Carrying a roast dinner 200 miles by train

[hambledon]

This is a similar situation to the thread about carrying a roast dinner to Lanzarote but not a TAAT.

DM moved to a care home a few months ago. It's 200 miles away. Before anybody asks why she's so far away I did try over a long period to get her to live closer to us but the council wouldn't fund residential care near us as it costs much more. She also insisted she does not want to live in London. She wants to stay in her rural county.

I can't drive 200 miles as I have problems with my back and DH has had a hip operation which he hasn't recovered from fully so he can't drive either. So, we decided to get train tickets. The journey is about 45 mins from home to central London then 3 hours train journey and about 15 mins walk to the care home. We are going to go on Christmas Eve to eat and exchange presents with him.

The problems we have are:

1. Her care home are going to let us use their function room for the 5 of us to eat but can't provide food
2. The journey is too long to safely carry pre cooked meat plus it would also be a very heavy load to carry together with drinks, crockery etc especially as DH isn't very steady on his feet
3. I tried very hard over a long period to find somebody who would deliver food to the care home but absolutely nothing available partly as it is a rural area
4. DM fractured her hip not long ago and has dementia and gets very anxious if she even has to leave her room which ruled out taxi ride to nearest pub.

So far my solution has been to pre order a Christmas meal from a pub near the station which we will carry to the care home. But, the pub are not set up for takeaways. We will have to decant 5, 3 course meals and carry it 15 mins uphill to the care home and put in paper plates (too heavy to carry all the crockery and cutlery on the train).

This whole thing seems a stressful palaver (added to which the trains are striking and the journey is going to be very unreliable) I am tempted to just the four of us sit in the pub and have the meal then take a lovely cake, nibbles and champagne to DM and exchange presents. I just know she will be very disappointed. What should we do?

*buffet food

For a starter could you just bring a melon and slice it.

Pre cooked frozen food won't work really as I will be standing next to a microwave de frosting for ages

Longer than waiting for pub meals?

It takes about 3 or 4 mins to microwave these type of meals! If you allie them to defrost, even quicker.

I work in a care home and we would definitely supply you with crockery/cutlery. We'd also let you use the microwave as long as we weren't right in the middle of a meal time ourselves.
They'd probably set you up a table and chairs away from everyone as well if they have the space.

To the person who mentioned about getting the home to prepare you a dinner and you reimbursing them: unless it's already a roast dinner day at the home, it's highly unlikely that the cook will have the time to do this. There's just not enough time to do it alongside preparing the other meals (different options for different diets etc) for however many residents. However if they are already cooking a roast, they'd be more than happy to help. I shouldn't think they'll be doing a roast the day before Christmas though.

You can get M&S roast dinners in the chiller section, no need for frozen ones therefore it will be much quicker

As she is having a full Christmas Dinner the next day,I would not repeat the meal on Christmas eve.Some lovely party food from m and s and a nice Xmas table cloth and crackers would be better.Definitely borrow all crockery needed and glasses for fizz.Have a lovely time.

Will the care home not help you here? Have you asked them if they can provide the meal, even if you have to pay for it?

Just a though on my local tv pages loads of people do cooked dinners to deliver/collect. Bet if you got in touch with one they could do you a proper feast at the home with zero faff. They cook at home and deliver hot to the home

Sorry to keep repeating myself. Pink star is right. The care home are great and really accommodating. We are using their function room for our family and I will ask to borrow cutlery and crockery. However, they can't cook a Christmas meal just for us in a day when they would not be making Christmas food, and I think that's fair enough.

Thanks for the suggestions of bringing ready meals. I really can't use the microwave. It will mean a long time standing in front of it at lunchtime in the dining room when they need it for the other residents.

Fb not tv argh

I really, honestly have tried all options for delivery of hot food. It really is a very rural area even though there happens to be a station and a pub.

By the time you get the meals from the pub to the care home they will probably need to be reheated in the microwave anyway.

This is rather a strange thread. Why are so many people trying to force me to use the microwave or disbelieving me when I say there are no local options for hot meal delivery 😁

There is one microwave. It's in the dining room. We are arriving at lunchtime. I would be standing in front of it for at least 20 mins heating food for 5 people. The other residents wouldn't get their meals.

There are only two options:

1. Bring hot food from pub
2. Eat cold snacks

Just take a cold buffet, paper plates, and some crackers.

Your DM will get a cooked meal in the home on Christmas Day.

Treat this as a 'party' rather than a meal.

Well tbh I don’t know what you want people to say

If you can’t use the care home microwave, I’m not sure how you are going to have warm food whether it is from the pub/M&S/home made by you beforehand.

I think I would take a cold ham, cheese, potato salad, chutney and bread. Along with a slice each of Christmas cake. It sounds too much of a faff dealing with the pub when you want to be with your dm. I think the pub meal would be pretty lukewarm and mushed by the time you ate it.

Definitely use care home crockery etc.

And take crackers

I completely agree with @Crawley65. Good cold food is much nicer than cold hot food.

Is your Dm in the position to be taken to the pub? My dgm was allowed to go out on small trips before she got really bad

Well if the pub puts it into foil containers and you get a taxi straight there it'll be warm for long enough. I get the situation with the microwave, but borrow a kettle to make gravy and that'll top the heat level up a bit.

This is rather a strange thread.

It is indeed. Just take some crisps and sausage rolls. The care home are doing Christmas dinner the next day. She doesn't need one on Christmas Eve as well.

Why are so many people trying to force me to use the microwave

Erm. I think people are trying to give you ideas, you know, like you asked?

or disbelieving me when I say there are no local options for hot meal delivery 😁

Well you said it was really rural but a 15 minute walk from a mainline station isn't rural.

To be honest nobody cares; we were just all trying to offer up some suggestions.

Toby take away!

The only option is to bring a cold lunch. Pub food will be cold by the time you carry it 15 minutes in mid december. It's unfortunate but your mum will just have to accept it this year, there is now way you can bring a full, hot christmas lunch by train or on foot. She will have Christmas lunch the next day and maybe next year you could visit on the day and have lunch together.