Restaurant-quality meals -- no need to tip

Image by Topdog1 via Flickr

I was surprised to see an unusual assortment of Jerry's Meals To Go around noon Friday, when I walked into the Italian specialty food store in Englewood.


I had stopped at Jerry's Gourmet & More around lunchtime a couple of days earlier, just for free food samples, and there were only three of the $6.99, restaurant-quality dinners available: grouper, stuffed flank steak and barbecue chicken. But on Friday, there were three fish entrees in the case: red snapper and tilapia, in addition to grouper.

At home that evening, I made a small organic spring-mix salad, plated the food from the plastic container and heated it up in the microwave. 

My entree was breaded grouper oreganato with side dishes of cavatelli and broccoli, eggplant caponata and grilled eggplant and zucchini.The pasta needed a little grated cheese from my freezer.


My wife and son shared their dinners: entrees of red snapper in a roasted pepper sauce and roast pork with grilled shrimp. Their side dishes were meat lasagna, eggplant rollatini, grilled vegetables, rigatoni pasta salad, cauliflower and stuffed mushrooms with sausage and cheese.

I love these dinners for their sensible portions (a total of 12 ounces), their quality and their low price. You have to go early for the best selection.


After choosing my dinners from among about a dozen or more in the case Friday, I sampled about 10 cheeses and, waiting on the check-out line, a pinot noir wine from Argentina.


Jerry's Gourmet & More, 410 S. Dean St., Englewood; 201-871-7108.