If you think about some of Hallmark’s Christmas movies and “ugly” Christmas sweaters sometimes judged in contests, it’s not hard to see the holiday as cheesy sometimes.
It doesn’t have to be that kind of cheesy, though.
Instead, McComb Market can help you put out a spread of the tastiest cheeses — and more — for holiday guests.
“Specialty cheeses and charcuterie boards are a growing product category,” operations director John Hillyard said. “In fact, charcuterie boards are the fastest growing category for us now.”
The product is so popular, in fact, that the seven locations of The Markets, including McComb, are having a holiday contest to win a charcuterie board.
Customers can go to The Markets’ Facebook page or McComb Market’s own Facebook page, to comment which Market is their favorite store, then like and share the page.
From all the likes generated, one will be drawn from each store and put in a drawing for a bamboo, Wisconsin-shaped board, plus packages of assorted meats, cheeses, nuts and other items to lay out for guests — or eat on your own.
Deadline to enter the giveaway is Dec. 1.
The cheese display has plenty of options to refill with or to start from scratch, from cheddar and parmesan to Edam, provolone, Asiago, Romano and more.
While supply chains have caused problems for many businesses, manager Gene Moak said Market suppliers have “done an amazing job getting us product. We have plenty of turkeys, hams, pies, cakes.”
Hillyard noted that the bakers and cake decorators at the Market will make anything from the basic birthday sheet cake to Chantilly cakes and multitiered centerpiece cakes for weddings and other special events.
“Our cake decorators have 50-plus year of experience,” Hillyard said. “Not many stores can say that.”
While you’re ordering a cake, you can also order a la carte holiday meal items, or just order the whole meal.
Ham dinners range from $59 to $79, and turkey dinners are $59 to $89. Chicken dinners are $34 to $49.
The biggest meal is $149 or $159, with a turkey and a ham, dressing, sweet potato casserole, green beans or sweet peas, gravy, two pies and two dozen rolls.
Cornbread dressing is available as a side to any meal, or can be bought on its own.
The dressing “was a staple at the Southside Market in Natchez,” Hillyard said. “People liked it so much they stood in line all day to get it. Now all seven locations have it.”
Moak noted that it’s the dressing now served on Sundays and Thursdays on the daily lunch line at McComb Market.
Six-pound pans of dressing are available for $29.99.
Other sides range from a dozen rolls for $3,99 to eggplant casserole for $49.99.
In addition to pies, two bread puddings — sweet potato and pecan pie — are available with pecan praline sauce. Five to six-pound pans are $39.99.
An annual sampling event won’t be held this year — “We just don’t have the staff right now,” Hillyard said — but Moak said he hopes the event can return next year.
The deadline for Thanksgiving orders is noon Tuesday, with pickup by noon Thanksgiving day.
For Christmas orders, the deadline is noon Dec. 21 to order, with pickup no later than 2 p.m. Christmas Eve.
