With school vacation comes big appetites, and if your house is anything like most, the kids suddenly seem hungry all day long.
It can feel like they’re snacking their way through your entire grocery haul before you’ve even put it away.
It’s hard to keep up with their growing appetites when they’re ready to eat you out of house and home, making grocery trips feel endless and deciding what to cook feel daunting.
Between keeping them entertained and keeping them fed, what’s supposed to be a fun week can quickly turn stressful.
Luckily, here on the SouthCoast, plenty of local spots are stepping up with family-style meals that are easy, affordable, and built to feed a crowd.
So, skip the dishes and check out these tasty options around the Greater New Bedford and Fall River area:
Fireside Classic American Grille is making dinner easy with their take-out family meals.
Choice of a quart of soup or house or Caesar salad, freshly baked bread with honey butter, and most meals come with two sides.The Game Day Package with 3 Italian flat breads, 1 lb. of chicken tenders with choice of sauce, 1 jumbo pretzel with beer mustard and cheese sauce ($49). The Italian Package with 6 pieces of chicken parmesan, penne or linguine, 20 meatballs with marinara and parmesan cheese, 6 pieces of garlic bread ($90).Buttermilk Fried Chicken with 6 pieces of buttermilk fried chicken, two choices of sides, buttermilk biscuits, chicken gravy, cranberry sauce ($80). Baked Stuffed Shrimp: 24 pieces of our famous seafood stuffed shrimp topped with lemon butter crumbs and served with lemon and drawn butter ($90). New England Haddock with 6 pieces of fresh haddock topped with lemon butter crumbs and served with lemon ($80). Stir Fry with Fireside rice, stir-fried vegetables, teriyaki sauce, choice of chicken ($70) or shrimp ($80), scallions, sesame seeds.Steak Tips with 24 pieces of steak tips grilled to your liking, topped with sautéed onions, peppers, and mushrooms ($120).Cedar Plank Salmon: 6 pieces of marinated salmon served with basil pesto and grilled lemon ($90).Prime Rib with five 10 oz. cuts of our famous slow-roasted prime rib, 5 popovers, au jus, and horseradish cream sauce ($140).
Each week, Aliança Platter House offers a $40 family meal deal featuring a rotating main and two sides, perfect for serving five to six people. Available Tuesday through Thursday for takeout, these meals showcase authentic Portuguese favorites crafted into a delicious entrée with complementary sides. To ensure your order, it’s best to call ahead and pre-order at 508-675-4566.
From Tuesday through Thursday, Blue Point Restaurant & Catering offers a Dinner for 4 Family Meal for $54.99. This takeout-only option just needs an hour’s notice at 508-995-9600.
Each meal comes with a quart of the vegetable of the day, a quart of your choice of homestyle side like rice, mashed potatoes, or fries, and four pieces of cornbread.
Bourbon Steak Tips tossed in house bourbon sauce. Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo with creamy Alfredo sauce over fettuccine and grilled chicken. Sirloin Steak Tips smothered in gravy with onions and peppers.Chicken Fingers.Play Arcade: 34 Union St., New Bedford
There’s a tasty deal at Play Arcade from Wednesday through Friday. The Family Meal Deal includes two one-topping pizzas, two orders of Tetris tots, chicken tenders, a house or Caesar salad, and a pitcher of soda or lemonade with free refills for $60.
With packages that serve 6, White’s of Westport is a great opportunity to skip cooking.
Fish Fry Package with six pieces of fried fish, fries, slaw, and tartar sauce ($85). From the Sea Package with six pieces of baked scrod, casserole shrimp, mashed potatoes, vegetable du jour, and mixed field green salad ($92). Meat Pie Package with a chicken pie, mashed potatoes, fresh vegetables, and a tossed salad ($40). Italian Package with a salad, lasagna, meatballs, and breadsticks ($58).Steak Tip Package with a salad, steak tips with peppers and onions, mashed potatoes, and vegetable du jour ($64). Taste of New England Package with clam chowder, oyster crackers, stuffed quahogs, and clam cakes ($46).Meat Pie Package with a meat pie, mashed potatoes, fresh vegetables, and a tossed salad ($45).BBQ Package with three racks of baby back ribs, mac & cheese, slaw, and corn bread ($95).
For a tasty treat on Wednesdays and Thursdays, Acores Family Restaurant is offering the JR Steak special. For $50, this take-out-only meal comes with eight junior steaks with eggs and peppers and a tray of half rice, half fries.
Stock up on the frozen favorites at Lorenzo’s Italian Restaurant. They have frozen meals that serve four to five people and will come in clutch this week.
Chicken Parmigiana ($39.95)Chicken Marsala w/Rigatoni ($39.95)Meat Lasagna ($38.95)Mac & Cheese ($38.95)Stuffed Shells ($42.95)Chicken & Broccoli w/Lemon Fusilli ($39.95)Lasagna ($49.95)Baked Shells Parmigiana ($34.95).
Thursdays are for family meals from Ma Raffa’s New Bedford. Every Thursday, you get $5off their family trays of food. Choose from Meat and Cheese Lasagna, Stuffed Shells, Manicotti, Baked Ziti and Cheese, Eggplant Parmigiana, Chicken Parmigiana, Chicken Messina, Chicken Broccoli Ziti, Spaghetti or Ziti with Meat Sauce, Spicy Chicken Zings, Chicken Tenders, or Spicy Buffalo Tenders.
Dining and Cooking