The Perfect Dinner

(Post: English)
" As working, commuting and chauffeuring parents, we face the daily challenge of making dinner happen. To solve that dilemma we launched the perfect dinner: fresh-made, family favorite meals helping families sit down, slow down and chow down... "

Forget Boston Market or the prepared-foods section of Jewel or Whole Foods. In Oak Park, there's the Perfect Dinner, a kitchen that prepares "home-style" take-out and delivered meals.

The startup is aimed mostly at "El" riders, who can go online to scope out the shop's menu of eight to 10 daily entrées and order ahead before exiting Oak Station on the Green Line.

The business was founded by Karen Gruber, 48, who formerly handled the Kraft cheese account at ad agency J. Walter Thompson, and Jill Haas, 47, a onetime food scientist at Kraft Foods.

The Perfect Dinner broke even with $500,000 in revenue last year - the average check is $41 - and is looking at 8% to 10% growth this year, Gruber says.

The pair, who started the venture with $250,000 from friends, family, and their own savings, is now trying to drum up $700,000 to open two more sites this fall.

INFO:
The Perfect Dinner is committed to producing fresh-made, family-friendly dinners that are ready to heat and eat in the comfort of your own home. Dinners are available for pick-up or delivery with no pre-order required.

The dinners are made with all fresh ingredients and are fully cooked in The Perfect Dinner on-site commercial kitchen.

Source: BusinessWeek , The Perfect Dinner