[Food Review] Banquet Microwavable Meals

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Overview:

For those of you who have ever laid awake at night wondering if any company could ever depict what perpetual bachelorhood tastes like, I’m here to tell you the people behind Banquet Microwavable Meals have been perfecting the recipe since 1953. As someone who’s ingested pound after endless pound of such loser delights as bologna, Chef Boyardee and hamburger buns to keep himself alive, I can say with great confidence I haven’t encountered any dining experience more successful in reminding me that I am alone in this world.

Review:

The vast majority of these microwavable treasurers feature an entree and two side dishes. According to their website, the company produces 92 varieties of frozen meals, of which I have tried these four:

  • Chicken Fingers (accompanied by fries and a brown, spongy substance passing itself off as a brownie)
  • Salisbury Steak (corn and mashed potatoes)
  • Pizza (pudding)
  • Fish Sticks (mac & cheese and pudding (which many times find themselves mashed together!))

“How do they taste?” you may ask. Well, imagine the food you’d find in your elementary school cafeteria, with about 3/4ths the taste. Since my career-oriented (or as I like to call her, lazy) mother didn’t pack a lunch for me while I was in school, this is great way to recount my elementary dining days without Mrs. Zarse yelling at me for discussing the murders of Jeffery Dahmer in grizzly detail.

If the paragraph above sounds to be faint praise, I assure you that’s not done by accident. There are various reasons not to enjoy these meals aside from the fact they simply don’t taste good.

There’s the social stench they bring. You wanna acquire a disgusted look from someone? Try distracting your roommate while he’s preparing for a date by eating one of these while simultaneously watching old episodes of Saved By The Bell. Sorry Ryan. You know, for a guy with a safety deposit box full of That 70’s Show DVD’s, you sure are judgmental of my taste.

Also, they tend to be too much work. There’s always one piece of food that has to be taken out or microwaved separately from everything else. If you’re eating microwavable dinners, there’s a good chance it’s because you are too lazy to thoroughly prepare something that will actually be satisfying. This lifestyle becomes a bit strained when you are forced to get up not only to grab your dinner from the microwave, but also to place parts of it back in to make sure maximum flavor capacity is achieved. Just because the company is called Banquet doesn’t mean I want to feel like I’m preparing a meal for an entire banquet hall!

And finally, I should note it’s simply not possible to eat a Banquet Microwavable Meal and feel good about your standing in life at the same time. I don’t care how bullet proof you are to social criticism, when you are trying to force that fourth fish stick down your gullet, you will feel sad. These meals should come with a disclaimer that reads “Warning: No One Loves You.”

And yet, despite how much I dislike, and occasionally even hate these frozen dinners, it’s hard to imagine I will stop buying them at any point in the near future. Why? Because I am poor and they would need about an 80% price hike to work their way up to dirt-cheap. Your neighborhood Kroger will likely always be selling these at a 10-for-10 rate. So if you have no money and are too lazy to fill out that food stamp application form (they actually make you fax that shit in! Not on your life Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program!), these can become instrumental in keeping you alive. And when compared to the Stouffer’s ($2.75), Marie Callender’s ($2.75) and Hungry Man’s (an egregious $3.12) of the world, it’s much more accommodating to all budgets.

Final Words:

There’s really no point in offering a serious review of Banquet Microwavable Meals. I think it’s pretty much set in stone that most self-respecting adults will look to eat something more substantial than a $1 frozen dinner. As for me, I once let my friends video tape me as I took a dump off the top step of a ladder. The fact that I even know the definition of self-respect surprises even me.

If you’re someone who chooses a slovenly existence ahead of a life of dignity, this is a dream product for you…albeit not a particularly good one. But what are you gonna do, teach yourself to prepare a hearty and nutritious meal? If the only reason you eat at all is simply to stay alive, Banquet has created a life-long friend for you. And for a dollar-a-pop, you will likely be all the more forgiving if there are certain occasions where you feel like you’re eating a gym mat.

Pros:

  • Cheap, cheap, cheap!
  • Eating keeps you alive

Cons:

  • Sort of Gross
  • Can be a bit too much work
  • Proves beyond the shadow of a doubt you are a loser
  • There’s very little meat in these gym mats

Taste: 3/10

Value: 9/10

Final Score: 6/10

32 thoughts on “[Food Review] Banquet Microwavable Meals”

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  3. I’m certainlyl not ready to run out & by a Banquet meal, but that’s for the good laugh!! A very clever review!!

  4. As a formerly poor college student / single person, these sound, indeed, like a “banquet” compared to my 12 for a $1 ramen noodles… ah, the ennui.

  6. Unfortunately for me, my ambition stopped at moving out, so even by doing that I fucked myself over. Oh well. At least my dear mother is kind enough to leave comments on my “very clever” reviews.

  8. HAHAHAHHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

  10. I’m not really a fan of the banquet meals, anyway. The Lean Cuisine frozen meals are a lot better.

  12. Brilliant write-up.

    I would still be eating these if my girlfriend would let me go back to having nothing in my stomach but self-loathing. But she insists on cooking me fantastic dinners. I’ll settle.

    Also, kudos for taking a shot at Ward. That 70s Show was only good in middle school.

  13. I tried sharing the chicken fingers with my dog and he was reluctant…. Nice review 😀

  14. Read this while eating a Banquet meal I just bought, it really cracked me up . Great article, really captures the idea of these awful things haha

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  18. Man, this is an AMAZING review.
    I seriously fell off my seat. Aaah, you should become like a writer or something. I’d read your articles.

    Youknow,your article has inspired me so much, I might just write my own reviews.

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  20. A Fun Fact from the company’s website:

    Banquet has the highest household penetration and consumer loyalty in the single-serve frozen foods category. Thirty-six million households purchase Banquet single-serve meals.

    You are not alone.

    (btw, I shamelessly give the Swedish Meats a 7.5!)

  21. When I heated my sweet and sour chicken by banquet, I found 3 very long brown strands of hair. I have tried to contact them several times and still no response. I do not recommend them to anyone.

  22. THIS IS SO FUNNY haha I’m eating the meatballs right now because I’m on a low carb diet and refuse to spend money on the meals that have things like mac and cheese and mashed potatos in it as I can’t eat it and if its in the house I WILL eat it. Its not so bad, but the smell of the cheap, damp cardboard it comes in after being microwaved is nauseating.

    I don’t think you’ll end up alone though you’re funny, girls like funny. ^.^ Keep on taking dumps off of ladders, bro!

  23. The fried chicken meal with mashed potatos and corn is awful even prepared in the oven. The chicken had thick, tough skin. Years ago, when meals came in the foil trays, it was much better. The quality has declined.

  24. I don’t know why, but I love these. I love the spaghetti and meatballs…i just add an extra spoonful of ragu. The sweet and sour chicken is my latest craze. 😀

  30. I REALLY ENJOY ALL THE MICROWAVEABLE FOODS THAT BANQUET SERVES.KEEP IT UP ! I AM 88 YEARS YOUNG, DISABLED, IN A WHEELCHAIR AND CAN’T WAIT TILL I HAVE ANOTHER BANQUET MEAL…..
    pizzol@optimum.net

  32. Banquet needs to get in touch with a dog food co to learn how to make a good meal

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