Merrick Purrfect Bistro (Wet) Review

The Merrick Purrfect Bistro product range is made up of 12 recipes which all receive the Cat Food Advisor rating, 4.5-stars.

Merrick uses high-quality protein and freshly-caught fish in its products and the recipes are grain free and contain added taurine.

The table below shows each recipe in this range including our rating and the AAFCO nutrient profile: Growth (Kitten), Maintenance (adult), All Life Stages, Supplemental or Unspecified.

Recipe and Label Analysis

Merrick Purrfect Bistro Grain-Free Beef Pate was selected to represent the other products in the line for a detailed recipe and nutrient analysis.

Label and nutrient data below are calculated using dry matter basis.

Ingredients Analysis

The first ingredient is deboned beef. Beef is defined as “the clean flesh derived from slaughtered cattle” and includes skeletal muscle or the muscle tissues of the tongue, diaphragm, heart or esophagus.¹

Beef is naturally rich in all 11 essential amino acids required by a cat to sustain life.

The second ingredient is chicken liver. This is an organ meat sourced from a named animal and thus considered a beneficial component.

The third ingredient is beef broth. Beef broths are of only modest nutritional value. Yet because they add both flavor and moisture to a cat food, they are a common component in many wet products.

The fourth ingredient is chicken. Chicken is considered “the clean combination of flesh and skin… derived from the parts or whole carcasses of chicken”. ²

Just like beef, chicken is also naturally rich in the 11 essential amino acids required by a cat to sustain life.

The fifth ingredient is natural flavor. Natural flavors doesn’t give us much information about the particular ingredients included in this cat food for flavoring purposes. 

We’re pleased that the flavorings used are natural, but more details are required to give any further information about these natural flavoring ingredients. Flavorings are used to make the foods more appealing and tasty for our cats.

The sixth ingredient is dried cranberries. a nutrient-rich fruit that’s also that is also high in fiber.

The seventh ingredient is guar gum, a gelling or thickening agent found in many wet pet foods. Refined from dehusked guar beans, guar gum can add a notable amount of dietary fiber to any product.

The eighth ingredient is minerals which are included in this ingredients list, as in Europe ingredients are declared a little differently. In the U.S. our nutritional additives are listed within our ingredients list.  In Europe, ingredients and additives are listed separately.  For that reason the category of minerals includes those elements which are classed as an ingredient, rather than an additive, such as calcium carbonate and magnesium oxide.  These elements contribute to the nutritional balance of a food, so we see their inclusion in this product as a positive.

From here the list goes on to include a number of other items. But to be realistic, ingredients located this far down the list (other than nutritional supplements) are not likely to affect the overall rating of the product.

We view the presence of taurine in this recipe as a positive addition.

However, it’s unfortunate the company chose to include menadione in its recipe. Without this controversial ingredient, we may have been compelled to award this line a higher rating.

That said, menadione phobics may wish to ignore our rating and look elsewhere for another product.

Nutrient Analysis

Based on its ingredients alone, Merrick Purrfect Bistro Grain-Free Beef Pate recipe looks like an above-average wet product.

The dashboard displays a dry matter protein reading of 40.9%, a fat level of 13.6% and an estimated carbohydrate level of 37.5%, alongside a fat-to-protein ratio of 33%.

As a group, the brand features an average protein content of 43.4% and a mean fat level of 19.1%. Together these figures suggest a carbohydrate content of 29.5% for the overall product line, alongside a fat-to-protein ratio of 44%.

This means the Merrick Purrfect Bistro wet product line contains above-average protein, below-average carbs and above-average fat when compared to typical wet cat food.

Has Merrick Purrfect Bistro Wet cat food been recalled in the past?

Yes, Merrick has had two recalls, these were limited to its treats. You can read the full details on the Dog Food Advisor but in summary:

In January 2010, the company issued a voluntary recall out of fear that its beef treats were contaminated with salmonella. No animals were reported sick as a result of eating the treats, but Merrick issued subsequent recalls for the same reason several times that year and into 2011.

In 2018, it recalled a wide range of treats due to elevated levels of a naturally-occurring beef thyroid hormone. This wasn’t a life-threatening issue, but one dog became ill as a result of eating the treats (that animal later made a full recovery).

You can view a complete list of all cat food recalls since 2021 here.

To stay on top of any cat food product recalls, sign up for our free email alerts, here.

About

Merrick was founded in 1988 in Garth Merrick’s family kitchen in Hereford, Texas. Garth began home cooking for his beloved dog, Gracie, to make sure she was eating the most nutritious and wholesome food possible. 

Nestle Purina Petcare purchased Merrick in July 2015.