Holidays

Take a Year Off, Part 2: Where to Get a Decent Takeout Thanksgiving

Ryan Farr's expertly engineered turducken, which for $275 will be ready for your roasting (order by noon on 11/12). That would be a duck and a chicken up inside that turkey.
Ryan Farr’s expertly engineered turducken, which for $275 will be ready for your roasting (order by noon on 11/12). That would be a duck and a chicken up inside that turkey. Photo: Courtesy of 4505 Meats

The holiday season approaches, and so it is with great fanfare that blogs across the foodosphere start rolling out service-y bits to help get you through. At Grub Street, we’re no exception, and last week we gave you a helpful list of places to call for reservations in order to dine out this Thanksgiving. Now, since we’re not feeling all that Martha Stewart-y ourselves this year, we give you a cheat sheet of places to call to order up a Thanksgiving to-go, from an expertly made turducken (and believe us, you’d rather pay someone to make this for you), to a traditional meal all boxed up and ready to go.

1300 on Fillmore - The high-end Southern restaurant is serving a traditional Thanksgiving In a Box, with various a la carte options. See the PDF menu here and call 415.771.7100 to place your order.

4505 Meats - Call up Ryan Farr if you want a ready-made turducken to serve 25 people. That, in case you don’t know any former frat boys or Guy Fieri types who’ve tried this, is a chicken stuffed in a duck stuffed in a turkey. Ordering one from Ryan Farr is the only way we would recommend having this thing, and his version comes with a bed of brussels sprouts, sweet potatoes, and other seasonal root vegetables, as well as a bag of herbs to blanket the bird during the roast and one quart of turducken gravy. It’s $275 but ACT NOW, because they’re stopping taking orders at noon tomorrow, November 12. Pick-up will be on November 24 and 25 in Hayes Valley. Email your order here, with your name, number, desired pickup date, and specify “turducken.”

A.G. Ferrari
- For an Italian Thanksgiving to go, call up A.G. Ferrari toll free at 877.878.2783. See the full menu here, but suffice it to say you’ll want a free range Willie Bird, some of Nonna Ferrari’s stuffing, and a hefty helping of the brasato di patate e porcini – a braised casserole with potatoes and mushrooms.

Berkeley Bowl - Hop across the Bay and find not only a ton of fine produce to play with, but a number of easy to-go options for Thanksgiving. They’re offering roasted whole turkeys as well as prime rib, and ham, each with a complete complement of sides, starting at $110. Orders have to be made by next Friday, November 19. See the menu and download an order form here.

Bi-Rite Market - Bi-Rite is taking orders for BN Ranch heritage turkeys as well as sides, and if you need help deciding what to order they’re doing a tasting tomorrow, November 12, outside the store from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. See the PDF menu here. Call in orders at 415.241.9760 or at info@biritemarket.com.

Gitane - Chef Bridget Batson is doing a simple 3-course meal to go for $45 a head, with a portion of the proceeds going to benefit Project Open Hand. And this is a non-turkey menu, starting with a pumpkin lobster bisque with spiced cream, a stuffed quail with sweet potato purée and brussels sprouts, and finishing with a pumpkin bread pudding with pumpkin seed brittle and “naughty cream.” They’re taking orders until the 22nd at 415.788.6686, with pickup after 3 p.m. on the 24th.


Wente Vineyards Restaurant
- Chef Eric Berg and catering chef Jeff Farlow are offering up a $239 take-away dinner for six. The menu includes a Mary’s free range turkey with apricot-orange blossom honey glaze, roasted red potatoes, buttermilk mashed sweet potatoes, toasted bread stuffing and all the trimmings, as well as both a Petit Syrah port cheesecake and pumpkin tart. Call 925.456.2460.

Whole Foods - It’s always there in a pinch. Order the whole meal, lickety split, right here.


Earlier: Take a Year Off: Where to Still Snag Some Thanksgiving Reservations [Grub Street]

Take a Year Off, Part 2: Where to Get a Decent Takeout Thanksgiving