Life has been a bit chaotic recently, but rather than go through a drive thru and end up with yet another meal on a bun and a cheap toy for my son, I thought I'd do something proactive about family dinners. On a rainy Friday night I dragged my pal, Amy along with me to Dinner A'Fare in Farragut.

Frankly I would have preferred a night tucked up on the sofa, but instead I spent 1 1/2 hours throwing together six dinners. And you know what? It was fun.

For starters I had no trouble picking at least six entrees from the 15 choices available. You can choose from full or half sized servings, twelve entrees or share an order of six entrees each with a friend.

All of the instructions are printed out and easy to follow. All of the ingredients are super fresh, well refrigerated and the prep process is incredibly hygienic. What was surprising was the quality of the meats, no excess fat and all a healthy color.

Most of the meals are rolled in zip loc bags that take up little room in the freezer with the cooking directions displayed clearly on the outside of each parcel. All of the shopping and chopping has been done for you and best of all you don't have to think about what you'll make for dinner that night. You do need to put your own side dishes together (you can buy theirs already made or make and add the suggestions from their menu).

Now for the taste test, we had the Apple and Brie Chicken Wellington and it was excellent, we enjoyed the maple mustard pork chops, the beef tangine was good (but not our favorite) and the Marinated Carnitas Soft Tacos were really quite good. And I'm a pretty picky eater.

The portion sides were reasonable, you can leave out any of the ingredients you don't like and tweak the recipes a little while you're putting your meals together too.

Gather a group of friends and book a party of nine or more, bring along a bottle of wine and they'll throw in some light hors'd'oeuvres - instant party.

View the menu and book a time slot to come in and make up your meals online at http://www.dinnerafare.com/. Prices start at $145 for six dinners that serve 4-6 people, $145 for twelve dinners that serve 3 people and $230 for twelve dinners that serve 4-6 people.

The Dinner A'Fare - 11635 Parkside Drive, Knoxville TN, 37934, Tel: 865-671-0670

Posted by alijames on April 21, 2007 at 08:55 AM
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