Hot meals delivered to seniors may be nothing new, but Ironton’s Rick Pancake may be bringing something different to the table: Choices.

Beginning Monday, G&P Meals and Transportation will deliver lunch and dinner seven days a week to seniors in Lawrence, Gallia, Scioto and Jackson counties. In addition to hot meals, seniors can also receive frozen dinners to cook at their leisure.

If seniors have special needs, G&P also has that covered, with special meals for diabetics and those with kidney problems. This is coupled with a menu doesn’t repeat often, said Pancake, the owner of the delivery service.

“We’re on a four-week cycle,” Pancake said. “Which means that if we’re having meatloaf today, they won’t have meatloaf again for another four weeks.”

Of course, Pancake said, the business will also work with those who have a specific food request.

“If they want a meal Monday and Friday they can do that,” Pancake said. “If they don’t like green beans, and we’re having green beans, they can substitute that. They can do it anyway they want to.”

Most of the business’ customers will be members of programs like PASSPORT, a state-funded waiver that helps seniors to live at home. They will also be accepting private clients who may not be on a waiver program, but need some aid in preparing meals.

Although it’s a new business, it’s old hat for Pancake. Formerly the food service director for River Valley Health System, Pancake started a similar business, Caf/ Express, when the hospital closed up shop.

Pancake sold the shop a few years ago, but continued to manage it. Now he has struck out on his own again, with a business that caters to more counties than his former project.

“I just decided that there was more out there that needed to be done,” Pancake said. “It’s just the people themselves. There’s a great need here in the counties that we serve, and we feel that we a great job filling that.”

After so many years in the business of serving food to those in need, Pancake said that he’s developed a personal relationship with some of his clients, making helping seniors out, for Pancake, the easiest choice of all.

“The clients are always told that they can call here any time with any complaint or suggestion, and we do take the time to sit down and talk to them,” Pancake said. “There’s a bond formed there.”

G&P Meals and Transportation is located at 2740 S. Eighth St. in Ironton. They can also be reached at (740) 532-4044.