Your favorite place for a special meal won't be open this Easter, but many restaurants are still serving up specialties.
They're just doing it as carryout or delivery as the coronavirus threat continues.
Two Chattanooga restaurants are even trying out a partnership with curbside service. Charlie's BBQ & Bakery, 2309 E. Main St., and Mindy B's Deli, 828 Georgia Ave., both of which remain open for takeout and catering, will offer complete Easter meals delivered directly to your car this weekend.
Providing these meals is a way to offer some sense of normalcy to their customer base, the owners say.
"Our friends at Charlie's posted on social media that they were considering smoking hams for Easter, and we were considering offering sides, so I reached out," says Mindy Benton, owner of Mindy B's.
The road in front of Mindy B's is currently closed, "making it hard for them to offer curbside pickup, and we have a parking lot," says Elizabeth St. Clair, operating partner of Charlie's. "It makes sense to form this partnership to help our customers and both restaurants."
Photo from Carrabba's / Carrabba's Italian Grill will serve an Easter meal for four that may be picked up Friday through Monday, April 10-13.Ordering an Easter meal is as simple as placing two phone calls and driving up to Charlie's for carhop pickup. For smoked ham and cake orders, call Charlie's at 423-541-1500. For sides to accompany your ham, call Mindy B's at 423-521-7932.
Sides will be delivered to Charlie's for pickup with your ham and cakes on Saturday, April 11. When you order from both restaurants, mention the "Partner Pickup" to receive $5 off your ham order plus $5 off two or more sides ordered from Mindy B's. All orders must be received by Wednesday, April 8.
"I'm very excited to see what two beloved, small, locally owned restaurants can do when we work together," says Benton.
Here are a few other options that caught our eye.
* Cafe on the Corner, 826 Scenic Highway, Lookout Mountain, Tennessee, is open for takeout Tuesday through Saturday. They feature the full menu for pickup by 5:30 p.m. and daily specials that you can pick up all day until 6:30 p.m. Chef JR Crutcher is also smoking whole pork butts and whole beef tenderloin that you can have for the weekend, along with other Easter specials. Specials are announced every day on social media. Alcohol is available at steep discounts.
* Carrabba's Italian Grill, 2040 Hamilton Place Blvd., will serve up an Easter family meal for four for $49.99, from Friday, April 10, through Monday, April 13. The meal comes with a choice of Chicken Picatta or Mahi Wulfe served with fresh bread with herbs and oil, family-style Caesar salad, family-style Penne Pomodoro, family-style sautéed broccoli and two Sogno di Chocolate "Chocolate Dream" desserts. Add four New Zealand lamb chops for $19.99. Order at carrabbas.com or 423-894-9970.
* Cheddar's Scratch Kitchen is offering Family Bundles to enjoy this Easter, starting at $19.99. They feature scratch-made, family-size portions of favorite entrées, side dishes and honey butter croissants. To make it easy for guests to pick up their meals, Cheddar's is providing curbside to-go service, and free delivery is available in select areas. To view the menu, visit Cheddars.com, or call your closest location to place an order.
* Events With Taste catering is offering to-go family meals that feed four. You can order between noon and 5 p.m. Wednesday, April 8, or Friday, April 10. Delivery is available with an additional fee. Call 423-508-8023 or email info@ewtcaters.com
* Firebirds Wood Fired Grill, 2107 Gunbarrel Road, is accepting orders through 8 p.m. Wednesday, April 8, for its Firebirds at Home Easter feast, which feeds four for $150. With this option, you'll do some of the cooking yourself. On the menu are Lobster Spinach Queso, BLT Salad, 48-ounce prime rib, mashed potatoes, broccoli cheddar casserole and chocolate bread pudding. Pickup is noon-5 p.m. Saturday, April 11, and 8 a.m.-noon Sunday, April 12. Learn more at https://firebirdsrestaurants.olo.com/menu/chattanooga.
* LongHorn Steakhouse: Families can enjoy Family Meal Deals from LongHorn Steakhouse starting at $9 per person for a family of four, featuring choice of a shareable entrée, hand-chopped salad and four sides. Guests also can order fresh steak cuts from the LongHorn Steak Shop, accompanied by the restaurant's proprietary seasoning and the grill masters' instructions on how to prepare them at home. Guests can pick up their order using curbside to-go service. For a 15% Easter discount, use code LH44 when ordering (offer not valid for the Steak Shop). To order, call your nearest location, or place orders online at LongHornSteakhouse.com.
* O'Charley's: The Easter Essentials Bundle, available daily through Sunday, April 12, is designed to be the completer pieces for your meal. It includes one dozen Nashville hot deviled eggs, one family-size side, one whole pie and a gallon of lemonade or tea for $19.99. You can also order any of the items individually or add the essentials bundle to any family-style meal order, which feed six and range in price from $29.99 to $49.99, depending on the meal. Your pie choices may vary by location at time of pickup or delivery. Order by calling your nearest location or www.ocharleys.com.
* Olive Garden: For Easter, Olive Garden classics are available for carside pickup or free delivery for orders over $40 (fees waived), including family bundles of Lasagna, Chicken Parmigiana, Chicken Alfredo and homemade soup or salad and breadsticks. To place an order, visit OliveGarden.com.
* Outback Steakhouse is bringing back favorites not currently on the menu in time for Easter, including Steak & Ribs and a Lobster Tail Dinner. Guests also can add a lobster tail to any entree for $9.99. Place orders at www.outback.com for curbside takeaway or free delivery.
* Sticky Fingers is offering a Family Easter Feast, enough for four people, for $65. The order contains 2 pounds of sliced ham or smoked turkey, 1 quart of sweet potato casserole, 1 quart of mac and cheese, 1 quart of collard greens, four biscuits, six deviled eggs, 1 quart of banana pudding and a half-gallon of tea or lemonade. You can order anytime through Friday, April 10, and they'll have it boxed and ready for pickup between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. Sunday, April 12. Order at 1-800-STICKYS or holiday@stickyfingers.com. If emailing, include your name, phone number to confirm order and take payment, and your pickup location (Hamilton Place in Chattanooga; the downtown location is temporarily closed).
* Tupelo Honey has Family Value Meals for Easter weekend, including several new scratch-made choices for main dishes and sides. The meals serve four for $35 or six for $50. The main dishes include two flavors of fried chicken, a dry-rub roasted chicken, meatloaf and tomato/basil quiche. Sides include green beans, mashed potatoes, baked mac and cheese, collards with bacon, Brussels sprouts, french fries, Creole Caesar salad and stone-ground goat cheese grits. You can order for immediate pickup or at a later date. Some quantities are limited. Place your order at tupelohoneycafe.com.
Contact Lisa Denton at ldenton@timesfreepress.com.