Typically, I make everything from scratch at home. But there are times when my time is stretched to its limits and I resort to a pre-made meal or component to a meal. While we were paying off debt, I sometimes added a restaurant element to a meal made at home like chips from our favorite Mexican restaurant (which I found out were cheaper than buying them in the store when I went to buy them) or rolls from a steakhouse. This week, I’ve been contemplated whether or not pre-made Thanksgiving meals to go purchased at a restaurant or grocery store just might be a more affordable option.
It’s a semi-tricky debate because honestly, it’s hard to calculate the value. For starters, your time is valuable. Some years, you’ll probably have more time to prepare a large holiday meal than others. On the flip side, holiday traditions have great worth, too. Opinions are mixed about whether this year it will be slightly more per person to feast on a traditional meal but the average is about $5 per person (not counting time spent obviously). Which leads some people to choose a pre-made meal either from a grocery store or restaurant. The majority average around $50 and indicate they feed around $10 so the numbers roughly work out. I have to be honest I’m still on the fence, but I did round up where you can get a meal and of course some coupons. Keep in mind most of these will require you to heat them up, so plan your time accordingly.
Whole Foods
Whole Foods is offering a heat and serve Turkey Breast Meal for 4 for $69.99. It includes
- A whole roasted 2.5 – 3 lb. Boneless Turkey Breast
- 1.5 lbs. of Classic Mashed Potatoes
- 1.5 lbs. of Traditional Herb Stuffing
- 16 oz. Serving of Organic Fresh Cranberry Relish
- 24 oz. serving of Organic Turkey Gravy.
If you wanted to make the turkey for your meal, you could choose the $39.99 Holiday Side Dish Package which serves up to 8 people and includes the side dishes above plus green beans.
Target
Target is offering an Archer Farms’ Deluxe Thanksgiving Feast for $69.99 that serves 8-10 people. You can choose from Ham or Turkey and you do need to account for a longer cooking time. You’ll receive
- 12 lb. Homestyle Turkey, ready to cook in the bag,
- 4 lbs. of Mashed Potatoes
- 4 lbs. of Stuffing
- 3 lbs. of Green Bean Casserole
- 16 oz. Cranberry Walnut Relish
- 48 oz. of Turkey Gravy
- 12 Rolls
- Choice of Pie
There is a limited window when you can order and it looks like the Turkey Dinner will still take 5 hours to cook completely. However, the price per amount of food seems a decent value on this package.
Kroger
Kroger had more options than I anticipated, with six different meals including Gluten Free Holiday Meals. There’s a range in price from the Express Turkey Dinner for $44.99 (serves 6) which includes:
- 10-13 lb. Private Selection Oven Roasted
- 24 oz. Mashed Potatoes
- 32 oz. Stuffing
- 32 oz. Green Bean Casserole
- 24 oz. Turkey Gravy
- 12 ct. Dinner Rolls
all of the way up to the Supreme Turkey Dinner at $89.99 (serves 8) which includes:
- 13-16 lb. Private Selection Oven Roasted Turkey
- 2 24 oz. Mashed Potatoes
- 2 32 oz. Stuffing
- 2 32 oz. Green Bean Casserole
- 2 24 oz. Turkey Gravy
- 2 16 oz. Cranberry Celebration
- 2 12 ct. Dinner Rolls
- 10 in. Pumpkin Pie
Meijer
Meijer will offer a A Deluxe Turkey or Ham dinner this year, ringing up at $49.99 and feeding 8-10 people. It includes:
- 10-12 lb. Pre-baked Turkey or 7-9 lb. Spiral Ham
- Home-style Stuffing
- Roasted Turkey Gravy
- Cranberry Walnut Relish
- Mashed Potatoes
- Green Bean Casserole
Note: while feeding more people, this meal does not have dessert or rolls included.
Cracker Barrel
Cracker Barrel offers a meal that feeds up to 6 for $59.99. It includes
- Turkey ‘n Gravy
- Cornbread Dressing
- A small side of of Sugar-Cured Ham
- Cranberry Relish
- Your choice of 3 quart-sized Vegetables or Sides
- A Baker’s Dozen of Biscuits or Corn Muffins, or Loaf of Sourdough Bread.
You can pick up pies for an additional $8.99. We dined in at Cracker Barrel one Thanksgiving and I was a little underwhelmed by the food. Plus the fireplace and all of the people made it 900 degrees. But I digress. I’m sure it’s been lovely every other year.
Bob Evans
Bob Evan’s Farmhouse Feast has a couple of options for food to serve either 4 individuals ($49.99) or 8 individuals ($79.99) with your choice of Ham or Turkey. You can also order pies and al a carte items separately. The entire menu can be found here. As a side note, Bob Evans had the best instructions online for re-heating your meal which included a specific time table which is super handy, I think.
- Slow-Roasted Whole Boneless Turkey Breast or Sliced Hickory Smoked Ham
- Bread & Celery Dressing
- Homestyle Mashed Potatoes
- Buttered Sweet Corn
- Green Beans with Ham
- Cranberry Relish
- Gravy
- Rolls
- Pumpkin Pie with Whipped Topping
- Pumpkin Bread
Boston Market
Boston Market has options for 4-6 people with your choice of ham and turkey as the main course or a 12 person feast. The sticker price looks a little heavy but they have way more items included than some of the other options. You can vary your sides but for $79.99 in the 4-6 category you can get
- Roasted Turkey Breast
- 32 oz. Spinach Artichoke Dip with Crackers
- 32 oz. Side Mashed Potatoes
- 32 oz. Side Fresh Vegetable Stuffing
- 12 oz. Side Cranberry Walnut Relish
- 32 oz. Side Gravy
- 6 Dinner Rolls
- Your choice of pumpkin or apple pie.
The 12 person meal comes in at $104.99 and has the option of a whole ham or turkey and more sides. You can check out all of the options here.
What do you think? Have you utilized pre-made Thanksgiving Meals before? Where did you purchase it? What was your experience?
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[…] cook a full meal yourself. I was a little shocked to see all but one retailer raised their prices from last year. Some were significant ($20 at Target and $40 at Whole Foods) for nearly the same menu, adding only […]