High takeout prices make feeding family of 9 impossible as mom shocks kids with affordable meals

For a mom named Mary Neilis, cooking dinner every night isn't about perfection — it's about practicality. With a single takeout meal for her family of nine costing more than $200, home-cooked meals became a necessity.

Over the past year or so, the 36-year-old Westchester, New York, mother of seven has turned nightly family dinners into a full-time job and a viral following on TikTok and Substack, where she goes by "7kidskitchen." 

Neilis shares realistic, "healthy-ish" meals designed for busy households.

PRIVATE CHEFS REVEAL THE 5 'HEALTHY' FOODS THEIR WEALTHY CLIENTS USUALLY AVOID

"It's a real house," she told Fox News Digital. "There's chaos going on — but I'm cooking dinner either way."

Neilis partners with her sister, Bernadette O'Donnell, who records and edits the content, while her husband, a New York City firefighter, helps manage the finances for 7kidskitchen. 

The family-run approach has resonated with millions by keeping food, budgeting and parenting honest and approachable.

In her videos, which often draw tens of thousands of views, Neilis' children — ranging in age from 2 years old to 14 — are perched on the countertop or on her hip. They don chef's hats, help stir, ask for drinks in the background, make requests like "no tomatoes," sneak tastes — and run through the house.

SOCIAL MEDIA STAR 'THE FOOD NANNY' REVIVES HEIRLOOM RECIPES, ANCIENT GRAINS AND SIT-DOWN DINNERS

Neilis isn't just serving up one-pot weeknight dinners. She takes special birthday requests from her children and cooks extra when they have friends over. 

Some meals are guaranteed hits, she said. 

"If I put chicken cutlets with any side, everyone will eat that," she said. 

Favorites also include chicken francese, steak and mashed potatoes, as well as tacos and homemade Chipotle-style bowl nights.

PROTEIN-PACKED COMFORT FOOD ROCKED 2025, GOOGLE'S TOP 10 VIRAL RECIPES REVEAL

She keeps it fresh with other dishes, including burger bowls, takeout-inspired chicken fried rice, shepherd's pie, coconut curry salmon, chili, pulled pork sliders, pot roast — even Swedish meatballs.

Despite a packed house and a small kitchen, Neilis said cooking never feels like a burden. 

"I don't see it as a chore," she said. "I don't mind getting in the kitchen every night and cooking."

She and her husband, both New York natives, were already accustomed to a full house of mouths to feed. "I'm one of seven," Neilis said. "He's one of five."

Cooking is a family tradition that she grew up with, she added. 

FORMER DIETITIAN SAYS HOMEGROWN FOOD HELPS FAMILY'S HEALTH AFTER CUTTING GROCERY TRIPS

"When I became a mom, my husband was in the military, so he would sometimes be out for weeks at a time," she said. "I started cooking and just loved it — and haven't stopped since."

Neilis typically plans five dinners each week. "If I know we're going to be home all weekend, I don't mind cooking then either."

She'll whip up pancakes or homemade sourdough muffins on the weekends — and sometimes gets a break with Chinese food or pizza delivery for dinner.

She keeps weekday breakfasts and lunches easy. 

"During the week, it's a bagel or cereal for breakfast. Let's get everybody out the door as quickly as possible," she said. 

School lunches are often sandwiches and a bag of cookies or chips.

CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR OUR LIFESTYLE NEWSLETTER

Her dinners typically follow a simple structure, Neilis said. "I like to have a protein, a vegetable and a starch every night," she said, admitting it's not always perfect.

Neilis is candid about whether a dish was a hit or not. "I'm never going to lie," she said. 

Italian wedding soup, she added, got a mixed reaction. "If I'm being honest, only about half my kids liked this one," she said in a TikTok video.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE LIFESTYLE STORIES

That straightforward approach extends to how she prepares meals for nine.

"You have to start in a really clean kitchen and clean as you go," she said. "You have only minimal things to work with. Really be organized about your cooking."

TEST YOURSELF WITH OUR LATEST LIFESTYLE QUIZ

Budgeting plays a major role as well, she said. 

"If chicken's on sale, we might have three chicken dinners that week," she said. "If steak is on sale, we might have steak fajitas that week."

Fridays are for meal planning and online grocery orders, she said. 

Neilis also shares recipes on Substack — plus, for subscribers, meal plans.

At the end of each week, she posts a roundup of everything she cooked for her family — which she hopes gives other people inspiration.

"I need to come up with new recipes and make sure they're good," she said. "I've been loving it, and it's gotten me out of my comfort zone."