Lyn Dowling
| For FLORIDA TODAY
There’s no place like home for the holidays, though you may not want to cook there.
Luckily for you, many Brevard restaurants do offer takeout tailored to the season with the flavor of what those eateries are about.
Remember that restaurants that do takeout specials for the holidays want you to order in advance, and time is wasting.
A half dozen of the best places to get takeout this Christmas follow: Cheers to the season!
Barbecue
Nothing says “Florida holidays” like barbecue and nothing says barbecue like Cryderman’s, which again will offer Christmas dinner packages.
A smoked turkey breast dinner will cost $225 and smoked prime rib roast, $275, and they include quarts of twice-loaded baked potato casserole; roasted garlic, onion and bacon Brussels sprouts; smoked parmesan zucchini and corn; and Southern sweet potato bake; plus smoked Reese’s peanut butter pie and a dozen Martin’s dinner rolls.
Each dinner will feed six to eight people.
A la carte items, such as prime rib roast ($50), whole or half brisket ($190 or $100), whole or half Cheshire pork butt ($110 or $60); smoked turkey breast ($90); and peanut butter pie ($30) also are available.
Orders will be taken through Dec. 17 and pick-up is Dec. 24.
Cryderman’s Barbecue is located at 401 Florida Ave., Cocoa. Call 321-877-0796 or go to www.crydermansbarbecue.com.
Breakfast
One of the area’s most popular breakfast and lunch restaurants, Mulberry Lane Café, will offer “brunch boxes” to make Christmas morning easier, and they include scrambled eggs, bacon and sausage, fresh fruit, biscuits and gravy and crunchy challah French toast with pastry cream and berry sauce.
Each box will feed up to six people. Cost is $85 and pickup is at 8:30 a.m. Christmas day.
Mulberry Lane is located at 3440 N. Harbor City Blvd., Melbourne. Call 321-426-7149 or go to www.facebook.com/mulberrylanecafe.
For the family
Charlie & Jake’s may have “Bar-B-Q” attached to its name, but it also is a family restaurant with or without smoked foods.
This year, an eight-portion turkey dinner will cost $169, will include a 16-to-18-pound bird, mashed potatoes, stuffing, green beans, cranberry sauce and pumpkin pie. Quarts of sides and premium sides will be available too, and they include sweet potato casserole or green bean casserole ($45), burnt end mac and cheese or pulled pork mac and cheese ($65). Smoked turkeys will be $75 each, smoked ham is $90 and smoked prime rib is $259 or $349. A pumpkin pie will cost $25.
Orders may be placed up to 48 hours in advance and the restaurant will open at 7 a.m. Christmas for pickup.
Charlie & Jake’s is located at 490 Eau Gallie Blvd., Indian Harbour Beach. Call 321-777-7675 or go to www.charlieandjakes.com.
A little bit of soul
Loyd Have Mercy offers the whole, homestyle menu with three holiday packages, the first of which includes a choice of turkey or ham; corn, carrot souffle, candied yam, green beans, mashed potatoes or mac and cheese; a dozen rolls or cornbread muffins; cornbread dressing, cranberry sauce and gravy.
That package, which will feed four to six people, will cost $130. A similar meal for eight to 12 people will cost $178 and a third, $295.
A roast or smoked turkey will cost $59.49 and spiral-sliced ham, $71.15. Last day to order is Dec. 20 and the last day to pick up is Dec. 24.
Loyd Have Mercy is located at 3434 S Washington Ave, Titusville. Call 321-233-0107 or go to www.loydhavemercy.com.
Middle Eastern feast
Christmas is as big a deal in some Middle Eastern countries as it is here, and people there do celebrate well, which is why northern Lebanese specialists Marlene and Toni Elkhouri of Cedar’s Café in Melbourne are doing brisket and lamb shank kits for those inclined to join them from afar.
The lamb kit includes lamb shanks in red wine sauce, Brussels sprouts with fig jam, walnuts, and yogurt; sweet potato and kale bake; and nut-spiced basmati. But wait: There’s more. It’s all gluten-free, and vegan/vegetarian options are available.
Costs start at $150, depending on how much you want, and pickup will take place as late as 1 p.m. Dec. 24.
Cedar’s Café is located at 4100 N. Wickham Road, Melbourne. Call 321-751-0000 or go to www.cedarscafe.com.
A touch of class
Urban Prime, Chef Ercan Enkinci’s combination market, wine store and full-service restaurant, has touches that go a beyond the usual to-go dinners, though it does have its hearty, all-American yule aspect for takeout too.
The latter would include prime rib ($27.99 per pound), crab-stuffed shrimp ($18.99 per pound and brown sugar-glazed spiral ham ($9.99 per pound), and the vegetables that have something of the continental about them: roasted potatoes ($5.99 per pound), Boursin pommes puree ($8.99 per pound), fire-roasted vegetables ($6.99 per pound), Waldorf salad ($9.99 per pound) and green bean almondine ($8.99 per pound).
Desserts include a variety of cakes ($24.99), mini cannoli ($38.99 or $62.99), Yule logs ($37.99 or $54.99), a variety of seasonal cheesecakes ($29.99) and Italian-style cookies ($38.99 or $62.99).
Pick them up in the store Dec. 23 and 24.
Urban Prime is located at 2434 Metfield Dr., Viera. Call 321-499.1188 or go to www.urbanprimefoods.comShare your thoughts about cuisine, holiday or other, with nearly 74,000 other food lovers on Florida Today’s Facebook page, www.facebook.com/groups/321FlavorWhereBrevardEats