New York Times — 2/20/08
Sooner or later, EVERYONE — business and pleasure travelers, singles, those divorced
or widowed, very-marrieds whose spouses are on the road, harried moms and dads, etc. — faces the challenge of eating
out alone!
THE How-to Booklet of Solo Dining Tips & Strategies:
The Art and Satisfaction of Dining Alone — REVEALED!
Excerpts from: "It's on to Plan B as a Hot Trend Cools Off" — New York
Times — 2/20/08
"But growth in the industry has slowed sharply, long before reaching expectations. Industry revenue, which
two years ago was forecast to reach $1 billion annually by 2010, is now projected around $650 million by then,
said Bert Vermeulen, an industry consultant and founder of the easy meal association.
The industry is selling more preassembled uncooked meals. In 2008, Mr. Vermeulen forecasts, store employees
will assemble more meals than customers will for the first time. In 2004, customers in prebooked sessions assembled
about 90 percent of all meals sold.
She (Missy Carr, proprietor of Thyme Out, Gaithersburg, Md.) was losing out on the 8-12 package deals that most
of her competitors deemed sacrosanct, to she repriced each meal individually."
Here's a thought to consider: Are meal assembly proprietors finally scrutinizing the solo/single diner market???
Please check out: Dinner Studio menu/pricing changes.
Excerpts from: "Personal Chefs Cater to The Time-Starved" — The Boston
Globe — 3/4/07
"Personal chefs like Silver, the proprietor of Sweet and Savory Personal Chef Services in Brookline, are
no longer for just the rich and famous. Busy two-career families like the . . . , people with restricted diets,
single professionals, and seniors who can't cook for themselves are increasingly using the services of personal
chefs , says John Moore, executive director of the United States Personal Chef Association .
He estimates there are 5,000 personal chefs nationwide, serving about 72,000 clients. In the Boston area alone,
there are over 100 personal chefs.
Personal chefs are not to be confused with private chefs, who typically live in a client's home and cook for only
one family, says Moore.
Personal chefs have numerous clients and are known for home-cooked meals that must be cooked in the client's kitchen,
unless they are prepared in a commercially licensed kitchen. Their services can include customized menu planning
and grocery shopping.
The best way to find a personal chef is online through associations such as Personal Chef Network (PersonalChefsNetwork.com), American Personal and Private Chef Association (PersonalChef.com), and the United States Personal Chef Association (USPCA.com) .
Pricing can vary . Some chefs will include groceries in a flat fee; others add groceries to labor charges, which
are usually around $50 an hour.
Similar information to the above:
"Ready to Serve: Busy people look to personal chefs for dinnertime help" — Associated
Press — October 14, 2007
We knew many SoloDining.com visitors would be interested in our story about Dinner Studio,
a meal assembly facility in Vista, California (To read about it, click: Dinner Studio),
but we were unprepared for the extent of your interest in this topic:
(1) Many of you asked for information on other meal assembly facilities located in the United States. To view our
growing list, click: meal assembly resources
(2) Publications like Time Magazine have heightened interest in this phenomenon by spotlighting
franchises like Dinner Done and Dream Dinners.
For more details on the Time Magazine article and those published in: The Boston Globe, Newsweek,
St. Petersburg Times, etc., click: meal assembly mentions
Heard about the "cupcake craze"? For details, click: all-cupcake shop
SoloDining.com is pleased to share the following meal assembly resources:
Let’s Eat! — Tampa, Florida
"What if I have a small family or I am single?
At the time of assembly, simply divide your meal into half portions and put them into separate ziplocs or pans.
We provide half size pans for you to split your meals. "
Simple Suppers To Go: Simple
Suppers makes it a snap! — Wichita, Kansas
"What type of people use Simple Suppers To Go cooking sessions? Dual income families, stay at home moms,
single parents, empty nesters, singles, college students, newlywed and retirees can benefit . . . It is also a
great gift idea for senior citizens, someone that has an illness in their family, and new mothers. "
Entrée Vous: What's for supper?
— Lexington, Kentucky
Mix It Up: Meals made easy — White Bear
Township and Maple Grove, Minnesota
"Each recipe serves four people, but can be modified. The business [Mix It Up] offers special workshops
for single people and seniors interested in making smaller portions."
Social Suppers: Come on in . . . while
enjoying the experience with friends (new and old.) — Kansas City, Missouri
"Use Split-a-Session* and divide your 8 meals into 16 or 12 meals into 24. If you use this option and
bring a friend you can each take home half the smaller portion meals."
DinnerSmith: What's for dinner? DinnerSmith is
your easy answer — Maplewood, New Jersey
Co-owner Mary Meade Smith e-mails:
"I just found your article and wanted to let you know about our services for singles. We allow our customers
to divide the large meals in as many as three or four containers during a regular session. Singles in the metro
area come in with their friends who may or may not have families or partners. Sometimes singles share their package,
each taking half the package. Or they make one meal. We are just outside the city in New Jersey and most of our
customers are commuters to Manhattan. Any single person can beneifit from our services because we are all about
what each customers needs. No family , no problem. Welcome to DinnerSmith."
The Dinner Station: Making Tracks from
Our Kitchen to Your Table — Highland Village/Corinth, Texas
"I found your site from a meal assembly link. I live in the Dallas area. We have a new franchise called
The Dinner Station. The food is great and they offer half size packages. The others [assembly franchises] allow
you to split, but then you have 24 meals or need to find a friend. The Dinner Station allows 8, 12, or 16 three
serving meals. I can cook one, eat one serving, freeze the other two so I get 24 meals for $85. I love it."
Jennifer
Let's Do Dinner: Spend two hours at our
table . . . Enjoy a month at your table — Houston, Texas
" . . . we don't yet offer sessions specifically for singles, but that is something that we are trying
to develop over the next six months. Also, we do allow people to split their meals into portions feeding 2 - 3
people, which would work for some households (I personally love leftovers!)."
Next best thing to a personal chef!
Have you ever imagined what it would be like to have your own personal chef? Ever dreamed
about having dinner waiting for you after a busy day, cooked fresh and delicious with no fuss and no mess?
The fortunate residents of North County San Diego are dreaming no longer! Dinner Studio has arrived in Vista, California (30 miles north of San
Diego).
This is Dinner Studio's current offerings/pricing:
Prices depend on the number of entrees selected and whether three, six or two servings of
the entree are selected. They offer a variety of packages and prices to suit almost any size family and budget.
The more entrees purchased (and the larger size of the entrees), the lower the price. For
smaller families or single customers, they offer a pre-paid “Yes You Can Plan” which provides great savings on
a “per serving” cost.
You purchase the "Yes You Can Plan!" for $250. You can then use that card to purchase
your meals from the current month’s menu for 4.90 per serving, regardless of how many entrees you choose to prepare
on each visit. This can be a huge savings to smaller families that do not get the discount for larger purchases.
Two other options:
(1) Entrees assembled and awaiting you in the Dinner Studio Freezer
(2) Meals prepared for you and made ready for you to pick up!
For more information, click: Dinner
Studio
If you know of a meal assembly facility like "Dinner Studio" in your area
(especially one that caters to singles/solos!), please let us know.
Planning a trip? Visit our sister website. Click here: SoloTravelPortal.com
If you have questions or comments about this Web page or site, e-mail: webmaster@SoloDining.com.
© 2008 SoloDining.com
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