While this may not sound very attractive, let's face it, Road Warriors get tired of eating out every night and who can afford it? Sometimes it is just comforting to eat at your temporary home - the hotel room. I've discovered that not only can it be done, but it can be done well.
For our recent assignment we were two hours away from our tax home, so the best solution for housing while on this assignment was to stay at a Country Inn and Suites with a negotiated rate with one of the managers there. We stayed at this hotel three nights per week for 13 weeks.
Funding Future Vacations
While it isn't completely awesome to stay in a hotel for an entire assignment in a room with no kitchen, it IS helpful to pile up the reward points to that they can be used to get us free rooms for our days off in the future. We certainly did a nice job with that on this assignment.
To maximize our rewards here we applied for and were approved for the hotel branded credit card. This gave us immediate Gold Status that earned us an extra 30% bonus points per stay in addition to the 20 points per $1 stayed with their Loyalty program. The branded card gave us another 10 points per dollar. Further, we signed up for a promotion which tripled our rewards during the promotional time period. Over 13 weeks we amassed somewhere in the ballpark of 250,000 reward points with Club Carlson. Since one of the other perks of having their credit card is a free night with a 2 night room reward, for us, that is like having 500,000 reward points to use! We planning on using them this year in NYC and in Puerto Rico for free!
Cooking Without a Kitchen
Free hotel room upgrades was also a motivation for bothering with all of this. While we stayed at The Country Inn and Suites, we were given a suite each time we checked in even though our negotiated rate was, basically, the same low rate we found on Priceline but we were then able to collect rewards.
The suite we lived in had a microwave and a partially working refrigerator, so it was my job to create a portable kitchen for us to take with us each week. A bigger room also had a couch and an endtable, which then became our diningroom during our stays.
My portable kitchen was created in the form of a clear tub storage tub. In it, after trial and error, I stocked it with the following:
- 4 Bobby Flay plastic plates that were colorful (color adds something to food, especially in the hotel room)
- Silverware from home
- Good knives including chopping, steak, and paring
- Spices - I tend to get carried away with this, but packed lots of them!
- Spatula and a wooden spoon
- Toaster oven - sometimes I rotated out the toaster oven and subbed in an electric skillet or a quesadilla maker.
- 2 Potholders and a mitt
- 3 Dishcloths, 3 dishrags
- 1 small bottle of dishsoap from the dollar store
- Corkscrew/bottle opener
- Wine Saver pump and rubber stops
- Battery operated lights for the table
- 2 colorful placemats
- 2 wine glasses
- 1 French White baking dish with glass cover
- 2 square rubbermaid dishes, 2 small square rubbermaids
- 1 can of Pam spray
- 1 small bottle of Olive Oil
- Tinfoil
- a pastry brush
- A small bottle of Mr. Clean
The tub was lightweight even when fully packed, pictured below, and it stored nicely in the closet of our room out of the way. We carried the entire "kitchen" into our room all in one neat, medium sized package. The electric appliance was set up on a hard surface. Sometimes I used a table in the room, and other times I moved the coffee maker out of the way and used that surface for cooking instead.One of the meal I experimented with successfully was one of my husband's favorite comfort foods, Chicken Reganotti (oregano chicken, it's Greek). After much researching online and then experimenting for myself, I discovered that while French White cookware is not rated for toaster ovens, they perform just fine even being so close to the heating source.
Planning the Meal
About two hours before I picked my husband up from work I headed to the grocery store. Back in the room I placed the chicken and potatoes in the cookware without a cover, and set aside.
Preheat toaster oven to 450 degrees.
Next, for dessert, the other comfort food is Strawberry Shortcake. I bought one packet of Bisquick, mixed with water and dropped onto toaster oven metal sheet. I baked for 10 minutes or until biscuits browned around the edges. I removed the biscuits onto tinfoil to cool. Despite what nay-sayers blog about elsewhere, I find this cheap toaster oven to bake just fine!
Next, I reset the toaster to "Bake" with a temperature of 375 degrees, but the chicken and potatoes in, and let it cook for 1.5 hours.
Chicken Reganotti Recipe
Any cut of bone-in chicken with skin (I prefer thighs for their cost and their size)
Peeled potatoes
Baste chicken and potatoes with olive oil
Pour or squeeze lemon juice over everything - I use a lot - about 1/2 cup
Season to taste with oregano - I use a lot of it - about 2 tablespoons
A pinch of sea salt over the top
Just before leaving the house to pick up the husband from work, I turned off the toaster oven and unplugged it.As soon as we return to the hotel room, I turned on the oven again, but this time for only about 5 minutes on broil just to be certain that all the food served will be hot. Delicious, just like it is at home.
Another meal in the room I made was Quesadillas.
This time I visited the salad bar at the grocery store. When I returned to the room I cut everything into smaller pieces. The electric quesadilla maker made this a quick meal with easy cleanup. Even adding protein to this meal is easy as some salad bars ofter mock-crab, ham, or seasoned chicken.I added sour cream, fresh salsa, and medium sized flour tortillas to round out the selection.
Cleanup
Finally, there is no escaping the after-cooking cleanup.
Before I started cooking I tackled the bathroom. In this particular room the counterspace was very limited. So, I moved toiletries, towels, makeup, and anything else to one side of the countertop. On the other side, I designated it as the kitchen for cleanup and cleaned the countertop and wall with Mr. Clean (yes, I'm funny that way). Next, I laid down a fresh kitchen towel. After the meal I washed the dishes in the sink and promptly dried them with a clean dishtowel, then stored them back in the storage tub. I think used the pants hangers in the closet with clips on them to hang the towels to air-dry over the bathtub. Complete! While living in a hotel room isn't a fantasy situation, at least one doesn't have to be cut-off from home cooking! Here are other ideas for cooking in a hotel room:
Using tinfoil pans from the Dollar Tree to cook chicken.
Use tinfoil to bake cut-up potatoes, much like you would do on a grill. I use plain yogurt with seasonings to make a zesty compliment for chicken and potatoes.
