You may have seen me mention that last week we ordered a Family Dinner plan from Foster’s Market here in Durham, NC. Since so many of you were curious as to how it went, I thought a review was in order!
Just note: Foster’s is located in Durham, NC, so the awesomeness of the service may make you jealous. I’m sure there may be something similar in your town. OR you could move to Durham!
A quick “how it works”: You pay $100, and get 5 entrees for 2 adults (+toddler), plus a salad, bread and dessert, which is enough to last through those 5 meals. You can add extra servings, side dishes or kids meals for additional charge. Pick up the food on Monday, and you have meals to eat as you please!
Why do the dinners? Well, personally, I was feeling stretched thin. Too many things going on, and something had to give. We’d been toying with doing these dinners for years, but we decided to bite the bullet and just try it out. This would have also been fantastic when I was working full time and traveling a ton. My husband wouldn’t starve, and I wouldn’t feel pressured to pre-cook meals for him before I left town. OR this would have been awesome postpartum, at the time when I was literally a zombie, sitting on the sofa, cradling a wailing newborn.
So what did we think?
First off, the menu options were delicious (see below)! It was a step up from our usual weekly fair. We also appreciated that they had a full vegetarian menu we could order, instead of picking and choosing, or getting double meals of one dish.
The quantity of food varied. The portions were meant to feed two adults. But, basically, it was whatever fit in a small foil pan. Our first meal was roasted acorn squash. Two halves fit in the pan, so that’s what we had. Another night was a pilaf. PLENTY fit in to that pan. We definitely had leftovers for the next day!
I toyed with the idea of ordering a second side dish, for convenience. But I opted to instead spend some time roasting a large Costco-sized bag of brussel sprouts and asparagus one afternoon. Then when dinner rolled around and we needed another vegetable, I was able to quickly reheat the veg with minimal effort.
We were also impressed by the dessert! Foster’s packed 10 large chocolate chip cookies, two for each night. They were so good! It was a nice treat compared to our usual dessert-less evenings.
Overall, it was a great treat! Husband and I decided we would definitely do it again, and may do it once a month. I felt if I planned my grocery shopping in anticipation of that Family Dinner week, the cost of the dinners plus groceries for additional meals (breakfast and lunch) would be no worse than a usual grocery shopping/menu planning week. However, if I was needing to feed a family of 4 adults, the $200 price tag seems a bit steep. Seems that I could feed a family of 4 (non-toddlers) for around that cost for all meals.
This may also be my golden go-to “you just had a baby!” gift for friends. I know receiving meals was the perfect gift postpartum.
Curious as to what the menu was?
Dinner 1 – Stuffed Acorn Squash with Rice
(Forgot to take a picture that night! We were too excited!)
Dinner 2 – Stuffed Shells with Spinach, Ricotta and Marinara
Dinner 3 – Mixed Grain and Vegetable Pilaf
Dinner 4 – Spinach and Tomato Mac & Cheese
Dinner 5 – Swiss Chard, Tomato and White Bean Stew
Extras: Greek Salad with Feta Vinaigrette, Focaccia bread and Chocolate Chip Cookies
If you’re local to Durham, or see a place near you that does this, give it a whirl! See if it would work for your family!
*Note: I was not compensated in any way for this review. We purchased this Family Dinner with our own money. I was just that desperate for someone else to cook.
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This would be a great post-baby/surgery/major life change gift!
Exactly! It will be my new go-to gift!
I’m so glad it it was a good experience for you! I love that it gives you the ability to have healthy meals at home without much of the effort. And also, I love your dinner plates!
Me too! And me too!! 🙂 I inherited my love of dishes from my mother!
Yum!! Those stuffed shells and chocolate chip cookies looked amazing. I’m sure it was fun to have someone else do the cooking for a week. I love the idea and think it would be an amazing thing to gift someone.
Oh for sure! Someone else to do the cooking and dirty up THEIR pans 🙂 A vacation 🙂
Wish we had something like that around here!
It was such a nice treat!
Katie – These meals look fabulous, convenient, and healthy. How are the meals when it comes to calories?
Really the calorie issue is in the English Muffin. There are so many types – whole grain, low fat. Many choices! And you don’t need much topping. So pretty reasonable!
Wow, I’m amazed how gourmet these look! It’s great to have someone else cook for you for a change!
This is amazing and affordable! Wish we had something like this in our area!
So cool! I wish we had one of those. Your photography is great. The food looks much more appetizing after you plated it than in those pans! 🙂
Hahaha for sure!! Food on a plate is always prettier 😉 But my husband took those pictures and he’s becoming quite the photographer!
How cool is this! I would do this for sure postpartum!
I know! I’d love to receive it as a gift!