Chains prepare feasts for ThanksgivingChains prepare feasts for Thanksgiving

Bret Thorn

Thanksgiving can be a celebration of traditional family dishes passed down through generations, but chain restaurants are offering a variety of options for those who prefer their holidays without cooking and cleanup.

Concepts across most industry segments are promoting specials for next week's holiday, from quick-service chains to fine-dining concepts.

Popeyes is offering its annual Cajun turkey, a limited-time offer the fried chicken chain runs each year in November and December.

The 9- to 11-pound birds are brined, flash-fried and then roasted, and sold at participating restaurants in the 1,945-restaurant system for around $39.99.

Luby’s, a 128-unit cafeteria chain based in Houston, is offering a full Thanksgiving dinner with trimmings such as corn bread stuffing, giblet gravy, mashed potatoes and green beans, to eat in the restaurant or to serve at home. A full Thanksgiving dinner, including dessert, is $9.99 per person in the restaurant, and it’s offering office catering deals starting at $5.99 per person.

Boston Market has launched both whole turkeys and spiral-sliced hams for Thanksgiving, available at all 630 of its restaurants. They’re available on their own and being sold as banquet packages ranging in price from $39.99 to $53.95 and serving between eight and 12 people.

The chain’s whole turkey banquet, which includes a turkey of about 11 pounds, four pounds each of mashed potatoes and stuffing, a quart of gravy and 12 pieces of cornbread is $44.95.

Boston Market sells the banquets chilled, allowing customers to heat and serve them.

Family-dining chain Cracker Barrel, is serving a feast on Thanksgiving Day that includes turkey breast, cornbread stuffing, and gravy along with baked ham, sweet potato casserole with caramel pecan topping, cranberry relish, biscuits or corn muffins, a choice of vegetable, a slice of pumpkin pecan streusel pie, and a drink for $8.99 for adults and $4.49 for kids.

Customers also can order a dinner for six 48 hours in advance for $49.99.

At the higher end, McCormick & Schmick’s has a $22.95 Thanksgiving Day menu that includes a choice of soup or salad, along with turkey, stuffing, gravy, mashed potatoes apple squash casserole, seasonal vegetables, cranberry sauce and a choice of upside down apple pie or pumpkin pie.

Like Popeyes, Ruth’s Chris Steak House is tapping its Louisiana heritage for Thanksgiving, offering seafood gumbo as an appetizer option, along with steakhouse salad or Caesar salad, on its $34.95-per-person menu. Its roasted turkey breast is served with sausage-and-herb stuffing and cranberry relish. Guests also have a choice of one of four sides: sweet potato casserole, green beans with roasted garlic, creamed spinach or garlic mashed potatoes. Dessert is pumpkin cheesecake and vanilla ice cream.

Turkey in general sells well during the holidays. With that in mind, Energy Kitchen, a 10-unit health-oriented chain based in New York City, launched a turkey meatloaf wrap available all month as a limited-time offer. Like all items on Energy Kitchen's menu, the $5 wrap contains fewer than 500 calories.

Contact Bret Thorn at [email protected].