Is Josephine in Your Neighborhood?

This was my dinner tonight and I didn't lift a finger. No, Bruce did not prepare this. He's out-of-town for work and I am laid up with a bum foot. 

I had a bone spur removed last week and still must stay off of it.  I do have that boot to wear when I hobble around like I did last year when I had that Morton's neuroma removed. Such fun.

So, how did I get such a lovely dinner tonight? I mean, it was an awesome dinner; homemade potato gnocchi with spicy pork sausage ragu sauce, Caesar salad with homemade dressing and croutons, and homemade french bread. It was unbelievable.  

It was from Josephine and I'm happy to say I have two very active Josesphines within blocks of my house.  It a relatively new company that started in California and I like to think of it as a foodie Uber, only instead of ordering a ride, you are ordering a meal.  You see, there are people all over cooking meals in their own homes.  You can sign up to be a cook, then neighbors will search you on the Josephine website to find where you are.  Then you order a meal from Josephine website and select a time you will pick it up.  The cook gets the information and prepares as many meals as people order.  It's really slick.  There was an article about it in our Sunday paper so I immediately googled it to see if there were any cooks in our neighborhood.  It's amazing how many cooks are all over the place! The cooks post what they're cooking and you can decide what you want.  My cook will actually cook something every night, plus she also has homemade granola for $12/pound if you want to buy that for breakfast.  She also had warm homemade chocolate chip cookies fresh out of the oven if you wanted to purchase dessert. ($1.00 each)  She also makes homemade doggie treats called Doggie Firecrackers, seven for $2.00, so even your dog isn't left out of the fun. I read that some cooks will offer wine when you come to their home to pick up your meal while you wait. I had to wait tonight because a lady was picking up a rather large order before me. She was "a regular" and they knew each other by sight.  Then another lady came directly behind me to pick up her order so I hardly had a chance to talk to my cook. I read the cooks will get 20-30 meal requests per night.  My cook had only been doing it four weeks so she told me she was cooking every night to build up her business.  Josephine only recently came to Seattle but I can see that it is a booming business.  I hope it reduces the number of people who go to fast food, it is such a delicious homemade meal alternative.  My meal was $15 so it's not cheap but it's so much better.  You can order meals for a family of four or any quantity you want. Most cooks want to know your order by noon of the day you pick up.  The company is called Josephine because that was the name of the mom of a friend of the founders who always let them hang out at her house and she would cook homemade meals for them when they were poor and looking for work.  They started Josephine in 2014 because they remembered those days of sitting around the table with homemade food and knew how important it is for an individual's well-being to share a meal like that.   But also as important, is the feeling of community.  Cooks share their meals with neighbors, friends, co-workers, etc.  The cooks attract customers who are open to exploring new foods and patronizing other cooks.  When I introduced myself, my cook immediately asked me where I lived. Another new neighbor!  I can totally see how people might want to hang around with a glass of wine and talk about tonight's meal.  Josephine does a lot to help the cook and the customer.  I paid for my meal with PayPal, the cook receives 90% and Josephine receives 10%.  I received an email and text reminding me of my pick-up time today.  I was vetted before I joined, I had to create a profile and agree to their guidelines.  Then I provided my payment information.  It's easy to become a cook, too.  They are required to get a food handler's permit which requires a test and a $15 fee, which Josephine reimburses.  Then the cook prepares a meal for the Josephine staff to review and they do a 30-minute virtual home tour with the Cook Support Team.  They send the cooks supplies to get started including containers to put the food in.  My food tonight looked like this. (sort of messy)

There was also a sign in the yard just to confirm that I was at the right place. I received the address after I put in my order because on the website, they just show you the general vicinity of where the cook is located. 

They pretty much thought of everything.  I might invite Lauren over for dinner this week because my cook, Anh Dao, is cooking gnocchi all week and it's one of Lauren's favorite dishes.  Then I can go over to the other cook's house in my neighborhood who is preparing broiled pork chops with stewed black beans and rice.  We can each enjoy our homemade meal.  It's fun to read the website because customers will rate the cooks from 1 to 5 and write comments about their food.  They have their own websites on Josephine that you can read once you become a member. I've been reading about a lot of cooks around the city on the site.  Most have been in the restaurant business and most are rated 5 stars!  One cook only makes pot pies but makes all kinds of pot pies.  Some people hope to eventually open up their own restaurant or line of food.  Some people just sell desserts and bakery items. It's just whatever people want to do. Some people cook once a week and some everyday like my cook. It's so interesting to read about and it's such a great concept.  I like to cook my own meals but sometimes it's nice to have somebody else do it, too.  Since I'm recovering from foot surgery, I had a legitimate excuse to use Josephine.  But now I'm thinking it might just become a habit. Check it out and see if Josephine is in your neighborhood.  She's a neighbor you can become friends with real quick.