Are you trying to plan a big family meal but don't want to actually do the cooking? By ordering a take out turkey dinner for a holiday or other family celebration you can have the best of both worlds. There are several places in Toronto where you can buy prepared meals for Thanksgiving, Christmas or other celebrations, and in Mississauga you can even get a full turkey dinner year-round.
Order in Advance
Unfortunately this can't be a last-minute fix when the grocery store runs out of turkeys on Christmas Eve Day. Different places have different cutoff days for ordering, but always assume you'll need to place your order a bare minimum of 48 working-day hours in advance.
Somebody Still Needs to Pick it Up
Remember that while this option is easier in many ways, someone will still need to be sent out on a holiday errand - possibly one that will involve standing in line for awhile.
Consider Doing a Little Cooking on the Side
If you're worried that ordering dinner will mean your family celebration is missing that special something, consider preparing additional vegetables or a dessert that's been a traditional family favorite.
Take Out Turkey Dinners Available Year-Round
Stage West Dinner Theatre
Mississauga
StageWest.com
Stage West has a turkey dinner available year round that you pick up hot and ready to serve and includes a nicely roasted 12-15 pound bird plus mashed potatoes, stuffing, gravy, corn, carrots, cranberry sauce and a dessert. That's the basic meal - which they say will feed 8-10 people and costs around $150 - but you can also add a ham, a second turkey, or more of any of the sides. Order online or by phone, and consider the gift certificate option as a unique gift.
Review Note: This is the one my family has used in the past with great results. The food isn't as fancy as many of the gourmet-inspired menus the other places offer, but that also means you're generally spending less money and have less chance of upsetting picky eaters.
Prepared Holiday Meals Available for Christmas 2008
Whole Foods Market
Yorkville
WholeFoodsMarket.com/stores/toronto
The Whole Foods Market's "Bring Home the Holidays" menu has a whole slew of festive meal options for you to choose from suitable for Christmas, Hanukkah or New Year's Eve. Build your own meal or order one of the dinner packages; choose to cook it yourself or pick one of the options you can reheat and serve. Whole Foods has a variety of vegetarian items as well and even offers a Vegan Holiday Dinner. Give yourself plenty of time to peruse the online menu and get your Christmas or Hanukkah order in by December 21st.
Summerhill Market
Rosedale
SummerhillMarket.com
Located near Mt. Pleasant Road and St. Clair Avenue, the Summerhill Market regularly sells quality groceries, prepared foods and also does catering. For Christmas they offer sliced free-range turkey dinners for you to warm up at home that come with apple sage dressing, gravy, buttermilk mashed potatoes, orange cranberry sauce, maple roasted butternut squash and french green beans. You need to order at least 48 hours in advance as usual and dinners are $24.99 per person. If you need more food, Summerhill also has uncooked whole free-range turkeys and cooked hams for you to heat at home available as part of their regular product line.
Three's Company Catering
Pape and Danforth
Threes-Company.com
Three's Company offers a dinner for 6 to 8 people that includes a turkey breast and dark meat, wild rice, two kinds of dressing, maple glazed carrots, roasted garlic mashed potatoes, gravy, cranberry pepper chutney and a choice of dessert for $165. There are a number of add-on choices ranging from salmon or striploin to mixed green salad. You'll need to heat up the Three's Company meal at home.
Fairmont Royal York Hotel
Across from Union Station
Fairmont.com/ryh/turkeytogo
Turkey dinner from the Fairmont Royal York can be ordered as a complete meal or you can just get the turkey, stuffing and gravy. In both versions you can choose between meals suited for 4, 8 or 12 people. This means there's a big price range too - from $119 for four people sans veggies up to $360 for the full fixings suited for 12. As a feel-good bonus, the Royal York donates one turkey to the Daily Bread Food Bank for every take out turkey they sell. Orders for 2008 will be taken until 5pm on Monday December 22nd.
