Valentines 2020!

This year’s Valentines day like other things recently is a bit disjointed and slightly delayed, but like every other year, it’s just Boo and I at home as we have the kiddies. This means we have focused on what we are going to eat together, this is our only expense as we have decided not to buy presents, cards gifts etc…to save money, ultimately we have a Wedding Anniversary that’s much more important, but we wanted to see what meals we can do at home for it.

Last year we bought a meal deal from M&S, it went well but with Boo being a fairly fussy eater, valentines day can often be full of my exotic and variant versions of all the shop’s meals. So finding a meal deal for us this year can sometimes be tricky, I was going to go to Tesco’s, but having done some research, their meal deal had nothing suitable for Boo, though it looked very nice, this was not an option. So after a flying visit to M&S, I decided to buy there Dine for £20, as I spotted some nice stuff that she would like.

Starters

Though the starters included things Like Prawns etc, I went for Breaded Camembert. We both like Cheese and melted cheese is one of my favourites (even though I shouldn’t eat it), this came with cranberry and apple Chutney. Luckily none of this was overly flavoursome, though it was nice with the coated a nice crisp finish, the chutney was fine though Boo wasn’t a big fan of it.

Mains

Though the selection was very good on the mains that included some little twist on their favourites like steak with heart-shaped garlic butter etc, I spotted the Chicken Kiev, we have never had one from there even though as a family we like Kievs, it’s one of Roos favourite meals. However normally these types of things are two kiev’s that you cook, but this one was a giant heart-shaped Kiev to feed two, I’ve never seen that before. It cooked well but after cutting it in half it didn’t transfer well to the plates for photos lol.

However the nice crisp coating was followed by a very tasty wild garlic butter filling, Honestly, one of the best Kievs I’ve ever eaten, along with this was triple cooked chips, we’ve had these before and are always a solid choice.

Desserts

For us desserts are often easier to choose in places, as we are generally a sweet family, the selection included some Strawberries, Panna cotta, billionaires Pots etc. but we opted for Profiteroles, a classic for many including us, we’ve actually had these in other meal deals throughout the year, they are nice, not overly creamy, maybe just enough, I can eat them in one bite which gives you a size idea.

Drink

Both of us are not big drinkers, and the deal is advertised with Prosecco, there were a couple of other options but this wasn’t well advertised or clear where they were, you could upgrade to Champagne though for a little more, as for us i opted Pinot Grigio Blush, which seems quite trendy at the moment, this was nice as it was essentially a lighter Rose (i finished the bottle off that night lol)

Extras

M&S, unlike others, offers extras, and this year was a small selection of Chocolate hearts free in there deal. These were a Salted Caramel Chocolate, and a white vanilla chocolate one, they were fine, I’m, not a huge chocolate fan but for me, the caramel was nicer than the vanilla.

Overall

The meal was very good, the dine for £20 was a little pricier than compared to other dine offers throughout the year, but I understand its valentines, there were chocolate and Prosecco, there were some excellent choices for more exotic people, but for us, there were also simple and easier options also, but still tasting very nice. We have been limited in time and options to go out, but our meal was very nice and again well worth the visit, compared to what we could have spent at a busy restaurant? it was a great choice.