I’ll admit it: grabbing takeout for dinner has been my go-to meal solution for as long as I can remember. I mean, why not? It’s certainly convenient. It wasn’t until my boyfriend and I recently packed up a moving truck to start our new life together in Florida, that I truly absorbed how much this was costing us.
With all the expenses that come with setting up a new home, I realized it was time to explore our options, but neither of us were willing to give up yums to save a few bucks either. That’s when we decided to give Home Chef a try, and let me tell you - we’re never looking back. Here’s how their high-quality meals are making our bellies just as happy as restaurant food was, but saving us a ton in the process.
The membership is my secret to savings
I’ve never been big on budgeting, but it’s no mystery that saving money in one area will lead to more you can spend in others. My boyfriend and I were cooking a few meals here and there, but spending around $200 on takeout each week (yikes). For the two of us, four Home Chef meals costs $79.82 per week, which is a pretty significant savings, if you ask me. In just a month, we were taking back $480.32!
We went from greasy takeout cartons to delicious plated meals made from quality ingredients starting at $8.99 per serving. In Florida, you can barely find an appetizer for that cheap!
We got started by selecting our preferences, indicating if we had any food allergies or dietary restrictions, and then chose our meals from 30+ options (plus 18 extras). That’s larger than most restaurant menus, yet approachable enough to avoid decision fatigue. Home Chef made suggestions based on our prefs, but we have the freedom to decide for ourselves. Pro tip: the Black Pepper Steak Strips with garlic sesame sauce and rice is divine - an absolute must try.
As good as take-out, but fresher… and oh so better
One thing I can’t get over is the quality of Home Chef's ingredients. I’ve never loved browsing the meat section at the grocery store, so I’m enjoying not having to. I also really appreciate that every meat we’ve been sent is trimmed and clean. It’s like a sous chef did the prep for me, and I don’t have to deal with the cleanup.
Everything comes pre-portioned per meal, with easy-to-follow instructions. There are even images so I can mirror how to plate it beautifully. The presentation is one of my favorite parts of a restaurant meal, and that’s something takeout does not have going for it. Between that and the fact that we get to eat it fresh as soon as it’s ready—chef’s kiss!
Super convenient meets self-improvement
Clearly I’m not someone who’s savvy in the kitchen, but through the cooking I’ve done with Home Chef, I’m picking up some tricks. I get it now—it’s really satisfying to put a meal on the table that’s made by your own hands. The only part I don’t get is how and why people spend so much time shopping and chopping before the cooking part. The convenience of pre-planned meals and pre-portioned ingredients that are delivered to my home is unmatched.
More points go to Home Chef for their user-friendly app that makes meals easy to select or edit, and deliveries simple to skip. It’s also a comfort to know that they have a customer satisfaction guarantee*.
*Source: US Grocery Benchmark Study, April 2020, Market Force Information, Inc.
This is my life with Home Chef
For so long, I have looked forward to dinner being delivered. But it was a meal someone else made, and all I had to do was devour it. Turns out I still get excited about food deliveries, but this time they’re the high-end, pre-portioned ingredients from Home Chef that I get to use to make my own delicious meals. The best part? We’re $480 richer at the end of the month, and we can use that to decorate our new home. Even better, right now Home Chef is offering 18 free meals plus free shipping on your first box. I never thought I’d say this, but… I finally love cooking more than take-out.
