When I was growing up, home-cooked meals were a must. However, today’s fast-moving consumers are interested in ordering online and having it arrive at your door almost as fast as the click of a button.
I’ve seen a rise in meal-delivery services over the years. I admit, they are appealing – certainly convenient – but as someone who lives on a pension and sticks to a lean budget, the price of some of these services is out of my reach.
When I had the opportunity to review EveryPlate, I was excited. EveryPlate has all the promises of other meal-delivery services on the market, but it comes in at half the cost.
EveryPlate uses the same format as other meal-delivery services. You pick the number of meals you want each week, the number of people who’ll be eating them, and then the recipes you like the look of. From there, a box arrives on your doorstep each week with all the ingredients you need to make the meals you’ve chosen in your order. Plus, the box includes handy printed recipe cards with step-by-step instructions and pictures.
The thing I feel separates EveryPlate from other services like it, is the price. The prices are low; starting at $2.39 per serving! There is also a delivery charge (mine was $9.99). Special promotions can make this amount even lower, so it’s good to keep an eye out.
I’ve not used other meal-delivery services, but as someone who regularly shops online for my groceries and other goods, I found setting up my EveryPlate account incredibly simple. I imagine even those who aren’t seasoned at using online purchasing could use this website.
When you first sign-up, you’ll click the ‘Get Started’ button. This sets your plan. You’ll choose the number of people to be fed and then the number of meals per week you’ll want to eat with EveryPlate.
As part of your account information, you’ll be asked to provide your email address, create a password, and then you’ll need to provide some basic information such as your name, your delivery address and your phone number. This is how EveryPlate knows where to deliver your box every week.
You even have the flexibility to pick the day of delivery and leave special instructions for the drop off. For example, I signed up on Sunday, August 1, and chose my first delivery to come on Tuesday, August 10.
When it comes to payment, there are two options: credit card or PayPal. There are options for coupon codes (to the right of your payment information), if you have one available.
The fun part for me was choosing my meals. There are new meals offered each week. When I sat down to pick my meals I noticed that, while there was diversity, there were also similarities in the ingredients that each meal used. I also noticed there is no option to choose a ‘Box for One’, with my options being a box for two, four or six people. If you choose the two-person option, there are also options for three, four and five meals a week. I chose the ‘Box for Two’ option, saving me the hassle of cooking lunch the next day.
If you have a special dietary requirement, such as keto, gluten-free, paleo, low carb or vegan, EveryPlate is unlikely to suit your needs. While it does offer a range of tasty recipes, it does not cater to special dietary needs. The same goes for those who might have an allergy. However, all the ingredients and nutritional information is listed for each recipe, so you can make the right decisions for your diet. Each week also featured a selection of vegetarian dishes to choose from. EveryPlate makes meal suggestions, which you can change prior to purchase. It’s worth noting that some meals are labeled as ‘Premium’ and incur an additional fee when selected. For example, I changed one of the pre-selected meals to a Premium and was charged $5.98 for doing so.
Once my meals were chosen, all I had to do was wait for my box to be delivered. EveryPlate contacted me by SMS the week prior to my first delivery as my address had caused some confusion for their drivers. After a quick call to customer service this was sorted well before my delivery date.
Delivery was swift! The package arrived on my doorstep before 5am on the day it was scheduled. I know this because I was up and about at 3:45am and the box was already there. It was still dark outside.
Opening my EveryPlate delivery was something special. Everything was beautifully packed; products that were to be kept cold were stored together and wrapped in ice packs, seasonings were in sachets and vegetables were clean and looked fresh. What was also noticeable was that EveryPlate’s packaging materials are all recyclable.
EveryPlate provided the recipe cards for each meal in the box, and each card had step-by-step instructions for how the meal should be cooked and showed all of the nutritional information. The instructions were very clear, and I had no trouble following them. A further plus was that I didn’t need a magnifying glass to read the print. I am no chef, but even the most novice cooks should be able to follow the instructions and not make a hash of the meal.
One of the meals I cooked was ‘Creamy Pork Fusilli with Zucchini and Tomato’ (I love pasta dishes). In addition to the ingredients provided in my EveryPlate box, I required a medium saucepan, a large frying pan, a cutting board, grater, and sharp knife. I also needed a small amount of oil and butter.
I might be stretching it when I say, “MasterChefs eat your heart out”, but what was supposed to be a meal for two could have easily been a meal for three. I was so impressed with not only the flavour of the meal – and I could have adjusted things to suit my individual tastes – but also that I’d created it so easily!
I admit I’ve never used a meal-delivery service like EveryPlate before, however, I feel this is a service that would suit those who are new to cooking (those easy-to-follow recipe cards and pre-portioned ingredients are perfect for beginners), those who are strapped for time (anyone with a busy schedule will appreciate how EveryPlate takes the stress out of meal time, and when you only have 20-40 minutes to get a meal on the table, EveryPlate fits well), and those – like me – who live on a budget (it’s very affordable).
I was impressed with my experience using EveryPlate and it’s certainly something I’ll consider using again in the future! If you want to give it a go, use the code STARTSAT60 as an introductory offer to get 40% off your first box and 20% off your second and third box. Plus, EveryPlate now offers an ongoing seniors discount, giving you 10% off every single box after your introductory offer!