FreshDirect Reviews - Prepared Meal Delivery Reviews

As their name implies, their meals are delivered fresh, but they did recently add some frozen meals. They are good, but not as good as the fresh meals. If they had only frozen meals on the menu they would lose a star in our ratings. Even with a lost star, they are still better than most other companies.

I wanted to try this traditional favorite and see if it was going to be as good as the boxed mac and cheese, or the frozen mac and cheese one could get in the supermarket. I found this to be creamy, as advertised, but not more than that.

This meal comes from their "Sides in a Snap" section, so it usually is only a meal for kids. My kids weren't impressed as it really didn't much in the way of flavor. The noodles were tender, the sauce was somewhat on the short side. I felt like Stouffers Mac and Cheese would be a better choice for less money.

-Morris Pelphner

Lobster ravioli is one of my favorite appetizers to order when I go out to eat. I just couldn't wait to open one up and see if it had real lobster meat or that plasticly-fake lobster meat. I was happy to see little chunks of the real thing, including some whole pieces of claw meat!

The sauce was equally as impressive. It tasted like a true lobster bisque, just thicker. The portion size is very close to what I normally get as an appetizer. Six ravioli, for a few dollars more, would make me a loyal customer of this dish. Until then, it's just an appetizer. But a top notch-one, and I would order it again.

-Morris Pelphner

I was very impressed with this prepared meal. Reheating is "stupid" easy, and the unique microwaveable container seems to steam the contents. What you get is a delicious risotto that is hard to believe came out of a microwave.

All of the components in the meal tasted fresh and it is easy to see the care and hand preparation that went into this meal. The asparagus was cooked to a perfect al dente, the mushrooms were plentiful, and the portion size was not overwhelming large, but certainly enough for a good lunch for light dinner. This is a great vegetarian meal I would order again, and again. At $8, I thought the meal was an exceptional value too.

-Chef Aldo Piquanti

My reviews are based on the needs of family caretakers, seniors, and the elderly, so my reviews could be a little different than the other fine writers here. I had some frozen peas added to this plate, so it was a complete and balanced meal.

This is the best lasagna we ever had from a meal delivery company, and we've had most of them, if not all. It is not even a close contest. The sauce is excellent, the noodles are perfect, and again, you can see the attention to detail that went into making this meal. At $9 I thought it was a good value but you may want to get two if you have a big appetite. We've paid a lot more for a lot less.

-Craig Caldwell

This is a meal that makes me really like FreshDirect. Countless numbers of sons and daughters send their parents a holiday meal when they can be there themselves. Most prepared meal delivery services see this as an opportunity to rake in some bucks either by price or quality. Here you get real ham, not deli slices like other services, and three traditional sides. All for $8 too.

Of course, you could also enjoy it as a Sunday meal. Reheating is a delight, there is little to clean up, and the quality of the food is excellent.

-Craig Caldwell

When it came time for us to review this meal I claimed it myself, as I am French. Of course, there was some bickering, but I still got to review this meal, as I always do when we try it.

If you cook, you know the amount of time it takes to make the beef for this meal, not to mention the effort as a lot of has to be done by hand. Any money-saving shortcut can only produce an inferior result. FreshDirect gets my culinary respect for creating this meal, year after year, at the quality and price they do it for. There is no way you should checkout from this website without having at least one of these in your shopping cart!

-Chef Aldo Piquanti

There used to be three or four of these Enchilada meals on the menu, and now this is the only one to remain. All of them were superb, if not better than that. Sure two of these may not qualify as enough food to hold you over, and sure there are no vegetables to make this a balanced meal, but the ingredients and culinary skill that goes into making these make me wonder how thgey can do it for just $8 each. 

Growing up in my family, sauce was considered a beverage, so as an expert I can honestly tell you all of the sauces for the Enchilada meals were home runs, including this one!

-Nicole DiLayne

This was an exceptional meal that tasted as close to homemade as I have ever had from a meal delivery company. I wanted to show their microwave packaging too, for anyone that might consider using the meals as a lunch they would take to the office. These are best microwave trays I have used, and they heat the meals perfectly. I know Craig has a bit of an issue with an occasionally burnt meatball bottom, but I think it reminds me of homemade.

What is there to say? Delicious homemade meatballs, a wonderful sauce, perfectly prepared al dente rigatoni, and a generous portion size. You really can't leave their website without adding this meal to your shopping cart. In my opinion, it is as good as prepared meal delivery gets.

-Nicole DiLayne

Bolognese comes under my jurisdiction because here in the States, any tomato sauce with meat is called a Bolognese, and it such an insult to the people of Bologna going back to the 1700s. Technically a Ragu, the sauce should be cooked long and slow in a dutch oven with bacon, carrots, and milk. 

And that is why this lasagna is very good. Okay, it is not authentic, especially with Turkey, but it is much better than the American version. The lasagna stands well, and all the flavors come together for a meal that would hard to beat at $9. I recently had a more significant, but a terrible representation of lasagna at a pizza parlor for almost double that. Buy two of these and get some garlic bread!

-Chef Aldo Piquanti

Our team is divided on this meal, with very strong opinions. Chef Piquanti says it may be the worst clam sauce he has ever had. Nicole doesn't look at the dish as a recreation of a classic, but as an interpretation of one, and recommends it. I see both of their points. The clams are baby clams. They come in a can at about a penny each. There might be five clams here. The sauce isn't much of a sauce at all, it certainly won't cover the pasta, and it has some hot spicy tang. The pasta is fresh and perfect. Both Aldo and Nicole are correct in their opinions; I liked it for what it was more than I didn't like for what it wasn't. I hope you try it and let us know how you feel!

-Morris Pelphner

This is one of my favorite prepared meals from here. I love anything "sustainable," so that is a bonus too. What amazes me about this dish is how much quality goes into a meal you are going to reheat in a microwave at this price, and it will all come out perfectly.

The salmon is generous for the cost of the meal. The string beans taste like they were harvested from a local farm this morning, and the Saffron Rice is divine. Saffron is the most expensive spice in the world, and this dish is not lacking in flavor. I've have already reordered this more times than I care to admit to, and I think you will too!

-Nicole DiLayne

It was hard to give a thumbs up to any component of this dish. First, I followed the microwave instructions precisely as were printed and my ravioli was all crunchy overcooked. Yuck. I also didn't get any of the Roasted Pearl Onions that were mentioned in the description, and the portion size is small for a meal. 

What I could taste from inside the ravioli didn't connect to any of my taste memories of Artichoke or Ricotta, and the Verdant Spinach listed in the description was bland. By the way, verdant means green in French. Is it really necessary to call spinach green? I did one bite of strong lemon in the sauce, which was refreshing, but not enough to save this meal from my do not order again list.  

-Nicole DiLayne

It is funny to me how the guys hear the words "Vegan" or "Vegetarian," and I automatically get assigned the meal to review. Vegetarian cooking isn't about heating up vegetables and calling it a meal. It is about making a meal so good anyone, on any diet, would want to have it again.

The pasta on the dish, as is all the pasta they make, is perfect. The sauce is a classic NY tomato sauce with basil, olive oil, and a hint of garlic. It's the meatballs that make this dish gourmet because of the culinary skill that went into making them. However they were made, they do not taste like vegan meatballs, and are very good. Once again, another above average meal that is delicious and vegetarian. 

-Nicole DiLayne

This meal is nothing short of a masterful gourmet dish, and I use the word "gourmet" to describe the chef's culinary skill. Shrimp lovers will enjoy the four large-size shrimp, and perhaps think that is not enough to qualify as a meal, and they are right. But one had to think of this dish in the way one would appreciate the sound of a symphony compared to the play of a clarinet.

The use of spices and how flavors are passed around your mouth is the joy of this dish. First, you get the flavor of heat, which not too hot from the shrimp. While your brain is still processing these spices a new, and cooling sensation comes into play from the yogurt, and then your tongue gets a divine bath of Cilantro before getting finished with the rest of the spices as your bite goes down your throat. It is quite a fantastic culinary experience you should not hesitate to try and well worth $10.

-Morris Pelphner

Before I review a prepared meal of this nature, I like to define what the dish is supposed to be so we both know if the Chef recreated the recipe accurately. We should find large pieces of chicken, previously marinated in an orange spiced curry sauce. Historically an Indian dish, it is considered the national dish in England. But one of the joys of this dish is that there are no standard preparations for it, similar to the American meatloaf or macaroni and cheese. In this version, I did not taste that the chicken was marinated, but it was certainly plentiful given the price of the meal. The Tikka Masala sauce was good, but Brits hoping for a taste of home would feel disappointed with the lack of sauce. The Vermicelli Pilaf was very good and reheated without issue, but traditionalists would probably have preferred rice. However, Americans who have not tried this prepared meal should ought to. Think of an Indian-spiced version of your favorite Chicken Parmesan meal. It is entirely on par to that, and a good value at $9.

-Chef Aldo Piquanti

When we review vegetarian or vegan meals, they have to appeal to all people, not just Vegetarians, and Vegans. A prepared meal is assigned a thumbs up, or a thumbs down based on one deciding question: "Would I order this meal again at the same price?" Given these parameters, I would always order the Fresh Direct Beef and Turkey Bolognese Lasagna before I would order this version of it. But in my answer, I do say I would order it, so it gets a thumbs up.

The sauce is delicious, if not exceptional. The spinach is not watery, which would ruin a meal like this, and the cheese is flavorful and abundant enough to know you are eating a lasagna. Good Job!

-Nicole DiLayne

The Turkey Kale and Quinoa Meatballs were pretty tasty and moist. Bonus points right there because Turkey Meatballs are often dry and flavorless. The side grilled vegetables were passable, even the fennel, and the White Beans were good too.

This would make a good office meal for times when you wanted to eat a little lighter. It's not a diet meal, but the 29 gram of protein should knock out any afternoon hunger cravings you might have.

-Nicole DiLayne

This is a delicious twist on traditional macaroni and cheese. The Berkshire Bacon are tiny, almost unnoticeable bits that do not bring much to the meal, but there is bacon flavoring, probably from the fat. The pasta is tender beyond what you would expect from a frozen meal. They have mastered reheating pasta in a microwave with their unique microwave trays. There were just a few bits of Roasted Tomatoes, but the Butternut Squash was well represented. A Good meal for $8.

-Nicole DiLayne

Many of you have gone out to dinner at your Italian restaurant and noticed this fantastic dish being served to someone at a nearby table. "What is that?" You ask your waiter with your mouth watering. "It's our Chicken Marsala," he says proudly, sticking his chest out as he says it. That is probably how most of us starting eating this classic meal, I know I did, and this one from FreshDirect is nothing like it. It doesn't have two thinly pounded and lightly fried chicken cutlets gently resting in a divine Marsala sauce covered almost entirely with perfectly sauteed sliced mushrooms. Does it come with a side pasta? I don't even remember. This version is lacking sauce and a lot of it, but there are enough traditional flavors there to remind you of the perfect one you would pay double or triple for. A good office lunch for $8.

-Nicole DiLayne

I think FD should have labeled what kind of BBQ this is on their website. It's not Texas, as they would never shred their brisket. In fact, the only place I know that would shred brisket and have a strong vinegar flavor in their BBQ sauce is in North Carolina. That's the type you get here. It's all good, and the cornbread is exceptional. I even ate the kale, which might be a first time for me.

I just prefer Texas for Southern BBQ Brisket more than this style, but if you love this type of BBQ, you'll enjoy this meal, and the portion size is very good for $13.

-Chef Aldo Piquanti

 As the name says, this is a burrito with rice and refried rice. You can see from the picture how much of each is filed in the burrito. I love burritos and especially the ones FD has offered customers over the years, but you might do better just eating a can of refried beans and save yourself $5.

However, the name says Spicy Rice, which it was, although not too hot, Beans, which were there, wrapped in a burrito. From that viewpoint, FD nailed it. It also reheat surprising well from frozen too.

-Morris Pelphner

Calling this a Shepherd's Pie is a cold slap in the face to Shepherds worldwide. The traditional recipe calls for lamb as the meat. If beef is used it is a Cottage Pie. But when FD used "Textured Vegetable Crumbles," which they renamed "Ground Veggie Protein," I feel like it should be called something else. "A Really Bad Pie" comes to mind.

I understand and appreciate the attempt to create a vegetarian meal, and maybe vegetarian's would liove this, but after having just a few bites, mine found its way to the trash can. 

-Chef Aldo Piquanti

FreshDirect services the NYC area, but they just opened service to Philadelphia. If you live in any of these areas, I highly recommend you check them out. The first thing I like about them is that their prepared meals are all based on recipes of established area chefs, such as Michael Stark, Floyd Cardoz, Terrance Brennan, and Tina Bourteau. The FreshDirect kitchen then produces these meals for delivery to your home.