cow.!!!…it’ll be a family pet plus an endless pure dairy products !!
The milk is definitely better.
We love Royal Crest. I will only buy my milk and eggs from them. I can definately taste the difference and I am not a big fan of milk. So, it is the only kind I will drink! Recently we did drink some of that free milk we got from King Soopers with the cereal deal and I poured my 8yr old some out of a freshly opened bottle and he said, “Gross! What is wrong with this milk? It tastes bad!” It was just him tasting the difference between Royal Crest and Colorado Proud Milk. I also love the convenience of it because if there is a blizzard and I don’t want to go out, I can still order from them.
We tried it a couple of years back, and I can definitely say that their milk tastes better. I think it’s worth the price because of the taste; however, it seems like most of their other products other than milk were Meadow Gold or something like that, which you could buy in a store for less.
I was, and still am, a bit skeptical about their “all natural” claims. Yes, they are rBGH free, but so is most of the other milk sold in the grocery store. The sales rep that presented to us said it was “just like organic”, which is awfully vague, IMO. If, by “just like organic” they mean rGBH-free, it’s not worth paying more for on that basis alone; but if they have high standards as to the food their cows eat and don’t treat them with antibiotics, that might mean something.
If they really are “just like organic”, I think a big advantage is that their milk isn’t ultra-pastuerized like most of the organic milk on the shelves today. (It’s heated to the point of basically killing everything living in it – you can’t make cultured milk products like yogurt from ultra-pasturized milk.)
If I was going to “upgrade” our milk, I think we would do Royal Crest over organic because of the pastuerization issue, and taste. But, like Stacey said, there is a $3 delivery fee, which was not communicated to us when we signed up a couple of years ago and was ultimately why we canceled after only a few weeks. The cost of milk isn’t that bad, but that $3 delivery fee adds up if you are only getting a couple of half gallons a week.
Now I’m wanting to try their milk again and remember exactly what it tastes like! :) I remember that their chocolate milk was especially good. ;)
I understand the concern of the three dollar service fee, However when you think about it they will come to your house 4 to 5 times a month for three dollars its pretty cheap. Less than a gallon of gas.
I think that they used to sell the meadow gold brand a couple years ago but in the past couple years everything that I buy from them has been their own Royal Crest brand. We prefer their sour cream so we buy that a lot and I use their cottage cheese in my crockpot lasagna. Those are both their own brand. I also just bought some half and half and it is their brand as well. I have a price list so if you have specific questions about that I would be happy to help!
Ah, ok – good to know! I feel like we tried a few different products and some of them weren’t Royal Crest. Good to know most things are now!
A lot of the “larger sizes” (quarts+) of the extra items (half and half, heavy whipping cream, etc) are usually not Royal Crest brands, but usually the small sizes are. I’m working with my sales rep to change that.
And Carrie, I do agree that Royal Crest needs to be more forthcoming with their claims of “All Natural” and the like. Something else to bug my sales guy with!
We just started with Royal Crest 2 months ago. I think that their prices compared to organic milk plus $3/ month delivery fee are well worth it considering that now I’m able to stretch my shopping trips from once a week to once every two weeks! I hadn’t really been expecting this much of a difference, but I literally go to the store half as often which means I’m not spending as nearly much. I’m also being more creative about meal planning and using my pantry items.
We tried it a few years ago. After I did some research and found out that Farm Crest is the same, I switched. But, I stopped buying from Farm Crest a while ago because the closest location is still too far out of the way.
Now that I’m spending more by buying Horizon milk anyway, I’m thinking we’ll try Royal Crest again. I’m about to have baby #4 and not having to make an extra trip to the store for milk would probably be worth it.
Carrie, it would be nice if they would run a special for your readers! ;)
We have been using Royal Crest for a 2-3 years. We love the taste and convenience, but honestly that’s not why we buy it. When my daughter was 2 years old, she started to develop WAY too early. We went to an ped. endocrinologist and couldn’t determine why it was happening. But, on a whim, I decided to change our milk and only give her Royal Crest; and not only did she stop developing, but they actually got smaller. So their claims to being “all natural” are vague, I agree, but for our family it has been a noticeable difference.
That’s really interesting, Laura. I was noticing preteens developing earlier and started to think about the hormones we’re eating. That’s why we switched, too. I’m curious: did you switch to hormone-free meats, too?
I was wondering if you eliminated soy from her diet as well? There is debate on whether or not soy causes early development and infertility in boys and girls, but with girls developing so much earlier than we did, I believe it is because of what we are putting into our bodies. Soy is in almost everything prepackaged in the stores! I did a lot of research on soy because my 2 year old boy is lactose intolerant. We chose goats milk over soy and he did great!
No, Kendra, we didn’t switch to hormone free meat, but we do get a lot of our meat from my parents who raise their own cows – so some of our meat actually IS hormone free.
No, Erin, we didn’t eliminate soy from her diet either. She’s adopted and the hospital had started her on soy formula and we just stayed with it. But it had been at least a year since she’d been on formula. It’s possible that the soy is what caused her to develop, but simply eliminating soy didn’t do the trick for us, for some reason. Switching milk did. Weird, huh?
There is a lot about Royal Crest Dairy that I like and makes it worth the extra money to me. First the quality of the product is just plain better. It’s fresher and tastier and creamier.
Next I think it’s better than organic. I used to buy Horizon organic milk but after understanding better about how a major organic company like Horizon really makes their products I was totally turned off. As others have pointed out their products are rGBH free, which was a major reason I was buying organic in the first place. Royal Crest is a local company and that enables them to deliver a fresher product unlike most organic milk that has been in transit or on the shelf for some time. Also because the milk doesn’t have to travel such long distances they don’t have to ultra pasteurize it which is great!
I also enjoy supporting a local business. I like that the milk containers get reused each week thereby lessening the impact to the environment. But I have to admit that one of my favorite things about Royal Crest is that it comes to my door. I never have to run out to the store for a gallon of milk. In a family that drinks 3 gallons a week it is great that I know there is always milk in the house and I don’t have to make as many trips to the store.
I am just curious about where you found the info on Horizon? I buy their half and half and sour cream (b/c it’s organic) but I have read some things lately that concern me about them (the use of GMOs) . I would love to be able to learn more.
We tried them for a while back in 2008 because our (then) 2 year old had such aweful body odor. We thought it might be hormones in the milk we were drinking. We thought Royal Crest milk was ok, and the prices were reasonable for a new customer because we got coupons with our bill and coupons from the delivery guy. We stopped after about 4 months since the baby’s stink didn’t, and we knew we’d eventually have to pay full price. I don’t drink milk, and hubbie wasn’t that impressed with the taste difference. So we’re drinking cheap milk again.
I consider myself a milk connoisseur….love, love, love milk! Used to get Royal Crest delivered for years because it’s so much better tasting than grocery store milk. It IS more expensive, and when cutting back on my budget, I discontinued my service, but I think fairly regularly about getting it back as my splurge! When I can, I definitely will.
We had it for a few years a while ago. The taste is wonderful but we just couldn’t afford the difference anymore.
I have been with Royal Crest delivery for several years and love it!! The milk does taste better. But I will admit that I plan some of my errands around running to the Farm Crest store to pick up milk and skip the delivery to save on the cost.
I’ve tried their milk and it was good. I don’t think that it is a good value though.
I LOVE the milk they sell at Costco. I bet it is just as good if not better than Royal Crest.
I just stopped my service this month after about 2 years (I’m getting ready to move). Before RC, I always bought Sintons, and sometimes I thought there was a taste difference and sometimes I didn’t. The first gallon of store milk I bought (at Whole Foods) was VERY disappointing. I’ve kind of gotten used to it as the week has gone on, but that first glass was not very good tasting to me.
I always got a gallon of milk, a qt of OJ and the 6 pack of yogurt. A lot of the reason we kept the service was for the yogurt. Yes, it’s loaded with sugar, but it is thick and creamy, and so much better than Yoplait in my opinion.
Our guy came before I went to bed, so I’d meet him on the porch and get my stuff, but I always wondered how cold the milk would stay overnight in that wood box.
I did Royal Crest years ago when my girls were little. To me, it is BY FAR life’s greatest luxury to have your milk delivered to your doorstep – particularly if you have little ones. Weather bad? No need to head to the store. Kids sick? No need to leave the house.
I just signed up a month ago and have been impressed by the quality of their products. The best deal for milk is the 1.5% gallon milk for $3.50. Although it is more pricey that what you can purchase in the store, it makes awesome homemade Greek yogurt and cheese. Also, I swear it tastes just like whole milk! They also have monthly sales on various items. I purchased 40oz of peppermint cookie dough for $3. It is certainly worth trying out, especially since they will give you a free 1/2 gallon milk just for having them come out to your home.
I have a Royal Crest budget. I love the purity and flavor of the milk, but it is way more expensive. So, my monthly budget for milk is for 1/2 gallon each week from Royal Crest, and above that we use grocery store milk.
We’ve been using Royal Crest for over 4 years. I was told that it is not labeled organic because it’s a very difficult process to get the cows certified, etc.. but that Royal Crest’s milk has tested even better than some organic brands. That’s what I was told, and I hope that it’s true. Here is what they say about it on their website: “In independent test comparisons of Royal Crest All Natural Milk and two organic milk products, all three products tested negative for pesticides and antibiotics. As a matter of fact, Royal Crest All Natural Milk equaled or exceeded organic milk products in these independent laboratory tests.”
Again, these are INDEPENDENT tests, so I think we should take them with a grain of salt. I wish they were certified organic, because we are just having to take their word for it. That being said, we do enjoy the delivery of the milk. I think it’s worth the $3 to have the 2 gallons at my door every Fri. morning, so that I’m not having to lug it home from the store, nor am I having to worry about it in a hot car. This was especially true when our boys were babies. In all the years that we’ve used Royal Crest we have had the same delivery man and he has never ONCE made a mistake with our order. He is amazing! He has even delivered on Christmas Eve & New Years Eve & holidays – major blizzards or not, our order is perfect! That, to me, is worth the $3! They have wonderful customer service!
One thing that I do worry about is the plastic containers. I wish the milk would come in glass, because I worry about the chemicals in the plastic. It is nice to have reusable containers, and I know the plastic is “environmentally friendly” but it is plastic, non the less. Here is what Royal Crest says about their containers on the website: “Royal Crest Milk is packaged in reusable/recyclable, environmentally friendly plastic containers. The “no-drip lip” milk bottle is eight times lighter than glass and can be re-used an average of 100 times before being recycled.”
I remember talking to a Farm Crest employee about their milk. I was told that the reason it couldn’t be certified organic is because they can’t test every piece of grain/hay the cows eat. There might be some feed that has pesticides in it & therefore they can’t get the “certified” label. That said, all their cows are artificial hormone & antibiotic free.
We can’t stretch our budget to pay over $5/gallon for skim milk. Most of the time, I buy from the dairy markdown section … using 4-5 gallons a week adds up and we have plenty time to drink milk from the markdown section. Often Horizon’s milk is marked down to $2.49/gallon.
I had the RC guy come by and give me some free milk to try. I had to sign up but was able to cancel with no problem. We drink only skim milk and their skim is well over $5/gallon. We all tasted what he gave us (can’t remember if it was 1 or 2%) and honestly could not tell a difference in taste. We did side-by-side with Colorado Proud. It is definitely not worth the extra cost to me. We drink a lot of milk and my kids take Tae Kwon Do practically next door to King Soopers so I’m up there anyway. The convenience is not worth it to us either. If you drink a lot of milk, once a week delivery is not enough because I can’t fit 4 gallons of milk in the fridge at one time! He suggested buying some RC and some store milk each week, but if they tout the health benefits then that defeats the purpose! There was also some rule about having to order something else other than milk each week which I didn’t like. It is a luxury like Schwans. Wish I could do it but I just can’t spend money that way. Maybe when I’m a millionaire!
I had the guy come by our house months ago and offered us a half gallon for free, because we were in a hurry for my sons football practice. We go through 3 gallons at least each week so the half gallon lasted a little more than a day. The next evening I put the bottle on porch next to the door because we were leaving to go somewhere. We came home and the bottle was gone I assumed the guy came back. There was a flyer on the door. We thought the milk was okay, but with as much as we use I can’t see it being worth the price. Over five dollars a gallon is too much to pay. The guy kept coming back to our door about everyday after that trying to get us to signup. We said no to the guy, but he kept coming by. I thouught about getting a no solicitation sign for our door. The milk is good but no for the price difference.
Sorry this is off topic, but regarding getting a “No solicitation” sign for your door. When we moved into our current house, the previous owners already had a sign posted by the front door. We left it up, but you know what?? Nobody pays any attention to it!!!! I made the mistake of answering the door once because I thought it was the UPS guy delivering a package I needed to sign for. But it was some guy selling something. My daughter was screaming her head off upstairs and I told him he’d need to come back as I couldn’t talk at the moment. He said he was on a tight schedule and wouldn’t be able to come back and started to continue on with his spieal. Uh, hello, screaming child upstairs, did he really think I was gonna sit there and listen to his spiel???
Until dairy had to be canceled from my diet (and my son’s intake is very restricted), we got 1 gallon and a dozen eggs a week. WELL worth it. The eggs were about the same, but the milk was wonderful AND this limited my unplanned my store runs for milk/eggs, which in turn prevented my $6 trip from turnning into $25 buying things that weren’t on the list!
You can add things randomly to be delivered too. I would have dips come if i knew my office was having a party, cookie dough for my son’s class parties (also good for “I just want 2 hot warm fresh cookies and dont have time to make a batch!”).
The yogurt and cheese wasnt worth it. The yogurt doesn’t have cultures and the cheese is pricey for the quality (and the cottage cheese has lots of additives).
I miss milk on my porch every Monday morning. Darn diets.
I tried them twice over the past 15 years and the milk went bad on me. Don’t know why because the store milk doesn’t go back that quickly. Not a good experience.
we live on the AFA where we have it delivered (so nice). Definitel agree that the milk tastes better, in fact I can now get my picky 4 year old to drink milk and my husband chugs the chocolate. The milk tastes creamier and has just a better overall milk flavor (and I’m not even a big milk drinker). We also like the cookie dough (which is not available in the summer).
We had Royal Crest delivery two different times and loved the convenience and the milk. However, in our effors to save money we stopped. A while back I noticed the bottles of “Farmers All Natural” at Sunflower Market were quite similar to Royal Crest. I did a little internet research and found that trademark is owned by Royal Crest Dairy. So I am assuming it’s the same milk :) You do have to place a deposit per bottle but the milk is cheaper than the delivery. I am already going for the weekly specials so I just have to remember my bottle for exchange.
We used to have Royal Crest delivery and loved it! We only stopped the delivery, because we moved and are close to a Farm Crest dairy. They are one in the same. So my milk man is now my husband, he stops there after work and picks up milk for us. I am a milk snob and will only drink milk from the dairy. The price to me is well worth it. I save enough on my groceries, that I can afford to splurge on good milk.
I have had the service for a few weeks and really love it. I used to buy Organic whole milk for my daughter, but hated that it was ultra-pastuerized. You don’t get the Vitamin A when it’s cooked so high. Also, it creeps me out that Organic milk takes forever to expire! That’s just not natural. Now I get her the Whole milk or Royal Rich (whole milk +) and she loves it just as much. I think it’s really tasty but I notice the biggest flavor difference in their skim milk, MUCH better than grocery store skim. I would know, I drink a gallon a week all by myself! They have the BEST chocolate milk too! I love the convenience because it keeps me out of the store. If you are on a tight budget I would say it’s not worth it, but if you are switching from Organic it’s about the same price or cheaper. It’s only 3$ a month for delivery. Personally, I love it!
We started getting RC milk about a year ago – our daughter has always had problems with lactose and the lactaid milk was so expensive. We now get the 1.5% and she can drink it with now intestinal problems whatsoever. We also love the taste and yes, it is more expensive than the store brands, but I don’t go to the store as often and when the weather is bad, it sure is nice having it delivered. For a treat we get a gallon of whole and when we’re feeling especially naughty, we treat ourselves to a 1/2 gallon of “royal rich” – tastes like you’re drinking half-n-half. :)
I grew up on Royal Crest milk the entire time I lived in Denver and we’ve had it ever since we moved to the Springs as well (10 years) – I love it and would never consider switching to grocery store milk. We are not a huge milk drinking family, so the impact on our budget is not monumental. Their dips are fantastic and you simply CANNOT beat their egg nog around the holidays. Plus I really love supporting a local company that has such a long history in Colorado.
I’m thinking with all this wonderful feedback that RC can tap into for free, they should participate in a reader give away of some sort:)
I love Royal Crest milk and we used to have it delivered, until I found out that you can buy it at Sunflower Market! It is labeled “Farmer’s all Natural.” Sunflower Market carries it in regular milk cartons and the hard recyclable kind that is delivered to your door by Royal Crest. If you by the milk in the recyclable containers, you pay a deposit fee and it is refunded when you bring the bottle back. The milk is about $3.00 a gallon at Sunflower Market, but sometimes it goes on sale or you can find the almost expired milk for $1.99!!! My children love Royal Crest milk and we will never go back to regular milk!
Royal crest is absolutely worth the price. The quality of havinf fresh mile, right from moo to you is worth the bucks. I was raised on milk delivery and tried buying from the store for a while but the products were quite inferior to milk delivered products. Royal Crest???? YES!!!!
I have three girls-10-8 & 8 and we go through a lot of milk. I just started back up with Royal Crest after cancelling because of the cost.
Why did I start back up?
1. Because we were buying milk at the store I was stopping at the store more than 3 times a week. Believe me when you go to the store for milk, you don’t just buy milk.
2. Because I’m concerned about the hormones in the milk from the store I feel that Royal Crest milk is safer. Everytime I bought milk from the store I felt like I wasn’t doing my job as a mom and providing the best possible product for my family.
3. Because they are a local company, I am supporting a Colorado company.
4. Re-use of the milk containers satisfies my concern over the amount of milk containers I was tossing out. Sure I was recycling them but re-use of a container is great.
5. Did I mention they deliver! I’m a busy mom and sending the kids to get the milk from the front step is wonderful.
I’d like to buy it too and tried it once and really liked it BUT I’m just too cheap! I think it’s way too expensive. I’m just not convinced it’s that much better than milk from the grocery store. I did try their cheese too and it was SO GOOD–OMG! If I win the lottery I’ll buy from RC!
Interesting comments all. A sales guy came by with a free half gallon and I signed up to try it out. He was extremely insulting, frankly, and I had to overlook alot during his sales pitch – called me “the little lady” more than once and made comments about how “you women love your coupons and shoes!” :( puke. I’m not married and own this house so I was about to tell him to shove it but tried the service instead.
Here’s my biggest complaint – it’s summer, and it’s been a brutal summer at that. This wooden box is sitting on my front porch. Sun hits it in the morning. It’s over 74 even middle of the night. Sales guy said the delivery would be around “6 am” and I figured I’d get it at 7am. Well the guy came last week at 2:00 am (dogs barked and woke me up).
There was supposed to be this “Huge Snowball of Ice” that “fills the box” – it was a HANDFUL. I know because he’d just left. That covered a gallon of milk, half gal OJ, half gal choc milk, butter. He left eggs sitting outside the box (where the sun would be hitting) :(
I called and complained and they apologized and said next time the guy would leave a LOT more ice and come later.
So he was just here – at 1:00 am !! I ran out to check and found two small handfuls of ice not even solid ice, like snow – that would melt so fast – on top of my milk and juice. :( The order form was also pushed down into the ice, it was already soaking wet and nearly unuseable after just minutes of being in there.
Normally I would not be up for SIX MORE HOURS. How in the world can dairy products sit OUTSIDE in the SUMMER for SIX HOURS and still be okay????
I’m cancelling tomorrow. The products are pretty good but they are expensive and nothing I can’t get from a store. If I had to put up with this big risk of things going bad and sitting outside like this I would expect the products to be much LESS than a store.
Milk sitting in the sun for hours. :( yuk
I worked for this company for many years so I think I can answer a few questions.
#1. Yes the milk is rgbh free and also antibiotic free. It is not certified organic as the feed for the cows must be certified organic as well. There is a distinction, but it is negligible.
#2. The milk sitting in your milk box overnight does not have a huge effect on its shelf life. If you refrigerate your milk during the week properly, your milk will last well beyond the printed expiration date. What will spoil your milk faster than heat is UV (like sunshine.) This explains part of the delivering in the middle of the night philosophy.
#3. Royal Crest only produces their own milk and juices. The other products they offer are produced by other companies with the Royal Crest label on the package….sour cream, cottage cheese, dips…all produced by other companies. If you read the label on the back of the products you will see who produces that item.
#4. Royal Crest does not only produce milk for home delivery or for the Farm Crest stores. Many of your higher end grocery stores will carry their milk with that store’s label on it. Royal Crest also produces Farmers milk which is also carried in higher end grocery chains in Colorado. Look on the back label of your milk and if you read “RFD” or Royal Farm Dairy…you have Royal Crest milk. Royal Crest milk in throw away or recyclable containers can be distinguished by a white container instead of the clear container many other dairies use.
#5. The taste of the milk is different since you are not drinking ultra pasteurized milk. Other dairies will pastuerize at “ultra high temp” to extend shelf life. This ruins the flavor while allowing the dairy to put a longer expiration date on it. Royal Crest endeavors to have their home delivery milk in the customer’s home within 2 days of leaving the cow. You cannot buy milk that fresh at the store.
Is it worth the money? It depends on your priorities. Is a Cadillac worth the money? Probably…but not everyone can afford a Cadillac. Royal Crest does not pay their employees very well (read that as below industry standards) and most of the employees cannot afford to purchase the milk. Most of the employees I worked with were forced to buy their milk at the Grocery stores. If you can afford it…I say go for it. If not…buy the same milk at the grocery store for $2 cheaper per gallon.
In terms of concerns over milk sitting “overnight” for hours… we’ve been getting RC for 2 yrs now, and that’s never been an issue. Our porch is south-facing, so it’s always in the sun. We get enough milk for both a cooler & a wooden box, and there’s always still ice on it when I get up. They have a guarantee that if something is wrong with your milk, even if YOU left it out all day, that they will replace it for free. Over the course of a couple years, we’ve had a gallon or two of milk (we get 6 a week) with an off flavor. They replace that for free.
Now that we’ve had it, it is really hard to go back to normal grocery store milk. :) That taste just can’t be beat. When we have friends & family visit, they say the same thing. We’ve converted a few friends in CS to RCD as well. Love their customer service. Love their product. Haven’t done much beyond the milk–most other products are similar to store products (a lot produced by Meadow Gold), and I like my dairy to be as simple as possible (as in, as few ingredients as possible–their sour cream, whipping cream is not).
Super kudos to RC drivers!! I don’t know how they deliver through the winter w/ icy roads and crazy conditions. But my milk is always there. Bummer that they aren’t paid better. They sure are appreciated!!
I had Royal Crest deliver our milk for years when our boys were still at home. It is more expensive, but it saved running to the store every few days for milk and ending up spending more money on other impulse items. I think expense wise you actually come out ahead, and it really does taste better!
I was weary of the reuse milk containers at first… but I have friends who have been with thesee guys easily over 15 years and still going…I’ve been with royal crest for about a couple years. We stopped cause I don’t think they participate in the w.I.c. program…its a bummer. There might not be a. Taste differance and if there is I don’t think ild beable to tell…allthough the store milk seems more watered down…that’s my thought.
How much is their milk anyway? I tried looking on their website, and they have no prices listed now on their goods. Are they trying to hide something…
the cost of the milk varies by what % you get. I get 1 1/2% because it is the cheapest and near the 1% we were drinking anyway. I believe that we pay about $3.50 a gallon plus a $4.00 a month delivery fee. The other percentages are priced over $4.00 a gallon. RC gives you a half gallon for free if you would like to try it. You are also allowed to cancel your contract with them whenever you like without penalty.
@Tracey we found they don’t hide nothing but we did like them but you have to order so much every week you can’t skip out. When we did it you had to order a certain total or a certain number of items. I had to many eggs and ks and sw are just as close. So for me with milk 1.79 at KS not worth.
we have had them deliver for several years and we have never had to order a certain amount of anything… as a matter of fact, we often skip weeks if we have plenty of everything or if I hit some good sales elsewhere. Right now our standard delivery is just 3 creamers every week.
We tried Royal Crest milk a few years back. I can’t taste any difference myself but we figured we would get a better product for the kids. Turns out that the milk they delivered only lasted 2 or 3 days before it began to sour. They guaranteed it would last at least a week. Milk bought at the store lasts easily a week if not longer.
Bottom line: We dropped Royal Crest because of the high cost and low product shelf life and went back to fat free milk at Walmart at half the cost.
I have been a customer for over 10 years. I love their 1% milk, lowfat cottage cheese, and organic eggs. My adult kids love the milk too so I usually add an extra couple of 1/2 gallons onto my order.
It’s very easy to rack up a big bill so I avoid all the other stuff. Just the basics.
I like the idea of supporting the local economy. The milk costs a little more but I am getting used to paying more for quality products. I just buy less of other things.
As far as the products, their milk is better than most stuff you can buy at the grocery store, but I would rather get unpasteurized milk from a local farm. Their chocolate milk is to die for, as well as their egg nog. It is nice that they reuse their bottles, but I do not care for plastic and wish they used glass.
We’ve been Royal Crest customers for 3 years now and I am canceling our service today because our milk man slams down the milk box lid almost every time he makes a delivery. Delivery time fluctuates between 3:30 and 5:30 am. When he does slam the lid our dogs bark. It’s frustrating being woken up at 3:30 am on a Monday morning. It doesn’t take much effort to place the lid down lightly. I know I should have called up customer service to complain a while ago, but I am very busy and it always slips my mind, and I am fed up at this point. There products are good but not worth it for me to keep service. To be fair we were never huge milk drinkers, we just wanted to support a local company and enjoyed some sense of community by doing so. It was nice to have a delivery service, besides the lid slams.
Personally I cant really tell a difference. My son had a friend spend the night, he drank the milk and said, “Wow, this is the best milk I ever tasted! What kind is it?” he said he drank a lot of milk and he could definitely tell the difference.
We found it overpriced. Not a good value for our family.
We have recently re tried them and I love the “New” system there is not minimum order requirement like before. Yes there is milk on sale at ks or sw a lot so the price is a bit more but there are days when it is nice. Like when you realize at 10pm on Monday night there is no milk for breakfast you can put out a request for a gallon of milk or just write skip. It is nice.
That’s good to know! The minimum order was a big deal-killer for us. We haven’t been eating much cereal at all lately, and can barely get through a gallon a week, so I’m still not sure it would be a good deal for us, though.
We love their milk. My husband is a big milk drinker and I am not so much but even though RC is costlier than store milk, it is so much better. I buy their butter, cheese, eggs, sour cream and all are fresh. The delivery saves me from extra trips to the grocer AND when in the grocer, I tend to buy other things I may not truly need. So, RC saves me from spending on impulse items. The only drawback we see, is that sometimes we have forgotten about our delivery and the milk spoils, so then it is VERY costly.
Love, Love, Love! RC is the cheaper of the two dairies I had a choice to deliver to my home. I get the 1.5 % and it is as good as whole in the grocery store. It tastes WAY better though. I don’t drink milk but my family does. I can’t even smell milk without thinking it is sour. RC always smells fresh and sweet, never bad. I’ve never had it spoil and I just had to up our delivery to 2 gallons one week and 1 the next week. Half gallons are almost as much as full ones so it works better for us. It’s only a little more than the store but it really is better. It’s like Christmas every week at my house. I also get the half and half and eggs regularly. The rest is only when needed. They bill once a month and you can change, cancel, or add an extra delivery. It really is better. With all the coupons I use on other stuff and local farmers markets, this is a good choice.
OBSOLUTELY, THE 1 1/2% MILK IS BETTER THAN WHOLE MILK PURCHASED AT THE STORE – NOT TO MENTION CONVIENANCY!!!
I started delivery 2 weeks ago. I must be near the end of the route because the driver has come by just before 5 each time. My kids have said the 2% milk is the best they ever tasted. I love the cottage cheese and the chocolate milk. I have changed my order in the computer a few times and the deliver has been spot on so far. I love the convenience of not having to run to the store (where I will inevitably buy more than I need)… so far, so good!!
I have had R.C. products, on and off, since my childhood. The quality of the dairy products is better most of the time. Things like the milk taste richer BUT…..the problem is this: IT SOURS TOO SOON!!!! Even with home delivery, I have gotten milk that soured the next day! Rarely does it last as long as King Sooper’s milk, i.e. 1 1/2 to 2 weeks. And it is very expensive.
HOWEVER, in defense of Royal Crest, they do make an egg nog that is the recipe of the gods. The EGG NOG id truly AMBROSIA!!!! I live for the holiday season when the best egg nog in the world becomes avaliable again. Between Halloween and New Years’ me and my son indulge in 8 to 12 gallons depending on how much we can afford. Sure it will stop your clock, stuff your arteries, and make you fat, (if your so inclined) but what a way to go!! It is DELICIOUS. You can also make pancakes with it too, Mmmmmmmm, yum, yum, yum
It is worth the price. When we run out of Royal Crest Dairy milk on occasion, we buy 2% at the store to get even half the taste we get from our usual order of 1% milk from Royal Crest.
We have been loyal customers since 2006, and our growing teenage son can instantly tell if the milk is Royal Crest or not.
And I agree with Korn, there Egg Nog is ambrosia – we prefer Egg Nog Lite, and it is not because of the calories. We just like the flavor better.
In any case, there is a difference with Royal Crest.