8.8
EveryPlate
Score Breakdown
Taste/results 8Value 10Ease of recipes 9Recipe variety 8Healthiness 7
But is it any good? I mean, all this wallet-friendly talk doesn’t mean too much if the food is bad.
The more meals per week you pick, the cheaper they get.
Signing up for EveryPlate is simple: First, you’ll plunk in an address and contact information and then select a plan (number of meals) and payment option. For plans, you can choose either three, four or five meals per week with either two or four servings per meal. The more meals you pick, the cheaper the per-serving price gets.
You’ll find plenty of comfort food on the weekly menu.
EveryPlate is big on comfort food. On any given weekly menu you’ll find options for meatloaf, pork chops, chicken pot pie, tacos and pasta recipes. Sides are equally hearty, including lots of mashed potatoes, roasted carrots, white rice and noodles. There are a few — but not many — plant-based options per week, and you won’t find many trendy ingredients or superfoods in EveryPlate meal kits. The recipes were all mostly familiar to me, although the culinary team will mix things up with a hoisin (Japanese barbecue sauce) glaze on an otherwise traditional meatloaf or a sweet apricot and Dijon sauce to liven up a chicken dish.
EveryPlate has only a few seafood or steak options (one or two per week) and most of the ones available are considered “premium” and cost an extra $3 per serving. There are really only lunch and dinner meal kits and no breakfast or snack options, although you can select a protein pack of chicken breasts and ground beef for meal planning.
How easy are EveryPlate meal kits?
Fixings for hoisin meatloaf ready to go.
Besides being the cheapest meal kit service, which is EveryPlate’s biggest differentiator, it is also one of the simplest and most straightforward with simple recipes that take under 30 minutes to make. There are also only 15 or so menu selections every week which, for me, is enough to find new and interesting recipes without feeling overwhelmed the way I did with other services I’ve tried.
Who is EveryPlate good for?
EveryPlate is perfect for anyone looking for a boost to their cooking routine, learn to cook or inject some new recipes into their rotation without breaking the bank. Busy people, too, since it’s also a time-saver, eliminating trips to the store as well as time spent ruminating over what to make. If you like comfort foods and don’t mind a few carbs, EveryPlate has them in spades but there are some healthier options, too.
Who EveryPlate meal kits are not so good for
EveryPlate recipes are on the simple side so I wouldn’t recommend it for very experienced chefs looking to further hone their skills. There are also fewer “healthy” options and even fewer plant-based meals on EveryPlate, so I also wouldn’t recommend this meal kit service for vegans and vegetarians. As a way to keep prices low, EveryPlate doesn’t cater to diet plans either such as keto, paleo or low-sugar.
EveryPlate pricing
The meatloaf was my favorite of the recipes but all of EveryPlate’s meal kits passed the ultimate taste test.
Sweet potato and pepper quesadilla with fresh salsa and chipotle sour cream: This was a perfect hearty lunch, especially when you feel like you’ve been eating too much meat. The fresh salsa made it for me and I’ll put sour cream on anything.
Spicy umami pork chops with ginger rice and roasted carrots: Another very simple-yet-flavorful dinner. The hoisin and ponzu made good on the promise of umami and the fresh ginger made the rice really pop.
Final verdict on EveryPlate
As someone who reviews meal kits for a living, I often feel like I’m splitting hairs trying to find the nuance but with this one the distinction was very clear: EveryPlate is the most affordable meal kit service but still delivered very enjoyable recipes that were both interesting and satisfying.
While EveryPlate turns down the gourmet dial just slightly, the meals I tried were all very solid and didn’t look or taste “budget.” At just five bucks a serving, I also felt like I was getting a genuinely great deal, and that’s probably because I was. If you’ve never tried a meal kit before and want to see if it’s a good fit, I would absolutely recommend EveryPlate. (In fact, I just recommended it to my sister and her family over Thanksgiving). EveryPlate is low-cost, low-risk and fully delicious.
