When you’re feeling frazzled, winding down at the end of a busy day, the last thing you want to do is dig through the freezer to figure out what to fix everyone for dinner. Or worse, make a trip to the grocery with kids in tow. That’s what makes the new Plated home meal delivery service so appealing. Select from their gourmet meals online, and they don’t deliver the meals, but the fresh ingredients you’ll need in the exact portions for the recipe.
Plated responsibly sources their ingredients, using local, seasonal produce as much as they can. They’ve partnered with groups like Sea to Table to make sure their fish is fresh and wild-caught when possible. While it’s not a diet program, the food is healthy and calorie counts are listed on each meal.
Plated’s chef-created meals are definitely on the gourmet side, like Mexican Veggie Tacos (shown at very top) or Spring Vegetable Tarts and Asian Skirt Steak with Papas Bravas. It’s not outrageously adventurous by any stretch, but it’s not what I’d typically fix at home either. (Only foodies will know about those fried potatoes and spicy sauce, a seriously amazing Spanish tapas staple.) I did however try the Basil Beef Bowl and it was really pretty yummy. Even my picky eaters gobbled up most of it.
The pictures looks good–if way more styled than my own dishes will come out–and the recipe cards are easy to understand. I feel confident that an average cook like me could attempt them and create something really tasty for my family.
Plated is basically an alternative to eating out or ordering takeout if you’re in a major city. With the meals ringing in around $15 a serving, it’s not cheap, though there are discounts if you purchase a membership plan.
We ordered four servings for our family of five and we had some leftovers. And the focus on health and portion control is great. Still, that’s a $60 meal that I still had to cook myself. Ordering in would be less than that! And even though the box is biodegradable, I felt a little guilty throwing so much packaging in the trash for all of those individual portions.
The food was great, though. Really great. So Plated is probably best for date nights at home when you don’t want to spend your time wrangling meals from scratch, for a shortcut that will impress a few dinner guests one night, or for something more homemade than takeout after the kids have gone to bed. More likely, it’s targeted towards singles without kids, or working parents who like to cook but don’t have time to plan meals or shop themselves.
If the price doesn’t faze you, then Plated is a perfect option. Meanwhile, I’ll try not to be jealous.
Check out Plated’s menu for your zip code and start enjoying healthy, gourmet meals at home this week.
