Feel-Good Story
“There’s nothing we can’t bring to your table.” So states Mr. Good Meats co-founder, Oskar Andersen. After fifty years of building trusted relationships, three-generations of family-run Chef’s Catering Co. were caught by the circumstances of the times. What’s a chef to do when faced with the stark reality of contracts shutdown due to the pandemic lockdown?
Necessity being the mother of invention, two best friends, so close, they call themselves brothers, Justin Siklis and Oskar Andersen, made their requisite “pandemic pivot” and, with their adept cooks, changed their modus operandi: the kitchen shifted from corporate to residential, catering directly to their customers’ front doors. Choose a cuisine, and they are on it. The culinary background of this kitchen is vast, and includes Greek, Sri Lankan, Mexican, Danish, Middle Eastern and Guyanese, and each one adds dimension to the company’s menus.
Opportunity Knocks
During the lockdown, when ingredients were temporarily scarce, and transportation was restricted, and feeding my child was a challenge, the box from Mr. Good Meats that landed on my family’s door step was like Christmas in July! With ingenuity and community values, and the goodwill and good reputation they built among their clients, Mr. Good Meats was born. Individual orders were delivered to those who would have otherwise been in the boardroom or the ballroom. Today, everyone has different dietary restrictions, so Siklis and Andersen concentrate their catering on health, wellness and nourishment specific to each family and each individual order.
Authenticity is key, and the flavours and aromas of each dish are like memories of “home” (Shh! Don’t tell Mom, but they might even be better.) Customized orders cater to every dietary restriction including Halal, and a range of vegetarian dishes from Italian pastas to Korean barbecue tempeh bowls. Gluten-free dishes like Hoisin Scallion Flank Steak, Bubbie’s Jumbo Cabbage Rolls or Island Style Jerk Chicken, reflect the multicultural team of chefs and the diversity of clientele. While chicken pot pies, specialty pot pies and large family style souvlaki platters are all the rage, so too are the Build-Your-Own-Barbecue Boxes.
The focus is on protein, and the selection of Wagyu, AAA, and Canadian Prime, aged in-house for 45 days and hand-carved to order, is unparalleled. The range of cuts is from wagyu flatiron, grass-fed tenderloins and frenched pork chops, to spatchcock chickens, duck breasts, Atlantic salmon, and burgers, including homemade brisket and Wagyu burgers–Kobe and Australian. It’s a showcase of high-quality product, reasonably priced, with attention paid to nutrition and fitness.
Big Hearts, Big Portions
Generous portions are a well-known hallmark of Mr. Good Meats and, as Andersen tells me, they give as much as they can with each portion, but individual meal plans are personalized to individual diets and fitness. Each program lists all the proteins, fats and sugars; all the macros to properly track each meal. Each customized selection is accompanied by a list of nutritional values, so that we can clearly know and trust what is in our food. Whether it’s to lose weight or gain muscle mass, we can choose a plan that aligns with our own fitness goals. To this end, they created a partnership with Colossus Fitness for confident assurance of precise dietary information and to ensure personalized results.
It’s like having our own personalized chef and fitness guru coordinating our meal program, catering to our dietary and fitness needs.
