Originally Posted By crazycroc Okay, laughing placers...put on your thinking ears and please help me figure out this one. I'm going to cancel my reservations for the Candy Cane Inn for Christmas after scoring the Hyatt Regency Orange County through priceline, for a very, very low price!!! {Saved over 600 bucks for the trip!!!} The only problem I have now is this: I'm trying to figure out how to eat food in our hotel room that won't spoil and or require refrigeration/microwaving. As our room will have neither. No cooking whatsoever. So far I've come up with this. Breakfast: Tang Muffins/Donuts Instant Oatmeal Fruits Coffee/Tea Any other ideas you can up with when a coffee pot as your only cooking utensil? Lunches? Dinners?
Originally Posted By Tinkerbell819 I have a soft cooler that I can "squish" into my suitcase for when we stay in rooms w/o a fridge. We put milk, juice and soda in it and get ice from the hotel machine. It doesn't leak, but we keep it in the bathtub, just in case! We pack a "hot pot", also, b/c the water actually boils in it as opposed to just getting warm in the coffee maker. (and the water doesn't have that coffee taste to it, either! lol) They cost about $8 and seem to last forever. They're great for making hot chocolate on those chilly evenings, the cup o' noodles (like SuzieQ said...they sell them at Walmart for 25c each!), tea, packages of instant oatmeal, etc...
Originally Posted By atinkfan I don't recommend this for obvious safety reasons, but I have actually used the coffee pot burner to somewhat toast a bagel before! You could also get some of those shelf-stable type foods, like fruit cups or individual apple sauces. As far as other food for meals, boy that is a tough one.
Originally Posted By funnygarcia I vaguely remember a childhood lunch made in our hotel room on vacation. Sandwhiches from the cooler, instant soup and carrot sticks. My sis bought one of those "hot pot" deals at a rummage sale. You can cook in them, recipes were in the box for basic foods.. Pasta, mac and cheese, soup are the no-brainers.. might need to get creative after that. Perhaps pour the boiling water over hot dogs to warm them?
Originally Posted By crazycroc Alright... Soup, Sandwiches, and carrot/celery sticks. One lunch down...four lunches to go. Thanks for all your tips so far guys.
Originally Posted By Darkbeer I presume this is the hotel at Harbor and Chapman. Del Taco is across the street, and on Tuesday, they offer 3 tacos after 3 PM for $1.09, plus other value menu's. Good for a dinner after visiting the park. There is a small convenience store nearby, so you can go grab something, then use the ice machine to keep it cold for a few hours... I have used the large trash can in the room as a cooler (use the bag that came with your purchase to carry the ice back to your room). I usually place the trash can in the bathtub to allow the melted ice to go straight into the drain, sometimes the bathroom sink area. Target is also near the convenience store, or you could walk a few blocks east on Chapman to find a VONS supermarket, for things like the Top Ramen stuff, plus things like Granola Bars, fruit, etc....
Originally Posted By crazycroc I do need some variety, tis the spice of life! I've got one heck of a breakfast thing going so far. I'll be making some MRE's that would make the military jealous! For example, Day one: Banana Croissant Peanut Butter Packet Tang packet Day two: Blueberry Muffin Strawberries Peppermint Tea Day 3 Plain Cake Donut Tang Peach Day 4 Kiwi/Banana salad Tea Day 5 Character Breakfast {made possible by the other four days!} I plan on packaging each day in it's own freezer bag and labeling them and putting a bow on each of them. Just like the anal-retentive chef. Actually, I just want each to be as little prep as possible.
Originally Posted By crazycroc Darkbeer--- You should open a business helping people with their trips. You always have a wealth of info, and don't seem to get board repeating yourself. {or at least cutting and pasting ; )} Anyway, I just wanted to thank you for sharing what you know, not just with me, but with everybody.
Originally Posted By Misty crazycroc, wouldn't your banana/kiwi salad be brown if you make it ahead of time? We love bringing Satsuma tangerines that time of year. They are easy to peel & no seeds. We're also big on pb&j's for breakfast!
Originally Posted By forcemejure We stay at this hotel every chance we get as the Priceline rate ROCKS! ;D The Target across the street has a good selection in their grocery. We like the packaged Sunkist TunaFish lunches. They come with tunafish, crackers, relish, mayo and a breath mint and require no refridgeration. You can also pay an extra $40/night at checkin to upgrade to a Kids Suite (if they have one available. The suite comes with a mini-fridge and a microwave. Like Tinkerbell819, we've also purchased a Hot Water pot ($8-$10 at Target) to use for cup o' noodles, hot chocolate, and tea. You can get a pretty sophisticated selection of dry soups these days. It can also be used to heat up canned food like chili, baked beans, and spagettio's. It does get VERY HOT and will boil water easily.
Originally Posted By BoyStory Love the cup o'noodles idea- now why haven't I thought of that one before? We go to the nearby Target every year to supplement snacks, etc. One year we bought those Smuckers "crustables" PBJ's for our lunches- which worked out great! I believe they were made to be eaten the same day they are taken from the freezer (they are initially frozen and thaw quickly), but it's a solution to not having a fridge for the jelly to make your own sandwhiches, and it's still something that will "keep" for a while after purchase. Target sells a box of 4 for less than $3. They are a bit on the small side, but IMO still economical eating 2 .
Originally Posted By POTCFAN I buy "Yo on the Go Smoothies" from Costco for my kids. There's no refrigeration required until after opening, so they can throw them in their backpacks and have a healthy snack after school.
Originally Posted By crazycroc Misty wrote: "crazycroc, wouldn't your banana/kiwi salad be brown if you make it ahead of time?" I'm sorry, I should have mentioned I was going use the food dehydrator to make that kind of stuff, so actually it would be more like a trail mix.
Originally Posted By crazycroc Yeeechhh!!! Week old brown stuff in a bag. I may be cheap, but I won't make my family eat that....yet.
Originally Posted By Wendithepooh My family ate pop tarts in the room while I finished everything up.And I ate them on the walk over with a swig of orange juice from sam's club that needs no refrigeration.They are good as long as you don't mind them not toasted. Sometimes a cheap budget is worth it if you get to go to DL.I'd rather go more often then have to save for 5 years.And think of all the memories you'll have...Remember when dad made us eat...(fill in the blank)Ours was a balogne sanwich with no mayo or mustard,just bread and meat.Maybe that is why I hate balogne.lol.
Originally Posted By funnygarcia Thought of a few more.. Crackers and cheese packs (you know the ones with the little stick to spread the cheese?) small cans of fruit or pudding packs shelf stable milk or juice packs CousCous Bulgar Wheat Instant mashed potatoes Instant Rice TVP (Texturized Vegetable Protein) Individual cups of applesauce beef jerky Packets of tuna (foil pouch instead of canned), packets of mayo swiped from a visit to the deli, bread or crackers. Canned chicken Vienna sausages or potted meat(EWWW!) Instant refried beans (ick) There are products made with their very own sterno cans incorporated into packaging, you just open it and heats up. Found these here.. <a href="http://www.aa-foods.com/inferno.cfm" target="_blank">http://www.aa-foods.com/infern o.cfm</a> Fantastic Foods makes yummy,just add hot water, soup in a cup types.Find in natural foods section of grocery store and here <a href="http://www.fantasticfoods.com/catalog/vegetarian-soup-cups-c-31.html" target="_blank">http://www.fantasticfoods.com/ catalog/vegetarian-soup-cups-c-31.html</a>
Originally Posted By funnygarcia Bear in mind.. pre packaged stuff might cost just as much as a cheap lunch at Mcdonald's off the dollar menu??
