Eating good meal on your pocket size just got easier everyone. According to H.W Longfellow- “Life is real. Life is earnest. And the grave is not its goal.” I love this quote because it reminds me that living well, eating right, and balancing all of life’s gift isn’t an option but a necessity.
The purpose of life is living not death. To live healthier, you need to eat healthy foods and exercise right. Eating healthy can make you feel and look good any day, any time. It also helps in reducing medical costs. Whatever may be your career or professional status, it’s never easy balancing work and cooking good home made meals for you or for the family.

Finding a good meal delivery service isn’t as easy as watering the plants, the experience can be a bit larger than the streams in the south; (mothers, foodies, you know what I’m talking about), especially with floods of options in the market today. One can easily get overwhelmed finding the right choice.

Not to worry anymore. I came across some amazing meal delivery service reports/ reviews and I will be sharing them with you all. They were compiled by consumersadvocate.org. Please visit them on:
https://www.consumersadvocate.org/meal-delivery for an in depth information about the listed services below or visit the webpage at each meal delivery service.

” Eating healthy meal on your pocket size just got easier”

Their analysis is based on convenience, shipping & delivery, cost, quality of ingredients, and variety. Whatever your meal plan or budget, you will find the one that best suits you. If you don’t yours among the listed, please, leave your own meal delivery service in the comment box below. Your comment and reviews will be highly appreciated.

1. HOME CHEF REVIEW – Best For Hungry Couples:

Home Chef is known for its classic recipes—not much experimenting here—and very generous portions, meaning they’re ideal for hungry couples and, why not, voracious students. You can set your menus and delivery orders up to 5 weeks in advance, a convenience, not many other meal delivery companies offer. Also, you can add salads, smoothies, and fruit baskets to your orders. 

If you want to spend even less time in the kitchen, Home Chef is now offering its new Oven-Ready meals, which come with an oven-safe tray. Plus, its “Customize It” feature lets you create up to 26 different weekly combinations. As if all this wasn’t enough, Home Chef has an app for choosing recipes, keeping track of your orders, and sending feedback. 

Webpage: https://www.homechef.com

2. HELLO FRESH REVIEW- Best for the healthy- minded:

Thanks to Hello Fresh, the concepts “fresh” and “meal delivery” are no longer in opposition. One of the nation’s most successful meal delivery companies rose to culinary fame due to its healthy recipes made from locally-sourced ingredients. And, with servings for up to 4 people, the whole family can take advantage of these healthy meals. 

All the recipes are very easy to follow, complete with nutritional information and step-by-step instructions. Plus, adults can add six bottles of top-quality red, white, or mixed wine for $89 per month, including free shipping.
 
Webpage: https://www.hellofresh.com

3. SUN BASKET REVIEW – Best for budding eco-friendly chefs:

Love spending time in the kitchen and experimenting with new recipes and flavors? Look no further than this meal delivery service. Sun Basket stands out for its variety of complex, restaurant-like meals made with organic produce and responsibly-sourced meats and seafood, and for its focusing on the joys of cooking at home. Plus, its emphasis on recyclable materials and sustainable sourcing makes Sun Basket one of the most eco-friendly meal delivery services in the US. 

Webpage: https://sunbasket.com
4. PLATED REVIEW – Best for families:

Parents, rejoice! If you barely have any time in your hectic schedule for grocery shopping and dinner planning for your family, Plated is here to save your days and nights. Its emphasis on plan flexibility, generous portions, and varied-tasting menu options featuring Greek, Thai, Latin, Italian, and American staples are sure to please everyone in the family, even the little ones. 

The recipes are categorized by skill level, and according to the company, there are 6,715 possible recipe combinations each week. Plus, this is one of the few major meal delivery companies offering dessert options, and the only one featuring a brunch menu.

Webpage: https://www.plated.com

5. FRESHLY REVIEW- Best for quick meals and single people:

Dinner for one, in less than 3 minutes? That’s what Freshly is all about, making it the best meal delivery option for people with tight schedules and/or zero desire to prep, cook, and wash the dishes. Plus, its single-serving meals are the perfect alternative for single people. 

The meals come chilled, never frozen, and are meant to be stored in your fridge rather than in your freezer. Since all the meals are free of preservatives, they must be consumed in less than 1 week. 

Webpage: https://www.freshly.com

6. BLUE APRON REVIEW – Best for foodies and wine enthusiasts:

Arguably the most popular meal kit service in the US, Blue Apron has become the quality standard in a very crowded meal delivery marketplace. With plans offering 2 to 4 recipes for two people or a family of four, easy-to-follow recipes for every skill level, and a wide array of vegetarian and meat-and-fish meals, it’s the ideal meal delivery choice for couples and families who enjoy their time in the kitchen. 

For people looking to manage their weight, Blue Apron recently teamed up with Weight Watchers (now rebranded as WW) to offer meals based on the now-classic points-system plan for losing weight. Blue Apron has also launched its very own Wine Program, where you’ll get access to wines from renowned winemakers at $10 per bottle.

Webpage: http://www.blueapron.com

7. VEESTRO REVIEW – Best for vegans and vegetarians:

The world of meal delivery caters almost exclusively to carnivores and omnivores, making Veestro a sort of rarity: a company that only serves 100% plant-based food — no meat, dairy, eggs, or any other animal-related products. For this reason, it’s the perfect option for vegetarians, vegans, and people looking to venture into the plant-based lifestyle. 

With Veestro, almost everything can be customized and hand-picked — from the plan options and delivery schedules to the 50+ breakfast and entree options featured in the extensive online menu. Furthermore, you can narrow down your options based on dietary restrictions, and, if you feel like having an expert pick the meals for you, you can subscribe to Veestro’s ‘Chef Choice’ plan, where you’ll get your very own, personalized menu for the week, based on your preferences. 

Webpage: https://www.veestro.com

8. AMAZON FRESH REVIEW – Best for grocery delivery:

The world’s biggest online retailer, Amazon.com, is now tackling the grocery delivery industry with its launch of AmazonFresh. With your Amazon Prime membership — required for shopping at AmazonFresh — you’ll get access to the largest virtual supermarket so you can stock up on everything you need, from groceries and household items to pet food and everything in between. And the best part is, you get everything delivered right to your door, free of charge. 

As this is Amazon we’re talking about, you can make your purchases using your laptop, mobile app, or even via Alexa. Just say “Alexa, order a dozen eggs and put them in my cart”… and done! With AmazonFresh, your days of setting foot into a brick-and-mortar grocery store may be over for good.

Webpage: https://www.amazon.com

9. EVERYPLATE REVIEW – Best for slim budgets:

By keeping its production costs at a minimum, EveryPlate is able to offer 8 different meal options each week at only $4.99 per serving, by far the lowest price in the meal delivery industry. But don’t be fooled by the affordability: in EveryPlate’s case, low prices don’t mean low quality. On the contrary, the meals are hearty, generously-portioned, and, although the recipes are limited in number, they are varied enough so as to avoid boredom. However, the low prices do mean that there are no options for special diets, such as vegetarians, vegans, paleo, keto, gluten-free, and the like.

Webpage: https://www.everyplate.com

10. BISTROMD REVIEW – Vest for weight loss and diabetics:

Most meal delivery companies do not cater to people with special conditions, dietary restrictions, and/or nutritional needs. In comes BistroMD, with its registered-dietitian created meal plans specifically designed for diabetics and people looking to manage their weight. 

Plus, this is one of the few companies offering not only dinner entrees, but also breakfast, lunch, and snack options. This way, your dietary needs will be taken care of for the whole week (if you choose the full 7-day plan). And last — but definitely not least — these chef-prepared meals are ready in 5 minutes or less, meaning you’ll spend very little time in the kitchen. 

Webpage: https://www.bistromd.com

WHAT TO WATCH OUT FOR WHEN BUYING MEAL DELIVERY SERVICES

FOOD SAFETY:

The most important thing to watch out for when subscribing to a meal delivery service is food safety. Since you’ll be receiving every meal in boxes, via delivery trucks, and sometimes you might not even be home when the food arrives — meaning the food might be left outside, uncooled, for a couple of hours — there’s a chance the ingredients might not arrive with optimum freshness, and even worse, they might have turned bad by the time you open the box. 

However, according to Dr. Donald W. Schaffner, who is a distinguished food science professor at Rutgers University and co-host of the Food Safety Talk podcast, there aren’t many significant differences — at least safety-wise — between delivered meals and the ones you purchase at the supermarket. “I don’t know of any evidence that indicates that meal kits are any riskier than other foods,” said Dr. Schaffner, “although the challenges with meal kits relate to temperature control.” 

Regarding temperature control, the Rutgers professor emphasized that “meat, poultry or seafood may be riskier than other foods because they are known to contain pathogens, and if temperature-abused can lead to conditions where the pathogens will multiply, thus increasing the risk.” For this reason, the ideal meal package should contain some sort of passive refrigeration (i.e. dry ice, frozen gel packs, or ice packs). 

To make sure your food is safe for consumption, it is recommended that you check the food temperature with a food thermometer (perishable food must be at least 40°), check the contents for anything that might look unusual, and place the contents in the box on your fridge or freezer as soon as possible. To get detailed advice regarding food safety and best practices, you can visit the USDA website.  

AUTOMATIC RENEWALS:

After reading hundreds of customer reviews on several web pages and comment sections, we feel automatic renewals represent one of the customers’ main gripes with meal delivery companies. Most of the time, even if you don’t order meals for a given week, they’ll be sent to you regardless (based on your order history), meaning you’ll have to pay for them. For this reason, we recommend that if you want to cancel your subscription, make changes to your schedule, or skip weeks, you make sure to constantly update and check your account on the company’s online platform. 

For FAQs, popular comparisons of each of the listed meal delivery services, and a detailed summary, visit – https://www.consumersadvocate.org – “Decision made easy.”

Blessings and Love ??❤️