Yesterday I had my first experience at one of the new do-it-yourself-dinner franchises. I chose Dinner My Way in Roseville, California, (at the corner of Douglas and Sierra College). You can read my previous blog about it here. I was intrigued by the whole idea of meals you make and take home and freeze, but also wary about portion sizes, the quality of the food, and whether it made sense financially.
Luckily, all of these worries were unfounded. And the surprise was how much time I saved. But let’s start at the beginning.
As is usual for these types of places, I reserved a time and chose my meals ahead online. The menu, which changes monthly, had a choice of 15 different entrees, plus one dessert. For entrees, prices ranged from $15.00 for a Hippity Hoppity Ham Frittata to $21.00 for Beef and Scallion Roll-ups. I signed up for one of each of those, plus Buffalo Chicken Strips with Bleu Cheese Potatoes ($19.50), Mongolian Prawn with Rice Noodles ($19.50), Mahi with Hoisin Glaze ($20.50) and Chimichangas ($18.00).
When I arrived, I was given my menu and a place to store my purse. Then I was shown to an enormous refrigerator which had numbered plastic bins inside to store each meal when I was done making it. I was handed an apron, a pen, told to wash my hands between each station, or wear plastic gloves, and then set loose to prepare my meals.
There was one tidy station for each entree, with everything you needed chopped and ready to use, along with measuring cups, spoons, bowls etc…The recipe was posted above each station, and you prepared the dish accordingly. You could add and subtract some ingredients and all spices according to your family’s taste, which was a real plus.
I was pleasantly surprised that the portion sizes were generous. Promising four to six servings, I had really expected about three servings considering the ravenous teenagers I feed every day. But I could tell that it would be plenty of food for four, and enough for six if there were plenty of side dishes, as well.
Speaking of side dishes, the one disappointment was that when a dish came with rice or noodles or potatoes, the portions were very skimpy. I almost didn’t take them, because they were just a token. I would have to quadruple what they gave me to feed six. The rice and noodles were portioned into small Ziploc bags and the mashed potatoes were instant. OK, you can’t win them all.
But the quality of the food and the ease of the preparation more than made up for this disappointment. Each dish used quality ingredients, and the cuts of meat were generous. It took me an hour and a half to prepare 8 dinners (I added a pork roast and another Frittata), and the best part was that there was no cleanup. As soon as someone was done at a station, the employees would immediately clean it for the next person.
Of course, the proof is in the pudding, so I put everything else in my freezer and left out a Frittata for our dinner that night. The instructions said to thaw it thoroughly (since I never froze it, I was already there) and then cook it in a preheated 350-degree oven for 40 minutes. It smelled wonderful, but at 40 minutes, it was still liquid in the middle. It took 65 minutes total to cook, so I’m going to be wary of the cooking times on the rest of the entrees.
But it was delicious and fed five teenagers and grown-ups easily, and there was no cleanup besides plates because the pan was disposable.
The verdict? I’m already signed up for May.