Have you been wondering whether Dinnerly is any good? Or maybe, how does Dinnerly compare to similar services such as Martha and Marley Spoon, Hello Fresh and Blue Apron?
Well, after trying my first Martha and Marley Spoon box and loving it, I wanted to see if a cheaper alternative meal kit delivery like Dinnerly would be just as good.
Dinnerly is owned by Marley Spoon as well, so they do seem to have a similar structure and process, but the menu and pricing differ to a certain degree.
Dinnerly has been dubbed as one of the most affordable food boxes in the meal delivery industry.
So, for most people, it’s undoubtedly an attractive meal delivery service especially for families who are budget conscious.
This post contains affiliate links. See full disclosure policy here.
But first, here is why we love meal kit delivery services:
- Convenience – All or most of your ingredients are delivered to your door, and you barely have to think about what to do next. Simply cook them using the instructions provided!
- Time-saving – Finding recipes you love and grocery shopping can feel ovwerwhelming when you have a busy schedule. Meal planning can be undoubtedly be a time suck for most people.
- Less food waste – Food waste is usually the result of poor meal planning and shopping. Meal kit delivery gives you pre-portioned pantry items and fresh product to cook. Goodbye food waste and associated guilt.
- Save money – Ever been to the supermarket armed with a shopping list only to find that your bill has doubled after buying on impulse unnecessarily? Well, it’s time to shop less frequently. Fewer trips to the supermarket usually means more money in your wallet.
Now that we have those bases covered, let’s get into this Dinnerly review.
Dinnerly Review: My Honest Review of The Cheapest Meal Kit Subscription
What is Dinnerly?
Dinnerly is a meal kit delivery service that offers fresh produce and pantry items needed for each recipe you select from their menu along with recipe instructions.
Almost all ingredients are provided with the exception of staples you would have in the kitchen such as salt, pepper, and garlic. You will always know what you need to have on hand before you select the meals just by looking at the recipes.
Dinnerly offer two food box sizes. You can choose from a two-person box, which serves 2 people 3 times a week, or a family box, which serves 4 people 3 times a week.
Click here to try Dinnerly US
Click here to try Dinnerly Australia
Is Dinnerly a subscription-based service?
Dinnerly is based on subscription with weekly debits, however, you won’t be tied to a contract. Each week, you can easily skip a meal kit delivery, pause your subscription, change your order or cancel any time.
This flexible subscription comes in handy when you are going away on vacation and won’t need to cook at home, or simply just want to do your own meal planning and cooking for a while.
How much does Dinnerly cost per week?
Depending on whether you decide to order the two-person box or family box, Dinnerly usually costs as low as $4.95 per meal (Australia) or $4.99 per meal (USA).
You can choose to order less (2 meals per week) or more (up to 4 meals per week). The more you order per week the cheaper it works out to be per serving.
Does Dinnerly offer a discount code or voucher?
Yes, you can get a shipping discount on your first order or get $15 off on both your first and second box. If you live in Australia, click here to get $15 off twice.
What are the pros and cons of Dinnerly?
In a rush? Here are the pros and cons of Dinnerly in a snapshot! Further down, I will review each meal from my first box in detail.
Benefits of Dinnerly subscription:
Tasty food – I have had more than a few meals delivered from a variety of meal kit delivery companies as well as prepared food delivery services, and I will admit Dinnerly meals taste just as good. The meals are simple but delicious as well.
Good quality – Overall, all ingredients were fresh upon delivery to my door. The meat was good quality (free-range chicken breasts and premium lamb) which is a plus and in line with our hunt for the best healthy food delivery service.
Storage and delivery – All ingredients were packed in an insulated box with the meats packaged separately to avoid food contamination. I was notified of my upcoming delivery via email the day before, which was sufficient notice for us.
Budget-friendly – I found Dinnerly to be the cheapest food delivery out there. Pricing starts at $4.95 per meal (in Australia) and as low as $4.99 per meal in the US. Click here to get a discount on your first two boxes.
Flexible / No Contracts – Skip meals by pausing subscription and delay your order whenever you want to do so. No hidden fees or charges.
No cancellation fees – Cancel anytime without having to pay fees or be tied to a contract of some sort.
See entire recipe before ordering – With Dinnerly, you can see exactly what the cooking will involve and what ingredients will be used before you select your meals.
This allows you to get mentally prepared and eliminates any doubts about what you will be cooking.
Downsides of Dinnerly:
Of course, the downsides also depend on what you value most and your personal preference.
My husband and I personally did not find these to be a big letdown. But I have to make mention to them in case you might find them to be an inconvenience.
So here goes.
No recipe cards – Unlike Marley Spoon, you won’t get cute recipe cards in your box, but you will get digital recipe cards.
Personally, I believe a downloadable recipe card is perfectly fine if it means enjoying cheaper meal kits (and better for the environment!).
Dinnerly keep everything super simple so that their food boxes stay budget friendly. So if you want the extra touches like hardcopy recipe cards, try Marley Spoon – read my review here.
Cooking required – Unlike prepared food delivery, ingredient-and-recipe kits, of course, require you to make time to cook. In saying so, the time and hassle saved meal planning and shopping at the supermarket is a definite plus.
My in-depth review of Dinnerly meals
Ordering the meal kit
I ordered my first box (selected 1x family box) by signing up on the Dinnerly website. The sign-up process was very similar to Marley Spoon, and I had to create an account, choose the recipes, then fill out delivery details.
Soon after that, I received an email confirmation stating the delivery date and login details.
Here is what I ordered:
Malaysian Chicken Curry with Toasted Peanuts
Lamb and Rosemary Pasta with Olives
Middle Eastern Beef Minute Steaks with Chunky Tomato Tabbouleh
Delivery timing and customer service
My first order arrived on time within which was within 10 days of ordering. The box was chilled and had frozen packs to keep meat and produce cool.
The box has all my ingredients for the three meals. And everything was packaged appropriately.
Again, as with Martha and Marley Spoon, I haven’t had to deal with customer service directly as there were no issues.
The cooking process
On day 2, I decided to cook the Malaysian Chicken Curry with Toasted Peanuts as our first meal from the box.
This meal took me approximately 30 minutes to whip up – a big plus after a long day. And the only thing I had to do (based on our taste) is to add fresh diced red chili. I love me some spice 🙂
So the curry was very mild… literally zero-level on the spice-o-meter (is that a word?) for someone that usually eats very spicy food.
But for those who don’t like their curry hot and spicy, then this dish is great as it is.
And for those that love it spicy, just add chili either while cooking or garnish with chili flakes to serve.
Day 2 – Middle Eastern Beef Minute Steaks with Chunky Tomato Tabbouleh
This meal was cooked on the 3rd day after delivery. I kept the meat in the fridge and it was good to cook. The whole family enjoyed the steaks (thankfully, I didn’t overcook the steaks!). So the steaks turned out great.
If you were to make this dish, I would advise using a little less the recommended red/white wine vinegar (1/4 cup instead of 1/3 cup).
Otherwise, it can be a little overpowering, but I’m sure that would depend on your taste as well. If you start small, you can always add more vinegar to your liking.
Day 3 – Lamb and Rosemary Pasta with Olives
This was yet another extremely simple dish. We chose pasta because that’s one of our family favorite dinner.
Although we do usually prefer beef over lamb in pasta, the kalamata olives and rosemary added a nice flavor boost to the elbow pasta.
Add the cheese, and your dinner is ready within 30 minutes or less.
The highlight of this meal was that there was plenty of leftovers. As you will see in the following photos, after dishing out 2 adult size portions, we were left with 2x adult portions and 4x servings for the kids.
We kept the leftovers in the fridge (and a couple in the freezer) to eat one lazy no-cooking kind of days 😉
Overall, all three meals were thoroughly enjoyed by our family, and we would definitely order again.
The highlight? Knowing that dinner is sorted and simply grabbing it out of the fridge and getting dinner ready in less than 30 minutes, feels amazing.
What kinds of food and recipes does Dinnerly deliver?
Dinnerly offers a line up of traditional and simple recipes (check out the current Dinnerly recipes in Australia here) and it will give you a really good idea of what to expect.
You have the option of making any box vegetarian at checkout. And there are also gluten-free meals as well as meals labeled kid-friendly for your convenience.
As you go through the recipes, you will see tags such as kid-friendly, healthy, dairy-free, vegetarian, no gluten added next to or under the image of each meal.
Can you cancel Dinnerly any time?
If you want to taste your first lot of meals before ordering some more, you can log in to your account to pause your subscription. Just make sure you do it before the next box is shipped out to you.
And yes, Dinnerly also allows you to cancel any time – without any hidden fees.
You may choose to re-commence your membership any time by logging back into your account.
How to order Dinnerly boxes?
To order your first meal, simply click here (your $15 off will be automatically applied with the next coupon code added to your second box). When you get to the page, select your plan (either Two-Person or Family Box).
You will be asked to fill out your delivery and account details, and the date you want your box to be delivered to your door. Then, you get to choose your recipes.
And that’s it!
You will receive an email confirmation of your order and login details to Dinnerly. Feel free to log in to your new Dinnerly account and change your preferences, delay or pause subscription or choose your meals for your next box.
Now it’s time to sit back and wait for your first box!
And that’s a wrap!
I hope this review has been helpful. If you are ready to try Dinnerly for yourself, be sure to get $15 off TWICE by clicking here (Australia only).
Having your meal kit delivered to your door is a little like Christmas. Enjoy it!
If you have any questions, let us know in the comment box below.
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