Have you considered making use of meal solutions when you don’t feel like cooking or need a break but want to stay on track with your eating? The meal preparation landscape is expanding quickly to keep up with consumer demands and the latest nutrition trends. These meal solutions may help you bridge gaps with busy schedules, meal planning challenges or lack of motivation in the kitchen.
We took a deep dive into the different meal solutions available in Victoria and share our honest thoughts as registered dietitians. Read on to find out which ones(s) you may want to try!
P.S. Be sure to check out our review for Vancouver’s Ready-to-Eat Meal Solutions as well.
Ready to Eat Meals
First, We took a deep dive to review Victoria‘s top ready-to-eat and ready-to-heat meal kit solutions. These options may be suitable for you if you have limited kitchen space or on-the-go or you just prefer skipping any cooking altogether. Be sure to note our dietitian’s favorite and ordering tips under each one to get the most bang for your buck! Scroll down to see Victoria’s ready-to-cook solutions!
Based on 31 Google Reviews
Subscription-based?
Order as needed or 5% off for subscriber. You need to place at least 2 orders before you are able to cancel the subscription.
Minimum Order
Must meet $70.00 minimum for each delivery day.
Meal Offerings from Balanced Meal Prep
Balanced Meal Prep offers 3 different plans – Shred, gain and maintain meals. Breakfast, salads, health snacks, entrees and bulk (extra meats). You can build your custom meals by choosing your own protein, carbs and veggies. Ingredients, Calories, Carbs, Protein and Fat are listed for each meal and you can pick extra or double protein options.
Delivery zones in BC
Victoria BC only. Pick up available in their Victoria location (Crossfit Lolo – 884 Attree Ave, Victoria, BC, V9B 0A6). Pick up and delivery available every Weds and Sunday.
Cost of Balanced Meal Prep
Delivery fees based on mileage.
The meals average around $17 for regular portion, $20 for extra protein and $23 for double protein – reasonable pricing for a balanced meal.
PROs and CONs of Balanced Meal Prep from a Dietitian’s perspective
PROS :
Free 30 mins consult to discuss how they can work for you and ask questions. There’s a filter to avoid certain food item : Soy, Dairy, Tree Nuts, Eggs, Fish. The nutrition facts updates to account for extra or double protein.
CONS:
The website does not explain what are the criteria for each category (shred, gain and maintain) and does not have many pictures of the food/meals.
The meals have such a wide range of calories and macros :
- gain : 470-650kcal, 62-95g CHO, 8-14g FAT
- maintain : 400-550kcal, 30-75g CHO, 20-50g PRO, 8-24g FAT
- shred : 300-500kcal, 30-60g CHO, 20-50g PRO, 8-13g FAT
It would be nice to see further breakdown of the their food such as fiber, sodium, saturated fats.
What we would order from Balanced Meal Prep:
-
Fajita Tofu with extra protein - Shred
-
Turkey Hash- Gain
-
Hearty Winter Salad - Maintain
Dietitian tips for ordering from Balanced Meal Prep:
Calculate your macro needs and order based on your needs. Add in an extra serving of fruit or vegetable with the meals. Check out their Instagram for photos of the food!
Based on 129 Google Reviews
Where do FreeBeets deliver in BC?
Freebeets deliver to Greater Victoria, Duncan, Cowichan Valley, Ladysmith, Nanaimo. You can also pick up your meals at their location in downtown Victoria.
Average cost per person per meal:
$15 – 20 per serving. There’s a minimum of 6 meals requirement per order and a one-time $20 subscription fee if you choose to subscribe. You save about 10% on a subscription.
What meals does FreeBeets offer?
Freebeets have a large variety of plans – Vegetarian Plan, Healthy Lifestyle Plan, Eat Clean, Get Lean Plan, Hearty Meal Plan. They also have a custom meal plan option where you can build your own, which allows you to choose from many different meals.
These are fully prepared meals, so they do come at a higher price point because all the work is done for you. No need to cook, prep and/or look at a recipe.
A dietitian’s review on Freebeets:
We love the specific breakdown of macronutrients (Calories, Protein, Carbs, Fats) for each meal selection so it can be really beneficial for those trying to follow specific macronutrient targets. Although most of their meals do appear to focus on adequate protein (~20-35g of protein in each meal), their vegetarian/vegan plans provide only ~8g of protein in some meals so you may have to add in additional proteins.
We are not too sure how they group their meal plans – ie. what are the criteria of each of their meal plans for the specific goals (ie. weight loss, performance, healthy lifestyle) they are advertising. We would love some more insights into how these meals fit into the specific plans.
Based on 145 Google Reviews
Where does Refire Kitchen deliver in BC?
There is delivery available anywhere in Victoria, and they allow you to choose a delivery window on either Tuesday to Saturday as the delivery dates. In store shopping also available on most days at their 3 locations.
Average cost per person per meal:
$7-15 per serving. $15-25 delivery fees.
What meals do Refire Kitchen offer?
A few selections available for either entree style meals such as local chicken or pizzas with local ingredients. They also offer soups, salads and desserts. The meals come fresh or frozen and ready to be reheated in the oven.
A Dietitian’s review on Refire Kitchen:
While they do have a range of meal options available, the website itself is hard to navigate. They seem to offer mostly restaurant type and heavier meals (ie. lasagna, mac and cheese, pizza, butter chicken, meatloaf, chili). The meals are mostly carb or meat heavy and low in vegetables. It seems like there’s not much difference than ordering take out from a restaurant besides that you can get them in bulk sizes.
A great thing about this company is that you can keep it in the freezer for when you need it. We like offering this to our clients because you may never know when you need a quick meal, and this allows you to keep some quick meals on hand to use as you’d like.
This meal delivery option is more suited for people who needs ready-to-eat meals or catering options for a party and not so much your day to day meals and the health-conscious group. Their key selling point is really their convivent options available.
Based on 43 Google Reviews
Where does Urban Forage deliver?
Local delivery anywhere in Victoria. There may be an added cost for local deliveries. They typically deliver Tues or Sat.
Average cost per serving per meal:
$10-20 per serving. Delivery is free on orders over $100 and $8 on orders under $100. No minimum order.
What meals do Urban Forage offer:
Urban Forage offers a range of entrees, pizzas, soups, sides and appies and more. They do not have a huge selection of meals available but offer a few vegetarian options. The meals come fully prepared and do not require any prep.
A Dietitian’s Review on Urban Forage:
Many meals resemble restaurant take outs. The meals are mostly carb or protein heavy and low in vegetables but they do come at a great convenience. We also can’t find detailed nutrition information on their site. They do provide a list of ingredients on their meals, and try to use local options when available but they do not have any nutrition facts tables available on their website.
This meal delivery option is suitable for people who are looking to have some ready-to-eat meal options at hand and may not be suitable for day-to-day may not be suitable for your day-to-day meal substitutions.
Ready to Cook Meals
We also took a deep dive to review Victoria‘s top ready-to-cook meal kit solutions. These options may be suitable for you if you are needing some help with meal planning but are opened to doing some cooking! These meals typically require less than 30 mins of your time and can be very helpful to try new ingredients and even learn a new cooking skill, especially helpful when you are feeling like you’re stuck in a rut with your meal planning.
Based on 8 Google Reviews
Where does Local Urban Bites deliver in BC?
You have to order by Midnight Wednesday for Delivery on Sunday between noon – 7:30pm.
They deliver to all areas of the Capital Regional District in Vancouver Island: Central Saanich, Colwood, Esquimalt, Highlands, Langford, Metchosin, North Saanich, Oak Bay, Saanich, Sidney, Victoria, View Royal, Sooke and Mill Bay.
Average cost per person per meal:
$10.70 – 13.12 per serving. Subscribe to save 5% on your orders. Minimum order is $78.72 for 3 meals on a 2-person plan.
What meals does Local Urban Bites offer?
They offer 2 different plan styles – a 2 person plan and a family plan. You choose 3 meal options each week, get the ingredients and cook them yourself. Recipes are provided on their website.
A dietitian’s review on Local Urban Bites:
We love the local, fresh ingredients but their delivery times may be too limited for some people. It doesn’t appear that they offer deliveries outside of Sundays. Just a fun side note for our Victoria locals – We love that Local Urban Bites uses Local, seasonal ingredients. If you enjoy supporting local, this may be a great choice.
This meal kit option may not be suitable for people with food allergies, celiac disease and/or other dietary requirements. Although they do have many vegan and vegetarian options each week. They do not provide any specific nutrition information for their meals which we find odd most other meal kit services do provide nutrition info upfront – as per their FAQ “Since the amount of oil, salt, pepper and size of certain ingredients is variable, we are unable to provide you with an exact nutrition breakdown for each meal.”
While their meals do appear generally quite healthy and we do love that they offer some vegetarian options, we would love to see basic nutrition info included so people can make an informed decision in choosing their meals according to their nutrition needs.
What we would order from Local Urban Bites :
-
We would love to try their vegetarian or vegan meal options
Dietitian tips for ordering from Local Urban Bites:
Incorporate at least 1 vegan or vegetarian option each week. Check out their database of recipes to re-create your favorites anytime!
Based on 847 Google Reviews
Where does Fresh Prep deliver in BC?
They have quite a large delivery area available throughout BC, and includes Victoria Island as well as Nanaimo, Comox Valley and Duncan.
Average cost per person per meal:
Starts at $11.30 per serving. Minimum order is $59 each week. It is a subscription based service, meaning you cannot just do a one-time order. You can easily skip a week or pause your account online.
What meals do Fresh Prep offer?
You can select between 2-5 meals a week, for 2-4 people. They offer a variety of options such as Family friendly, Vegetarian, Meat + Fish Or a “premium” option. If you’re a single person living alone, you can still choose the 2 person option, and take the leftovers for the next day.
This is a meal kit delivery, meaning they send you all the ingredients and the recipe cards, and you cook it in under 30 minutes. They also offers ready-to-eat meals as well as 150+ items, from sides to groceries, that you can add on to your meal kits each week.
A Dietitian’s Review on Fresh Prep:
Fresh prep is pretty well known for their fresh ingredients and a local meal kit services from Vancouver BC. You can cater your meals to what works for you and your family, and they do have some tasty vegetarian options if you’re trying to increase your intakes of plant-based proteins. Easy, and ready in under 30 minutes.
We also love that their kit comes in a reusable cooler bag and many recipes comes in reusable containers (the Zero Waste Kit) – much less plastic and a much more convenient packaging compared to other meal kits we have tried.
Fresh Prep cannot guarantee the complete absence of food allergens so it may not be a suitable option for people with severe food allergies.
*As a Fresh Prep referrer, we may earn from qualifying purchases.*
Conclusion
It can be useful to know about various options and what the different companies provide. Sometimes, we need a quick, pre cooked meal option for when we don’t have the prep time. Having pre- cooked meals or a ready-to-cook meal kit around can decrease our chances of eating out which can save time, and allow you to make healthier choices.
As dietitians, we love providing our clients with different options that fit their unique lifestyle and goals. If you are needing a personalized assessment or work with us to achieve your nutrition goals, book an online consultation today!
Add a comment