Wanchai Ferry Frozen Entrees at a Restaurant?

About a month ago, I got invited to a Chinese restaurant downtown called Ben Pao for a dinner hosted by MyBlogSpark.  I was able to bring a guest and I could not have been happier when my in-laws said they could babysit for the night!  So my husband and I drive to downtown Chicago for our date night!

When we arrived, we were greeted and seated to individual tables.  My husband and I felt like royalty!  We had a pre-planned menu, with entrée choices, and were allowed a drink.  We started off with an Appetizer Platter, which had chicken lettuce wraps, golden crisp vegetables spring rolls, crab Rangoon and chicken pot stickers.  Everything was absolutely delicious, especially the chicken lettuce wraps!  Our server then came over to take our entrée order and we had to choose from eight entrees:  Orange Chicken, Szechuan Style Chicken, Kung Pao Chicken, Beef & Broccoli, Sweet & Spicy Shrimp, Sweet & Sour Chicken, Spicy Garlic Chicken, and Shrimp Lo Mein.  I did think it was strange that when we asked our server about the entrees like were they spicy or what came with them, that she had to look down and read notes, but I didn’t think much about it.  Next, we were brought our Hot and Sour Soup, which I was adventurous and tried and loved!

So now it was time for our entrees – I ordered the Spicy Garlic Chicken and my husband picked the Sweet & Spicy Shrimp.  Both entrees came served nicely on a platter and there was enough for each of us to share (Family Style), as well as yummy rice.  We ate our entrees and boy was it nice to eat a good quality Chinese dinner not from take-out!  We finished our dinner with dessert – Lemon Ginger Cheese Cake and Chocolate Spring Rolls.

After dinner we were greeted by a MyBlogSpark host and asked if we had opened our fortune cookies yet, which we hadn’t.  She asked if she could videotape us opening them and our responses and I said sure.  So what was in our fortune – a note saying we won a million dollars?  Nope.  It said that our entrée was actually a frozen entrée from Wanchai Ferry!  Boy, were we surprised!  Now I had purchased Wanchai Ferry before and my family enjoyed it, but after eating it in a restaurant I realized it really was a high-quality dinner choice!  Granted the experience was even better because we were at a restaurant and I didn’t have to cook or clean, but really the entrée was worth it and a fun surprise!

Since then I have purchased the Sweet & Spicy Chicken and Orange Chicken dinners from my local grocery store and my family loves it!  Now the bag is family style, but it is tough for all four of us to eat from one bag, and two bags would be too much.  So I just found myself making some extra rice and veggies for my boys.  Normally the bags cost $8.99 but when they are on sale for $6.99 I stock up and there is usually a coupon in the Sunday paper or online that I can find!

Overall, I learned a great lesson that night.  I learned that just because something is frozen doesn’t mean its bad and that I can make high-quality foods (like restaurants) at home!  I had a wonderful dinner out and I think it was a great way for General Mills to spread the word about their Wanchai Ferry entrees!  I also want to add that the rest of the food we ate was off the Ben Pao menu and how nice of Ben Pao to allow General Mills to switch out their dishes!

BUY IT: You can find Wanchai Ferry entrees in your local grocer’s freezer section or check out their new dry-meals!  Don’t forget while you are at the Wanchai Ferry website to print out a $1.50 off coupon!

Mama’s Money Savers Disclosure:  Thank you to MyBlogSpark for hosting this free meal for my husband and I to attend.  Please see my Disclosure Policy.