Growing up in the 70s and 80s, school dinners were nothing flash.

If anything, they were positively awful!

No wonder, so many of us took our own sandwiches, as I often did.

But what a contrast today, at least if you use School Kitchen.

I am sure the meals have much improved since at our schools overall and they are probably healthier too!

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But best to wait until the evening and see what you can get delivered from Acomb.

School Kitchen launched last month, from Carr Junior School, in Ostman Road, offering a range of four restaurants.

Professional chefs have been taken on to create bold flavours from around the world, which are then delivered to your door.

There is currently Sri Lankan, Spanish, Thai and Mexican, with more to follow.

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Owner David Nicholson last week arranged for the Press to sample the range available.

And what a treat it was, as we uncovered a range of options across the ethnicities, using chicken, lamb, beef, seafood and vegetarian recipes.

It was all packed carefully in heat bags and delivered promptly one mid-afternoon.

It made for a great spread in the boardroom as we all tucked in.

Young and old all liked what was delivered.

Flavours were plentiful, not overpowering and meats were tender.

As we all tried several different dishes, it was clear the Spanish lamb stew (£11.95) was a favourite, along with the patatas bravas (£3.95).

I also enjoyed the tender and flavoursome Beef Barbacao (£18-95) from the Mexican range.

A vegetarian colleague also thoroughly enjoyed the food on offer, agreeing it was tasty with generous portions.

York Press: What's for dinner?

He added: “The paneer curry dish (£6.50) was a standout for me which had a fresh taste with a fiery kick.”

Now, there was a fair amount left over, as much had been delivered.

I was looking forward to reheating the leftovers the next day, and polishing off the rest of the lamb stew, but sadly, it leaked all over the fridge overnight and without me knowing until it was too late, two colleagues had cleaned out the fridge and chucked it all away.

The containers are made from biomass and though David Nicholson says he has never known the containers leaking, he would look into it. But what a shame.

Anyway, though only recently launched, School Kitchen is starting to deservedly garner rave reviews, with four 5-star ratings on Google.

Reece Seers said: “Really nice food and delivery came on time and hot! Definitely recommend to anyone looking for a range of amazing food :).”

Emma E said: “Lovely food, me and my children really enjoyed it! We had the Mexican menu. The food arrived for the time slot we ordered it for as well. Will definitely be ordering again!”

Niall Moran chose from the Spanish menu, reporting delivery within 20 minutes.

He said: “The Paella de Verduras (£8.95) was good but not as spicy as I would have liked but my partner loved it. Albondigas, lamb meatballs in a tomato sauce was very very tasty (£6.50) , the food was hot and you can tell its fresh food!—highly recommended for vegetarians.”

Jonathan Thompson also gave 5-stars for food and service, adding the labelling of food was very clear, including for vegetarians.”

And now more of York can enjoy School Kitchen, with it covering almost all of the city, including Poppleton, Askham Bryan/Richard, Copmanthorpe, Bishopthorpe, Fulford, Heslington, Tang Hall, Heworth, New Earswick, Huntington, and even part of Haxby.

David explained: “We put heat packs in the bags, so can go further than Deliveroo, Just Eat, etc. If anyone does want to order from us, they can get 10% off the first order with the code SK10OFF.”

Next month, School Kitchen will start ‘guest restaurants’ offering menus from less familiar locations.

David said: “We’re starting in May with a Kurdish restaurant, then moving on to Kenyan, Bhutanese, and Cuban as the year progresses.”

It certainly seems more highly recommended and tasty treats are in store for York to enjoy.

If only school dinners had been like this when I was young!