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Business & Tech

Outsource Your Holiday Dinner: Six Local Markets Offer Ready-Made Meals You Just Heat Up

Looking to ditch out on roasting a turkey this year? Find out what Piedmont area shops are offering home-style cooked meals to go.

Tired of roasting, brining, boiling and baking year after year? Does the idea of cooking for more than 10 people terrify you? Too busy or frazzled to toil in the kitchen on top of other holiday activities? Imagine having an entire holiday meal just appear on your dining room table: golden-brown turkey, stewed cranberries, creamy whipped potatoes, crisp green beans and cinnamony apple pie.

A handful of Piedmont area markets are busy making this scenario a reality. From specialized catering companies like to large groceries like Whole Foods, shoppers have the option to buy either a complete ready-to-serve holiday meal or a la carte sides and entrees to boost their home menu.

Below are six nearby stores offering take-out holiday dinners, with information on menus, prices and ordering:

A.G. Ferrari
A.G. Ferrari does a gourmet spin on the classic holiday dinner: their meat entrée is a smoked honey ham in a bread casing, which serves six to eight people and costs $39.99. This store also offers “side boxes,” which include tortellini with wild mushrooms and ricotta cheese, broccoli rabe, sweet onion tart, butternut squash soup, chutney sauce, focaccia bread and cheesecake with chestnuts, honey and cloves, and a few other items. The side box serves six to eight people and is $79.99. Customers can order just the ham or just the sides and they can also order anything a la carte. Place an order at least 24 hours before pick-up. The last day to order is Dec. 22.

Locations:
Piedmont Avenue:
4001 Piedmont Ave.
Oakland, CA 94611
Phone: (510) 547-7222

Montclair Village:
6119 La Salle Ave.
Oakland, CA 94611
Phone: (510) 339-9716

Store Hours: Monday-Saturday 10 a.m.-8 p.m., Sunday 10 a.m.-6:30 p.m.
Website: http://www.agferrari.com/retail_stores


Ham is obviously Honeybaked Ham’s specialty. This shop offers whole and half cooked hams that range from 7 to 19 pounds and cost from $48 to $55. They also sell roasted or smoked whole and half turkeys, which also cost between $48 and $55. Creamed corn, mashed potatoes, gravy, cranberry salad, yam soufflé and scalloped potatoes are some of the sides they offer. Customers can buy four quart-sized sides for $27. Orders need to be placed 24 hours in advance.

Location:
4364 Piedmont Ave.
Oakland, CA 94611
Phone: (510) 547-8292
Store hours: Monday-Friday 10:30 a.m.– 6 p.m., Saturday 10 a.m.-5 p.m.
Website: http://www.honeybaked.com/

Piedmont Grocery
This grocery store offers a full holiday meal. The meat needs to be ordered separately from the sides. Turkey costs $3 per pound and has a $40 roasting fee; a smaller turkey usually runs between 8 and 10 pounds. Glazed ham is $3.99 per pound and doesn’t have a roasting fee, so a small ham costs around $24. Piedmont Grocery offers a package of sides that includes stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, rolls, yams with marshmallow, green beans, a choice of one of three types of pie and more. The side package feeds eight to 12 people and costs $74.99. Customers can make substitutions or double up on items they prefer. Orders must be placed at least 48 hours in advance.

Location:
4038 Piedmont Ave.
Oakland, CA 94611
Phone: (510) 653-8181
Store hours: Monday - Saturday 9 – 8, Sunday 9 – 7
Website: http://www.piedmontgrocery.com/

Rockridge Market Hall
Market Hall doesn’t offer a full package deal but lets customers pick and choose from their extensive gourmet menu. Entrees include balsamic and red wine braised duck legs for $14.95 per pound and grilled tri tip for $23.95 per pound; each pound serves two to three people. (Market Hall does not sell turkey.) Sides include pan-roasted root vegetables for $13.50 a quart, which feeds four to five people; creamed spinach and chard for $17.75 a quart and is enough for four to six people; and mushroom Dijon gravy for $11.95 a quart, which feeds five to nine people. There are desserts, chutneys and spreads for sale too.

A Hanukkah menu that includes latkes, matzo ball soup, challah and more.

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Pick-up dates are Dec. 22 to Dec. 24.  All orders for pick-up on Dec. 22 must be placed by 2 p.m. on Dec. 21. For Dec. 23 and Dec. 24 pick-ups, orders must be placed by 2 p.m. on Dec 22.

Location:
5655 College Ave.
Oakland, CA 94618
Phone: (510) 250-6001
Store hours: Monday-Friday 9 a.m.–8 p.m., Saturday 9 a.m.– 7 p.m., Sunday 10 a.m.–6 p.m.
Website: www.rockridgemarkethall.com

Village Market
Nearby Village Market offers the full traditional turkey dinner package for $169 for eight to 10 people. Included in the menu are a roasted turkey, two casseroles, mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans, dinner rolls, ambrosia, a choice of dessert and more. Customers can also order any of these items a la carte or add other meats such as ham, salmon, prime rib and filet mignon. Basically, the market will make whatever customers would like and charges between $10 to $20 extra for the cooking. Orders should be placed four days in advance for the full holiday dinner.

Location:
5885 Broadway Terrace
Oakland, CA 94618
Phone: (510) 547-3200
Store Hours: Monday-Saturday 7 a.m.–9 p.m., Sunday 8 a.m.-8 p.m.
Website: www.villagemkt.com

Whole Foods Market
Whole Foods offers several holiday dinner packages. People can buy a $99.99 traditional turkey holiday dinner that serves eight people with a small roasted turkey, stuffing, cranberry, mashed potatoes, gravy, rolls and pumpkin pie; or they can go all out with the $279.99 heirloom turkey holiday dinner that serves 12 people with a bigger turkey and more sides than the traditional package, including sweet potatoes, green beans, cranberry relish and apple pie. There’s also the option of ordering a la carte or picking and choosing your own meal. Orders can be placed up until Dec. 22 at 8 p.m., with the last pick-up sometime before 7 p.m. on Dec. 24.

Location:
230 Bay Place
Oakland, CA 94612
Phone: (510) 834-9800
Store hours: Monday-Sunday 8 a.m.-10 p.m.
Website: http://wholefoodsmarket.com/stores/oakland/

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