Recently signed up for a meal service, Hello Fresh. Once a week they ship a box to my house with everything needed to make (3) full dinner's for 2 - everything from the meat and vegetables to condiments, spices, etc. My wife and I both work and we suck at meal planning, so we're giving it a shot so that we can eat less take-out.

Anyway, I know there are other meal services out there and wanted to see if anyone has any that they love. Hello Fresh has been pretty decent, no real complains, just curious what else is out there.

Some of my family members do Blue Apron and they love it.

Another vote here for Blue Apron. We've done it off and on for about a year and we really like it. If you like to cook, then give Blue Apron a try. The recipes aren't difficult but they also aren't super simple (nothing where you just "throw it all in a pot and let it go until done") and they do require you to prep ingredients (usually ~10 minutes of chopping and getting your mise en place together). I haven't tried Hello Fresh before but it sounds very similar to Blue Apron.

My wife and I saw Plated on Shark Tank and gave it a try. We really loved the flavor of the food and there was only one that we didn't like. We probably ate about 10 meals of their meals, but now the subscription service is too big of a hassle so we dropped it. It was easier to buy when you had to be a "member" but could buy 4 meals whenever you wanted.

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I haven't tried Hello Fresh before but it sounds very similar to Blue Apron.

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It is. Same concept, close to the same price.

Do the meals generally provide leftovers?

We suck at meal planning as well, but we use Cook Smarts. Cook Smarts gives you 4 recipes a week and organizes your shopping cart based off of it. We've become much better cooks due to it giving us recipes we normally wouldn't try.

I can only speak to Blue Apron for leftovers but typically, no, there aren't leftovers. All the meals we get are meant for just two adult portions but some are a little bit bigger than others. It really depends on how much you eat. If you don't eat a lot you could certainly stretch to an extra portion (which we've done on occasion when an unexpected guest has dropped by for dinner).

Plated doesn't provide leftovers, either. The portions aren't large, and the taste is pretty good so if my wife didn't finish her plate I would finish it.

The nicest part is there's nothing left over. If a recipe calls for a quarter of an onion, they send you a quarter of an onion. You don't find a nasty 3/4 onion in your fridge months later (not that it's ever happened...)

My company sells produce to Blue Apron. They are an excellent company to work with. They sent me 4 free complete meals and they were excellent. My 18 year old son cooked a couple of them so they are not difficult.

I got one free delivery (3 dinners) from a friend. Absolutely love it, but there's no way I'm paying for that. It's not cheap, and you only get three dinners (not 7, nor breakfast/lunch). They include almost literally everything, even little solo cups of a tablespoon of mayo or butter. All you need at home is salt, pepper, and olive oil. Makes a perfect meal for 2 adults, but no leftovers. In a way that's nice cuz it forces you to watch portions. Everything was packed well and fresh, and the produce kept for a decent amount of time in the fridge.

Again, I love it, but it's expensive (yes, I understand why it's expensive, but I'm a good cook so I'd rather just go to the store myself).

It does seem a bit pricey, but for those (like me) who might be otherwise tempted to pick up take-out those 3 times a week instead of cooking something at home, it is almost a wash.

Yeah. We do a local one where we go and prepare the meals ourselves, dream dinners. Meals are good, nothing to write home about. Though they are things we wouldn't usually make so nice to mix it up a little. And really good considering how quick and easy they are to cook.

And yes, definitely more expensive than just going to the grocery store. But cheaper than going out or ordering take out. And usually more heathy.

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Do the meals generally provide leftovers?

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Hello Fresh always had leftovers for us. (My wife probably eats slightly less then most) The two person plan is plenty of food for two. It was good but in our opinion not enough veggies. We just like tons of vegetable options with our meals. I think Hello Fresh is the healthiest option over Plated and Blue Apron.

We did it for two months and liked it but cancelled just to get back to cooking our own meals. We just wanted a little break from meal planning. I really enjoyed only having to plan for three days out of the week instead of six. We eat out once.

In a few months we are going to try Green Chef. Same concept but even more healthy and with a Paleo option.

https://greenchef.com/home

We tried Hello Fresh this week and so far we really like it. There is plenty of food for two with big appetites. We have had leftovers with both meals prepped this week. They have a decent referral program if anyone wants to give it a go. That's the reason we tried it. You get $40 off a week and I get $20 off. Will post if there is any interest.

How long will they keep in the fridge? I mean, sometimes I may feel like chicken in the morning, but after a day at work, I may find myself wanting something different. If I decide I don't want to eat what they sent that day, how long will it keep in the fridge?

Post your referral. I may be interested.

Here you go.

Hi, you've been invited to experience cooking with HelloFresh. To get started, claim this $40 offer towards your first box of fresh ingredients and delicious recipes. Start your cooking adventure today by using this promo code at checkout: N92ENJ. Happy Cooking!
http://www.hellofresh.com/?c=N92ENJ

Last week we received a shrimp meal, chicken meal, and pork loin meal. The only indication of shelf life where stickers indicating to eat the shrimp first. I'd hazard a guess that shelf life is similar to what you buy in a grocery store. We received our box on Tuesday and ate the shrimp Wednesday night, pork loin Thursday night, and chicken breast Friday night.

My wife got a groupon deal for Gobble a few weeks ago and we are liking it. The difference between it and others are they all take 10 mins or less to prep.

I enjoy cooking, but with travel, work, kids, etc having these a few days a week is awesome. Food pretty good as well. Only complaint would be sometimes not enough of the protein. Plenty of the carb and veggie.

When we eat it with our kids I cook them another protein and we can all eat the rest of the meal.

Highly recommend if you're looking for fast.

Gobble looks fantastic! Sadly they don't yet deliver to our area. I decided to give Blue Apron a try. First box is arriving today. Comparison to follow.

I liked Blue Apron but my wife didn't like all the spices and seasonings. Plus I think she liked her simpler meals that she cooked and prepared. I also do macro counting so it's easier not to use them.

However, I'd go back to it if I had to. BA is great.

Got our first Blue Apron box today. Everything was packed nicely and looked fresh and ready to eat. Tonight's meal was Spicy Shrimp Spaghetti. I am not a big fan of shrimp but this stuff was good. Easy prep and clean up too. So far so good!

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Got our first Blue Apron box today. Everything was packed nicely and looked fresh and ready to eat. Tonight's meal was Spicy Shrimp Spaghetti. I am not a big fan of shrimp but this stuff was good. Easy prep and clean up too. So far so good!

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Had our first box delivered today and did the same meal. Turned out great - was delicious. Perfect amount for 2 people. Was surprised how much shrimp they included.

We're going to try the chicken curry tonight.

For those of you who've used these services for awhile, do you find you cook more on the off days? For those who no longer use it, do you find yourself going back to the recipes?

It seems like a really great idea for a new couple with little cooking skills as a way to learn to cook and master a few basic ideas.

I've got friends who use Hello Fresh in Midland. They have a hectic life so its convenient but they also say the produce and food is better than what they see at the store.

How was it?

Man this looks so awesome. But that price is just a tad too high to become a reagular thing for me.

I eat out a lot. And it kills me. Both in price and health.

Health of course is a nobrainer between the two but the cost of BA is just the same or even a little more expensive than my eating out bad habits. If they came down in price just a bit....I would be all over this.

Sucks to be living as a struggling college kid again.

I loved it but my husband was not a fan. The greens and grits were delicious!

You could cook a couple meals on Sunday and have a few dinners and lunches ready to go.

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For those of you who've used these services for awhile, do you find you cook more on the off days? For those who no longer use it, do you find yourself going back to the recipes?

It seems like a really great idea for a new couple with little cooking skills as a way to learn to cook and master a few basic ideas.

I've got friends who use Hello Fresh in Midland. They have a hectic life so its convenient but they also say the produce and food is better than what they see at the store.

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I have gone back and remade a few blue apron recipes. The website lets you look back at every recipe you've had delivered

Do any of these deliver in the B/CS area?

I'm pretty sure Hello Fresh and Blue Apron ship nationwide (Plated too, probably).

We both really liked it.

Am I ******ed or is there not a place to pick your five meals on the Hello Fresh website?