Holiday Meals to Share with Friends and Family

Special holiday menus create new traditions.

Spring brings the arrival of two of our favorite holidays: Easter and Mother's Day. Our love of these holidays is rooted in the nostalgia inspired by their respective meals: the memories that link Easter Dinner with childhood, flashbacks to working the brunch rush in restaurants on Mother's Day. Part of why we love food is how it infiltrates our memory, the power that a particular scent or flavor has to transport us to moments we have otherwise forgotten.

Early in the pandemic, the approach of Easter and Mother's Day forced us to really confront what was changing in the world around us. Our traditions were disrupted. We wouldn't have family traveling to Leelanau County to gather for the holidays, and like so many of you, we wondered how to make those days stand out from the blur of weeks spent at home.

Knowing that we couldn't host the events we wished we could, we opted to bring the festivities to individual households around northern Michigan. This was the spark that ignited our first holiday meals, the opportunity to deliver comfort and a sense of holiday spirit during a time that felt uncertain and repetitive.

We hope that our holiday meals offer you new traditions moving forward, whether that be ordering in from now on or using inspiration from our menu to work from for next year. We love the opportunity to give you a break to enjoy the holiday with your loved ones, letting Mel & Fell do the meal preparation while you simply warm the food up in the oven (ideally while sipping a glass of bubbly).

Mother's Day flower DELIVERY

Thank you to all of you who ordered food and flowers from us for Easter! It was a pleasure to be a part of your holiday meals. This year, we will not be delivering a meal for Mother’s Day. We will be taking some time to tend to family matters and spend the time with our own mothers. We hope you are all able to enjoy cherished time with your family members as well.

We are still offering flower deliveries on Mother’s Day weekend! , which are the perfect addition to your Mother’s Day brunch or gift to send a friend or relative from afar. Interested in ordering a bouquet for your mother, grandmother, or friend in Empire, Glen Arbor, or Frankfort? Send us an email and we will deliver them on Saturday, May 7.

Our flower deliveries feature bouquets of locally grown flowers from Leelanau Specialty Cut Flowers. Our friend Michelle offers gorgeous bouquets from her farm throughout the spring and summer, and her first bouquet offerings are breathtaking tulips. Many of you purchased her tulips for your Easter tables, and we are offering the bouquets for Mother’s Day delivery as well. Michelle also has weekly bouquet subscriptions available. You can find out more on her website.

There will be no meal for Mother's Day this year. We will be delivering flowers. Orders must be placed by May 1; delivery will take place on Saturday, May 7.

Extend the Table: Mel & Fell’s Community Fund

We are now entering our third year of meal deliveries, something that makes our heads spin in circles to consider. Where has the time gone? So much has happened since we first offered prepared meals to share with our neighbors. The world has shifted on its axis in many ways; much of the past two+ years was spent reevaluating how we live. We miss much about pre-pandemic life, the ease with which we interacted with people and tried new things. But we also know that every shift offers an opportunity for growth and a chance to reimagine how we live and connect with each other.

We began offering meal deliveries to residents in Empire and Glen Arbor during February of 2020. There was only a faint hint of what was to come, and the needs we were addressing at the time felt simple: rural Leelanau County residents needed better access to healthy, flavorful meals. Within a month of creating an option for our neighbors, that need heightened as having contact-less meal delivery options became necessary. 

At the same time that we were discovering the importance of the service that we offered, we started paying attention to other needs that existed throughout our community. There has been a sense of isolation throughout the pandemic, with many people unable to gather together. This is something we know to be a deep loss, as sharing meals with people is such a grounding ritual across all cultures throughout history. Sure, sharing meals together is convenient as it enables groups of people to share the load of cooking and cleaning, but I think we can all agree it is more than that. There is something spiritual about enjoying a meal with loved ones. The experience of toasting a glass across the table to celebrate a friend’s achievement or the kindness of bringing a casserole to comfort after the loss of a loved one is familiar to us all. We know the importance of sharing meals, of clinking glasses on an important evening, of nourishing those in need. Unfortunately, this ritual became more challenging to practice throughout the pandemic. 

But of course, our neighbors know best. And slowly, throughout the pandemic, we had one or two of our customers buy a meal to send to a friend. We all began to realize that when we couldn’t gather together for a delicious meal, the next best option was to send one to a neighbor. And so, around this time last year, thanks in part to a generous donation, we introduced our Community Fund. 

The Community Fund is a way for our customers and neighbors to connect around a meal, even when we cannot share it in person. Starting last February, we began delivering meals to local individuals and families nominated by folks in the community. The intent is to share the love of good food and hopefully to help brighten someone’s week in the process. Whether the recipients need connection, relief from high grocery bills, or maybe need a night off from cooking as they adjust to new parenthood, the Fund offers the opportunity to extend the table from your home into someone else’s. To carry forth the age-old ritual of offering meals as a means of love and support. 

Our Community Fund is fueled by donations from our customers, and you can easily contribute by rounding your meal up to the next dollar. You can also donate directly to the Fund. We are always looking for folks to share the Community Funded meals with, so if you know of a person or family in the community who would benefit from a healthy, home-cooked meal, send us an email. Recipients and donors will remain anonymous, and all donated money will go towards the Community Fund to provide meals to our neighbors. 

Curious to learn more? Send us an email. We can’t wait to share some neighborly meals together.

Photos by Hallie Kohler

Introducing Guest Chef: Jess Ledezma

Never too many hands in the kitchen

This month has involved a wonderful return to our weekly meal deliveries. We are thrilled to have returned to the kitchen and after just one week back on the job, Tim already feels ready to diversify the entree offerings. We are so grateful for the progress we have seen already and for the support from all of you! 

We are also appreciative to have extra hands in the kitchen, helping us with the meal preparation and by providing an additional entree each week. Our friend and cook Jess Ledezma has worked with us occasionally since 2020, and we are excited to have her working more consistently with us now on meal deliveries. 

Since so much of our work emphasizes the importance of community, and because we care deeply about providing for our neighbors, it only makes sense to give you all a formal introduction to Jess. She is an invaluable part of our team, and we are honored to have her cooking with us. So friends & neighbors, meet Jess!

Jess’ Background & Our Connection

Jess grew up in the Traverse City area and always loved cooking. In High School, she attended the TBA career tech center and was enrolled in their culinary program. She worked in restaurants around town, most notably Bistro Amical. It was at Amical that she began to consider becoming a professional chef, and this was also where she met Tim. 

Eventually, Tim left Amical, and Jess did as well, spending some time in Charleston, South Carolina, working at various restaurants in the area. When she returned to her hometown of Traverse City in 2020, we asked for her assistance on a few events. Gradually, she began helping with meal deliveries as well. Soon, she was helping to create or modify recipes for our events and meal deliveries. This winter after Tim’s surgery, she offered holiday meals when we couldn’t. Many of you ordered tamales and salmon cakes from her to add to your holiday tables.

Jess’ Favorite Meals & Kitchen Tips 

About ten years ago, Jess discovered that she was Celiac, which means she is unable to process gluten. Because of this, she cooks gluten-free at home, which has allowed her the opportunity to learn some tricks along the way. She recommends using ¼ cup less of any gluten-free flour or bread crumbs when substituting into a typical recipe. Gluten-free products tend to be drier than their wheat counterparts. When baking, she warns that the batter may look wetter than a typical recipe, but that the added moisture keeps the final product from being too crumbly and dry. 

Jess’ favorite meals to cook are soups, because of how versatile they are. “You can have them for breakfast, lunch, or dinner; hot or cold, sweet or spicy, creamy or brothy, and everything in between,” she says. We agree; we love a good soup! 

Jess says, “My favorite thing about food is the culture behind it and the traditions that everybody has associated with different foods. There is no one specific that I favor over the other, but my personal cooking go-to’s are various Latino, and (I enjoy) splicing different ethnic styles.”

Northern Michigan & Beyond 

Leelanau County’s growing food scene. Even though she hasn’t gotten the chance to check out some of the new restaurants, she thinks that Leelanau’s food culture is getting some things right. “Overall, I think one thing that is very consistent and done well is sticking to seasonality.” She also applauds the emphasis on promoting the agricultural scene throughout the region. 

There are some ways that the region could improve upon food offerings, and she especially notes the lack of diversity of cultures represented in the local cuisine. With the exception of tex-mex and Asian fusion, there aren’t many options outside of typical American fare, and she believes “there’s so much more to explore that…the surrounding areas would benefit from.” 

We agree, Jess, and we are excited to see all that you bring to the local food scene. Not just in what you offer to our clientele, but to the whole region. Glad to have you on our team!

Jess Ledezma currently cooks at Red Spire Brunch House full time. She assists us at Mel & Fell as needed, and this summer will be working with Smoke and Porter at some of their events. You can follow along with her work on her Instagram at /northerngf_chefjess.

Meal Delivery Returns February 2

Meal delivery returns next week!

As many of you know, we have been on medical leave since mid-October, as Tim recovers from emergency brain surgery due to bleeding on his brain. We are grateful for the support we have received during this challenging time. Your encouraging words, meals, and financial support have meant the world. 

Tim came home from the hospital in November and for the next month, we were at therapy appointments in Traverse City nearly every day of the week. Throughout his recovery, his therapists have helped build back the skills necessary to navigate the kitchen. We've spent many hours working on cooking exercises. It turns out being in his favorite place has helped Tim's healing process immensely. Over the past couple of weeks, we've been meal prepping and delivering to a few neighbors to get back into the swing of things, and we are ready to offer meals to our whole community. We are grateful to be able to cook for you all again!

Our first meal delivery of 2022 will be on Wednesday, February 2. We will send the menu out via email on Friday, January 28. Not on our mailing list yet? Be sure to sign up today! 

While Tim is back to making delicious meals, we will be easing back slowly into our meal delivery service, offering a limited menu and some changes to our delivery route. We anticipate gradually adding options to the menu, and we plan to provide additional pickup options soon. You can read more about the changes below!

Limited Menu

As we return to the kitchen, we will start things off with a limited menu. We want to offer the best quality and service while prioritizing Tim's continued recovery. For the month of February, each menu will include one entree, one soup, and one salad. Our friend and associate Jess Ledezma will also prepare an additional entree each week as a guest chef. We are excited about this collaboration and having her alongside us in the kitchen! She worked with us last summer helping with meal preparation, so you have already enjoyed her cooking. Jess is a talented chef specializing in gluten-free options, and she will provide a delicious entree each week. 

Delivery Route Changes

Part of Tim's current healing involves his peripheral eyesight, which unfortunately has impacted his ability to drive a car. Because of this, we are altering our delivery route to allow us to deliver meals in a timely fashion.

For the first few weeks of meal delivery, our route will include all of Empire and a limited drop-off in Glen Arbor. Drop-offs in Glen Arbor will consist of the M-22 corridor between Empire and downtown Glen Arbor, as well as M-109. We will not deliver outside of this region during February, but we plan to offer additional pickup locations in the coming weeks. Stay tuned! 

If you are interested in receiving a meal but we do not deliver to you currently, please send us an email and let us know that you are interested in a pickup location. With enough interest, we'll begin offering these in March.

As always, thank you!

We have said it countless times, but thank you for all of your love and support over the past months. It has been exhausting to navigate the recovery process, but having a community encouraging us has made all the difference. Throughout the last few months, our desire to return to the kitchen and our weekly meal deliveries has clarified more than ever that we are doing what we are meant to do. 

We look forward to once again providing you with healthy, locally-sourced meals to supplement your life. Whether our meals offer assistance in a busy schedule or simply add some flavor to your week, we are so excited to return our food to its spot on your table. 

Have any questions for us? Feel free to send us an email! 

Eat fresh, eat local, eat delicious. And let Mel&Fell do the cooking. 

Meal Subscription: Frequently Asked Questions

Meal Subscription FAQs

Here are a few answers to some of the most frequent questions we hear about our meal subscription service. Have a question that we haven’t addressed? Send us an email! 

How do I get this week’s menu? Our menus are emailed to our mailing list on Fridays for delivery the following Wednesday. You can also view the current menu here.

What payments do you accept? Cash, check made out to ‘Mel and Fell’, or using the app Venmo

What time is the food delivered?  Delivery is typically between 2-5 pm on Wednesdays. 

What if we are not home during the delivery time? We have a couple of ideas! Set out a cooler with ice or leave the garage unlocked if you have a fridge there. If that doesn’t work for you, let us know when you order and we can brainstorm some other options. 

What if I have a food allergy or dietary restriction? Please let us know if you have any food allergies or dietary restrictions. We will do our best to accommodate and prepare foods in a manner to prevent cross-contamination. 

How do I order? Simply reply to the menu email with your selections for the week, or contact us directly at melandfellg@gmail.com. Orders must be placed by Sunday the week of delivery.

What to expect from your meal delivery

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Mother's Day Gift Ideas

Locally sourced gifts & meals to celebrate the northern Michigan moms in your life.

Mother's Day is quickly approaching, and this year is going to look different from years past. Our families won't be visiting us from downstate, our favorite restaurants will be closed for Mother's Day brunch. While it is easy to focus on all the disappointments of the current situation, we hope to offer some joy in the midst of it!

We have already loved being the bearers of good food and flower surprises to our neighbors, delivering gifts from friends and family who live out of the area. Why not extend the gift-giving spirit as a way to celebrate moms?

We have teamed up with some fantastic local artisans to create a selection of gift offerings to be delivered with our Mother's Day menu. If you live out of the area but your mom, or a mom you'd like to celebrate, lives in northern Michigan, let us help you shower them with love! Mother's Day food purchases will include a $5 discount if this is your first order.

To order a gift, send us an email at melandfellg (at) gmail.com, or sign up for the newsletter on our website. We will then send you the Mother's Day menu, including the pricing for locally sourced gifts. Food & gift items will be delivered on Saturday, May 9. You'll need to have the gift recipient's address and ensure they'll be home (or have a cooler or refrigerator accessible to us for food drop-off). Our delivery area is within a fifteen-mile radius of Empire.

The Mother's Day menu will feature Melanie's amazing Earl Grey Scones, quiche, and more! You can place an order just to receive a meal, or you can add any of the offered gift items to your delivery. The menu will include an option to add-on a wine pairing from Amoritas Vineyard, based in Lake Leelanau.

We are partnering with Grocer's Daughter Chocolates to provide gift boxes and chocolate bars as sweet additions to your delivery. We have sourced beautiful candle collections from In the Stars Candles, and cards from Wander Gather in Cedar. Spring bouquets will be available from our friend Michelle of Leelanau Specialty Cut Flowers.

Are you a local mom who would love to receive the meal delivery as a gift? Send us an email with the email or phone number of someone you love and we can plant some ideas in their head by sharing our Mother's Day menu. Or, simply forward the email onto someone who may need an idea of what to gift you this Mother's Day. Interested in treating yourself to the goods? We highly support that decision.

To all of the moms and mother-figures out there, we celebrate all that you do! We can't wait to bring you some tasty treats on behalf of those who are grateful to you.