Flickr User: WishUponACupcake

Thanksgiving is a special time of year for those of us that love to eat. It means putting a napkin around our neck, wearing our baggy pants and enjoying quality time with those that we love. Typically, the Thanksgiving dinner is held at mom or grandma’s house or perhaps around your very own dining room table. This time-honored tradition has changed over the years and today people are looking for a much easier way to enjoy time with their family without having to slave in the kitchen all day. More and more people are opting to go out to eat for Thanksgiving and I have five great suggestions on where you will get a great Thanksgiving meal without any effort on your part but driving to the restaurant and sitting down.

 
More and more people are opting to go out to eat for Thanksgiving and I have five great suggestions on where you will get a great Thanksgiving meal without any effort on your part but driving to the restaurant and sitting down.
Flick User: Tavallai
 

I was introduced to the Coyote Moon Grille a few years back and can honestly say it is one of my favorite places to eat. Every day you will find a great selection at the buffet and Thanksgiving is no different.

Coyote Moon Grille will offer a Thanksgiving Brunch from 9am to 2pm featuring food that will fit anyone’s appetite. Breakfast options will include scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, biscuits and gravy and eggs benedict. The lunch offerings will be roast turkey, honey cured ham, butterfly shrimp, beef and gravy, all the trimmings and their famous popovers and desserts!

If you plan on taking the family out to a beautiful setting for Thanksgiving at the Coyote Moon Grille, you should make reservations as they fill up quickly. You can call 320-258-4653 option 3 to get your family’s name on their list.

 
Flickr User: FotoosVanRobin
 

Central Minnesota’s hidden treasure is Jack and Jim’s in Duelm. Where the heck is Duelm you ask? It is a little town due East of St. Cloud off Highway 95. Once you taste their food, you will know why I call it a treasure!

Jack and Jims has an event center attached to it that offers seating for close to 600 people and they will use every chair on Thanksgiving and probably have a line out the door. While you don’t need to make reservations, you will probably want to show up early to get your spot in line. Jack and Jim’s Thanksgiving Brunch will be from 10a – 2p and will offer enough food that you will definitely need your stretchy pants.

Breakfast items include pancakes, French toast, cheesy hash browns, bacon, sausage and more. Lunch will include pork loin, sliced beef, sausage and kraut, chicken, ham and all the fixings. Plus you can help yourself to soup and salad bar and the desserts.

No matter what your taste buds want for $13.95 per person, you’ll find a great meal at a great place tucked away in a great little piece of Central Minnesota.

 
Flickr User: gruntzooki
 

Traveling is typically a part of everyone’s Thanksgiving plans. Whether you are going to grandma’s or running to the grocery to pick up the cranberry sauce that you forgot, most of us are on the road at some point during the day. Why not make a stop at the best place in Minnesota for travelers? The Clearwater Travel Plaza has an amazing bakery that any traveler will appreciate and they are serving up a great Thanksgiving meal for a perfect price.

I’ve had the Thanksgiving dinner out of season at the Clearwater Travel Plaza and it tasted like I was eating at grandma’s table. You can enjoy a traditional Thanksgiving meal – turkey and stuffing, mashed potatoes and gravy with vegetables and a slice of pumpkin pie – and not have any clean up.

Instead of spending all the money on the meal, cleaning up the kitchen afterwards and then passing out from the tryptophan after, travel to the Clearwater Travel Plaza, spend $10.99 per person, eat a great meal and enjoy quality time with your family!

 
Flickr User: sk8geek
 

The Green Mill at The Kelly Inn in downtown St. Cloud is always great for happy hour, lunch or dinner anytime. I have found myself chomping down on their amazing wings or enjoying one of their lunch salads on many occasions. What most people don’t know is they have a great Thanksgiving meal planned that will satisfy anyone’s appetite.

If you have a sweet tooth, you will definitely want to check out the Thanksgiving buffet at The Green Mill. From 10:30a – 2:30p, you and your guests will be able to enjoy 4 entrees including chef-cut teardrop ham, pot roast, turkey and all the fixings to go along with them. The star of the meal will be the dessert buffet that will include my favorite cheesecake, pumpkin pie and a chocolate fountain. For under $20, you’ll get a great meal and satisfy your sweet tooth. Reservations are required by calling 320-259-6455.

The best part of The Green Mill’s Thanksgiving feast is the fact that if you overstuff yourself, you don’t have very far to go to sleep it off. You could plan an overnight stay and enjoy the pool at the hotel with the family and truly have no clean up at all!

 
Flickr User: pbody
 

The Blue Moon Grille is the newest addition to the Coyote Moon Grille family. Located at Pebble Creek Golf Course, it features the same menu as the Coyote Moon Grille in St. Cloud. The same recipes and the same irresistible popovers!

The menu for the Thanksgiving Brunch is exactly the same as Coyote Moon Grille with roast turkey, ham, shrimp, scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, biscuits and gravy and all the trimmings including dessert. The only difference is that it isn’t as known as Coyote Moon Grille – YET. If you’ve always been too late to the party to get a table at Coyote Moon, you should take the short drive to Becker and enjoy the same meal.

Blue Moon Grille won’t stay a secret for too long, so reservations are recommended by calling 763-262-4600. Satisfy your appetite for $13.95 for adults, $6.95 for kids and 3 and under are free.

 

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