
The Last-Minute Picnic: Where to Find Great Pre-Made Food for Outdoor Meals
When you just want to grab your picnic supplies and go, hit up these shops for the best pre-made meals in the West

Photo by Thomas J. Story
The art of picnicking is really not hard: make some sandwiches and sides, and throw them into a basket along with a chilled bottle (or two) or rosé. But if you’re like me, and define a picnic as an easy meal, you simply pick up a fully stocked basket and perhaps some chilled cans of wine, set up on the perfect patch of grass or sand, and enjoy. Here are a few of our favorite spots for no-hassle, pre-packaged picnics to go.
California
Jimtown Store, Healdsburg. BYOP (Bring Your Own Picnic) is the philosophy in wine country, where the grounds of wineries such as Ram’s Gate, La Crema, Dutcher Crossing Winery, and Seghesio Family Vineyards are dotted with picnic tables and tasting rooms have bottles for purchase. Jimtown Store, a Sonoma County institution, sells all of the provisions you’ll need for an al fresco feast, plus easy grab-and-go boxed lunches including a baguette sammy (the signature comes with prosciutto, Pt. Reyes blue cheese, and fig and olive tapenade), buttermilk coleslaw, olives, fruit, and a Jimtown cookie. Kid-friendly lunches include a choice of PB&J or ham and cheese.
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bf6Q6lmBx-y/Colorado
Cured, Boulder. With a cheese and sandwich counter, wine shop, and selection of farm-fresh foods and gourmet treats, Cured is a one-stop-shop for all of your picnic needs. They make things even easier with pre-made picnics for every imaginable Rocky Mountain adventure, like a tailgate at Red Rocks or a backcountry hike. Their Proper Picnic for two comes in a Peterboro wooden picnic basket filled with cheeses, meats, Marcona almonds, trail mix, olives, a baguette, red pepper jelly, Mast Brothers chocolates, and sparkling sodas.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BvO3a1glVWM/Hawaii
Tucker & Bevvy, Honolulu. Before heading to Waikiki Beach, stop by Tucker & Bevy for to-go bags filled with beet, feta, and walnut salad or a chicken BLT and picnic sides like smoked gouda and bacon dip with pita chips. Groups can call ahead for picnic bags on ice that include a wrap, chips, fruit, and cookie. If you’re hitting the surf early, opt for the breakfast picnic spread of mango macadamia bread and a yogurt parfait.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BvmlqVkBA9U/Idaho
Café Shakespeare, Boise. Lisa Peterson, owner of a’Tavola Gourmet Marketplace, is the brains behind this theater-side concession stand that runs during the Idaho Shakespeare Festival each summer. Individual picnic bags come with fancy sammys like curried chicken salad with almonds, currants, and mango chutney, plus a side and a cookie. If you want to give your neighbors food envy, order the Midsummer Picnic Basket for two, filled with chilled jumbo shrimp and Bloody Mary cocktail sauce, pasta salad, olives, and crostini with pan-fried onion dip.