25th January 2021
I am 99% percent certain that I’ve ordered more takeaways in the last 10 months than the last 10 years and I’m guessing I’m not the only one. Gone are the days when ordering food was a gesture of laziness. It is now your civic duty to support the local economy and do your part to keep #ChesterTogether. And bonus, the food and drink offer across Chester city centre is of such an incredibly high calibre that it almost feels blasphemous to call it takeaway.
At the start of Lockdown 3.0 I set myself a personal goal of working through the Food & Drink To Go List. I am pleased to say that I’m on track to succeed on this quest. Over the weekend we ordered Hickory’s at Home for the first time and I’ve summed up our experience for you lovely lot in case you are contemplating doing the same.
We ordered online on the Tuesday planning ahead for the weekend. Normally if you order by 11am you can get next day delivery, but as Storm Christoph was literally raining down there was a 2-3 day delivery option which suited us just fine. The advance order left us spending a lot of time anticipating the BBQ bounty coming our way.
On Friday morning we received a text from DPD confirming our delivery slot and giving us a link to ‘leave it in a safe space’ in case we were not home to receive it. But lets be serious, we’re in lockdown, so we were home. It all arrived in a lovely box and the unpackaging went like this:
Our order contained: Brisket, 1/2 Roast Chicken, Corn on the Cob, Macaroni Cheese, Pit Beans and Hickory’s Pale Ale. I can also reccomend the Hickory’s BBQ Sauce and Magic Dust, but I already had them on hand so didn’t add them to this order.
Move over Tiffany’s, this is the only little box I need.
I’ll be honest, I was a little put off by the fact that I had to ‘cook’ it all at home once it arrived. However, it was actually super easy and the instructions were really straightforward. The brisket just went in a simmering water bath in the bag it came in for 20 mins. The chicken and macaroni went in the oven and the beans and corn were a quick microwave job.
We popped on the Hickory’s Spotify Playlist (perhaps the only time country music has been played in our house) and cracked open a Pale Ale while everything reheated. There is also this magic peach coloured paper that the brisket and chicken comes wrapped in inside their sealed bag. I don’t know what it does but the meat was perfect, juicy brisket and crispy chicken skin.
For some unknown reason my kids don’t like macaroni cheese (makes me question whether or not they are really mine), but I didn’t mind as it meant more for me and my husband. Luckily, I had a stash of macaroni noodles I’d picked up from Just Footprints so they had those plain as a side with their chicken and corn.
When the little people are quiet you know its a winner.
What made this special was that it wasn’t just about the food. The paper bibs, the playlist, the beer, even the little bag of popcorn and the brown bag to pour it it made it a really feel like a night out in our living room. Plus my kids are making great use of the box and padding it all arrived in.
In summary, as an American, I take BBQ and Macaroni Cheese VERY seriously and I can wholeheartedly endorse this dinner and delivery service. And I was a bit shocked when I realised that you can order this ANYWHERE in the UK! Our parcel was delivered by a really lovely DPD driver who got it to us despite the fact that the main road next to us was 15 feet deep with water thanks to Storm Christoph. We also ordered an e-voucher as a gift for a friend, which felt like a great way to support a #Chester business and share the love with someone we can’t be with right now.
About the author: Emily Ghazarian is the Marketing & Events Manager for Chester BID, the city centre’s Business Improvement District. Originally from California, USA Emily attended the University of Chester as an exchange student and the University of Liverpool where she achieved an MA in Politics & The Mass Media. She has been a resident of Chester for nearly 20 years and has a background in hospitality, fundraising, events and marketing.
