Last fall we wrote about The Kitchen, which bills itself as a combination upscale takeaway and on-site cooking school. Suggesting that the concept could be catching on, a similar offering was recently launched by British celebrity chef Jamie Oliver.
Much like The Kitchen, Recipease is a retail store that offers consumers the opportunity to assemble ready-to-cook meals using ingredients that have been prepped ahead of time by on-site staff. Customers begin by booking a session online, and then choosing the recipe or recipes they'd like to make; the seasonal menu changes every two months. (Those interested in making pizza or curry, on the other hand, can drop in without an appointment.) When they arrive at the Recipease shop—the first is located in London's Clapham Junction in Battersea—they find all the ingredients they need, washed, chopped and prepared. All that's left for them to do is follow the step-by-step instructions for assembly—each recipe requires about 10 minutes on average, the site says, and trained chefs are available to help—and then bring their food home to cook and enjoy. Prices vary by the dish, but current entree selections begin at GBP 3.75 per serving. A variety of more elaborate cooking lessons are also available, as is the full range of dishes already assembled for easy takeaway.
Traditional meal-prep services are all good and well, and we've covered several examples before. But adding a heaping helping of on-site instruction—with a side of boast-worthy status skills—transforms the concept beyond simply a convenience and into a pre-insperience experience, if you will. One to bring to a hungry market near you...? (Related: Family dinners, 24 at a time — Meal prep goes uptown — Ready-to-cook meals delivered to busy urbanites.)
Website: www.jamieoliver.com/recipease
Contact: www.jamieoliver.com/contact
Spotted by: Leonie Baird
How is this any different than the meal assembly concept that had such a meteoric rise in 2006 and then a colossal crash at the end of 2007? It's certainly an idea that has merit, but it painfully clear that customers are easily lured into the idea, but just as easily distracted from coming back. Tens of millions of dollars have been invested by store owners with an overwhelming majority of them now claiming bankruptcy.
Dream Dinners, Super Suppers and others have followed this golden path, but now they have completely derailed and are struggling just to stay afloat.