Cooking with Character

11/30/2024

❤️💚❤️ Good morning, CwC family...it's officially Small Business Saturday! It's your time to shop small, & shop local. So, what better way to do it, than to stock up with our spice & sugar blends! These make the PERFECT stocking stuffers this holiday season, great gifts for coworkers, in-laws, & neighbors!

All can be ordered through our website only, www.cookingwithcharacterfl.com. Just click on the CwC At Home tab, & order yours today in time for Christmas! ❤️💚❤️

11/29/2024

On behalf of Cooking with Character, we hope you all had an incredible, restful, & happy Thanksgiving.

And thank you to everyone who ordered Thanksgiving meals from us! On Wednesday, we delivered almost 140lbs of turkey, 40lbs of mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, stuffing, salads, & so much more. Thank you for making CwC part of your holiday tradition, & trusting us to do the cooking. We're beyond grateful for YOU. 🧡🦃🧡

11/11/2024

To all who served, CwC thanks you for your service! Wishing you a Veterans Day full of gratitude & thanks. ❤️💙

11/11/2024

🧡🦃Enjoy Cooking with Character in your own home with our CwC At Home line!🦃🧡

This holiday season, try our Just Around the River Blend in your stuffing & on your turkey, our Apple Dry Rub on sweet potatoes & ham, & our Pixie Dusted Sugar on your Christmas cookies! Also, these & our other blends make PERFECT stocking stuffers!

Available ONLY through our website, www.cookingwithcharacterfl.com. Order yours TODAY, & get them shipped in time for Thanksgiving!

11/09/2024

❤️💚Good morning, everyone! The holiday season is in full swing, & so are we! We have TWO Christmas menus this year, our Classic Christmas AND our Mele Kalikimaka Feast (Polynesian inspired), & are officially accepting orders!💚❤️

These meals are available from December 1st thru the morning of the 24th, & are also easy to reheat for Christmas! Let us do your holiday cooking this year so you can enjoy time with loved ones, & not have to do dishes. ☺️

Message us today or email us at [email protected] to place your order!

11/07/2024

Hi, everyone! It's Celia!

This has been a VERY busy work week, & I appreciate everyone's patience, as it's taken me longer than usual to respond to messages & emails. After Sunday, my time will free up more. In the meantime, it's time to complete 4 more catering gigs, & feed hundreds of happy people who are working very hard to pull off a great holiday season here in Central Florida. ❤️

11/04/2024

🧡Good morning, everyone! Happy November!🧡

Our Thanksgiving Dinner orders are officially SOLD OUT, & we will not be selling any more of those meals at this time.

Thank you so much to all who ordered!

10/15/2024

Good morning! We only have a few spots still available, so if you're planning on ordering your Thanksgiving meal from us, please do so ASAP!

Either message us on our page, or email us at [email protected]. Thank you so much!

🧡🦃 Good morning, CwC family! OUR THANKSGIVING MENU IS HERE! 🦃🧡

Just like last year, our menu includes EVERYTHING listed on it. Here's what you need to know:

•We require a 4 person/serving minimum per order

•It's $40 per person/serving

•All orders will be delivered the day BEFORE Thanksgiving on November 27th

•Delivery fee is $10

•Everything comes fully cooked, cooled, & reheat ready in oven safe buffet tins

Space is limited, so DM us ASAP or email us at [email protected] to place your order!

10/12/2024

Good evening, everyone! It's Celia.

First of all, I wanted to extend my love to everyone who endured this second hurricane. I hope you're all okay, & you had minimal damage to your property or none at all. This one was a doozy! OOF!

Second, I'm good, nothing at my home was damaged (except I lost power for a short while, as my appliances were blinking when I got home), & my mom's home fared very well during everything, which is where I hunkered down with my 2 fuzzballs. We had a ton of debris to clean up which was expected, but other than that, all was fine.

Third, I'd like to thank those of you that have been beyond kind & understanding during all of this. You've been ANGELS! Natural disasters are never something we hope for, & we try to plan accordingly, & pivot as best as possible before & after they occur. That being said to those that don't know, please understand that after a major hurricane, a lot of stores lose power, which happened this time. That means they need to wait for more food supply to come in, as ALL of their refrigerated goods & most frozen ones need to be tossed. While frustrating (I want to tear my hair out), I get it 100%. And it takes awhile for those trucks to get in, as supply can come from other areas in Florida, or even from out of state. I've been bobbing & weaving all day, desperately trying to get the ingredients needed for upcoming orders tomorrow & for the beginning of the week, but I haven't been able to get it all. Unfortunately, this is one of those things that's completely out of my hands. Those of you that have gotten on my case about this, I hope you never have to go through something like this, because it's borderline impossible to make everything happen at full capacity. As always, I'm trying the best I can with the cards that were dealt. Some have said I should've bought everything ahead of time...but that brings the risk of it all going bad if electricity went down for a couple of days. Then I'd have to buy all new stuff anyways, IF the stores even had it back in stock. It ends up being a double-edged sword with a no win scenario. Please, don't bark at the people who are trying to make magic happen & feed your families after a natural disaster. Not only are we trying our absolute best, but we're very tired in every sense of the word. We've been worried about our own homes & families, & have spent the last couple of days cleaning up debris, patching roofs, fixing screens, & helping neighbors. A little compassion goes a long way. I will not tolerate being bullied by anyone, I don't care how many times you've ordered from CwC, or what you spend. We love our clients like family, & treat them as such. If respect isn't given back, especially when things like this happen that are out of our control, we will no longer service you again.

But again, thank you to those that have been beyond understanding & kind. We try our best to do the best we can at all times, & provide the highest quality products possible that are made with love. It's a pleasure getting to cook for you, & I'll continue to do so as long as possible. We've created a pretty wonderful CwC community here, & I'm proud of how far we've come. ❤️

10/08/2024

Hi, everyone! It's Celia!

As you know, we have a major hurricane heading directly at us. We still don't know what strength Milton will decide to grace us with, if we'll lose power, etc. All current orders this week have been moved accordingly, & we hope all of you stay safe. That being said, we will be CLOSED until Saturday, October 12th. Because I've been busy not only getting my own home in order but also my mom's, all messages will be responded to AFTER Milton leaves & we kick him out lol!

If you're not from here, please understand that us locals are doing our best for work clients, while trying to prepare in our personal lives as best as we can. Like you, we have loved ones & pets we're constantly concerned about & care for, have families, & have homes & vehicles that'll probably see some damage. Just like you would be, we're a bit stressed too. While your trips are very important to me, as I always strive to provide the best service, I appreciate those of you that have been beyond understanding during all of this, because after work, I want to make sure I have a home to go home to. Hurricanes can be very unpredictable, so we always need to prepare for the worst while hoping for the best. The Gulf coast will see the worst of this, & my heart goes out to everyone who lives in & around the Tampa area, as they're still recovering from Helene.

Please keep us all in your thoughts, don't listen to all the national news hype (look up our local Central Florida stations down here like WESH 2 News), & know that we're all going to make it through. 😊

10/06/2024

Good morning, everyone, it's Celia, your friendly neighborhood caterer! 😊

As you know, we have another major hurricane heading our way here in Florida. That being said, we are closely monitoring everything on our end, & will adjust orders this week accordingly, depending on what this storm does in the Orlando area.

We understand that your travel plans will be impacted, & our #1 priority during these situations is of course everyone's safety. As much as I always want to get everyone's catering orders to them on time, just like you wouldn't, I wouldn't want to drive through a hurricane either, & things may get delayed.

In the meantime, please give Eric Burris - Meteorologist & Tony Mainolfi, WESH a follow for the absolute & most accurate local weather updates down here. They're no hype, thorough, honest, & I personally have listened to them for years. Stay informed, stay safe, don't panic, & stop hoarding toilet paper from Costco lol!

10/01/2024

Good morning, everyone! Just a head's up, we will be answering our next round of emails starting in 20 minutes or so before heading into work. We've been having to bob & weave & adjust deliveries after the hurricane, due to canceled flights, rebooking, etc., so I'm a smidge behind. So bear with me, & I appreciate your patience. Hurricane season is like roulette for us, as things can change daily depending on Mother Nature's mood. Like Whitney Houston, she gets "So Emotional" this time of year lol! 😉

Second, this message is for all wonderful TRAVEL AGENTS that book through us! This is a friendly reminder that when we ask for your client's name/the primary name on their reservation, we're asking for this information for a reason. All gated resorts, timeshares, & rental communities that have security at the gate NEED this information in order to let us enter the property. If we don't have it, we don't get in, even if we know the delivery address. So please, don't get upset if we ask. We're doing it so the delivery is seamless & your client doesn't need to stress, wondering where their delivery is. Also, this eliminates us having to bug you & blow up your phone while at the gate.

09/30/2024

Hi, all! Orders are FLYING in, so be sure to get yours in ASAP while there's still availability! ❤️

🧡🦃 Good morning, CwC family! OUR THANKSGIVING MENU IS HERE! 🦃🧡

Just like last year, our menu includes EVERYTHING listed on it. Here's what you need to know:

•We require a 4 person/serving minimum per order

•It's $40 per person/serving

•All orders will be delivered the day BEFORE Thanksgiving on November 27th

•Delivery fee is $10

•Everything comes fully cooked, cooled, & reheat ready in oven safe buffet tins

Space is limited, so DM us ASAP or email us at [email protected] to place your order!

09/29/2024

🧡🦃 Good morning, CwC family! OUR THANKSGIVING MENU IS HERE! 🦃🧡

Just like last year, our menu includes EVERYTHING listed on it. Here's what you need to know:

•We require a 4 person/serving minimum per order

•It's $40 per person/serving

•All orders will be delivered the day BEFORE Thanksgiving on November 27th

•Delivery fee is $10

•Everything comes fully cooked, cooled, & reheat ready in oven safe buffet tins

Space is limited, so DM us ASAP or email us at [email protected] to place your order!

09/28/2024

Hello, CwC family! Celia here!

Our kitchen will officially reopen tomorrow. And stay tuned, because tomorrow morning we'll be dropping our Thanksgiving Menu around 9am!

Once again, we will be offering fully cooked & carved turkeys with all the fixins, & will be keeping it at $40/person with a 4 person minimum. All will be delivered the day BEFORE Thanksgiving, cooled & reheat ready. Let us simplify your holiday once more & give you a cooking break.

Once again, that menu drops TOMORROW. 🧡

09/27/2024

Hello, everyone! It's Celia once again, aboard a cruise ship behind Hurricane Helene lol.

We are scheduled now to arrive back in Tampa on Saturday (it was supposed to be today). I will do my absolute best on Saturday to get the Sunday orders out, as long as we arrive back on time, but that's up to our Captain, as well as the US Coast Guard, as it's not safe to dock yet.

I will keep you all as updated as possible, but in the meantime, everyone in Florida please stay safe! This one's a biggie.

09/26/2024

Good morning, CwC family, it's Celia here!

Due to Hurricane Helene approaching, Cooking with Character will be closed until Saturday. Not to mention, my fiancé & I are currently aboard a cruise ship, & we were supposed to dock today back in Tampa, but our arrival has been pushed to tomorrow at the earliest. So the only way I could get back to work is to swim or to take a lifeboat, & I have the sailing skills of Gilligan lol!

In the meantime, stay safe, make sure you've got extra batteries, plenty of water (and wine!), bring loose items indoors, & tie together all lawn furniture. Our part of Florida should be okay, but it's better to be safely prepared.

Stay safe, everyone! And don't eat all of your hurricane snacks at once. 😉

09/17/2024

Good morning, CwC family. It's Celia!

We will officially be temporarily closed from September 20th thru the 26th. We are catering a loved one's funeral at the end of this week, & then will be heading out of town. All messages & emails received during that time will be responded to once I'm back.

I appreciate your understanding & your business, & look forward to serving you once home. 🩷