Back to School, Back to Busy: Making the Weekday Routine a Little Easier with Dash In
New backpacks? Check. School supplies? Check. First-day outfit? Ready to go.
But anyone with a school-aged child knows getting ready for back-to-school is about more than checking off a supply list. It also means getting the whole family back into a routine.
This year, families with children in elementary through high school are expected to spend an average of $863.86 on back-to-school purchases, according to the National Retail Federation. Nearly half of shoppers say they plan to purchase only the essentials needed to start the school year and replenish supplies as needed.
And once the shopping is done, there’s another challenge waiting: the daily routine.
A recent survey of 2,000 parents with school-aged children found that 56% say back-to-school season increases the burden of managing meals. Between deciding what to eat, shopping, cooking and cleaning, parents reported spending nearly two hours a day managing meals alone.
That’s before homework, sports practices, dance classes, appointments and everything else that comes with a new school year.
At Dash In, we can’t help with the homework. But we can make a few of those busy moments a little easier.
When the Morning Doesn’t Go According to Plan
The alarm didn’t go off. Someone can’t find a shoe. The lunchbox is still sitting on the kitchen counter, empty.
Some mornings, getting everyone out the door is the accomplishment.
Dash In serves breakfast all day, so missing breakfast at home doesn’t have to mean skipping it altogether. Our jumbo Southern-style buttermilk biscuits are baked in-house and paired with fresh-cracked eggs for options like our Bacon, Egg and Cheese Biscuit. Looking for something heartier? Try a Country Breakfast Stackadilla®, filled with bacon, breakfast sausage, tots and melted cheese, or a Breakfast Burger made with fresh, never-frozen beef, bacon, tots, cheddar and a fresh-cracked egg.
And, of course, there’s fresh, hot coffee for the person responsible for getting everyone where they need to go.
When School Pickup is Just the Beginning
For plenty of families, the final school bell is really just the start of the second half of the day.
Pickup turns into soccer practice. Or dance. Or tutoring. Or a trip across town for an appointment you forgot you scheduled three months ago.
Those are the days when one stop can make a difference.
Dash In makes it easy to grab drinks and snacks, fuel up and order something more substantial without adding another complicated stop to the day. And with the Dash In Rewards app, you can order food ahead so it’s ready when you arrive, while earning rewards and accessing exclusive offers that can help you save along the way.
Because when practice starts in 20 minutes, every minute counts.
When Nobody Thought About Dinner
“What’s for dinner?”
It might be the most dangerous question anyone can ask at 6 p.m.
The good news is that choosing convenience doesn’t mean settling for whatever happens to be available.
“Back-to-school season can change a family’s entire routine, and dinner doesn’t always go according to plan,” says Todd Fangman, Senior Foodservice Manager at Dash In. “We want our guests to know they can still get something fresh and made to order, even when they only have a few minutes between school, practice and everything else on the calendar.”
Dash In’s made-to-order menu is built for exactly those nights. Our Craft Burgers are griddle-pressed to order with fresh, never-frozen beef. Stackadillas® are grilled and filled to order, with options ranging from Chicken Bacon Ranch and Buffalo Chicken to Steak Fajita and Pork Carnitas.
It’s part of a food philosophy Dash In has been building for years: fresh ingredients, on-site preparation and food made for guests when they order it.
Because sometimes the best dinner plan is simply having a good backup plan.
A Little Easier Goes a Long Way
Back-to-school season comes with plenty of pressure already. Families are balancing budgets, schedules and a long list of things that need to get done before bedtime, only to wake up and do it again the next morning.
Convenience can’t make the calendar less crowded. But it can remove a little friction from the day.
Breakfast when the morning gets away from you. A quick stop between school and practice. Dinner when the original dinner plan didn’t happen. Or simply a cup of coffee before doing it all again tomorrow.
However your family tackles the school year, Dash In is here to help keep things moving.
