Quick: What do you want to eat every night for the next seven days? That question could leave even the stoutest-hearted foodies exhausted, even before COVID-19 barged into our lives—to say nothing of buying, prepping, and cooking all those meals. Diners weary of rehashing the same seven or so standbys for dinner every week received a lifeline last December, thanks to the C-Ville Supper Club.
Born from the brain trust behind Bang!, Bizou, Luce, and The Space Downtown—restaurant managers Laura Price and Rachel Gendreau and head chef Travis Burgess—the C-Ville Supper Club lets hungry diners pick main and side dishes for two or four from an ever-changing weekly menu.
Price, Gendreau, and Burgess had been kicking around the idea since summer 2020, but decided to jump in with both feet after a successful experiment with Thanksgiving dinners. “The community response was incredible, so much so that we borrowed a refrigerated truck to store all the dinners,” Price says. They launched the Supper Club the following week.
Order by Tuesday at noon (follow @cvillesupperclub for updated menus), and your meals are ready for pickup at Bizou—or delivery to your door, if you live within five miles of downtown—by Wednesday evening. Each week’s meal selections cater to a variety of diets and palates, from pescatarian to vegan to good ol’ omnivorous, and require little more than assembly and heating to reach diners’ plates.
According to Price, customers can’t get enough. “The majority of our clients are hooked after one order and are then weekly or bi-weekly customers,” she says. “Our customer base is definitely growing, especially now that we are offering meals portioned for families of two or four people.”
The Supper Club has embraced the challenge of devising different menus week after week. “We have asked our staff, clients, families, and friends for inspiration,” Price says. “We have scoured blogs, Pinterest boards, and Instagrams. We have sourced ideas from all of our staff, just by asking, ‘What do you cook at home when someone is coming over you want to impress?’” Favorites from their restaurants have also migrated to the Supper Club’s menu, including Bizou’s shrimp and grits, Bang!’s poke bowls, and Luce’s handmade pasta. “We always want to keep trying new things, but some dishes are such a hit that they have to reappear due to client demand,” Price says.
Even after the pandemic finally lifts, Price says the Supper Club will continue its weekly meal-invigorating missions. “We have lots of new ideas and plans up our sleeves that we can’t wait to unveil in the coming months.”