Dream Dinners is a US food preparation franchise operation based in Snohomish, Washington. It specializes in providing space to prepare meals ahead of time for freezing and cooking at home. There are several locations in 30 states.[1] The company was founded by Stephanie Allen and Tina Kuna and was the first in the category of "Meal Assembly" franchises.[2]
Business concept
The concept of Dream Dinners is to give families the opportunity to prepare cooked meals in advance themselves, rather than buy ready-prepared meals. Each month a different seventeen-item menu is made available throughout the chain. The meals are purchased by servings, with a minimum order of 36 servings. First time customers can order 18 servings or 9 servings, depending on what is available at the store. A medium size meal is 3 servings while a large size meal is 6 servings. Customers are offered either public or private sessions to prepare these meals, and the store provides recipes and all the ingredients. Regular sessions provide all seventeen meals from that month's menu, while first time customers have a reduced number of choices. The firm's official website suggests a cost of "approximately $240, or under $6.75 per serving" for 12 regular or 6 large meals.
Some meals are complete (include side dishes), while others are not (need a salad or other vegetable side - for an additional fee). The more servings a customer orders in a single session, the lower the per-serving cost. Individual franchise locations may offer additional promotions or further discounts.