Food lovers wanting to spoil themselves with a luxury dinner at home this Christmas can have all the hard work done for them by professional chefs. Roast turkey and all the trimmings followed by Christmas pudding with brandy butter make up the Ultimate Christmas Roast Box created by bespoke dining experience Top Floor Development in Carrington.
John Molnar, who also runs the award-winning Cod's Scallops chain of fish and chip shops across Nottinghamshire, came up with the idea after originally making the boxes up for friends. Costing £98 to £195 for the two sizes, bookings are already flying in from people who want to take the stress out of supermarket shopping during the festive season.
Mr Molnar said: "We've already got more booked so far this year than we did last year overall. Everyone who bought one last year has bought one again this year and we've had quite a few new people.
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"It's the only time when whatever is going on in the world goes out of the window. When you see people shopping at Christmas the trollies are groaning and they always buy too much food - there is a lot of waste.
"I started doing it about ten years ago for mates. They'd say 'I can't cook a Christmas dinner' and I'd say 'yes you can' and got it all ready for them and it kind of evolved from there. They were like 'oh my god, this is amazing' because there's no hassle and no worry. You don't have to go to M&S or Asda to buy it. You just turn up, it's in a box and all ready to go, and there's the instructions.
"Put the turkey in the oven, put the veg on and put the gravy in a pan. Everything is made to a chef's standard. It's like going out for a really nice Christmas lunch at nowhere near the cost."
The boxes come with free range turkey breast wrapped in bacon, roast onion, chestnut pork herb butter stuffing, pigs in blankets and duck fat roast potatoes with garlic and herbs. A vegetarian version is also available.
Accompaniments are braised red cabbage, redcurrant, port and caraway seed, then there's parsnip bake with Parmesan and hazelnut granola, along with sprouts, honey and smoked bacon nuggets and Christmas spiced carrots, sage and butter.
Some are cooked in the oven, others like the carrots come vac-packed and can be boiled in the bag. Completing the main course is turkey gravy and a secret recipe “flavour bomb” and homemade cranberry, orange and grenadine chutney sauce.
For afters, there's Welbeck Estate luxury Christmas pudding packed with brandy fruits and Portland Black Ale. Other options, with an extra cost are a starter of gin and tonic cured salmon and to finish, a cheeseboard.
"We do a box for two to three or four to six but we say if there's four of you a box of two to three will feed you because we always ensure there's plenty of leftovers as Boxing Day leftovers are as tasty as the main event. No one has ever said there wasn't enough or we ran out of food. We always try to make sure there's plenty," said Mr Molnar.
The boxes have to be collected from Top Floor Development, above the Cod's Scallops in Mansfield Road, between December 22 and Christmas Eve. Email bookings@topfloordevelopment.co.uk for a booking form.
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