Say a prayer of gratitude for our local caterers this season.
Before you succumb to the mid-November anxiety known as What in the World Am I Going to Serve Twenty People for Thanksgiving, consider this: You can outsource just about anything these days. And yes, that does include your holiday meal. If you don’t feel up to the brining, roasting, serving, and cleaning, and prefer to put your feet up with a glass of Beaujolais and a football game, there are several local places that will do the work for you. So feel free to indulge and allow the tryptophan to set in. There’s no shame in calling in a relief pitcher, especially during the holidays.
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Michael Cavaniola’s homage to wine, cheese, and fine foods offers up an expansive, delicious, and ever impressive holiday feast. Catering packages are priced a la carte (a 10-12 pound turkey runs at $120, as does a sugar-glazed spiral ham). You can dress up your meal with cheese boards, caviar service, and charcuterie platters, or play it safer with traditional accoutrements: whole berry cranberry sauce with orange zest, roasted turkey gravy, mashed yams with maple syrup, pumpkin pie, and sweet sausage stuffing are just a few of Cavaniola’s many offerings. Orders must be placed by November 18 and pickup on Thanksgiving morning is available at both the Sag Harbor and Amagansett locations.
Cavaniola’s Gourmet, Sag Harbor location, 89 Division Street, Sag Harbor, (631) 725.0095, open 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday and Monday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday.
For the barbecue-minded, this one’s for you. This Riverhead go-to offers prepared meals as well as a la carte items for the holiday. The 12-15-pound turkey meal is $215 (stuffing, potatoes, cranberry sauce, gravy, and a choice of extra sides), while the 18-20-pound turkey meal is $265. There are tons of a la carte options, including creamed spinach, glazed carrots, and cornbread. Maple Tree asks for 72 hours’ notice for orders, which can be picked up on the day before Thanksgiving, with reheating instructions, or Thanksgiving Day, hot and ready-to-serve. If you’re not a turkey lover, you can opt, instead, for ribs, wings, pulled pork, or any other more traditional barbecue fare.
Maple Tree BBQ, 820 West Main Street, Riverhead, (631) 727.2819, open Tuesday to Thursday and Sunday 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., Friday to Saturday 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.
This specialty market, known for its fabulous year-round lunches and dinners, serves Thanksgiving packages to go, with sides priced by the pound. On offer this year are an 8-10 pound roast turkey with gravy ($155), wood-roasted Brussels sprouts, roast delicata squash, potato gratin, cranberry relish, and root vegetable and apple stuffing (all $14/pound), as well as a soup ($14), a charcuterie board ($145), and a choice of desserts ($25-$45 per whole dessert). Place your order by Thursday, November 16 for pickup on Thanksgiving before noon.
Harbor Market & Kitchen, 184 Division Street, Sag Harbor, (631) 725.4433, open daily 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Mattituck’s Lombardi’s market offers fully catered Thanksgiving meals in different sizes. The smaller package, which serves 10-12 people and costs $275, includes an 18-pound turkey (uncooked), gravy, cranberry sauce, mushroom and onion bread stuffing, buttered rolls, mashed potatoes, Brussels sprouts, macaroni and cheese, cannolis, and a choice of apple or pumpkin pie. A larger package feeds 20-22 people and includes, in addition to the aforementioned, a choice of appetizer (bruschetta platter, cheese platter, crudité) and a choice of salad (garden, gorgonzola, field green). Fresh turkey weighs in at 25 pounds. Additional items, like baked ham or pork loin, can be added a la carte. Orders close on Monday, November 20th.
Lombardi’s Market, 170 Love Lane, Mattituck, (631) 298.9500, call for hours.
Does anybody on the East End produce finer crab cakes than Round Swamp? I think not. Still, this elaborate country farm stand serves far more than seafood. At Thanksgiving, they offer uncooked, prepped birds (starting at $75), along with classic gravy, cranberry sauce, stuffing, mashed potatoes, shrimp cocktail, haricots verts, and all manner of pie. All birds and sides can be ordered online, but turkey orders must be placed by November 12. Pickup can be arranged at either the Bridgehampton or Springs location.
Round Swamp Farm, East Hampton location, 184 Three Mile Harbor Road, East Hampton, (631) 324.4438, open Thursday to Saturday 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., Sunday 7 a.m. to 12 p.m.
