Restaurants and Grocery Stores Make Holiday Meals Easy

By Sheila Julson

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Whether you entertain at home or take the family out to dinner for Thanksgiving, holiday celebrations will look different this year as the ongoing pandemic drives us toward smaller, socially distanced gatherings. Some restaurants may not offer their usual Thanksgiving buffets or cannot accommodate large groups while safely adhering to social distancing measures. But you can still support your favorite restaurants during the holidays (and save lots of time in the kitchen!) by getting main dishes and sides to-go. Local grocery stores also offer heat-andserve Thanksgiving meals and holiday menus. Below are just a few of the restaurants and grocers throughout Milwaukee that will offer ready-made turkeys, hams, sides and desserts separately or as whole

RESTAURANTS

ALIOTO’S RESTAURANT

3041 N. Mayfair Road | aliotos.net Alioto’s will offer dine-in or carryout Turkey Day dinners from noon to 4 p.m. Entrées include roasted turkey, tenderloin tips and seafood choices with sides and dessert. Everything that is available on the dine-in menu will be available for carryout. Customers must call ahead and prepay before picking up their orders.

CAPITAL GRILLE

310 W. Wisconsin Ave. | thecapitalgrille.com

Capital Grille will offer Thanksgiving meals as a dine-in option only. The full dinner menu will be available all day, along with a special Thanksgiving menu.

EMERALD CITY CATERING & EVENTS

3555 S. 13th St. | emeraldcitycatering.com THE NUTCRACKER8 SE AT ERmeal packages. Servings, prices and order Emerald City’s heat-and-eat holiday NOV 28 SATURDAY 5:30 PM VIRTUAL PERFOMANCE238 SE C 2 RO W NCE 2 deadlines vary; some establishments didn’t have menus and ordering details finalized by press time. Contact your favorite restaumeals feature roast turkey breast, with side choices such as homemade stuffing, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes with turkey gravy, whole-kennel sweet corn, rant or grocer for additional information. green bean casserole, cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie and cherry chocolate brownies. Meats and sides are also available separately per pound. All meals are heatand-eat; no hot pickups available.

Illustration by Melissa Johnston

HONEYPIE

2643 S. Kinnickinnic Ave. | honeypiecafe.com Let the pie professionals at Honeypie handle dessert for the holidays, with varieties like classic pumpkin, or unique flavors like salted caramel dream or brownie cheesecake.

OLD TOWN SERBIAN GOURMET RESTAURANT

522 W. Lincoln Ave. | oldtownserbian.com Old Town’s full menu, along with chef’s Thanksgiving specials, will be available for preorder, with pickup on Wednesday, Nov. 25, from 11:30 a.m. until 8 p.m., and on Thanksgiving Day from 11:30 a.m. until 3 p.m. Customers can dine-in on Thanksgiving Day from 3-8 p.m. Roasted turkey dinners come with stuffing and gravy, cranberry sauce, sweet potato, sautéed green beans and buttered mashed potato. Also included is a serving of the popular Serbian appetizer kajmak, an unaged cheese, and ajvar, the roasted red pepper condiment kajmak is usually served with. Options start at $19 for a single entrée; $60 for four people; and $130 for eight. Diners can also find braised goose shank, pumpkin strudel or grand mariner cranberry schaum torte.

PACKING HOUSE

900 E. Layton Ave. packinghousemke.com This famed supper club near General Mitchell International Airport is doing turkey dinners for dine-in and to-go on Thanksgiving. Menus and pricing were not available at press time.

SABROSA CAFÉ & GALLEY

3216 S. Howell Ave. sabrosa.cafe Sabrosa will offer a Curbside Thanksgiving Feast with roasted turkey, classic sage and cranberry stuffing, ham and cheese buttermilk biscuit, roasted autumn vegetables, garlic mashed potatoes and sweet potato pie with marshmallows. Meals are $20 per plate and can be reserved by calling Chef Frankie at (773) 485-9975 by Nov. 25. In addition to meals, customers can order desserts and a bottle of Prosecco. Meals can be picked up at Sabrosa on Thanksgiving Day. In addition, Sabrosa is taking orders for their Holiday Tamale Sale. The preorder deadline is December 12. The tamales are $18 for a half-dozen and $30 per dozen. Tamales can be picked up the following weekend, December 19 and 20.

WARD’S HOUSE OF PRIME

540 E. Mason St. wardshouseofprime.com Ward’s will offer Thanksgiving meals to go including a turkey dinner for one with mash potatoes, stuffing, corn, gravy and cranberry sauce ($19.99) or a whole turkey ($125) plus rib dinners in many sizes, desserts and additional sides.

GO MEATLESS THIS THANKSGIVING

Is turkey not your thing? Sit down to a takeout meatless meal from the following vegan restaurants.

CELESTA

1978 N. Farwell Ave. celesta.restaurant Celesta will offer a Harvest Pack fourcourse meal for pickup. Order details will be available online closer to Thanksgiving Day. They also plan to offer Christmas to-go meals.

TWISTED PLANTS

4905 S. Packard Ave., Cudahy twistedplants.com Twisted Plants will offer a Thanksgiving meal pack that feeds eight including herb dressing, mixed greens, baked man and cheese, candied yams, choice of pie, garlic mash potatoes and more. Available only by preordering for $175.

GROCERY STORES

BEANS & BARLEY

1901 E. North Ave. | beansandbarley.com Beans & Barley was in the process of updating their Thanksgiving menu at press time, but they will again offer heat and serve takeout dinners. Orders must be placed by 1 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 21. On December 1, they will start taking orders for Christmas cookies. They are also working on their Holiday Menu.

BUNZEL’S OLD FASHIONED MEAT MARKET & CATERING

9015 W. Burleigh St. | bunzels.com Bunzels will offer heat-and-serve homemade turkey dinners with mashed potatoes and gravy, sweet potatoes, green bean casserole, stuffing, cranberry relish, dinner rolls and pumpkin pie. Meals are available in small (serves 4-5; $89.99), medium (serves 6-10; $165.99) and large (serves 12-16; $195.99). Meals must be ordered by Monday, Nov. 23, for pick-up the day before Thanksgiving; Bunzel’s will be closed on Thanksgiving Day.

FESTIVAL FOODS

multiple locations | festfoods.com De Pere, Wis.-based Festival Foods has 32 stores in Wisconsin, including one at 5600 S. 108th St., Hales Corners, as well as a new location to open in West Allis. Heat-and-serve holiday dinners will be available from the deli department. Choose from four dinner options: turkey, ham, prime rib or lasagna. Dinners come with side dishes and the option to add desserts like pumpkin, apple, pecan or French silk pie. Dinners are available in small, medium and large sizes. Stop at the Festival Foods deli for more information.

METCALFE’S

6700 W. State St., Wauwatosa shopmetcalfes.com Complete dinners include a fully cooked Butterball turkey, sides such as Hungarian sausage stuffing, French onion green bean casserole, mashed potatoes and an Elegant Farmer apple pie for dessert. Other sides such as Brussel sprouts with bacon or Metcalfe’s kale and apple salad can be added or exchanged. Gluten-free and vegetarian side options are available. Orders must be placed by Nov. 21 for pickup on Nov. 25; Metcalfe’s is closed Thanksgiving Day.

OUTPOST NATURAL FOODS

Multiple locations | outpost.coop The co-op will again offer fully cooked turkeys and family turkey dinner packages, along with myriad side dishes with vegan and wheat-free options. There’s a berry yam bake, green bean mushroom bake, their popular vegan leek stuffing and classic desserts like apple double-crust pie, vegan or wheat-free pumpkin pie and a new wheat-free apple crumble pie. Orders must be placed by Nov. 21 and paid for at the time of order. Customers can pick up whole dinners and sides Nov. 23-25. All stores are closed on Thanksgiving Day.

KROGER PICK ’N SAVE AND METRO MARKETS

picknsave.com or metromarket.net Locations throughout the greater Milwaukee area will again offer heat-and-serve holiday turkey or ham dinners with traditional side

Sheila Julson writes about cannabis and food for the Shepherd Express.