If you were staying in a self-catering cottage would you buy home cooked ready meals?

[jemimapotts]

We have a house that we let out to holidaymakers. Recently I have thought it may be nice to offer home cooked ready meals. They would be frozen and I could deliver them on request in their frozen state. I was thinking a long the lines of £4 a portion for something like shepherd's pie.

Does this sound reasonable and for those of you who rent holiday cottages in the UK is this something you would take up if on offer?

Anymore meal ideas would be welcome.

TIA

I would and have done in the past, we stayed at a place in Brittany and they did meal for two for 10 euro which sounds a lot but it was everything so the night it was spag bol there was a packet of spaghetti, loads of bolognese sauce, a green salad and homemade garlic bread and large portions. We used it because it was easier than driving to a restaurant and cheaper to boot. The people who ran the gites used to run a gastropub in the UK so everything was good quality. I think it's a great idea.

It still costs quite alot to buy the ingredients and the fuel used to cook the meals.
Thanks for all your thoughts on this. I am definitely going to give it a go.

Ask about dietary requirements. One of our fav cottages always finds dairy-free biscuits for our youngest kid. Now this little gesture makes me teary just thinking about it. And it's a good job she isn't there when we turn up cos I'd be hugging her feet.

You could perhaps provide 'shopping' for arrival. Nothing cooked but a basket and fridge or freezer of provisions like cereal, milk, coffee, tea, cordial, rice, pasta, sauces, meats , eggs, tin, ice cream, cheese bread, butter etc.... So you provide the stock at a extra cost but it saves the holiday maker doing that dash to the shops or loading the car with shopping on the journey there.

The holiday company we use provide ground coffee, fresh milk, bottle of wine and a homemade cake. At Easter the children got a large choc egg and in the summer were given a stick of rock and some other sweets.

I am under no illusion that we paid handsomely for these 'free' extras, but it is those little touches that keep us going back.

They also provide a delivery service of homemade ready meals, but these come from a local company along with any organic fruit and veg you may require. I normally order something for the first evening.

The place we stayed offered vegetarian meals as well. The meals were traditional homemade food (shepherd's pie, lasagne, chicken and rice and so on, with deserts.

It also depends how far you are from the shops, whether home delivery from a supermarket is on offer.

Thanks for all your comments. I'm going to make individual ready meals I can freeze. Was thinking about giving a free homemade cake for their arrival, then leaving a menu out for meals and cakes they can buy.
Not keen on the welcome pack idea as it could be alot of work for a small charge.

I like the idea of a homemade cake, but not meals. I cook from scratch nearly every day, so when we go on cottage holidays I insist we eat out every night.

Yes we have bought meals before, lasagne, fish pie or something that takes a wee bit more time than spag bol.
I'd love to get a free cake if I were going somewhere! It would definitely pre dispose me to order some food!

as rookie mater, ie free concrete rock buns wouldn't bother with buying anything else/fresh choc cake with nice ingredients, would very seriously think about buying some meals

I wouldn't want to be heating 5 individual portions of something, tbh. A big dish I could whack in the oven might be a goer.

We go self-catering. No, I wouldn't buy such products. I always do a supermarket shop on the way in or after checking in and get a bunch of frozen stuff because I'm on holiday and like stuff I can just whack in the oven.

Was thinking lemon drizzle as welcome cake. Could offer a 4 portion tray of frozen lasagne, shepherd's pie etc, and individual portions for flexibility. How much do you reckon for a four portion dish?

When we go to Coombe Mill, their reception is full of home made frozen food. Usually in portion sizes (1,2 or 4). You don't need to order in advance, the freezer is just always packed for when you get back from a day at the beach, or walking and you're too tired to cook! I think it's a brilliant idea. There are dishes from shepherds pie and fish pie (great for children) to venison and red wine for us! Some lovely deserts too... but we dont usually make it that far! We bought a cake when it was DSs birthday - they're usually in reception. Think it's a brilliant idea, you should definitely go for it and the good thing is because they're frozen they'll last a while, so wont matter if they dont sell straight away!

I offer a menu of freshly cooked ready to heat meals for guests in my holiday cottages - the menu is seasonal and based on locally produced food, for example at the moment I'm offering things like creamy asparagus soup, slow cooked pulled lamb, rhubarb & strawberry crumble. (I also cook at the cottages, kind of like a dinner party service). It's very popular with my guests, but in my experience they are looking for something more than lasagne or shepherds pie, which they could get delivered from waitrose or tesco.

I also offer a light supper hamper for people arriving late at the cottages (a bowl of salad, home made bread, cheese, ham and fruit) and a starter breakfast hamper (usual things like bacon, eggs, sausages, cereal, croissants, etc) These are extremely popular, particularly with guests coming from overseas.

I always provide a cake or similar together with good supplies of tea coffee and milk to all guests - invaluable if guests have had to sit in traffic or travel a long way!

If you are planning on providing food, I think that you do need to have a food hygiene certificate (but you can do this very easily on the internet) and sometimes you need to have your kitchen inspected. Also the rules regarding the storage and onward sale of frozen food are quite strict (separate freezers, monitoring of temperature required, etc) which is why I opted for the fresh meal approach.

We've had loads of repeat guests as a result of offering food - it's well worth doing it! Good luck!!!