Wednesday, November 2, 2011

Appetizers for the Holidays

This is the first post about our appetizer test trial. Yesterday our package from Dean and Deluca arrived. We ordered the Dean and Deluca Comfort Appetizers Package ($56.25 for 48 pieces) which consists of Mashed Potato Toast, Mini Shrimp Newburg Pot Pie, Monte Cristo Sandwich and Welsh Rarebit Tomato Tart.

We ordered this product anonymously, paying for it ourselves since we want this taste test to be completely genuine. Now this package is quite pricey for a football get together, but reasonably priced for a nice holiday get together. Dean and Deluca is well known for having top notch mail order food so I was waiting in anticipation for the package arrival.

First we tried the Mashed Potato Toast. Sarah was not a fan. I was not that impressed thinking it was quit bland and if you are considering cost, this might be one you might want to skip. The Mini Shrimp Newburg Pot Pie, however, was to die for and Sarah Beth and I both loved it. This alone is worth the cost. We had guests over and everyone agreed that this was the best part of the entire package. Too bad these are not sold separately. The Monte Cristo Sandwich was equally tasty and a guest favorite. I thought it was messy since when you bake them the recommended time and temperature the cheese oozes out everywhere. The Welsh Rarebit Tomato Tart was nice but guests commented it was a bit bitter and did not taste fresh.

Overall for the cost, I was not impressed. I think for a company such as Dean and Deluca I expected more. My guests comments were varied, but most agreed over all they would have preferred to have something homemade even if it was not as glamorous. Later this week we will be trying Private Selections Appetizers from Kroger. How will they compare to more expensive and well known brands?

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